Your Guide to Boston’s Top 50 Restaurants in 2019
Photo by Brian Samuels Photography
To everything there is a season—especially in dining. Ingredients shift to reflect what’s fresh. Menus change with the weather. (Goodbye, summer salads. Hello, soups and stews!) And when it comes to our annual list of the 50 top restaurants in Boston, we see a similar evolution: Some star chefs who once helped define the city’s dining scene are no longer, or only sparingly, represented. (Wherefore art thou, Michael Schlow?) Meanwhile, a new generation of culinary innovators—those who cut their teeth working under the old guard—are finally coming into their own.
But don’t get sentimental; this is a great time for local diners, as Boston’s top restaurants embrace the future with the same passion once reserved for celebrating the city’s history. Our number one pick, for instance, places a fine-dining restaurant, where one might expect white tablecloths, alongside a casual brewery; the list rounds out with a contemporary take on traditional communal feasts. And in between? Every spot reflects a unique point of view—a perspective on food that is all its own. Diners want that. We demand it. In 2019, cooking technically good food is no longer enough.
Times are changing and so is Boston. Here are the restaurants setting the pace.
Pansotti with goat cheese is among the handmade pastas at SRV, a Venetian-style hot spot in the South End. / Photo by Morgan Ione Yeager
How Did We Pick the Best Restaurants of 2019?
You might be surprised by some of this year’s picks.
At Tasting Counter, guests get a front-row seat to chef Peter Ungár’s culinary magic. / Photo by Peter van der Warker
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Photo by Diana Levine
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