First Dates

Zurito is a Basque restaurant in Beacon Hill with pintxos and an excellent wine list.

Saltie Girl is an excellent seafood restaurant in Back Bay with a fun bar.

Carmelina’s is one of those rare restaurants that make us reevaluate everything we thought we knew about what constitutes a great meal.

Parla is the perfect place to go when things are getting a tad too predictable at your favorite bar.

This casual spot is the perfect middle ground between date night and a lazy afternoon cocktail with old friends.

We can’t believe we’re saying this about a restaurant in the North End, but The Red Fox is kind of sexy.

Dakzen is a counter-service place in Davis Square that makes great Thai street noodles.

Martsa on Elm is a casual Tibetan place in Davis Square.

Eating at The Grotto in Beacon Hill feels like dining inside of a candlelit cubby—you’ll snack on good Italian, French, and American dishes in a room that’s too dark for photos.

Drink some wine and share some snacks at Moon Bar, a Back Bay spot that's better than its sister restaurant, Mooncusser.

Bar Vlaha is serving up some of the most authentic Greek food in Brookline.

Mida's new East Boston location has excellent pizza and waterfront views.

Picco is a South End spot that does two very important things - beer and pizza - very well.

Puritan & Co. is casual restaurant in Inman Square with an exciting menu of New England based food.

The lobster rolls at Mare Oyster Bar in the North End is one of the best in Boston.

Moona is a Mediterranean restaurant in Inman Square serving a variety of small plates.

La Morra is an Italian restaurant in Brookline with excellent small plates and pastas.

Ittoku is a Porter Square izakaya inside a windowless mall, and it’s better and way more fun than you expect a restaurant in a windowless mall to be.

Barcelona is a good tapas spot in the South End.

Chalawan is a Southeast Asian restaurant in Porter Square that reinforces the idea that Porter Square is secretly one of our best food neighborhoods.

Carrie Nation is a restaurant and cocktail bar in Downtown Boston. It does one of those thing much better than the other.

Better Sorts is a Downtown Boston cocktail bar with great cocktails, trippy deer portraits on the wall, and couches to take it all in.

Fat Baby is a sushi place in South Boston where the focus less on the sushi and more on the fun.

Loco Taqueria is a really crowded and fun taco bar in South Boston.

Ilona is an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant in the South End. It’s a beautiful spot filled with beautiful South End people, and the food is great.