City/Town Recommendations #14

This is my fourteenth post of a planned series noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. This time I am touching on a few different cities and towns, including Somerville, Waltham, and Wellesley. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my website.

Somerville

Restaurants:

Dali
415 Washington St.
Somerville, MA
Phone: (617) 661-3254
(Excellent Spanish Tapas and Sangria. Great ambiance and very romantic spot)

Gargoyles on the Square
219 Elm Street
Somerville, MA
Phone: (617) 776-5300
(Excellent American cuisine with Asian influences. Very good brunch.)

When Pigs Fly
378b Highland Ave.
Somerville, MA
Phone: (617) 776-0021
(Very good bread bakery with lots of diverse choices)

Taza Chocolate
561 Windsor Street
Somerville, MA
Phone: (617) 623-0804
(Excellent artisan chocolate maker)

Waltham

Restaurants:

Il Capriccio
888 Main St.
Waltham, MA
Phone: (781) 894-2234
(Excellent Italian cuisine with a killer wine list)

Wine Stores:

Gordon's Fine Wines and Liquors
894 Main Street
Waltham, MA
Phone: 781-893-1900
(Very good wine store with frequent tasting events)

Wellesley

Bakery:

Quebrada Baking Co.
272 Washington St.
Wellesley, MA
Phone: (781) 237-2111
(Very good bakery with exceptional Snickerdoodles)

City/Town Recommendations #13

This is my thirteenth post of a planned series noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. This time I am touching on a few different cities and towns, including Natick, Needham, Newton Lower Falls, Salem and Tewksbury. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my website.

Natick

Restaurants:

Minado
1282 Worcester Rd.
Natick, MA
Phone: 508-647-0495
(Good all-you-can-eat Japanese, sushi, seafood buffet)

Needham

Restaurants:

Petit Robert Bistro
45 Chapel Street
Needham, MA
Phone: (781) 559-0532
(Excellent French bistro)

Spiga Trattoria Italiana
18 Highland Circle
Needham, MA
Phone: (781) 449-5600
(Excellent Italian cuisine. Superb bread pudding)

Newton Lower Falls

Wine Stores:

Lower Falls Wine Co.
2366 Washington Street (Rt. 16)
Newton Lower Falls, MA
Phone: (617) 332-3000
(Excellent wine story with great selection and service)

Salem

Wine Stores:

Salem Wine Imports
32 Church St.
Salem, MA
Phone: 978-741-9463
(Very good boutique wine store)

Restaurants:

Fresh Taste of Asia
118 Washington Street
Salem, MA
Phone: (978) 825-1388
(Very good Asian food including sushi)

Tewksbury

Restaurants:

Kyoto
1487 Main St.
Tewksbury, MA
Phone: (978) 863-9889
(Good Japanese cuisine and hibachi steakhouse)

City/Town Recommendations #12

This is my twelfth post of a planned series noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. This time I am touching on a few different cities and towns, including Concord, Malden, Melrose, and Middleton. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my website.

Concord

Wine Stores:

The Concord Cheese Shop
29 Walden Stree
Concord, MA
Phone: (978) 369-5778
(Very good wine shop which also sells gourmet cheeses)

Farfalle Italian Market
26 Concord Crossing
Concord, MA
Phone: 978-369-2900
(Very good wines, mostly Italian, plus it is an Italian grocery store and cafe)

Restaurants:

La Provence
105 Thoreau St.
Concord, MA
Phone: (978) 371-7428
(Very good French cafe and bakery)

Bedford Farms Ice Cream
68 Thoreau Street
Concord, MA
Phone: (978) 341-0000
(Excellent home-made ice cream)

Malden

Wine Stores:

Kappy's Fine Wine & Spirits
325 Bennett Highway
Malden, MA
Phone: (781) 321-1000
(Very good selection of wine)

Restaurants:

All Seasons Table
64 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA
Phone: (781) 397-8188
(Very good Asian cuisine and sushi)

Ristorante Serena
18 Lebanon St.
Malden, MA
Phone: (781) 324-3170
(Very good Italian cuisine)

Sun Guang Bakery
423 Main St.
Malden, MA
Phone:(781) 388-9837
(Excellent Chinese bakery with delicious cakes)

Melrose

Restaurants:

Turner's Seafood
506 Main St.
Melrose, MA
Phone: 781-662-0700
(Very good, fresh seafood)

Bobby C's Ristorante
2 Main St.
Melrose, MA
Phone: 781-662-5472
(Very good Italian cuisine)

Middleton

Restaurants:

Gavens
119 South Main St.
Middleton, MA
Phone: 978-774-0500
(Excellent steakhouse with reasonable prices)

City/Town Recommendations #11

This is my eleventh post of a planned series noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. This time I am touching on a few different cities and towns, including Brookline, Burlington and Danvers. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my website.

Brookline

Wine Stores:

The Wine Gallery
375 Boylston Street (Rte 9 @ Cypress St)
Brookline, MA
Phone: (617) 277-5522
(Very good wine store with Enomatic tasting machine and gourmet foods)

Wine Press
1024 Beacon St.
Brookline, MA
Phone: (617) 277-7020
(Very good wine store with plenty of value wines)

Restaurants:

Fugakyu
1280 Beacon St.
Brookline, MA
Phone: (617) 734-1268
(Excellent Japanese cuisine with fine sushi, albeit a bit pricey.)

Japonaise Café and Bakery
1020 Beacon Street
Brookline, MA
Phone: (617) 566-7730
(Excellent bakery with great sliced, "Shoku Pan" bread)

Burlington

Restaurants:

L'Andana
86 Cambridge Street
Burlington, MA
Phone: (781) 270-0100
(Excellent Italian cuisine with value menu in their bar/lounge)

Capital Grille
10 Wayside Road
Burlington, MA
Phone: (781) 505-4130
(Very good steakhouse, albeit pricey)

Ginger Pad
Wayside Commons
4A Wayside Road
Burlington, MA
Phone: (781) 221.7899
(Very good and inexpensive Asian rice and stirfry bowls)

Danvers

Restaurants:

Hardcover Restaurant
15 A Newbury St. (Route 1 North)
Danvers, MA
Phone: 978-774-1223
(Good steakhouse, all-you-can-eat salad buffet, and romantic setting)

City/Town Recommendations #10

This is my tenth post of a planned series noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. This time I am touching on a few different cities and towns, including Acton, Andover, Belmont, and Braintree. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my website.

Acton

Wine Stores:

Acton Wine & Spirit Co.
305 Main St. (Route 27)
Acton, MA
Phone: (978) 263-9060
(Very good wine store, nice selection, and weekly wine tastings)

Andover

Wine Stores:

Wine••Sense
166 North Main Street
Andover, MA
Phone: 978-749-9464

Restaurants:

Yama
63 Park Street
Andover, MA
Phone: 978-749-9777
(Good Chinese and Japanese cuisine)

Glory
19 Essex Street
Andover, MA
Phone: 978-475-4811
(Creative, seasonal and delicious cuisine.)

The Cupcake Boutique
13 Elm Street
Andover, MA
Phone: 978-475-4429
(Tasty, moist cupcakes)

Belmont

Wine Stores:

The Spirited Gourmet
448 Common Street
Belmont, MA
Phone: 617-489-WINE
(Excellent wine store, great selection, free weekly wine tastings)

Restaurants:

Vicki Lee's Cafe
105 Trapelo Road
Belmont, MA
Phone: 617-489-5007
(Very good cafe and bakery)

Braintree

Wine Stores:

Bin Ends
236 Wood Road
Braintree, MA
Phone: (781) 817-1212
(Excellent wine store with great prices)

City & Town Recommendations

Two years ago, I wrote a short series of posts listing my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various cities and towns. The lists provided my favorite wine stores, restaurants, bakeries, food markets and other similar establishments. They were intended to be quick reference guides. But, the lists were incomplete, and did not cover all of the cities and towns I have visited.

In addition, with the passage of time, some of those lists now require revision, such as the omission of places that no longer exist or the addition of new places. So, over the next couple months, I will be working to update these lists. Plus, I will add additional cities and towns that I did not previously lists.

Below, you will find the list of cities and towns that I have already covered, as well as the date of the latest revision, if any. Please note that these lists provide only brief data on each place and you can easily search my blog for more extensive reviews of each place. This list of cities and towns will grow so please return here frequently to check for any additions.

Acton (6/16/09)
Andover (6/16/09)
Arlington (6/14/09)
Bedford (6/14/09)
Belmont (6/16/09)
Beverly (6/14/09)
Braintree (6/16/09)
Brookline (6/18/09)
Burlington (6/18/09)
Concord (6/20/09)
Danvers (6/18/09)
Malden (6/20/09)
Medford (6/14/09)
Melrose (6/20/09)
Middleton (6/20/09)
Natick (6/21/09)

Needham (6/21/09)

Newton Lower Falls (6/21/09)
Peabody (6/14/09)
Reading (6/1/09)
Salem (6/21/09)
Saugus (6/7/09)
Stoneham (6/1/09)
Tewksbury (6/21/09)
Wakefield (6/7/09)
Winchester (6/14/09)
Woburn (6/14/09)

Stoneham Recommendations

Revised as of 6/1/09

This is the first post of a planned series of posts noting my personal recommendations for food/wine places in various towns and cities. I am beginning with my home town, Stoneham. This post lists my favorite wine stores, restaurants, and food stores in Stoneham. This list might be expanded and/or revised in the future but I will note when it changes. Be sure to check my extended reviews of many of these places elsewhere on my blog.

Wine Stores:

Rapid Liquors
171 Main Street
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-0595
(Rapid has the best prices in town. In fact, its prices are some of the best of any of the surrounding towns and cities. They also have a good selection and are very willing to order what they don't carry.)

Restaurants:

Rang Indian Bistro
6 Central Square (Across the street from Stoneham Theater)
Stoneham MA
Phone: (781) 438-8200
http://www.rangindianbistro.com/
(Very good Indian food)

Kyotoya
58 Montvale Ave.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-9688
(Excellent Japanese food and inexpensive sushi. Superb shrimp tempura. It is BYOB.)

Sato II
147 Main Street
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-8786
(Very good Chinese and Japanese food)

Taste of Siam
499 Main Street
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-4001
(Excellent Thai food.)

Melissa's Main Street Bistro
407 Main Street (Stoneham Square)
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-7243
(Higher end, intimate Bistro. Great place for special occasions or romantic dinners.)

Georgie D's Place
125 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 481-9300
(Excellent Italian food, great bread, good prices.)

Bacci's of Stoneham
316 Main Street
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-9200

Dairy Dome
474 Main St.
Stoneham,MA
Phone: (781) 438-9425
(Excellent home-made Italian food, pastries, and ice cream.)

Liberty Bell Famous Roast Beef & Seafood
219 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 279-2000
(Great roast beef sandwiches. I love their fries and onion rings as well. Extensive menu.)

Pizzamia
67 Franklin Street
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 572-3300
(My favorite take-out spot for pizzas, calzones and sandwiches.)

Anthony's Italian Specialties
408 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-9840
(Excellent deli, sandwiches and they now have Finnegans.)

Daily Scoop
232 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 438-9831
(Excellent ice cream and slush.)

Pignone’s Café
319 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 279-0131
(Excellent breakfast, which is also served at lunch.)