Classy but good priced: Eastern Standard in Kenmore, Russel House Tavern in Harvard Square.
Greasy Spoon: Grendel's Den in Harvard Square.
Seafood: Either No Name (A bit of a tourist trap), Turner Fisheries (Copley Square), or Union Oyster House.
Bar: If nearby, Whiskey Priest if you're a whiskey nerd. Shouldn't be as packed as Drink. Otherwise I'd say Eastern Standard.
Best Breakfast: Find a bakery. The North End is packed with them (i.e. the famous Mike's Pastry), but there are good ones in Faneuil Hall if you're willing to wait for it to open.
Vegetarian: Clover (numerous locations in Cambridge), Peace O' Pie (Amazing Vegan Pizza in Allston. Don't think they'll deliver all the way downtown though).
If you want well priced asian cuisine but don't want to deal with walking all over China Town or possibly confusing menus, Wagamama is great. 3 locations, including Faneuil, mixed of vegetarian and not, and amazing with food allergies if you let them know.
UBurger is pretty popular, and they just put a new one in near Park St. If you don't mind travelling up to Harvard Square you'll find Mr. Bartley's, which is in a lot of "Top Burger Joints in America" lists.
Their website says it's still under construction, but I could've sworn I saw it open the last time I walked by. Might want to verify before you make a special trip.
I didn't mention it, but I love a good burger too and was thinking off treking to Uburger. Maybe a burger meetup could be organized? But not too large. I don't want to think of drowning a place with 100 or more hungry geeks during lunch hour.
I didn't mention it, but I love a good burger too and was thinking off treking to Uburger. Maybe a burger meetup could be organized? But not too large. I don't want to think of drowning a place with 100 or more hungry geeks during lunch hour.
the aforementioned bartley's in harvard has a big communal table situation, so that might be ideal for a group meetup. i would also consider it more of a boston landmark (cambridge technically, but whatever) than someplace like uburger. and yeah, good burgers.
UBurger is a decent joint in town as is Bartley's.
I also like the following places:
Flat Patties
Miracle of Science
Russell House Tavern
Beehive
And if you really want to splurge and go crazy (note you'll need a reservation for the bar-side of the restaurant), and you can call me absolutely nuts-crazy if you want...but the burger at Craigie on Main ($21) is a culinary masterpiece. It's been written up in multiple publications and according to said publications, many boston chefs list Craigie as their favorite burger.
I am a simple man with simple tastes. And a delicate digestive tract. Juicey burger, cheese, bacon, lettuce, ketchup, and a soft bun is all I need to be happy. Add some warm firm fries and a cold drink and I'm good. Start making things complicated and bustin98 is not so happy with a burger.
Lunch burger run to any place that isn't fast food and I'm down for it, as long as I can keep it simple
It might be cutting things close (I think the kitchen closes at 11pm), but if you can get there in time head to Lucky's Lounge for the Kobe Sliders, a beer, and some live music.
If you guys want to follow me on Twitter, I'll have pictures and directions to what is around the area for food! I'd love to help out you guys who are indecisive on where to go and stuff.
I work right down the street from the convention center. Here are a few recommendations (places I've gone to for lunch / after work for drinks):
Lucky's: a decent little bar / restaurant on the corner of A st and Congress st (I believe).
Sleeper St Cafe: A small deli with some good sandwiches. Probably a 10 minute walk from the convention center.
Papagayo: A new tequila bar / mexican restaurant right down the street from the convention center. Had an office party here in December - the food was good, and the drinks were fine. They also did some tequila snow-cones for us, which were apparently made from frozen fruit mashed up with tequila - pretty good stuff.
There're a few other places that others from the office go to, but I've never been. I'll
i'm excited to see all the veg friendly suggestions! i was a little worried i would have a hard time finding somewhere to eat. i guess the diet is off for the weekend lol.
Fire and Ice: One in Back Bay, one in Harvard Square. It's a "mongolian BBQ" style place. You take a bunch of stuff, throw it in a bowl and they cook it on a giant round grill. They have Sunday brunch until 3pm.
Friendly Toast: I'll second/third/fourth/whatever this place in Kendall Square. All sorts of things on the menu, people mention the breakfast stuff but it's not specifically a breakfast place. You can get King Cakes or Sklarmageddon any time of day!
If you're adventurous and want a great brunch, go to the Exchange Street Bistro in Malden (you could get there by Orange Line). Possibly the best Sunday brunch in the area. You can also be cheap and get a Restaurant.com $25 gift certificate for $2 or $3 and bring some friends for a great meal (I do this once a month).
Eating around the BCEC on a Friday or Saturday evening will be a chore. Expect a 90 minute wait for a table. That's how it is when there aren't thousands of hungry gamers there. Eat at off-hours.
Fire and Ice: One in Back Bay, one in Harvard Square. It's a "mongolian BBQ" style place. You take a bunch of stuff, throw it in a bowl and they cook it on a giant round grill. They have Sunday brunch until 3pm.
Friendly Toast: I'll second/third/fourth/whatever this place in Kendall Square. All sorts of things on the menu, people mention the breakfast stuff but it's not specifically a breakfast place. You can get King Cakes or Sklarmageddon any time of day!
If you're adventurous and want a great brunch, go to the Exchange Street Bistro in Malden (you could get there by Orange Line). Possibly the best Sunday brunch in the area. You can also be cheap and get a Restaurant.com $25 gift certificate for $2 or $3 and bring some friends for a great meal (I do this once a month).
Eating around the BCEC on a Friday or Saturday evening will be a chore. Expect a 90 minute wait for a table. That's how it is when there aren't thousands of hungry gamers there. Eat at off-hours.
Yes. Very, very yes to both Fire and Ice and Friendly Toast.
Being a vegetarian, I love the fact that Fire/Ice has a dedicated "no meat" portion of the grill. Friendly Toast is not only delicious and very veggie friendly, but I am absolutely in love with the kitschy nostalgia decor.
Other places I eat at in Boston are...
Addis Red Sea (Ethiopian)
Pho Pasteur (Vietnamese)
Grasshopper (Vegan Chinese)
I could give more info about any of them, if anyone other than me is interested in these places. ;-)
I didn't mention it, but I love a good burger too and was thinking off treking to Uburger. Maybe a burger meetup could be organized? But not too large. I don't want to think of drowning a place with 100 or more hungry geeks during lunch hour.
the aforementioned bartley's in harvard has a big communal table situation, so that might be ideal for a group meetup. i would also consider it more of a boston landmark (cambridge technically, but whatever) than someplace like uburger. and yeah, good burgers.
If people still show interest then I can always see about organizing a little something. Might be difficult since I'm not from the area but hey, why not.
I'll come back to this after my work day, things are hectic here.
Double whammy here folks but I'm a first time PAX attendee and it'll be my first trip to the States. I'll be meeting up with friends and was wondering what the best places were for;
Those are the 3 I know of. (I don't like oysters)
Union Oyster House is near Quincy Market
Salty Dog is at Quincy Market
Island Creek is on Congress St (which puts it close to the BCEC)
I agree with Addis Red Sea, they have this spongey bread that is amazing to sop up all that spice.
There are also a few Afghani places to check out. Ariana in Allston (have been here and loved it) and Helmand in Cambridge (have not tried).
The Middle East/Zuzu in Central Square Cambridge is a local landmark. They have all of the staple Middle Eastern food. Zuzu which is all owned by the same people is a little bit better than the Middle East itself. They also have concert venues and cheap drink prices. If you are looking for music, go here or the Paradise and not the overpriced House of Blues. $6 PBRs there. :v:
Also, if you're loking for something a little different, Fire and Ice is always pretty fun. It's basically stir fry that you pick all the ingredients yourself and they cook the food on a huge round grill. They also have 2 HUGE cocktails. It's a chain, but there's only 6 of them total. But price wise, it's not the cheapest. http://www.fire-ice.com/
You forgot one detail about Fire + Ice: It's all-you-can-eat.
The one in Harvard Square would be the easier one to get to from the BCEC: Silver line to South Station, Red line to Harvard.
Back Bay: Silver Line to South Station, Red line to Park St, Green line to Arlington.
At the risk of spamming, im gonna also recommend Legal Seafoods, unbelievable chowder, clambakes, and lobster rolls. Also, the whiskey steak house across from the Hynes is pretty excellent and affordable.
Eating around the BCEC on a Friday or Saturday evening will be a chore. Expect a 90 minute wait for a table. That's how it is when there aren't thousands of hungry gamers there. Eat at off-hours.
At the risk of spamming, im gonna also recommend Legal Seafoods, unbelievable chowder, clambakes, and lobster rolls. Also, the whiskey steak house across from the Hynes is pretty excellent and affordable.
Anyone know of any buffet style seafood places?
There aren't really buffets in Boston, beyond a few stray chinese ones.
Legal Seafoods middle range seafood at best, but there are quite a few of them around and you could def. do worse
Whiskeys has pretty solid bar food, but sadly BCEC is kind of far from Hynes.
arsonisfun on
I am IRCs resident nerdbro and member of the PokeCrawl planning committee.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
Eating around the BCEC on a Friday or Saturday evening will be a chore. Expect a 90 minute wait for a table. That's how it is when there aren't thousands of hungry gamers there. Eat at off-hours.
This worries me. Better bring a lot of snacks
You can always walk ~15min to Chinatown/Downtown
arsonisfun on
I am IRCs resident nerdbro and member of the PokeCrawl planning committee.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
As much as I would like to organize some kind of get together at uBurger, my recent schedule says that I'm constantly out of time for even the silliest of personal things. I'm sorry but I can't do alot.
I did not read through the entire board, so I apologize if this was already asked. I am an irishman by nature. Anyone know of any GOOD irish puds near the BCEC?
I did not read through the entire board, so I apologize if this was already asked. I am an irishman by nature. Anyone know of any GOOD irish puds near the BCEC?
From the BCEC, go down D street to West Broadway. There are a few pubs along West Broadway. South Boston, less than a week before St Patrick's Day, ALL the pubs be Irish. ^_^
According to the PAX East map, and also the BCEC website, there is a food court at the BCEC. I did not know of this. Granted, I've never been IN the BCEC. But if they charge what the place in the Hynes does, you'd be better off walking to one of the many other places everyone has mentioned in this thread.
It was mentioned a few pages back, but this is basically a time of the year when a ton of restaurants group together to offer fixed-price menus ($15 for a 2-course lunch, $20 for 3-course lunch, $30 for 3-course dinner) which is typically a really fantastic discount compared to what that list of items would normally cost you. It's basically a way for them all to show off and attract new customers. It's also actually two weeks long (Mar 6-18), excluding Saturday, March 12th.
We went to a couple places last year and I'd say most all of them were good. Of course they're all kind of in the Back Bay area since that's there PAX East was last year.
Summer Shack - Great seafood. They did restaurant week last year too, and their $30 restaurant week menu was really good.
Kashmir - This Indian place is on Newberry (check that area out if you have a chance, lots of cool stuff) and we all thought it was tasty as hell. Damn good.
Little Steve's House of Pizza - It's right near Berklee on Boylston St. I have no idea how it compares to the rest of Boston's pizza. I used to live in northern NJ but now I live in Florida. This place was better than almost any Florida pizza (even the places run by transplants from the northeast). It was thin, big, and greasy. It made me feel like I was back in NJ, so there was definitely a bit of a nostalgia factor playing in my enjoyment of it.
Pad Thai Cafe - Directly next to Little Steve's. I am by no means an expert on Thai food, but I do enjoy some good Pad Thai. This place was good and cheap, and I saw a good amount of people from SE Asian countries there which is always a good sign at an Asian restaurant.
Boloco - A local chain (I think) of burrito places. The one I went to used to be right next to Little Steve's and the Thai place, but looking at Google Maps that location moved down the street. Anyway it looks like there are a good number across the Boston area. I ate breakfast here twice last year. Breakfast burritos are the fucking shit. We also got burritos there late one night at like 2AM while we were as the locals say "wicked drunk". It looks like the closest location to the BCEC is on Pearl Street.
Espresso Royale Cafe - I had to go to the Apple Store before the first day of PAX to get my Macbook's shell replaced. I asked the guys there where I could get some good breakfast. The genius recommended this place. It was really good. They have a shit load of teas (I'm not a coffee drinker) and a bunch of tasty as hell baked goods. It's small so they didn't have any serious breakfast plates, but you could get eggs and bacon on a sandwich or bagel and stuff like that. I had my other two breakfasts at PAX here.
I also agree with the above poster. Skip the food court if at all possible. I'm sure it will be fine. On the BCEC website one of them is marked as the "local" food court which sounds more promising than a regular food court. However, it'll be overpriced and it's so much more fun to explore and find awesome places to eat. You can get good, cheap eats in almost any major city.
Posts
Greasy Spoon: Grendel's Den in Harvard Square.
Seafood: Either No Name (A bit of a tourist trap), Turner Fisheries (Copley Square), or Union Oyster House.
Bar: If nearby, Whiskey Priest if you're a whiskey nerd. Shouldn't be as packed as Drink. Otherwise I'd say Eastern Standard.
Best Breakfast: Find a bakery. The North End is packed with them (i.e. the famous Mike's Pastry), but there are good ones in Faneuil Hall if you're willing to wait for it to open.
Vegetarian: Clover (numerous locations in Cambridge), Peace O' Pie (Amazing Vegan Pizza in Allston. Don't think they'll deliver all the way downtown though).
If you want well priced asian cuisine but don't want to deal with walking all over China Town or possibly confusing menus, Wagamama is great. 3 locations, including Faneuil, mixed of vegetarian and not, and amazing with food allergies if you let them know.
Closest T stop: Central Square, Red Line
Incredible Korean barbecue that you cook right at your table. It's a bit expensive, but worth it.
You go to Bova's (which is 24/7) when Mike's closes ;-)
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EDIT: Thanks for the move. I was in school mode, so I missed the whole "Noms" thread when scanning the forums...
the aforementioned bartley's in harvard has a big communal table situation, so that might be ideal for a group meetup. i would also consider it more of a boston landmark (cambridge technically, but whatever) than someplace like uburger. and yeah, good burgers.
UBurger is a decent joint in town as is Bartley's.
I also like the following places:
Flat Patties
Miracle of Science
Russell House Tavern
Beehive
And if you really want to splurge and go crazy (note you'll need a reservation for the bar-side of the restaurant), and you can call me absolutely nuts-crazy if you want...but the burger at Craigie on Main ($21) is a culinary masterpiece. It's been written up in multiple publications and according to said publications, many boston chefs list Craigie as their favorite burger.
Lunch burger run to any place that isn't fast food and I'm down for it, as long as I can keep it simple
@paulhartling
Lucky's: a decent little bar / restaurant on the corner of A st and Congress st (I believe).
Sleeper St Cafe: A small deli with some good sandwiches. Probably a 10 minute walk from the convention center.
Papagayo: A new tequila bar / mexican restaurant right down the street from the convention center. Had an office party here in December - the food was good, and the drinks were fine. They also did some tequila snow-cones for us, which were apparently made from frozen fruit mashed up with tequila - pretty good stuff.
There're a few other places that others from the office go to, but I've never been. I'll
Fire and Ice: One in Back Bay, one in Harvard Square. It's a "mongolian BBQ" style place. You take a bunch of stuff, throw it in a bowl and they cook it on a giant round grill. They have Sunday brunch until 3pm.
Friendly Toast: I'll second/third/fourth/whatever this place in Kendall Square. All sorts of things on the menu, people mention the breakfast stuff but it's not specifically a breakfast place. You can get King Cakes or Sklarmageddon any time of day!
If you're adventurous and want a great brunch, go to the Exchange Street Bistro in Malden (you could get there by Orange Line). Possibly the best Sunday brunch in the area. You can also be cheap and get a Restaurant.com $25 gift certificate for $2 or $3 and bring some friends for a great meal (I do this once a month).
Eating around the BCEC on a Friday or Saturday evening will be a chore. Expect a 90 minute wait for a table. That's how it is when there aren't thousands of hungry gamers there. Eat at off-hours.
Yes. Very, very yes to both Fire and Ice and Friendly Toast.
Being a vegetarian, I love the fact that Fire/Ice has a dedicated "no meat" portion of the grill. Friendly Toast is not only delicious and very veggie friendly, but I am absolutely in love with the kitschy nostalgia decor.
Other places I eat at in Boston are...
Addis Red Sea (Ethiopian)
Pho Pasteur (Vietnamese)
Grasshopper (Vegan Chinese)
I could give more info about any of them, if anyone other than me is interested in these places. ;-)
If people still show interest then I can always see about organizing a little something. Might be difficult since I'm not from the area but hey, why not.
I'll come back to this after my work day, things are hectic here.
Dim Sum
Seafood
Thanks for any and all suggestions
Union Oyster House
Salty Dog
Island Creek
Those are the 3 I know of. (I don't like oysters)
Union Oyster House is near Quincy Market
Salty Dog is at Quincy Market
Island Creek is on Congress St (which puts it close to the BCEC)
The 3rd place on that list, Lucky's Lounge, has some great food. And, according to my friend, some excellent drinks as well.
You forgot one detail about Fire + Ice: It's all-you-can-eat.
The one in Harvard Square would be the easier one to get to from the BCEC: Silver line to South Station, Red line to Harvard.
Back Bay: Silver Line to South Station, Red line to Park St, Green line to Arlington.
Their appetizers are nom. Their burgers are nom. And the service is very friendly.
(Sorry for all the back-to-back posts. But, as I go into Boston at least once a month and have friends that live in Boston, I have a lot to say)
Oh, and if you're looking for good delivery pizza in Southie, call Olympic.
http://www.menulizard.com/restaurant/258/
Oh, and look at the other places in Boston on MenuLizard. Can help you plan for your food needs at PAX East.
Anyone know of any buffet style seafood places?
This worries me. Better bring a lot of snacks
There aren't really buffets in Boston, beyond a few stray chinese ones.
Legal Seafoods middle range seafood at best, but there are quite a few of them around and you could def. do worse
Whiskeys has pretty solid bar food, but sadly BCEC is kind of far from Hynes.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
You can always walk ~15min to Chinatown/Downtown
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
Though the event happened already (and I missed it! :?) check out the restaurants and chefs listed on Lamb Jam Boston:
http://fansoflambboston.com/lambjamboston.aspx
From the BCEC, go down D street to West Broadway. There are a few pubs along West Broadway. South Boston, less than a week before St Patrick's Day, ALL the pubs be Irish. ^_^
http://www.bostonirishpub.com/
It was mentioned a few pages back, but this is basically a time of the year when a ton of restaurants group together to offer fixed-price menus ($15 for a 2-course lunch, $20 for 3-course lunch, $30 for 3-course dinner) which is typically a really fantastic discount compared to what that list of items would normally cost you. It's basically a way for them all to show off and attract new customers. It's also actually two weeks long (Mar 6-18), excluding Saturday, March 12th.
We went to a couple places last year and I'd say most all of them were good. Of course they're all kind of in the Back Bay area since that's there PAX East was last year.
Summer Shack - Great seafood. They did restaurant week last year too, and their $30 restaurant week menu was really good.
Kashmir - This Indian place is on Newberry (check that area out if you have a chance, lots of cool stuff) and we all thought it was tasty as hell. Damn good.
Little Steve's House of Pizza - It's right near Berklee on Boylston St. I have no idea how it compares to the rest of Boston's pizza. I used to live in northern NJ but now I live in Florida. This place was better than almost any Florida pizza (even the places run by transplants from the northeast). It was thin, big, and greasy. It made me feel like I was back in NJ, so there was definitely a bit of a nostalgia factor playing in my enjoyment of it.
Pad Thai Cafe - Directly next to Little Steve's. I am by no means an expert on Thai food, but I do enjoy some good Pad Thai. This place was good and cheap, and I saw a good amount of people from SE Asian countries there which is always a good sign at an Asian restaurant.
Boloco - A local chain (I think) of burrito places. The one I went to used to be right next to Little Steve's and the Thai place, but looking at Google Maps that location moved down the street. Anyway it looks like there are a good number across the Boston area. I ate breakfast here twice last year. Breakfast burritos are the fucking shit. We also got burritos there late one night at like 2AM while we were as the locals say "wicked drunk". It looks like the closest location to the BCEC is on Pearl Street.
Espresso Royale Cafe - I had to go to the Apple Store before the first day of PAX to get my Macbook's shell replaced. I asked the guys there where I could get some good breakfast. The genius recommended this place. It was really good. They have a shit load of teas (I'm not a coffee drinker) and a bunch of tasty as hell baked goods. It's small so they didn't have any serious breakfast plates, but you could get eggs and bacon on a sandwich or bagel and stuff like that. I had my other two breakfasts at PAX here.
I also agree with the above poster. Skip the food court if at all possible. I'm sure it will be fine. On the BCEC website one of them is marked as the "local" food court which sounds more promising than a regular food court. However, it'll be overpriced and it's so much more fun to explore and find awesome places to eat. You can get good, cheap eats in almost any major city.