I live in Boston, and vouch for the following places - so I'm hooking you up 'cause I like you. They're also some of the most popular places in Boston, so you might have to wait for a table on the weekend. I don't know the area near the BCEC well, as I live and party in the Brighton/Allston area, but I'll recommend what I know.
Kaze Shabu Shabu - I wish I knew more about this place, but I've only been once. It was excellent though, and I definitely recommend it.
The Friendly Toast - great personality, full bar, interesting and original food. Has greasy spoon diner food, though they have more complex or high-falutin' fare as well. Never had a bad night here, either. They also make their own bread daily, and I always pickup a loaf of anadama, made with molasses, for relatives.
Legal Test Kitchen - Across the street from Legal Harborside (also a great place, but expensive, and one ought to dress up to eat there), LTK stays open later than most bars and restaurants in Boston, closing at 2a.
The Publick House - one of the better bars in Boston, they take pub fare and make it real food. I recommend the burgers, PEI mussels, and mac & cheese.
Durgan-Park - Founded 180 years ago, makes great seafood and steak.
Anna's Taqueria - Several locations throughout Boston, offers good Mexican food.
Bukowski's - I wish I drank here more often. Good selection of beer, good food, next to King's Back Bay Bowling. Bowling and white russians are a good start to a night, followed by beers at Bukowski's.
Sunset Grill & Tap, Sunset Cantina - a pair of restaurants specializing in alcohol. The G&T has about 200 kinds of beer and 20 kinds of mead, and the Cantina keeps about 200 kinds of tequila. The G&T also has a great spinach and artichoke dip appetizer, layering pita chips and cheese like nachos, and some damn good ribs too. Never had bad food, bad drinks, or a bad night here, the G&T is absolutely my favorite place to eat and drink in Boston.
I totally co-sign this place. It's a few miles from the convention center but the beer selection is astronomical, the food is delicious and I've never had a bad meal.
Sunset Grill & Tap, Sunset Cantina - a pair of restaurants specializing in alcohol. The G&T has about 200 kinds of beer and 20 kinds of mead, and the Cantina keeps about 200 kinds of tequila. The G&T also has a great spinach and artichoke dip appetizer, layering pita chips and cheese like nachos, and some damn good ribs too. Never had bad food, bad drinks, or a bad night here, the G&T is absolutely my favorite place to eat and drink in Boston.
I totally co-sign this place. It's a few miles from the convention center but the beer selection is astronomical, the food is delicious and I've never had a bad meal.
Edit: The Grill & Tap is the one to go to, imo.
I'll toss my hat in on this as well. Love the beer selection here and the food is amazing
Last year we walked over to Yankee Lobster, and it was an awesome place to eat! Only about a 10-15 minute walk from the convention center, too. It's a small seafood place (only a few tables) but the food was GREAT and the people there were SO happy to see all the business from PAX! They actually didn't know the con was going on, so our group and another PAX group got to educate them on it. I would totally go there again. Their "Lobster Juice" soda was really good, too.
Another tip I suggest is signing up for notifications from sites like Groupon and whatnot now.. every few days a food deal will roll out. Great way to save a little money and eat good.
PAX East 2012 Checklist: [x] 3 Day Pass [x] Time off Work [x] Flight [x] Hotel
I haven't seen it mentioned yet this year, but last year when we got in we ate at Boloco. It's a burrito company, very tasty and affordable was probably the healthiest thing I ate the entire time. We stayed at the Intercontinental and the Pearl St. location across the street.
I'm wondering if someone can suggest a good seafood + steak all you can eat buffet? I'm a big eater, and don't often get a chance to eat seafood so might as well induldge while on vacation. The missus isn't really a fan of seafood, but would love a good steak.
Fire + Ice is an all-you-can-eat Mongolian barbecue place that would have plenty of options for each of you. You fill a bowl with noodles, meats, veggies, whatever you want, and then they fry it all up right in front of you on a giant metal cooktop.
What I'd recommend even more, though, if you can do without the seafood options, is to go to a Brazilian barbecue place. Hot damn are they delicious. A dozen different kinds of meats slow cook on rotisseries, then they go around table to table with a giant hunk of meat on a skewer, and if you want some they keep shaving more off onto your plate until you tell them to stop. (Some just have you go up to the counter yourself to ask for what you want.)
No other all-you-can-eat options in the area are really jumping to mind, unless you want buffet Indian food or something.
@wonderpug: Thank you for the suggestions! I was really hoping for seafood because I've been told that Boston has much better seafood than I can get here in Montreal.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
Is the dress code for LTK formal? We wanted to reserve too but I didn't want to carry a change of clothes around.
@wonderpug: Thank you for the suggestions! I was really hoping for seafood because I've been told that Boston has much better seafood than I can get here in Montreal.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
If you want to find some good Boston seafood then I don't think buffet style is the way to go. Any type of seafood in particular you're looking for? Lobster, fish, scallops, oysters, steamers? Any regional cuisine styles you particularly like or want to try? Boston can offer seafooItalian, French, Azorean?
Legal Test Kitchen isn't bad, but since you're so excited about getting seafood I think we can send you someplace even better.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
Is the dress code for LTK formal? We wanted to reserve too but I didn't want to carry a change of clothes around.
No it is not formal, but it is a nice place. Think collared shirt.
Are you sure they take reservations during a convention?
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
Is the dress code for LTK formal? We wanted to reserve too but I didn't want to carry a change of clothes around.
No it is not formal, but it is a nice place. Think collared shirt.
Are you sure they take reservations during a convention?
Do people have any experience ordering food delivered to their hotels? I'm staying at the Westin, and so getting food delivered seems like a good way to reduce downtime. Were places in the area able to handle the PAX-related business surge (any horror stories of waiting 8 hours for delivery)? Any suggestions on good places that deliver to the area?
Sunset Grill & Tap, Sunset Cantina - a pair of restaurants specializing in alcohol. The G&T has about 200 kinds of beer and 20 kinds of mead, and the Cantina keeps about 200 kinds of tequila. The G&T also has a great spinach and artichoke dip appetizer, layering pita chips and cheese like nachos, and some damn good ribs too. Never had bad food, bad drinks, or a bad night here, the G&T is absolutely my favorite place to eat and drink in Boston.
I totally co-sign this place. It's a few miles from the convention center but the beer selection is astronomical, the food is delicious and I've never had a bad meal.
Edit: The Grill & Tap is the one to go to, imo.
I'll toss my hat in on this as well. Love the beer selection here and the food is amazing
Ditto! Always awesome food (personal fan of their cheeseburger pizza), and a jaw-dropping beer menu.
The Friendly Toast - great personality, full bar, interesting and original food. Has greasy spoon diner food, though they have more complex or high-falutin' fare as well. Never had a bad night here, either. They also make their own bread daily, and I always pickup a loaf of anadama, made with molasses, for relatives.
I also wholeheartedly endorse the Friendly Toast. And not just for breakfast. Their food is awesome, and the restaurant itself is a bit odd and creepy (I say that in the best way possible). I fell in love with the one in Portsmouth, NH, and have eaten at the one in Cambridge a few times. My favorite bread is their cayenne cheddar. It's delicious, even though it's hard for me to eat, as it's pretty spicy!
@wonderpug: Thank you for the suggestions! I was really hoping for seafood because I've been told that Boston has much better seafood than I can get here in Montreal.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
If you want to find some good Boston seafood then I don't think buffet style is the way to go. Any type of seafood in particular you're looking for? Lobster, fish, scallops, oysters, steamers? Any regional cuisine styles you particularly like or want to try? Boston can offer seafooItalian, French, Azorean?
Legal Test Kitchen isn't bad, but since you're so excited about getting seafood I think we can send you someplace even better.
Thanks for the help! Honestly one of the problems is that I haven't had enough seafood in my life! I'm not crazy about fish, but had some grilled octopus this fall that was better than most meats I've had. In general, the weirder it is, the more I'm keen to try it. Shrimp, calamari, octopus, lobster, crab, ... hopefully that gives you an idea. I've eaten a LOT of Asian food, and while I love it, something different would be a good change of pace (I've never even heard of Azorean before!)?
Would also like the budget for the full meal + taxis to be under $200 (we don't normally drink alcohol with our meals). This advice is absolutely awesome, and we can always reserve LTK if nothing else comes to mind.
You're not going to have a car, I assume? And do you need your seafood extravaganza to be all one glorious meal, or would you be interested in seeing several different places with different types of seafood offerings?
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
Is the dress code for LTK formal? We wanted to reserve too but I didn't want to carry a change of clothes around.
I would disagree that you even need a collared shirt, honestly, nearly our whole party was in tshirts and jeans last year and we weren't out of place. I found it ok but not especially earth-shattering in terms of quality for price; if you just want good seafood the locals can probably recommend you many a place that is way better value than LTK. Hell I had a lobster roll in Faneuil Hall that had lobster that was perfectly cooked as opposed to the lobster mac at LTK which was chewy. Which is not to say that you should skip the higher priced options... just that it isn't necessarily the best option around if what you really want is good seafood.
I'm wondering if someone can suggest a good seafood + steak all you can eat buffet? I'm a big eater, and don't often get a chance to eat seafood so might as well induldge while on vacation. The missus isn't really a fan of seafood, but would love a good steak.
If you want a good steak, go to KO Prime, Ruth's Chris, Mooo, Abe & Louie's, or Mortons
If you want good seafood go to Oceanaire, Island Creek Oyster Bar, Neptune Oyster
If you want buffet food, just go to Fire and Ice or maybe Hot Pot Buffet. The food is going to be soso, but that's the case of any buffet. If you had a car and some spare time I'd say Nordic Lodge in RI. $85, but you'll actually get good food for an all-you-can-eat.
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.
Do people have any experience ordering food delivered to their hotels? I'm staying at the Westin, and so getting food delivered seems like a good way to reduce downtime. Were places in the area able to handle the PAX-related business surge (any horror stories of waiting 8 hours for delivery)? Any suggestions on good places that deliver to the area?
I'd suggest checking out foodler - online delivery. I doubt there will be much in the way of delivery options for the area around PAX though, it isn't a part of town that has a lot of actual residents/local businesses.
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.
Sunset Grill & Tap, Sunset Cantina - a pair of restaurants specializing in alcohol. The G&T has about 200 kinds of beer and 20 kinds of mead, and the Cantina keeps about 200 kinds of tequila. The G&T also has a great spinach and artichoke dip appetizer, layering pita chips and cheese like nachos, and some damn good ribs too. Never had bad food, bad drinks, or a bad night here, the G&T is absolutely my favorite place to eat and drink in Boston.
I totally co-sign this place. It's a few miles from the convention center but the beer selection is astronomical, the food is delicious and I've never had a bad meal.
Edit: The Grill & Tap is the one to go to, imo.
I'll toss my hat in on this as well. Love the beer selection here and the food is amazing
Ditto! Always awesome food (personal fan of their cheeseburger pizza), and a jaw-dropping beer menu.
Do people have any experience ordering food delivered to their hotels? I'm staying at the Westin, and so getting food delivered seems like a good way to reduce downtime. Were places in the area able to handle the PAX-related business surge (any horror stories of waiting 8 hours for delivery)? Any suggestions on good places that deliver to the area?
I'd suggest checking out foodler - online delivery. I doubt there will be much in the way of delivery options for the area around PAX though, it isn't a part of town that has a lot of actual residents/local businesses.
Oh my God, Spike's Junkyard Dogs is now a chain, with a location that will deliver to the Westin? That is amazing! It even makes up for the simultaneous tragic discovery that the original location, on Thayer Street in Providence, RI, which fed me during my college years, is now out of business. Now I just need to put together like a 4-man crew to hit the $20 delivery minimum. Um, anyone want hot dogs?
We don't have a car (taking Greyhound bus) and it's our first PAX East. Both of us loved the lunch menu for Mortons (http://www.mortons.com/menu/lunch/). This seems to be serving our steak and seafood cravings and only for $30 each! And LTK will probably be our "bar hangout" after the 8 hour bus trip on Thursday. Thank you wonderpug and arson!
Don't think this has been posted yet, but is there somewhere to get a good Fish & Chips?
From what I googled, Matt Murphy's and Stone's Public House seem to be some top choices. I think your best bet for Fish and Chips is going to be at a place like those. Can any Bostonians confirm this for us?
Don't think this has been posted yet, but is there somewhere to get a good Fish & Chips?
From what I googled, Matt Murphy's and Stone's Public House seem to be some top choices. I think your best bet for Fish and Chips is going to be at a place like those. Can any Bostonians confirm this for us?
Matt Murphy's is pretty awesome. Stone's is really good too but be aware this isn't in Boston (You'll need a car to get there, it's 30-40 minutes west of the city)
I haven't tried enough fish & chips downtown to know which is the best, but here are a bunch of great places kinda sorta close to the convention center whose fish & chips I would expect to be excellent:
Last year my buddies and I had Domino's delivered to the front entrance of the BCEC. We placed the order online and hung out near the entrance until the called. We found him waiting outside and paid, then ate in the BCEC dining area. Best idea we have ever had. Not great pizza (standard Domino's), but better and cheaper then the dining hall. So it should be possible to deliver to the convention center, if you don't have a room in the Westin.
This Upper Crust location might be close enough to the BCEC to deliver there if you're looking for something better than Domino's. Worth a shot, at least.
This thread has gotten amazing. I'm really looking forward to eating in Boston. *_* Forget cheap, easy, and usual. Love these off the beaten path suggestions! Keep 'em coming!
So to side track the conversation, I was wondering if there is anywhere at the BCEC to get a cup of hot tea/coffee? Drinks of choice for my husband and I.
So to side track the conversation, I was wondering if there is anywhere at the BCEC to get a cup of hot tea/coffee? Drinks of choice for my husband and I.
not in the BCEC, but in the connected Westin there is a Starbucks. Does that work?
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Sunset Grill & Tap, Sunset Cantina - a pair of restaurants specializing in alcohol. The G&T has about 200 kinds of beer and 20 kinds of mead, and the Cantina keeps about 200 kinds of tequila. The G&T also has a great spinach and artichoke dip appetizer, layering pita chips and cheese like nachos, and some damn good ribs too. Never had bad food, bad drinks, or a bad night here, the G&T is absolutely my favorite place to eat and drink in Boston.
Soulfire - A great BBQ place, with amazing wings.
Kaze Shabu Shabu - I wish I knew more about this place, but I've only been once. It was excellent though, and I definitely recommend it.
The Friendly Toast - great personality, full bar, interesting and original food. Has greasy spoon diner food, though they have more complex or high-falutin' fare as well. Never had a bad night here, either. They also make their own bread daily, and I always pickup a loaf of anadama, made with molasses, for relatives.
Legal Test Kitchen - Across the street from Legal Harborside (also a great place, but expensive, and one ought to dress up to eat there), LTK stays open later than most bars and restaurants in Boston, closing at 2a.
Washington Square Tavern - A good tavern with good food.
The Publick House - one of the better bars in Boston, they take pub fare and make it real food. I recommend the burgers, PEI mussels, and mac & cheese.
Durgan-Park - Founded 180 years ago, makes great seafood and steak.
Anna's Taqueria - Several locations throughout Boston, offers good Mexican food.
Bukowski's - I wish I drank here more often. Good selection of beer, good food, next to King's Back Bay Bowling. Bowling and white russians are a good start to a night, followed by beers at Bukowski's.
I totally co-sign this place. It's a few miles from the convention center but the beer selection is astronomical, the food is delicious and I've never had a bad meal.
Edit: The Grill & Tap is the one to go to, imo.
I'll toss my hat in on this as well. Love the beer selection here and the food is amazing
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Mike & Patty's would be my choice - It's close and rather awesome.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
Thank you!! My husband would not be very much fun if I fed him pastries every morning. ;-)
The best thing? They bring you fresh baked bread before your meal with spreadable pork fat and cracklins instead of butter.
OMFG. Pork. Butter. I want to go back just for that. Best thing on the menu, and it's the freebie pre-order snack.
hah, I took a few people from out of town there last year
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
What I'd recommend even more, though, if you can do without the seafood options, is to go to a Brazilian barbecue place. Hot damn are they delicious. A dozen different kinds of meats slow cook on rotisseries, then they go around table to table with a giant hunk of meat on a skewer, and if you want some they keep shaving more off onto your plate until you tell them to stop. (Some just have you go up to the counter yourself to ask for what you want.)
No other all-you-can-eat options in the area are really jumping to mind, unless you want buffet Indian food or something.
If there aren't any, we already looked at the menu for Legal Test Kitchen and given that it's so close to the convention we're considering reserving a table for Thursday or Friday night.
Is the dress code for LTK formal? We wanted to reserve too but I didn't want to carry a change of clothes around.
If you want to find some good Boston seafood then I don't think buffet style is the way to go. Any type of seafood in particular you're looking for? Lobster, fish, scallops, oysters, steamers? Any regional cuisine styles you particularly like or want to try? Boston can offer seafooItalian, French, Azorean?
Legal Test Kitchen isn't bad, but since you're so excited about getting seafood I think we can send you someplace even better.
No it is not formal, but it is a nice place. Think collared shirt.
Are you sure they take reservations during a convention?
They did last year.
Ditto! Always awesome food (personal fan of their cheeseburger pizza), and a jaw-dropping beer menu.
I also wholeheartedly endorse the Friendly Toast. And not just for breakfast. Their food is awesome, and the restaurant itself is a bit odd and creepy (I say that in the best way possible). I fell in love with the one in Portsmouth, NH, and have eaten at the one in Cambridge a few times. My favorite bread is their cayenne cheddar. It's delicious, even though it's hard for me to eat, as it's pretty spicy!
Thanks for the help! Honestly one of the problems is that I haven't had enough seafood in my life! I'm not crazy about fish, but had some grilled octopus this fall that was better than most meats I've had. In general, the weirder it is, the more I'm keen to try it. Shrimp, calamari, octopus, lobster, crab, ... hopefully that gives you an idea. I've eaten a LOT of Asian food, and while I love it, something different would be a good change of pace (I've never even heard of Azorean before!)?
Would also like the budget for the full meal + taxis to be under $200 (we don't normally drink alcohol with our meals). This advice is absolutely awesome, and we can always reserve LTK if nothing else comes to mind.
I would disagree that you even need a collared shirt, honestly, nearly our whole party was in tshirts and jeans last year and we weren't out of place. I found it ok but not especially earth-shattering in terms of quality for price; if you just want good seafood the locals can probably recommend you many a place that is way better value than LTK. Hell I had a lobster roll in Faneuil Hall that had lobster that was perfectly cooked as opposed to the lobster mac at LTK which was chewy. Which is not to say that you should skip the higher priced options... just that it isn't necessarily the best option around if what you really want is good seafood.
If you want a good steak, go to KO Prime, Ruth's Chris, Mooo, Abe & Louie's, or Mortons
If you want good seafood go to Oceanaire, Island Creek Oyster Bar, Neptune Oyster
If you want buffet food, just go to Fire and Ice or maybe Hot Pot Buffet. The food is going to be soso, but that's the case of any buffet. If you had a car and some spare time I'd say Nordic Lodge in RI. $85, but you'll actually get good food for an all-you-can-eat.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
I'd suggest checking out foodler - online delivery. I doubt there will be much in the way of delivery options for the area around PAX though, it isn't a part of town that has a lot of actual residents/local businesses.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
I sense a meetup coming on....
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Oh my God, Spike's Junkyard Dogs is now a chain, with a location that will deliver to the Westin? That is amazing! It even makes up for the simultaneous tragic discovery that the original location, on Thayer Street in Providence, RI, which fed me during my college years, is now out of business. Now I just need to put together like a 4-man crew to hit the $20 delivery minimum. Um, anyone want hot dogs?
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That place looks awesome
From what I googled, Matt Murphy's and Stone's Public House seem to be some top choices. I think your best bet for Fish and Chips is going to be at a place like those. Can any Bostonians confirm this for us?
I had a really good fish & chips at B&G once, but the menu changes there fairly often.
Red B/Gold Professor
[15:53] <+juju-work> ArsonIsFun is one of the best people I know.
http://kingstonstation.com
http://www.maxanddylans.com/
http://www.goodlifebar.com
http://www.jacobwirth.com/
not in the BCEC, but in the connected Westin there is a Starbucks. Does that work?