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  sigma8 Registered User regular

  March 2015

  I'd add (using markdown, since I'm lazy):
  
  (also, all of these are lunch/dinner unless otherwise noted)
  
  ## Near BCEC
  * Legal Seafood Harborside
  (test kitchen is more experimental, but this is their flagship location;
  downstairs is normal, 2nd floor is fancy)
  * No Name (seafood place on Boston Fish Pier)
  
  ## Chinatown
  * Kaze Shabu Shabu
  (hotpot; if you're not sure what to get, just get one of the meat combos;
  you dunk the thinly sliced raw meats into the boiling broth and it cooks in front of your eyes;
  Same cuisine as Shabu-zen, but slightly cheaper and easier to get a seat)
  * Crave: Mad for Chicken
  (Only scoring 3.5 stars on Yelp, but I found it to be very yummy fried chicken;
  Korean-style fried chicken, similar to Bon Chon, for those familiar with that chain)
  * Kung Fu Tea
  (for what is easily the best boba tea I've had in town)
  
  ## Cambridge!
  
  I realize this information won't be useful for most attendees, except those unfortunate enough to be staying relatively far away in Cambridge. However, there are a couple of party events in Cambridge, so some people may meander out here. I've written more about it, not because it's better, but because it's the area I'm most familiar with. :-/
  
  Prices I'm listing should cover meal + non-alcohol (but not just water) drink.
  
  Harvard:
  * cheap and great (< $10):
  * Flat Patties (burgery stuff; also a yummy pulled pork sandwich and sometimes a cuban)
  * Felipe's (burritos and other mexican stuffs)
  * Pinocchio's (pizza)
  * Chutney's (indian wraps and bowls)
  * inexpensive and great ($10 - $20)
  * Santouka Ramen (new to the area! japan-based ramen chain)
  * Wagamama (very westerner-friendly asian food; UK chain)
  * Clover (if you're vegetarian; if you have a small stomach, you can eat here for less than $10; it's very a la carte)
  * expensive ($30+)
  * Harvest (a little hard to find-- walk down the path between City Sports and Anthropologie; fancy peeps eat here)
  * LA Burdick ... actually just a chocolatier. But pricey in terms of chocolate. Most delicious hot chocolate I've had, but it costs $5 or $6 (I forget) for a large (which isn't too large). I get the milk hot chocolate, because in a contest between a drinker and the dark hot chocolate, the dark hot chocolate almost always wins. It's not un-delicious, I just can never finish it (mind is willing, but body is weak).
  
  Central:
  Sadly, I don't go here much, because there's not much here that I like (for dinner, at least). Some of you might be here because of the MC Frontalot Afterparty or other events, so I'll rattle off a few names. Strangely, Central tends to skew more pricey than the more touristy Harvard Square. All these places are $10-$20 unless otherwise noted.
  
  * Thelonius Monkfish is pretty decent
  * Four Burgers is decent; place feels a little "sticky" to me ($8-$12ish)
  * Life Alive seems pretty amazing in the Vegetarian space (also: very close to Pandemonium Games, a local tabletop store)
  * Asmara: Ethiopian food. Delicious, try it. It's basically like thick, savory stews of meat and/or veggies served in a giant bowl that you share for your table, and you and your friends scoop out the yummy with pieces of a thin (but not tortilla thin) bread; no silverware
  * Asgard: decent bar-restaurant food with Irish slant; a little more upscale than Applebees/Chilis/etc..
  * Craigie on Main: for people with too much money; Tony Maws' more expensive of two restaurants ($30-$40+)
  * Andala Coffee House (best for breakfast/lunch) tasty morsels; middle-eastern inspired; kinda hipstery seeming (but not as much as Life Alive)
  * Falafel Palace (good and cheap)
  * Paris Baguette (inside the H Mart) is neat for bakery items and asian style teas; The Sapporo Ramen place in there isn't that great (there's a superior Sapporo Ramen located in Porter Square, 2 stops further out on the red line), but the Curry place is good.
  
  I'd avoid Patty Chen's Dumpling Room. The name sounds kind of cool, but in my experience (one visit--not exactly scientific, but enough to discourage me from returning), it was overpriced dumplings (that weren't even cooked well; they were doughy AND crunchy, instead of thin and slightly crispy). If you're staying downtown, there's absolutely no reason to come here (anyplace in chinatown will be better). If you're in Cambridge, and need dumplings, there's Dumpling House further up Mass Av (between Central and Harvard Squares...8-10 minute walk from either T stop--cheaper and far superior)
  
  If anyone finds themselves way out in Davis Square, I recommend Red Bones BBQ, Flat Bread Pizza Co (colocated with Sacco's candlepin bowling..bonus!), Amsterdam falafel house, and Mr. Crepe.
  
  
  
  I apologize that only 5% of my list is useful to 95% of readers (and 95% of it might be helpful to 1% of readers! maybe!), but hopefully it helps someone!

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