Julien Restaurant, the Meridien Hotel
Soft piano music and low lights make this your best bet that a first date will lead to a second. 250 Franklin St., Boston, MA .
Thai Cuisine
To extinguish the fires from the blazing red-curry dishes and other house specialties, order a Singha beer. 14A Westland Ave., Boston, MA .
Barneys New York
Whether in pursuit of the perfect burger or a potential mate, we men typically thrill to the chase. But hunting for just-right cuff links? Oh, no. No, no. The quickest way to kill off our inner Bond, in fact, is to trudge from store to store, questing after the highly specific accessories that live seemingly only in our imagination: the cool diver watch with grosgrain strap, aviators that don't evoke dissolute rock star. While certain things at other local stores quicken our pulse (e.g., the socks at Drinkwater's), for all-out adrenaline rush it's Barneys: walls full of man bags, rows upon rows of pocket squares, belt racks that go on for days. We're in, we're out, mission accomplished. 100 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 2116, barneys.com.
Taberna de Haro and Tasca (Tie)
Even if the food at Taberna were lousy (and it most certainly isn't), you'd be too relaxed to care. From the decor to the gracious service to the fruity sangria that arrives in a big ceramic pitcher, this little tapas place lowers your blood pressure, just as an authentic Spanish taberna would. Raise it again with the veal sausage, or try the spinach, sauteed with pine nuts and raisins, or hot dishes (like garlic shrimp) that arrive sizzling in clay pots. The dishes are designed for sharing, and it's a good thing because the novel tastes are conversation starters. | Add candlelight playing off of whimsical wall frescoes and cozy tables spaced a healthy distance from one another and you've got Tasca, where that international language starts to spill from your lips (and we don't mean Esperanto). Oh, and the food is fantastic—Spanish tapas like gambas al ajillo (sizzling shrimp in garlic), jamon Serrano (Spanish cured ham with extra virgin olive oil), and tortillas (traditional Spanish potato-and-onion omelets). 999 Beacon Street; 1612 Commonwealth Ave., Brookline; Boston, MA .
Lauren Genatossio, Sarra
Lauren Genatossio knew exactly how to bring our brows to a fuller, more natural place, meticulously tweezing each individual hair to sculpt our arches to perfection. We left with homework (don't tweeze anything, start brushing upward to train the hair to grow properly) and a transformed look that earned compliments for weeks. 840 Summer St., South Boston, MA 02127, sarrastudios.com.
Bill Cleary of Harvard and Jack Bicknell of Boston College
Cleary made hockey's Final Four, proving it is possible to build athletic powers in the Ivy League. And Bicknell simply proved that there was BC football after Doug Flutie.
Micaelian Jewelers
Are your family heirlooms falling apart? Take Grandma's gold jewelry to this tiny workroom, where Michael V. Micaelian will repair it meticulously for a modest fee. 333 Washington Street, Room 615A, Boston, MA .
Mor Reale Sewing Machine Center
There's a long wait for service, but these people really care about your machine—enough to give one-year warranties on repair work. Waltham, Framingham, Woburn, MA
Glad Day Gay Liberation Bookshop
The bulletin board out front has listings for everything from housing to theater to marches. The shop also has a great selection of cartoon books. 673 Boylston Street, Boston, MA .
Santarpio's Pizza
At this old-school pizza joint, the cornmeal-crusted pies provide a crispy base for swirls of cheese, sauce, and classic toppings such as peppers, onions, and house-made sausage. 111 Chelsea St., East Boston, MA santarpiospizza.com.
Monica Collins of the <em>Herald</em>
She knows television the way a good broker knows the stock market. She can tell you how to invest your TV time and get a return.
<em>Croutes au Fromage</em> at Swiss Alps
Crusty French bread is soaked in dry white wine, covered with slabs of Swiss and Gruyere, and baked; it sizzles to your table with a fried egg aboard. 56 Boylston St., Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA .
Annie B
They've been pouring Moët here, and on occasion Dom Perignon, and charging as little as $4 a glass. And they don't seem to have any competition. 651 Boylston St., Boston, MA .
Hungry i
Brick-walled, low-lit, and small (seats only 25 inside, another dozen on the patio). So small that there's almost no chance of running into your neighbor. 71 1/2 Charles St., Boston, MA .
Bentonwood Bakery/Cafe
Great sandwich bread (their own), great sandwich fixings—what more could you want? How about one in your neighborhood? 47 Langley Road, Newton Centre, MA .