Bombay Club
There are other Indian restaurants in town, but none present top-quality food as consistently as the Bombay Club. Check out the Chicken Tikka Masala, and try the garlic and onion naan as an accompaniment to your meal. The lunch buffet is easy on the taste buds and the wallet, and the restaurant's top-floor view of Harvard Square doesn't hurt, either. Harvard Square Galeria, 57 JFK St., Cambridge, MA .
Avalon, Sunday nights
Many area nightspots sponsor weekly gay nights, but none satisfies the masses quite like Avalon Sundays. Beautiful players sip cocktails and get groovy in superlative style to pumping tunes spun by local DJ heavyweights, while drag queens take advantage of the airline hangar of a dance floor to strut their stuff. 15 Lansdowne St., Boston, MA .
Orinoco
At this brightly decorated eatery, the pernil arepas ooze mojo-marinated pork and Guayanés cheese, and the tequeños melt at first bite. And unlike its sister locations, this Orinoco also offers a full bar—order a tart caipirinha and raise a toast to Venezuelan cuisine done right. 22 Harvard St., Brookline Village , MA 02445, orinocokitchen.com.
Galleria Umberto
Thick and fluffy with just the right amount of crunch, Umberto’s Sicilian crust is the perfect vessel for a complete smothering of herbed tomato sauce and bubbly, browned cheese. Just be sure to get there early (before noon is a good rule of thumb), as the place shuts down once the pizza has disappeared. 289 Hanover St., Boston, MA 2113, .
Concord Caterers
Mark Gallagher has fed the cast of Love Story, the Kearns-Goodwin wedding party, the Harvard Lampoon's centennial guests, Henry Kissinger's pals, and a bunch of People's Republic scientists with particularly fussy palates. He has done Iranian banquets, dinners based on Thomas Jefferson's personal recipes . . . but never turkey and mashed potatoes. Burlington, MA
Jason Lomberg, Plaza III
Attentive and charming, Lomberg plies his trade in the tourist-infested depths of Faneuil Hall Marketplace, where he's developed an admirable tolerance for onerous drink orders. But it's his particular facility for novelty frozen martinis—try the Orange Julius—that makes him worthy of toasting. 101 S. Market Bldg., Boston, MA 2109, plazathreeboston.com.
Tom Ponticelli
Surely, you must have done something right recently to deserve dessert at the Four Seasons. Whether you choose a dense and delicious chocolate mousse cake, the scones served warm from the oven, or platters of exquisite miniature pastries. Ponticelli's artistry is worth blowing your diet for. Skimp on calories somewhere else. Four Seasons Hotel, 200 Boylston St., Boston, MA .
The Middle East Restaurant
Best now, with its mix of jazz and international music in its back room. And better this fall, when the owners expand into the enormous basement space below the restaurant (once a candlepin bowling alley) to create a 130-person-capacity rock club. 472 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA .
The GrandTen Bar
You won’t find a more inventive cocktail program: GrandTen’s liquor license requires staff to create every ingredient on the menu from the distillery’s base spirits—from peach brandy to a vermouth-like "vermaro." But despite its extreme dedication to craft, this bar is a snobbery-free zone. 383 Dorchester Ave., Boston, MA 02127, grandten.com.
Divine Design + Build
In kitchen design, conceiving the proper layout is half the battle. We’d trust the Divine Design team to lead the charge any day: The Wellesley firm—which also boasts a stunning showroom in Boston—once revamped a local space by swapping a restrictive peninsula for a granite-topped island with storage and seating. Multiple locations. 180 Linden St., Wellesley, MA 02482, divinedesignbuild.com.
State Room
Perched 33 stories above the city with glass walls overlooking the Custom House Tower, the State Room is a blank canvas with personalization options galore. Chef David Blessing, meanwhile, serves up customized menus that are as breathtaking as the views—think tuna poke in mini cones and adorable s’mores tartlets. 60 State St., Boston, MA longwoodevents.com.
Davis Square Plaza
There’s no better place to hang out when the sun’s out, so grab a cone at J.P. Licks, find a comfy bench, and enjoy some of the best people-watching and outdoor performances on this side of the Red Line.
Cheapo Records
In a world choking on Black Eyed Peas, this cluttered basement shop is a refuge for the lonely few who still cling to the classics. The R&B, soul, and blues vinyl selection is simply astounding, and the music-obsessed staffers are excellent navigators to little-known high notes. 645 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 2139, .
Hallie Krechevsky
It's the thought that counts, but too often pricey flower arrangements arrive as if no thought went into them at all. Not so in Hallie Krachevsky's shop, where she lovingly assembles seasonal blossoms—many of them local—into mini masterpieces. And the store's good in a pinch: none of that "I need 24 hours!" business here. 248 Huron Ave., Cambridge, MA 2138, .
Calypso
Calypso's colorful yet put-together offerings prove once and for all that there is life after gray. Renowned for its clothing and accessories in luxurious fabrics and hues of amethyst, saffron, tourmaline, and fuschia, the bohemian, hippy-chic styling of this shop make it the best place for those who like to stand out from the crowd. 115 Newbury Street, Boston, MA calypsostbarth.com.