The Oak Room
Forget what you think you know about steak houses. The Oak Room, this year's dark horse candidate, puts the usual contenders to shame. Vaulted plaster ceilings and meticulously carved oak walls to form a regal setting, the capable waiters assist you with old-school formality but not a touch of stuffiness. The steaks are perfect— well marbled, cooked exactly to order, served with your choice of bearnaise sauce or a red wine glaze. For the less carnivorous, there's always the spectacular lobster bouillabaisse. The wine list is interesting and accessible to spenders big and small. 138 St. James Ave., Boston, MA .
Crane Beach
The white sand goes on forever—or at least for four-and-a-half miles. This North Shore strip has the dunes, the best-blended concession stands, the most peaceful ambience—all in a preserved marshland setting that makes the parking fee ($9 to $15—half price after 3 p.m. every day) worth it. Besides, proceeds go to the Trustees of Reservations to protect historic homes in the area. If the greenheads are getting nippy, as they can in August, head uphill and tour the grounds of the historic Crane estate, and make a pit stop for fried clams at Woodman's around the corner. Argilla Rd., Ipswich, MA .
Brato Brewhouse + Kitchen
Considering all of the craft-beer cans crushed in Allston/Brighton’s indie-rock-blaring bars, it’s wild that the neighborhood didn’t have its own brewery until Brato moved in in 2019. Now, beer lovers citywide flock there to fill growlers with full-bodied sour beers and smooth saisons, and/or get their grub on with gourmet grilled-cheese flights and inventive house-made bratwursts. Head brewer Alex Corona and chef Jonathan Gilman both come from Cambridge Brewing Company, an industry pioneer, and here they’re blazing a trail of their own. 190 N. Beacon St., Brighton, MA 02135, bratobk.com.
Mirbeau Inn & Spa
Provence touches down in Plymouth at Mirbeau, a resort inspired by French country manors just a short putt away from where the Mayflower met shore. Boasting 34 lavishly appointed guest rooms, the turreted main house overlooks elegant grounds with Monet-worthy ponds and gardens and a Jack Nicklaus–designed golf course. The transportive ambiance extends to the stone-walled spa and Four Diamond–rated restaurant, which hosts farm-to-table dinners right in the middle of a local cranberry bog. Continental class, imported to the South Shore. 35 Landmark Dr., Plymouth, MA 02360, plymouth.mirbeau.com.
Galley Diner
After enduring Whitey’s old neighborhood badly rendered in countless movies and reality shows over the years, it’s comforting to find a place that is perfectly, authentically, and effortlessly Southie. This describes the Galley Diner, with its 12-stool counter and four tables, to a T. The joint has all the diner classics, of course—the corned-beef hash is even better stuffed inside the "Southie" omelet with cheese—but if anything deserves to be featured in a movie, it’s the handcarved ham, sliced fresh in front of your eyes, heated on the griddle, and smothered in eggs and hash browns. Now that, we’d argue, deserves top billing. 11 P St., South Boston, MA 2127, thegalleydiner.com.
Cha Fahn
If the array of refined Asian-inspired nibbles doesn't clue you in, the owners of this four-year-old restaurant will take pains to make clear that Cha Fahn is about much more than tea. But set aside the premium sake and the inventive entrees, and what's left is simply the best-chosen tea selection in the city, in a perfect setting for enjoying it: a peaceful yet romantically charged room, ideal for lingering over pots of aromatic darjeeling, oolong, assam, lapsang souchong, and so on. It's the kind of spot that feeds the soul. The fact you can also feed your appetite is a lovely bonus. 763 Centre St., Jamaica Plain, MA chafahn.com.
Soma
Thanks to new chef Seth Fernald, who hails from the dearly departed Federalist, it's easy to attain euphoria at Soma. Menu standards like 'Duck, Duck, Goose,' a crisp-skinned duck breast served with foie gras butter and sautéed brussels sprouts, are impeccable. Specials such as gray sole-enveloped honshemeji mushrooms with a ricotta-stuffed squash blossom beguile at first bite ('Like spring on a plate,' one diner mused). If that doesn't leave your head spinning, the house-infused bourbons and raspberry-kumquat martinis certainly will. 256 Cabot St., Beverly, MA 1915, somabeverly.com.
DJ Bruno
Sometimes a little 'YMCA' is all it takes to get the party started. Other times, it's enough to send it packing. With two decades of experience, DJ Bruno knows what to spin when, and where. His far-reaching musical arsenal gets clubbers going nightly—devotees never miss his Sunday R&B-meets-house-meets-soul party at Boston Rocks, or his upbeat hip-hop and reggae beats on Thursdays at Caprice. Request the Village People, if you must; he'll have your hands up in no time. MA djbruno.com.
The Biltmore
With its shabby-chic dining room (mismatched old chairs, vintage ephemera), the Biltmore makes weekend mornings feel like brunch at Grandma's. An indulgent grandma, that is. Yours probably didn't serve Cap'n Crunch-coated French toast drizzled with warm vanilla icing, or whole-wheat flatbread topped with fresh mozzarella, local tomatoes, basil, pancetta, and sunny-side-up eggs. The sausage-infused biscuit "fritters" with house-made apple-butter dipping sauce, meanwhile, are hearty enough to inspire a post-meal nap. 1205 Chestnut St., Newton, MA 2464, thebiltmoregrill.com.
The Catered Affair
This culinary juggernaut is the in-house caterer for a slew of the city’s high-end venues, including the Boston Public Library, Harvard Art Museums, and the Boston Athenaeum (where it also runs a brand-new café open to the public). Which begs the question: If they trust the Catered Affair to handle their cuisine, shouldn’t you? The answer: Yes, you absolutely should. With the goal of creating unforgettable dining experiences, the team here can curate a personalized menu for your big day — think king-crab tostadas and broiled oysters with sea urchin and black lime — that looks as good as it tastes. thecateredaffair.com.
GlenPharmer Distillery
It’s the place Franklin never knew it needed, but now can’t live without: an artisanal distillery with its own bustling tasting room and full-service restaurant. Here, friends, neighbors, and couples alike clink glasses of the award-winning vodkas — offered as flights with other spirits or in a variety of creative cocktails — at high-tops inside a former covered bridge and at the cozy, stone-walled bar. Looking to make a day of it? Book a tour of the former mill building turned distillery and get a look at how the spirits in your glass were born. 860 W. Central St., Franklin, MA 02038, glenpharmer.com.
French + Italian
What was once considered a fleeting sojourn into sweatpants has now become the new virtual-business casual — but when you want to step it up a bit for your video calls (while still remaining comfy, of course), you’d do well to pop into Aimee Lombardi’s chic Beacon Hill boutique. Slouchy but well-tailored, classic but vibrant enough to stand out on camera, the carefully curated racks of linen button- downs from Aspesi and sunflower-yellow jersey pants by Sofie D’Hoore will carry you from Zoom calls to a nap to dinner al fresco. Multiple locations, frenchitalian.com.
Dr. Detail Car Wash
Most of us do very bad things in our cars, what with the speeding and the cussing and whatnot. Some of us also do very bad things to our cars, leaving them to suffer the indignity of coffee-stained dashes and trash-strewn floors. When the situation reaches the Good God, what is that smell? stage, it's time to pay a visit to Dr. Detail. At its three local mall-garage setups (bonus: shop while you wait) and flagship operation in Walpole (bonus: spot a Patriot), this auto aesthetician offers a decent hand-wash and vacuum for 30 bucks. But book a full detail, starting at about $160, and the guys will buff, shampoo, and vacuum away every last vestige of your sins. Consider it an exorcism, with new-car smell. Copley Place, Boston, MA 2116, .
Helen Cooper
Here's a masseuse who can diagnose your lifestyle ills just by feeling your muscles. A keyboard jockey? She can tell from those ropy tangles in your forearm. Carry a heavy bag on your left? Those crooked shoulders are a dead giveaway. Cooper works to remedy the physical damage of modern living, and gives advice on how to cure bad habits that take their toll on your body. And it feels good, too. Le Pli, 5 Bennett Street, Cambridge, MA .
Ballet Ball
Finally IRL after a multi-year hiatus, this year’s Ballet Ball was a party of epic, delicious, and delightfully over-the-top proportions. A new venue, the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport, accommodated more guests, not to mention space for thrilling feats by Boston Ballet’s dancers. If there was a better way to celebrate Mikko Nissinen’s 20 years of leadership than with everyone gathered together again, dancing into the wee hours, we can’t think of it. bostonballet.org.