Little Flippers Swim School
Devoted to children's lessons, this pool is kept at 89 degrees. Equally warm instructors tempt kids underwater with an arsenal of colorful foam toys and treasure tokens they can trade in for prizes. With spotless facilities, a comfortable waiting area with toys for siblings, and towels and swim diapers available for purchase if you've forgotten yours, this place runs swimmingly. 7 Strathmore Rd., Natick, MA 01760, littleflippersswim.com.
Alan Rouleau Couture
If you're going to drop a few grand on a suit, you might as well have it built from the ground up. Alan Rouleau—called one of America's finest suit makers—can design, cut, and sew a custom ensemble made from your choice of fine Italian and British fabrics. Select the lining, buttons, and lapel, then consider a pair of custom python boots, sold exclusively through Rouleau. 85 Newbury St., Boston, MA 02116, alanrouleau.com.
Rebecca Pacheco
Rebecca Pacheco, a South End resident whose first book, Do Your Om Thing, was recently published by HarperCollins, teaches her brand of traditional yoga mixed with modern philosophy at Equinox and in private practice. (She also posts videos on runnersworld.com and on her popular blog, Om Gal.) Her classes are fun and perfect for all experience levels, with absolutely zero judgment. rebeccapacheco.com.
Natural Cleaning Service
We dislike the cloying odor of synthetic perfumes. But finding a cleaning service willing to vigorously attack the cat hair, bathtub scum, and shelf dust without resorting to chemical warfare is always challenging. Flavia Abranches has been in the cleaning business for 17 years, offering a detail-oriented approach to every space (including the inside of your refrigerator) using old-fashioned soap and elbow grease.
The Liberty Hotel
Built into the former Charles Street jail, the Liberty was designed to cleverly highlight the original building's mid-19th-century monumentality. Despite its jailhouse origins, the hotel's rooms are captivating (in a good way), with floor-to-ceiling windows and plenty of amenities. There's also complimentary yoga on Saturdays and bicycles for touring around Beacon Hill. Skipping either would be criminal. 215 Charles St., Boston, MA 02114, libertyhotel.com.
Row 34
Steely Chablis and minerally Muscadet are natural seafood pairings. But at Row 34, wine takes a back seat to beer director Megan Parker-Gray's phenomenal suds selection. Her rotating cast of rarities includes stouts and sours from around the globe, small-batch collaborative projects from the likes of Hill Farmstead and Mikkeller, and the latest IPAs from next-door neighbor Trillium Brewing Company. 383 Congress St., Boston, MA 02210, row34.com.
Patrick Gaggiano, Vialé
There are a couple of reasons to visit a bar. One is to sip masterful cocktails. The other is to savor the charms of the bartender, a pleasure you'll discover in less than five minutes when the lighthearted Gaggiano is behind the stick. At Vialé, he's as likely to pour you a shot of cheap whiskey for the hell of it as he is to whip up an inspired creation filled with infusions and specialty liqueurs. 502 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, vialecambridge.com.
Qingdao Garden
Boston reps several styles of Chinese cuisine well—we have fiery Sichuan specialists, Taiwanese soup-dumpling pros, and temples to luxurious Cantonese seafood in Chinatown. For the floury, dumpling-heavy cuisine of the north, we head straight to Qingdao. There you'll find plates of fragrant cumin-laced lamb, crispy pan-fried leek-stuffed pies, and, most important, a massive roster of house-made dumplings in varieties like pork-and-leek and vegetarian string bean. 2382 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02138, qingdaogarden.com.
Regatta Inn
Thanks to a recent renovation, this centrally located Federal-style building has all of the history but none of the outdated décor. The inn's eight guest rooms boast luxe amenities, including Frette and Matouk linens and marble bathrooms. But perhaps the most compelling reason to stay is new innkeeper Lyn Francis's already-legendary breakfast of such staples as warm muffins and house-made granola. 78 Centre St., Nantucket, MA 02554, theregattainn.com.
Millie's
With strong drinks, panoramic ocean views, and a shoes-optional vibe, Millie's has all the makings of the perfect island beach bar. Here longtime locals happily commingle with the weekenders, thanks to plenty of barstools and an excellent rum-based house drink, the Madaket Mystery. Top-notch nibbles such as local fish tacos and fried clam po' boys encourage the revelry to continue long after that pretty sunset fades into memory. 326 Madaket Rd., Nantucket, MA 02382, milliesnantucket.com.
Courtside
Karaoke at this Cambridge dive can be a Darwinian proposition—despite Courtside's rec-room feel, every singer's out for herself on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. But that's part of the fun. Lubricated by cheap pitchers of beer and egged on by crowds that only get feistier as the night wears on, singers who take Courtside's "stage" revel in their four-ish minutes of glory, leaving the next person itching to try to win over the room with even larger antics. 291 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA 02141, courtsidekaraoke.com.
CinemaSalem
This indie movie theater has been a community favorite for years, with live music, film festivals, and art shows bolstering its new and classic big-screen offerings. While it's homegrown, it's hardly old-fashioned, with a coffee bar on offer from the beloved Atomic Café. Meanwhile, four screens mean a flick for (virtually) everyone—go ahead and put the kids in something animated while you hit the latest action movie. One East India Sq., Salem, MA 1970, cinemasalem.com.
Hive & Colony
Originally launched as a roving custom clothier in Manhattan (think: a food truck, but for made-to-measure menswear), Hive & Colony is now outfitting Boston's most fashionable grooms from its first brick-and-mortar, in Copley Place. The boutique, equipped with a measurement-capturing 3-D body scanner and a handsome bar, offers hundreds of fabric options for customizable suits and tuxes: Choose a lapel, add sharp buttons, and stitch your wedding date into the lining for a truly memorable getup. Copley Place, Boston, MA 02116, hiveandcolony.com.
L'élite Bridal Boutique
Some brides take longer than others to pinpoint their wedding-day style. If you already know that "timeless" and "sophisticated" top your list of gown criteria, skip the soul-searching and make an appointment at L'élite. The elegant boutique impresses us time and again with an unrivaled selection of traditional yet fashion-forward gowns from top designers including Amsale, Reem Acra, and Jenny Packham. 14 Newbury St., Boston, MA 02116, lelite.com.
Once Somerville
It's definitely not a bar, though there's no shortage of beers. And it's not exactly a concert hall, but it knows how to pull in national acts and put on one hell of a show. Welcome to Once Somerville, a 9,000-square-foot venue of shape-shifting entertainment. Whatever happens to be on the calendar—Monday-night tacos, heavy-metal yoga, storytelling performances from the Moth—it's sure to beat the regular routine of draining a few pints at your local watering hole. 156 Highland Ave., Somerville, MA 02143, oncesomerville.com.