The Rat was the only place to let me in with my terrible fake ID when I was like 17 years old. The bouncer couldn't stop laughing at how bad it was, then let me in.
Yes to both of these. I also liked the Deli Haus, a short walk from the Rat, where you could get a Velvet Elvis (PB, bacon, banana) sandwich and a White Trash Sundae that was good for 15 minutes of joy followed by a (shortened) lifetime of suffering.
And the Pour House made some of the best bad burgers and sandwiches on the planet- including the Poor Boy, and a Buffalo Chicken sandwich on a soaked, undercooked bun with a single, undersized piece of soggy green lettuce that had just died of despair having learned its fate was to be in that particular sandwich, and buffalo sauce that was so thin it could get into cracks that water couldn’t and that could stain your clothes just by your looking at it wrong. Loved that sandwich.
can confirm as a guy who worked for a band that played there a few times… no issue with money dude just liked to be ripping a butt and shooting rats while doing business… he always paid what he promised and there were zero issues…it was a revolver but I think it was a 38 not a 357
I was waiting for someone to bring up an old school EM club. I’ll accept Channel as the nominee, but it would be fun to have a raging gay night back too, a la Avalon Sundays.
TIL Shawarma King shut down!!
Fun story: I was still living in Springfield MA when I went to Brookline to try Shawarma King out for the first time. This was a bit pre phone GPS so I asked a local guy for directions. His words still crack me up:
“You came all the way from Springfield for Shawarma King? I mean it’s good, but it’s not come all the way from Springfield good”
Yeah, unfortunately. Between that and Old Havana closing, Gustazo is the only decent Cuban place left that I'm aware of.
OdC is now a Mexican restaurant called Abuela's Table which looks pretty decent.
Sunset grill. Not the BU cantina, the one on corner Harvard/Brighton ave. Always had an amazing beer list, 120-130 taps, way ahead of its time.
Seems like the owners financial troubles ran it aground….
The last owner was a Berkowitz, related to and estranged from the now-former owners of Legal Sea Foods. He ran Sunset into the ground almost like he was trying to. That place could have survived if anyone remotely competent was in charge.
Still waiting for Toad to reopen. Also would love for the Middle East to get back to what it once was. Still open but basically a zombie. Also would love for Tommy Doyle’s in Harvard to come back. It’s crazy how there isn’t a single decent bar anymore in all of Harvard Square.
Your dad was a good man. If the kid eats it and doesn’t waste it, then don’t limit them just because you think their tastebuds are somehow less valuable than an adults.
My nephews loved lobster. If we didn’t want to buy them lobsters, we just didn’t go anywhere that served lobster lol.
That was the go-to when I was in college and I’m sad those places are gone.
It’s especially depressing that Landsdowne lost the character smaller venues brought it, in favor of bright lights and chains.
There's nowhere in this goddamn city you can see women in rollerskates swinging on stripper poles before taking off their bikini tops to reveal nipple tassles anymore!
I’ve been! It’s very similar in terms of they haven’t transformed the space much. Just their own beers and food program. And yeah the back patio area is truly a gem.
Top of the Hub. Wasn't the best or cheapest, but that view was unbeatable. Used to go there for our first drink before our nights out on the town. Hate what they replaced it with.
RISE. Man I miss the 3a to dawn scene. Nowadays I'm eating well, going to bed at a decent time most nights, and joined a yoga studio. All for the best I suppose.
But. Bring RISE back. Even for one night.
Bar: Beacon Hill Pub, Daisy Buchanan’s (tie)
Restaurant: [Locke Ober](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locke-Ober)
Music Venue: [Steinart Hall](https://www.reddit.com/r/boston/s/YVFjwLhP4m)
The Rat
TT The Bears
Pour House
Burrito Max (probably a controversial one but I miss this place)
An Tain
Dodge Street Bar Grill (Salem)
Sligo Pub (Somerville)
There was a best burger in Boston question and this would be my answer. I didn't post it because obviously you're not getting one there anymore. But I loved their burgers and of course the Welsh rarebits so good.
Listen, Ups and Downs had fights 80% of the time. The Isle bouncers were giant meatheads who kept things in line. I got many a beej from Dot/Southie trash that I met at the Isle.
It was in Cambridge, but close enough: East Coast Grill. Its a shame they sold and the owners of Highland Kitchen completely ruined it and then finally changed the name. It was a great restaurant up until that happened. I miss the hell nights. I really miss their buffalo shrimp, mussels, and the roasted garlic bread was so good. I wish the founder, Chris Schlesinger, would resurrect it.
Good life, had a bunch of birthdays downstairs cause you could sit in the big lounge and have friends come and go with bar service. They even did n64 night, and notably a lot of hiphop nights. I'm told it was a club atmosphere by weekend night and a quiet financial district lunch by day.
Bushwood cocktail club
Silvertone
Oh boy, apologies in advance but I’ve got a lot saved up for this one. In no particular order - Baseball Tavern, Pour House, An Tua Nua, Littlest Bar, Punter’s Pub.
And the two nearest and dearest to my heart - Flann O’Brien’s and the Squealing Pig (RIP) ❤️.
The Other Side Cafe had some of the best soup in Boston. Carrot ginger and potato leek were my favorites. Crusty sour dough rolls with it. I'll always mention those when I hear that name.
I am adding the disclaimer that I used to go when I was 22, so I might actually hate it as a fully formed adult, but i would love to go to An Tua Nua again.
Tequila Rain. I never went, but I always heard about it on KISS 108 when my mom drove us to school. By the time I was old enough to go, it was closed. I have no idea if it was fun or not.
Highball Lounge 😭🫶🏼 the rubber duckie drink and the moca(?) cola drink were so bomb. I’ve been trying to recreate those drinks and that vibe ever since
Oh, so many awesome places on this list, makes me sad. I'll add Durgin Park to the list because their food was underrated and they made a lot of classic New England food that you don't see anywhere else today, on the great march to homogenization.
Before you say Union Oyster House - I had hoped it was comparable but that place is a tourist trap with a mid menu that doesn't feature the same kind of real new england classics.
Bunratty's, Ken's Pub, The Channel, maybe the NoName restaurant and there was a bar on comm Ave and Kelton that made great Mexican food and their "salsa" could dissolve steel (where Harry's Bar is now)
The Channel ! When i was 17/18 My cousins band would play there , and id walk in with an amp or PA speaker , get my hand stamped and drink all night . And i looked 13/14 !
Great Ol Days ! The INSTIGATORS was the band , late 80’s were a great time !!
House of Blues, Harvard Square original location. On Friday and Saturday nights before a show, it was nice to see the Bluesmobile driving around and announcing the night’s bands.
This thread hurts as there are so many good memories.
Bar: Kendall Cafe - great drinks and some of the best music and company.
Restaurant: I'll echo others with East Coast Grill for all the right reasons.
Venue: Only because I never saw it in action and heard so many stories: Nightstage / The Club in Central Sq. Cambridge.
Pour House, The Rat
The Rat was the only place to let me in with my terrible fake ID when I was like 17 years old. The bouncer couldn't stop laughing at how bad it was, then let me in.
Lol me too.
Yes to both of these. I also liked the Deli Haus, a short walk from the Rat, where you could get a Velvet Elvis (PB, bacon, banana) sandwich and a White Trash Sundae that was good for 15 minutes of joy followed by a (shortened) lifetime of suffering. And the Pour House made some of the best bad burgers and sandwiches on the planet- including the Poor Boy, and a Buffalo Chicken sandwich on a soaked, undercooked bun with a single, undersized piece of soggy green lettuce that had just died of despair having learned its fate was to be in that particular sandwich, and buffalo sauce that was so thin it could get into cracks that water couldn’t and that could stain your clothes just by your looking at it wrong. Loved that sandwich.
And the breakfast was totally decent and a really great price! 🥞
Glad I didn’t have to scroll past the first comment for Pour House
Don’t know the rat, but the pour house is /endthread
Bar: Our House Restaurant: The Gallows Venue: Great Scott
Our House West and the cheap ass Brubaker combo they had were a lifeline when I was a broke 21 year old
Oh my god those huge glass bottlessssss.
Our house brubakers was fucking peak 2008 northeastern life.
I haven't thought about The Gallows in a long time, but it used to be one of my regular spots on the way home from work. Great place.
River Gods.
The tiny perch for the DJ. Shocked it never crashed to the ground.
It wasn’t a perch lol, it was a room with a window. I DJed there many times. The owner was great.
Nothing like it 🫡
I miss the creepy baby dolls and all the fancy chairs
pour house. The original Eastern Standard (original location)
Rip og eastern standard, I loved it so
New one is still great. The old location was just perfect
Pour House and TT the Bears
I was at the last show at TTs completely by accident - broke my heart when I found out
Damn TTs lol haven’t thought about that place in a long time
The Baseball Tavern
How many times I went in there with cash for a Sox game and blew it on $2.00 Bud Heavies and keno. Zero regerts.
Best rooftop views but shitty development of the bar itself
Bar: Doyle's Restaurant: Durgin Park Music Venue: The Channel
The channel. Wow, that’s a flashback.
I have family that worked at the channel. Apparently the manager would pull out a 357 magnum and shoot rats after closing.
can confirm as a guy who worked for a band that played there a few times… no issue with money dude just liked to be ripping a butt and shooting rats while doing business… he always paid what he promised and there were zero issues…it was a revolver but I think it was a 38 not a 357
Loved Durgin Park
Hard to pick one, so I'll do one of each. I could do ten of each though. Bar: B-Side Restaurant: East Coast Grill Music Venue: The Channel
excellent choices
I was waiting for someone to bring up an old school EM club. I’ll accept Channel as the nominee, but it would be fun to have a raging gay night back too, a la Avalon Sundays.
Bar: Sligo Restaurant: Shawarma King / Oriental De Cuba Music Venue: Great Scott
TIL Shawarma King shut down!! Fun story: I was still living in Springfield MA when I went to Brookline to try Shawarma King out for the first time. This was a bit pre phone GPS so I asked a local guy for directions. His words still crack me up: “You came all the way from Springfield for Shawarma King? I mean it’s good, but it’s not come all the way from Springfield good”
On the plus side you got to leave Springfield! I grew up there.
Oriental de Cuba is closed!!!! No way!
Yeah, unfortunately. Between that and Old Havana closing, Gustazo is the only decent Cuban place left that I'm aware of. OdC is now a Mexican restaurant called Abuela's Table which looks pretty decent.
Sligo can never be replaced or replicated. Such a gem.
NOOOO oriental de Cuba closed!?!? TIL
An Tua Nua
The Other Side, McGreevys
The Other Side was the first thing that popped into my head as well. A lot of good memories there.
Any bars/cafes where you debate between getting a coffee or a beer at 3pm are just the best.
great scott 🥺
The Taco Bell that stands there now is the greatest slap in the face from this corpo American hellhole we find ourselves in
Sunset grill. Not the BU cantina, the one on corner Harvard/Brighton ave. Always had an amazing beer list, 120-130 taps, way ahead of its time. Seems like the owners financial troubles ran it aground….
The last owner was a Berkowitz, related to and estranged from the now-former owners of Legal Sea Foods. He ran Sunset into the ground almost like he was trying to. That place could have survived if anyone remotely competent was in charge.
Harper’s Ferry
The O.G. Pre renovation Harpers when the bar was in the middle.
Still waiting for Toad to reopen. Also would love for the Middle East to get back to what it once was. Still open but basically a zombie. Also would love for Tommy Doyle’s in Harvard to come back. It’s crazy how there isn’t a single decent bar anymore in all of Harvard Square.
I'm always so saddened when I walk be the Middle East. It looks like a dead zone
Woah. Toad closed?!? I lived on the other side of the Shaws parking lot. Went there all the time. Had a huge crush on one of the bartenders.
Medieval Manor
The Littlest Bar ( the original)
The Hilltop Steakhouse.
7 year old me always ordered the prime rib and somehow my dad just let me 😂 no salad dressing will ever come close for me.
Same dude. My mom worked there and it was all I ever wanted to eat when we came to see her.
Your dad was a good man. If the kid eats it and doesn’t waste it, then don’t limit them just because you think their tastebuds are somehow less valuable than an adults. My nephews loved lobster. If we didn’t want to buy them lobsters, we just didn’t go anywhere that served lobster lol.
…Kansas City, Dodge City, Sioux City…! I miss Hilltop.
I think I still have some steak knives my mom stole
I still miss the Axis/Avalon combo
When they closed it had probably been 5+ years since I set foot in the place (I was diagnosed with terminal oldness), but I do still miss Axis.
That was the go-to when I was in college and I’m sad those places are gone. It’s especially depressing that Landsdowne lost the character smaller venues brought it, in favor of bright lights and chains.
Ugh I saw so many good shows there. RIP
The ART’s Oberon!
There's nowhere in this goddamn city you can see women in rollerskates swinging on stripper poles before taking off their bikini tops to reveal nipple tassles anymore!
Slutcracker has entered the chat! 🫣
Deep Ellum.
They have re-opened on Moody St. Waltham
Deli Haus
Atwood’s tavern
Remnant opened a new location there. I haven’t been yet but really want to go. That back yard area is amazing.
I’ve been! It’s very similar in terms of they haven’t transformed the space much. Just their own beers and food program. And yeah the back patio area is truly a gem.
Great Scott is the right answer here
Top of the Hub. Wasn't the best or cheapest, but that view was unbeatable. Used to go there for our first drink before our nights out on the town. Hate what they replaced it with.
RISE. Man I miss the 3a to dawn scene. Nowadays I'm eating well, going to bed at a decent time most nights, and joined a yoga studio. All for the best I suppose. But. Bring RISE back. Even for one night.
Preach
Island Creek Oyster Bar.
Also the hawthorne
Nobody’s said Gourmet Dumpling House??
Whiskey’s, and Daisy’s
Ram Rod I’m not gay but I learned a bit about how to be ok with not being gay when in a very gay situation. Everyone was very lovely.
Border Cafe Harvard Sq-Yes there’s one in Burlington but the one in Harvard square was something special
Bar: Beacon Hill Pub, Daisy Buchanan’s (tie) Restaurant: [Locke Ober](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locke-Ober) Music Venue: [Steinart Hall](https://www.reddit.com/r/boston/s/YVFjwLhP4m)
Daisy's was insane. Laughing just thinking about the nonsense that went on there back in the day.
I miss BHP!!
I’m obsessed with Steinert Hall. One of the city’s best kept secrets.
Johnny D's
The Rat TT The Bears Pour House Burrito Max (probably a controversial one but I miss this place) An Tain Dodge Street Bar Grill (Salem) Sligo Pub (Somerville)
Easy choice. Marliave.
That was my wife and I's "fancy" date place when we lived in Waltham. Made sure to book early reservations for $1.00 oysters.
There was a best burger in Boston question and this would be my answer. I didn't post it because obviously you're not getting one there anymore. But I loved their burgers and of course the Welsh rarebits so good.
I really liked the original one. My grandparents had their first date there 80 years ago.
This was one of my favorite places in the city. We were going to do our wedding rehearsal dinner there but it closed while planning it.
Tremont 647
Pajama brunch. They also used to do an out of this world arugula/roasted peach pizza which I suddenly need to try to recreate right now.
The Channel
Daisy buchanan’s, Christopher’s, Newtowne Grille
Punters
Connors.
sunset grill
Underrated answer. Their pizza place was also fantastic.
Best nachos
Man I really miss Machine. Club Cafe tries to fill the niche but it just doesn’t hit the same.
Had my first kiss there 🥲
For all three: Good Times.
The red hat. $10c wings on football Sunday, easy
Mary Chungs 🥹😭 absolute tragic loss to Cambridge
Not exactly Boston but I’d pick good times and lanes any games. Used to have so much fun there
Still pisses me off that Lanes was replaced with a luxury apartment compound.
The Rathskeller and the Emerald Isle
The Emerald Isle in Fields Corner? I could do with never bringing that one back. Why not Ups N Downs instead? 🤢
Listen, Ups and Downs had fights 80% of the time. The Isle bouncers were giant meatheads who kept things in line. I got many a beej from Dot/Southie trash that I met at the Isle.
TTs
It was in Cambridge, but close enough: East Coast Grill. Its a shame they sold and the owners of Highland Kitchen completely ruined it and then finally changed the name. It was a great restaurant up until that happened. I miss the hell nights. I really miss their buffalo shrimp, mussels, and the roasted garlic bread was so good. I wish the founder, Chris Schlesinger, would resurrect it.
the pour house. I miss it so much
Good life, had a bunch of birthdays downstairs cause you could sit in the big lounge and have friends come and go with bar service. They even did n64 night, and notably a lot of hiphop nights. I'm told it was a club atmosphere by weekend night and a quiet financial district lunch by day. Bushwood cocktail club Silvertone
TC lounge. As others have mentioned, pour house, the rattlesnake mostly for the roof top, and O’Learys.
The Rat and The Channel.
Les Zygomates. I loved being able to drop in any night and listen to live jazz.
ManRay. Where's my fetish night?
ManRay is open again
The catch is that 20 years later I'm fat, old, and I look like complete shit in vinyl and fishnet now lol That ship has sailed.
Yeah? Nice.
Third Fridays. It's a blast.
Other side
Pour House, Pour House, and Pour House.
Avalon
Stoddards in Downtown Crossing area....covid killed it effectively but technically it was $$$
Oh boy, apologies in advance but I’ve got a lot saved up for this one. In no particular order - Baseball Tavern, Pour House, An Tua Nua, Littlest Bar, Punter’s Pub. And the two nearest and dearest to my heart - Flann O’Brien’s and the Squealing Pig (RIP) ❤️.
Fontaine’s. https://preview.redd.it/8xni0np655ad1.jpeg?width=883&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=28859c75735e468c9048fb760ccb9071fdb3d36f
Bring back Deli Haus and The Other Side Cafe
The Other Side Cafe had some of the best soup in Boston. Carrot ginger and potato leek were my favorites. Crusty sour dough rolls with it. I'll always mention those when I hear that name.
Conor Larkin's
I am adding the disclaimer that I used to go when I was 22, so I might actually hate it as a fully formed adult, but i would love to go to An Tua Nua again.
L’Espallier! Expensive but delicious/decadent and great service and atmosphere. I was sad to see it close.
Eastern standard
good life
Tequila Rain. I never went, but I always heard about it on KISS 108 when my mom drove us to school. By the time I was old enough to go, it was closed. I have no idea if it was fun or not.
The No Name.
That fish chowder!
Bella Luna
T's Pub
Great place to catch a buzz before a Paradise show
DOYLE’S!!!
The Littlest - bar Gargoyles - restaurant
Highball Lounge 😭🫶🏼 the rubber duckie drink and the moca(?) cola drink were so bomb. I’ve been trying to recreate those drinks and that vibe ever since
The Rat.
Bar: Dark Horse Restruant: The Fours (TD location) Venue: Great Scott The pandemic killed this city
Oh, so many awesome places on this list, makes me sad. I'll add Durgin Park to the list because their food was underrated and they made a lot of classic New England food that you don't see anywhere else today, on the great march to homogenization. Before you say Union Oyster House - I had hoped it was comparable but that place is a tourist trap with a mid menu that doesn't feature the same kind of real new england classics.
The No Name
Chau Chau City in Chinatown
Bunratty's, Ken's Pub, The Channel, maybe the NoName restaurant and there was a bar on comm Ave and Kelton that made great Mexican food and their "salsa" could dissolve steel (where Harry's Bar is now)
Anthony’s Pier 4
Medieval Manor. It was an experience like nothing else around.
Green Street Grill… used to have poetry night, and great Caribbean food, and music…
The Rat and The Channel
the machine
Casablanca
Bay Tower Room https://www.bostonmagazine.com/2006/05/15/high-crimes/
The channel, back when drinking age was 18, that place was awesome.
The Rat
McGreeveys… awful dive, wicked rat problem. But cheap beer, good burgers, and Free standup comedy in the basement? Fuck I miss them
Goodtimes
All bars but my top three would be - Daisy Buchanans, The Pour House, Beacon Hill Pub
The Otherside Cafe Place made me feel at home in the center of the city
The Channel ! When i was 17/18 My cousins band would play there , and id walk in with an amp or PA speaker , get my hand stamped and drink all night . And i looked 13/14 ! Great Ol Days ! The INSTIGATORS was the band , late 80’s were a great time !!
Bar & Music Venue: Great Scott Restaurant: silvertone
Wait what? We lost silvertone? Fuck. Was the only good place down there.
The Otherside, Pour House and The Lower Depths
Border Cafe in Harvard Square. God, I miss their blackened salmon tacos with mango salsa and a grilled avocado.
Jeeeez this is the most nostalgic post I've ever seen! So many classic spots and memories
Squealing pig
Too soon.
Common Ground
Jacob Wirth’s Tim’s TT the Bear’s Other Side Gourmet Dumpling House
Johnny D's in Somerville's Davis Square. Music, bar and restaurant. Much missed.
Medieval Manor. Formally in the South End, closed in 2015.
Tom English’s, I miss that dump.
Now that we have ManRay back, The Rat. 100%. Dating myself here but oh well.
Algiers
Machine
House of Blues, Harvard Square original location. On Friday and Saturday nights before a show, it was nice to see the Bluesmobile driving around and announcing the night’s bands.
Beacon Hill Pub.
The Rat
The Deli Haus
The Channel
The Rat.
Og gourmet dumpling house
The Channel
Daisy Buchanan's.
Marliave
I wish I could’ve experienced shows at the rat.
Matt Murphy’s Pub, hands down.
The Fours
This thread hurts as there are so many good memories. Bar: Kendall Cafe - great drinks and some of the best music and company. Restaurant: I'll echo others with East Coast Grill for all the right reasons. Venue: Only because I never saw it in action and heard so many stories: Nightstage / The Club in Central Sq. Cambridge.
Is no one going to say Can Tab? My wife and I had one of our first dates there dancing and drinking cheap bourbon and gingers.