One of the worlds best chefs, loves Boston's food scene (Lowell: real estate, 2013)

[edwardsyzzurphands]

Nice article from Eater.

Grant Achatz Is Jealous of Boston - Eater Interviews - Eater Boston

[bostonguy1960]

Will read the article later.

Looks like an interesting site overall.

[johnathanc]

Boston is definitely an underrated food city. I'm not saying its on the level of NYC or SF but it does have great regional cuisine, Italian restaurants, fine dining establishments, and is getting more innovative.

[Dm84]

Originally Posted by johnathanc

Boston is definitely an underrated food city. I'm not saying its on the level of NYC or SF but it does have great regional cuisine, Italian restaurants, fine dining establishments, and is getting more innovative.

At the risk of getting flamed, I feel that most restaurants in the Boston area are too expensive for what you get in return.

[johnathanc]

Originally Posted by Dm84

At the risk of getting flamed, I feel that most restaurants in the Boston area are too expensive for what you get in return.

I don't think you should be flamed for this comment. There are a lot of expensive restaurants that offer less than stellar food, especially in the North End, anywhere around Quincy Market and Newbury Street. High traffic areas in almost any major city are like this. But if you know where to go, there are some pretty good eats in the city is the point.

[edwardsyzzurphands]

When considering real estate costs, wages, liquor license and the fact that many restaurants in the Boston area offer very good benefit packages considering the industry, you should expect the prices to be a couple dollars more per entree than a lower cost city.

Otherwise I find the value there if you avoid the tourist traps that always overcharge wherever you are. The Mid priced chef driven restaurants cost pretty much what it costs to eat in other comparable cities. Plus the ethnic food scene here is very strong and a good way to find high quality food for a low price.

[Oistrakh12]

I find the restaurant scene here very limited. In SF, there are tons of inexpensive yet great independent restaurants in literally every neighborhood and block , including downtown. I was blown away by the sheer number of ethnic foods as well as the reasonable prices. There are also tons of breakfast and donut places. You can get a great dinner for ten to fifteen bucks anywhere in the city (for dinner). The differences between SF and Boston are so stark. There are also tons of great Mexican, Indonesian, and Filipino restaurants, none of which Boston has!!

[edwardsyzzurphands]

Originally Posted by Oistrakh12

I find the restaurant scene here very limited. In SF, there are tons of inexpensive yet great independent restaurants in literally every neighborhood and block , including downtown. I was blown away by the sheer number of ethnic foods as well as the reasonable prices. There are also tons of breakfast and donut places. You can get a great dinner for ten to fifteen bucks anywhere in the city (for dinner). The differences between SF and Boston are so stark. There are also tons of great Mexican, Indonesian, and Filipino restaurants, none of which Boston has!!

Now I agree SF is the superior food city to Boston. Honestly you could make an argument that it is the 2nd best food city on the continent. At the very least it is in the 1st tier, while Boston sits comfortably into the 2nd tier. No argument there.

There are areas where Boston excels in comparison to SF though and alternatives to what you are looking for.

You want great Mexican? There are some places in East Boston like Angela's which do a great job, but alternatively why don't you focus on the Central American population that is largest here, which is Salvadoran? There are countless excellent Salvadoran places in East Boston, East Somerville and Chelsea.

Indonesian? I wish we had some here. I would kill for a Rijsttafel place like what I had in Amsterdam. At the same time similar is Malay food and places like Penang and Burbor Cha Cha in Chinatown are excellent.

Filipino? We don't have the population here like SF, but I found JnJ Turo Turo in Quincy to be very good and I learned about Filipino food while living in Toronto which has a large population. Also Sure Pinoy Food Market also in Quincy has great Filipino baked goods and prepared foods.

On the other hand why not focus on what Boston has in abundance which isnt as easy to find in SF? Caribbean Food, especially West Indian and the Spanish speaking Caribbean is much better here. Foods from Portugal and the Lusophone diaspora (Cape Verde, Brasil, The Azores, Angola) are easily found here in abundance but not as easily in SF. The Greater Boston Area houses the 2nd largest Cambodian population in the country after Long Beach, have you tried Thmor Da in Revere, Elephant Walk or the dozens of places in Lowell? Then you have others that also represent themselves nicely.

Its all about perspective, but other than Indonesian I cant think of one type of food you can find in SF that cant be found here. If there is I would stand corrected.

[TAM88]

Originally Posted by Oistrakh12

I find the restaurant scene here very limited. In SF, there are tons of inexpensive yet great independent restaurants in literally every neighborhood and block , including downtown. I was blown away by the sheer number of ethnic foods as well as the reasonable prices. There are also tons of breakfast and donut places. You can get a great dinner for ten to fifteen bucks anywhere in the city (for dinner). The differences between SF and Boston are so stark. There are also tons of great Mexican, Indonesian, and Filipino restaurants, none of which Boston has!!

Oh good, you're back to start another fight about how SF is so superior to Boston. Also, there are plenty of solid Mexican places in the city and metro area.

[Rhenzanite]

Originally Posted by TAM88

Oh good, you're back to start another fight about how SF is so superior to Boston. Also, there are plenty of solid Mexican places in the city and metro area.

This I would have to disagree with...but I guess that depends on what you have to compare it to. I grew up in California and I have yet to find any place in Boston that is even close to the places I've been to in Southern California.