Boston's New Restaurant and Hotel Groove

by Stefanie Berry

Boston has the same great views, but a whole new beat. Photo by Walter Bibikow/Folio

Sure, Boston has old-town charm, university students galore and clam chowda, but that's so tired. Thanks in part to hip new restaurants and hotels, Beantown has shed its staid New England image. Suddenly, amid its quaint gas lamps and charming neighborhood streets, the city on the Charles River has gotten downright funky. Here's the skinny on what's making Boston rock.

Food Frenzy

Boston has been blossoming into a serious restaurant town for a decade now, but only recently has it started to become a stylish restaurant town.

Food immortal Todd English at his new creation, KingFish Hall. Photo by Julie Fox Consulting

Touristy Faneuil Hall is the setting for local star Todd English's newest venture: KingFish Hall (617-523-8862), a two-story seafood emporium designed by New York's David Rockwell. Downstairs, a bar undulates around a flaming grill and a vast brushed-steel lobster pot; up a flight of steps interrupted by a waterfall, you'll find round booths that balloon out like grand scallop shells. English is a flamboyant chef, but here he focuses on freshness, forgoing his signature excess in favor of tight, focused dishes like yellowtail ceviche, lobster rolls and a big bucket of steamer clams. A glimpse of the English élan can be seen with scallops that are wrapped in bacon, grilled and served over amped-up baked beans on grilled brown bread. Like the restaurant, it's a surehanded blend of local tradition and sass.

Up on Beacon Hill, The Federalist (617-670-2515) is built not around a star chef, but around a wine list. Sommelier Christian Vassilev tends a 1,200-bottle list that reads like vinophile porn: vertical selections of cult California cabs, grand-cru Bordeaux, Champagnes. With chef Robert Fathman turning out solid upscale New Americana, The Federalist has quickly become the haunt of the city's expense-account crowd, cutting deals over $500 Burgundies in a high-ceilinged room of browns and taupes.

The city's other power haunt is Radius (617-426-1234), a semicircular Financial District showcase for chef Michael Schlow's jewel-like New French cooking. Everything about the place radiates buzz, from the 16-person communal table to the ceramic soap dispensers in the downstairs rest rooms, which are reputedly the most-stolen items in the Boston restaurant world. If you can't make it for dinner, it's worth stopping in at the bar just for Schlow's note-perfect crème brūlée.

Uptown, the Back Bay's elegant boulevards are lined with more than their share of trendy restaurants, but some of the best spots are off the beaten path. One is Bomboa (617-236-6363), a French-Brazilian fusion joint on hidden Stanhope Street that's become one of the chicest scenes in the city. The zebra-striped banquettes and shifting bar lights serve as backdrop for E. Michael Reidt's playful South American experiments, and for the beautiful clientele to sip caparinhas and air-kiss each other.

Beauty and the Beat Although the gallery scene on Newbury Street still produces much of the city's artistic buzz, you can't ignore recent noise coming from old favorites. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (617-267-9300, www.mfa.org). If you arrive before September 24, you can participate in America's love affair with Vincent Van Gogh in a special exhibit of the Dutch superstar's portraits. Also, if you love glitz and glitter, check out the new Hartman Collection of English Huguenot silver, which will be in residence through 2002. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (617-566-1401, www.boston.com/gardner). The founder adored the work of northern masters—from Rubens to Van Dyke—and surely would have appreciated a new exhibit: "Rembrandt Creates Rembrandt: Art and Ambition." The show, running from September 24 through January 7, features 20 early paintings and etchings that illustrate the development of the Dutch master's style. —Judy Pomeranz The courtyard at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Photo by John Kennard/Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Over in the historic Italian neighborhood of the North End, and just a few blocks from Paul Revere's house, Restaurant Bricco (617-248-6800) is helping touristy Hanover Street ride out of its red-sauce wilderness. In a dark, sleek room with striped wood floors and wrought-iron chandeliers, Napa-trained chef Bill Bradley (no, not that Bill Bradley) turns out a menu of creative Italian dishes. He'll skewer pork with grapes, mix ricotta with his gnocchi or throw in an exotic appetizer of cold Venetian smelts. Many of these come in friendly tapas-size portions, so tasting your way across Italy (or California) is a real option here. Desserts are gorgeous, but you'll have more fun heading out to one of the North End's nearby cafés, which have always had a style all their own.

—Stephen Heuser is a restaurant reviewer and features editor for the Boston Phoenix .

Boutique Chic

Boston's Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton remain upscale favorites, but the hottest places to stay these days are the city's new, small boutique hotels.

The coolest address in town is XV Beacon (617-670-1500, www.xvbeacon.com), which opened in January. The $25 million, privately owned 61-room hotel is housed in a 10-story, gorgeously renovated Beaux-Arts building in charming Beacon Hill. The décor is elegant yet austere, modern yet romantic. The mahogany lobby glistens, and a glass-enclosed cage elevator is lined with red leather—one of the few bright touches in a sea of muted tones. Each room has its own personality. You might see spaces done in taupe, crème or espresso, with splashes of color from things like bowls of tangerines.

The hotel's feel is sophisticated but decidedly modern, given details like private gas fireplaces framed in stainless steel (a keypad beside your four-poster bed controls the fireplace and the media center). This place is luxury, right down to the heated towels and 300-thread-count linens. Bonus: room service comes from the hotel's hot-spot restaurant, The Federalist, which serves great food (albeit pricey) in an atmosphere reminiscent of a private club. No detail here is too small. Guests even get business cards printed with phone and fax numbers for the duration of their stay. No wonder this place made Condé Nast Traveler 's Hot List 2000. Rates begin at $395.

Step into the Jewel of Newbury (617-536-5523, www.jewelboston.com), and your senses will be transported continents away. Filled with antiques, artifacts and rugs from Northern Africa, the Middle East and India, this boutique hotel is like no other. Offering only eight rooms and suites in a late-19th-century brownstone in the heart of the Back Bay, the hotel mixes old-world elements with modern-day amenities.

Upscale chic is nothing but fun at the hot XV Beacon. Photo by Richard Mandelkorn

The result is a blend of formal and informal that may not suit a traditionalist. Each room and suite offers a distinctive look, thanks to unusual antiques and artifacts. Proprietor Mouldi Sayeh, a native of Algeria, spent five years renovating the building (all rooms have modern marble bathrooms, phones and cable TV). The intimate sensibility of both the hotel and the restaurant come from Sayeh's notion that guests are like family. Make sure not to miss the outstanding and authentic cuisine in the small Moroccan-Arabic restaurant (the only one of its kind in Boston). Exotic! Hotel rates range from $275 for a single room and $1,500 for a suite.

For more information about Boston, check out www.bostonusa.com, or call 888-SEE-BOSTON.