Esmai’s Cafe & Restaurant

★★★★★ 4.8 (12)

"Came here for brunch a few weeks ago and can't wait to go back! Esmai's is not your ordinary American brunch place, it has so many unique Asian brunch dishes.Karage chicken milk bread sandwich- Absolutely delicious! The chicken was juicy and hot with a nice light crispy outside. The flavor was super yummy. The egg was light and fluffy. The milk bread was also yummy. I would definitely get this again!Fries- crispy and hot with the perfect fry and seasoning. Even when the fries for cold at the end of the they were still crispy and yummySoufflé pancakes- they were small and weren't as fluffy as other soufflé pancakes I've had before. They were okay. We tried the pandan and plain with fruit. The pancakes were the same but they came with different syrups.Lavender Vietnamese coffee- yummy!! Nice strong flavors. There are many other unique drink flavors and other food items like loco moco that I would want to try next."

Ginger Exchange

★★★★☆ 4 (44)

"Yum! I love their Fried chicken, jap chae, kimchi loaded fries and Lo mein. The food is always very flavorful and delicious! I typically order about once a month. It is not the healthiest of meals but who wants to live forever?I think it is a a bit more expensive that what is fair. i mean, 16 dollars for a lo mein that i normally pay 5 dollars for elsewhere? Yikes! They are a bit stingy with the serving sizes which is unfortunate. Hopefully they do better but it doesnt take away from the flavor"

Cafe Darq

★★★★☆ 4.2 (92) • $

"I've been to this boba spot twice during my visits. I've gotten lucky and gotten myself some tasty drinks. The Vietnamese coffee is hella strong and sweet, would have liked it less strong. My husband's lychee green tea was super duper sweet, I don't think he adjusted the sweetness. I LOVED the jasmine green milk tea, I swapped out for oat milk, boba was perfect. You can skip the dragonfruit smoothie, my sister said it was way too sweet, too much condensed milk and coconut. Also very expensive boba drinks IMO, like $7-8 before tax and tip... wow! Super nice interior, could totally be a cute hangout spot."

Super Fusion Cuisine

★★★★☆ 4.2 (327)

"Consistently good! That's how I would describe Super Fusion. It's a no frills joint. You think of takeout sushi, and this place comes to mind. Fifteen minutes and your order is ready.We've ordered multiple times now. I don't believe they have an online ordering system, but it's super easy to call and place your order, takes a minute at the most. We've had the spicy salmon roll, spicy tuna roll, and a couple other rolls - they've all been tasty. A special mention of their vegetarian roll, the Hawaii one, which has mango, banana, avocado, cucumber, and cream cheese. Don't knock it till you've tried it! And thanks to the many many Yelp reviews recommending the Beni Toro Banana, we ordered it and enjoyed it. I never thought salmon and banana fried in a ball, drizzled with sauce could be so good - and especially that sauce, yum.The next time you want a quiet night in, watching a movie, and you wonder "sushi night?", Super Fusion is your place!"

Typhoon Asian Bistro

★★★☆☆ 3.2 (315) • $$

"Came here with a few friends who was craving sushi for dinner. After some casual day drinking and catching up we needed a place for a late dinner. They close at 1 AM. As we got there at 10 o'clock there was a decent rush around 1130 midnight. We all ordered the sushi which was delicious and super fresh. Drinks for a little bit on the sugar side so I stopped at two. Great amendment was I was able to switch to Jen instead of vodka for the wakikki drink"

OliToki

★★★★☆ 4.1 (191) • $

"We got takeout from there and the food was bomb. The Toki Tochos and the wings were so amazing and literally everything we got from there was so good. Highly recommend."

Base Crave

★★★★★ 4.7 (117) • $$

"Awesome flavorful food in a cute family owned restaurant. I've tried a lot of different appetizers and entrees and you cannot go wrong. The stir fry chili plates are my favorite. I love how they allow you to decide on the spice level from one to ten. I've tried both seven and eight and they are indeed spicy and not for those who are not a fan of spicy. I will go up to a nine or ten on my next trip."

Purple Shell

★★★★☆ 4.1 (262) • $$$

"One of my favorite sushi places in Boston!!! True hidden gem. The ambiance and decor of Purple Shell is a bit lacking; when you walk in it doesn't look like anything special.The food (quality AND presentation) is what blows this place out the water. Ignore the LARGE menu, complete with pictures (the combo of those 2 usually scare me off). It is easier to use the online menu (than the paper version) because all 93748595 food items are neatly organized. I ordered the pan fried pork gyoza, crab rangoons, the fire salmon, torched toro maki roll, and a bunch of pieces of the signature nigiri (torched wagyu, double tuna, torched salmon belly). Every.single.item. was DELICIOUS. The fish was all SO fresh; tasted like it was caught the morning of. The gyoza and the crab rangoons were perfectly lightly fried and crunchy. Each piece of nigiri had a pop of flavor, the flavor combinations blended so well. I ended up ordering doubles and triples of the nigiri.The service was friendly, and helpful. Our waitress gave us several recommendations and informed us of her favorites. She was always around if we wanted to order more food, but was not lingering or nagging. I really loved Purple Shell and would highly recommend to everyone! Love love love this restaurant!!"

Shojo Cambridge

★★★★☆ 3.9 (31)

"I love the other Shojo location so definitely had to try this one when I heard it was opening. I visited here with a few friends. Would definitely get a reservation - the place was poppin when we went on a Saturday evening. Large space inside with fun funky decor. Dark lighting for some ~ vibes ~. The wait staff were all so friendly. Food and drinks were just as great as their other location. Pork bao buns - so yum! The fried rice is always a great go-to as well. I felt like there were a few cocktails that were not there at the menu on the other restaurant. I have 2 vegan friends and they love eating at the Shojo locations because there are lots of vegan friendly items and are well labeled. DEFINITELY will go again!"

Jin's Fine Asian Cuisine & Sushi Bar

★★★★☆ 4 (211) • $$

"Super fresh and melts in your mouth! Look at all that fish roe on my sushi! Presentation : 8/10 Super stylish with the black plates and flower!I love the way everything laid out and the sushi is topped off beautifully. Wasabi is shaped like poop though heheTaste: 8/10 Creamy avocado and fresh fish in the salmon avocado roll! I love the torched salmon too but a little too well done for me. I love how generous they are with the fish roe on top! Overall, I give it a 8/10. It is pricy but for a fine Asian cuisine I think it lives up to the name!"

ZAZ

★★★★☆ 4 (210) • $$

"Checked out the Xmas food truck parked at the seaport market. The service was a little slow, there were only 4 people in front of me but I waited 10 mins to order, which seemed a little odd. When you look at the menu, there are no prices, when I ordered my small jerk chicken with rice and beans it was $16. At this point I was committed and hungry so I went ahead with the order. The portion size was fine but I would've appreciated an idea of a price point. A person after me asked how much the empanadas were ($14) and they promptly declined and walked away at that price. Onto the food, they serve it with a sweet chili sauce in the side but I typically like jerk chicken in it's true form and glory before diluting it was sauce. By itself it was fine but the sauce really helped. If I didn't have the sauce, I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much. There were bits of bones when they chop up the chicken which made it unpleasant after a while. Coming from a Chinese background I'm used to eating chicken with bones and having to deal with bone bits, but the way it was chopped was a little sloppy and more than just a couple bits. 4 of my first 5 bites, I thought I was eating a bean but instead chomped on a chicken bone fragment."

Rice Passions

★★★★☆ 4.3 (148) • $$

"Just an update... the food is still bomb dot com. The chicken satays are delicious. The steamed dumplings are what I call "the good kind" of thai restaurant dumplings..they are absolutely delicious. The kapow chicken is delicious. It was a lot more "saucy" than it is at other places but still amazing. The service is very good. The carpet needs replacing but that does not detract from this place being top notch delicious and highly recommended."

Flavor Boom-Watertown

★★★★★ 4.6 (69) • $$

"I came to this Watertown location only because we keep passing this in a car ride. Food is what I remembered from the Jamaican playing location, but this takeout was basically self-service kiosk and not even sure if they took cash which worked fine for me and once you place it you get your food. It's a little impersonal honestly, but it's such a tiny space to sit down like two tables and they have this whole back section which seems to be the kitchen I think, it was quite blocked off. Nice to know of this location I think this is just a good place to just take out."

Shabu-Zen

★★★★☆ 3.9 (709) • $$$

"Amazing hotpot- the Mongolian is my favorite.Try the vegan fish and the fish paste and the quail eggs!Parking lot behind though it fills up pretty quickBe prepared to wait on weekends but worth it!"

Bon Me - Fort Point

★★★★☆ 3.6 (82) • $

"We had lunch at Bon Me today. It was a very nice meal! This cozy little restaurant was modern, had a nice atmosphere and was very clean. The service was also great. The staff was pleasant to deal with and got they got our food served quickly.I opted for Ali's Pho which came with roasted chicken, rice noodles, red cabbage, cilantro, and scallions. I gotta say, it was a big bowl of pure soupy goodness. The pho was served piping hot, and each spoonful was bursting with flavorful broth. The combination of the savory chicken, herbed broth, fresh cilantro and the subtle crunch of the red cabbage created a nice blend of taste and texture which I really loved. This place is well worth visiting. I would highly recommend Bon Me to anyone looking for a big bowl of tasty pho. You really can't go wrong here. Four stars!"

Pho 1 Brighton

★★★★☆ 3.9 (98)

"This restaurant can be pretty intimidating since the menu is so extensive. There's Vietnamese food, Korean food, and tons of Thai food as well. There's also lots of seating and they don't seem to be busy often so the staff is waiting on you to order and the food comes out pretty quick.The food was pretty good. The pho is only one size compared to other places that might have an XL. The combination rice platter was pretty tasty. An overall thing I noticed was that the meats were a bit tough. The photos of the fried chicken that everyone convinced me to get it as well. It was fried perfectly so definitely crunchy but the meat wasn't really that great. It also came with a choice of side which I chose fries and that was really tasty! The pork chop on their rice combo wasn't really tender either. Their pad thai was kind of stuck together. I would definitely want to try more foods from here though. I was a bit skeptical on what would be good since there were too many items to choose from but the food was surprisingly better than I expected."

Myers & Chang

★★★★☆ 3.9 (1936) • $$$

"Six of us enjoyed a fabulous Sunday brunch here! We had reservations for 11:30 which is when they open. Took a Lyft so we didn't have to worry about parking.They said everything was intended to share and would come out as prepared in random order, so it was always a surprise what was coming next. For 5 of us we shared 13 items, and didn't waste a bite of anything. No doggy bags for us. We were all very full though. The 6th person is a Vegan who was very happy with his 3 items that he ordered. Loved my Yuzu Lemon Drop too.Favorites were the Lemon Shrimp dumplings, the Clams w/Fermented Beans, the roasted root veggies in red miso (carrots & sweet potato), the brussels and the Fried Egg Bahn Mi (even if it was hard to share). Least favorite was probably the wings. A couple folks thought they were too salty. My wing wasn't. I liked it but didn't think the sauce went with it. Everything was loaded with flavor. Dipping sauces all exceptional. All of us loved our experience!"

Menya Jiro - Harvard

★★★★☆ 3.7 (95) • $$

"For a late dinner I decided to get some ramen at Menya Jiro. Arriving on Saturday at 9pm, the venue was almost empty, so I received seating immediately and made my order of chicken karaage ($8.5) and Sakurajima ramen ($15), both of which arrived within 10 minutes.The chicken karaage arrived with a spicy aioli - unorthodox for Japanese, but well-paired nonetheless. The karaage itself seemed to have a crisper breading layer than usual. I suspect it had been double-fried, which most places skip. This allows for a greater texture contrast. When the stiffer initial resistance finally gives way, it immediately brings you to the juicy chicken.The Sakurajima ramen arrived as a slightly spicy bowl with 2 pieces of chashu and garnish. The chashu and garnish seemed decent. Notably, the ramen noodles possessed a firm, al-dente texture. You could also taste and feel the alkaline hydration that went into the making of the noodles. Either they were made in house or sourced from a high-quality supplier. Otherwise, the broth itself had a light mouth feel (think shio ramen broth), but its flavor lay between shio and tonkotsu. While my initial description may not warrant 5* instead of 4*, I left impressed by some technical details, namely the double-fried karaage and the noodles."

Bon Me - Back Bay

★★★☆☆ 3 (26) • $$

"+ Ali's Pho - Chicken pho with noodles, chinese salt and pepper, cabbage, bean sprouts, red onion, cilantro, scallions, crispy shallots, and a slice of lime. Tasty and decent portions.+ Quick service.+ Self order on a tablet option.- Lukewarm broth.- No tray provided when order served.- Limited dine-in seats."

Krua Thai

★★★★☆ 4.4 (199) • $$

"krua thai was pretty good! i got take out and ordered the tofu pad see ew - the portion size was good, but they gave slightly less than other thai restaurants. nothing on their menu is more than $20, which i find amazing (especially nowadays). the restaurant is quite small but it wasn't too busy when i went around 7pm on a weekday. they don't have a bathroom for customers. service was quick and their employees are very kind. overall rating: 8/10"

Ginger Exchange Symphony

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (210)

"Small, hard to find place, but worth the effort. Service was excellent with a nice selection of craft beers on tap and wines. Good portions on the set meals and reasonable prices."

Ho Win Palace

★★★★☆ 3.9 (23)

"The new Tiki Island is now Ho Win Palace. Ho Win is a big win. It's wicked clean and remodeled very nicely and has a more yuppified look. Admittedly though, I really miss the "old school" look of nostalgic kitschy and cheesy Oriental-theme decor and red pleather booths, etc. But I am Zen with their efforts to update this place. Kudos.The bar is very extensive, and it's stocked with lots of everything -six rows deep of Woodford and many more boozes. They even have a bottle of Louis XIII Cognac front and center and all sorts of fun paraphernalia like a shot-glass Ferris wheel and much more. Classic New England libations are available on the drink menu including the ever-essential Blow Jobs and Woo-Woos. Hats off for this attention to our New England favorites!Service is attentive, prompt and friendly AF. The menu is "the usual" -quite extensive and includes the de rigueur Subgums, Moo Shoes, Kow Pangs, etc.We ordered two Mai Tai to start. Admittedly, they were good and well-presented but were in a tall glass and so they were very unboozy tasting and quite sure they contained only the Massachusetts state-law amount of booze and no more. They do have many types of phun glasses and Tiki mugs for each type of drink. Kudos for that.We ordered 'Goons which were good but I actually prefer a greasier 'Goon but that's just my pref. Moey ordered the Singapore Noodles and I got the Three Delight Kung Pow. Her dish was pissah and she loved it. My Kung Pow was very good and copius but again I prefer the more "old school" Kung Pow which is greasier and more ghetto. Again, this is just my pref. The food here leans towards a slightly more "gourmet" style. I also dig the Ho Win Palace monogram dishware. It's highly Festivus and adds a touch of class and shows that they don't cut no corners.I also got a Hot n' Sour Soup. It was wicked good and was thermally wicked hot which is a big plus. I've experienced cold/tepid soup commonly at many places and it's a big no bueno and speaks volumes about caring or lack thereof. Most importantly, it had the apropos woodear 'shrooms (NOT the Pennsylvania 'shrooms which has become the "new normal" but is unacceptable not to mention wicked unauthentic -and done so to simply save expense). Six bucks was quite reasonable for this good-sized and quality soup. Kudos, again...I will be back to Ho Win Palace. I wanna sample more phood and get a Blow Job too. Thank you, Ho Win, for doing a great job on this new Palace!Kudos!"

Lotus Xpress

★★★★☆ 4 (297) • $

"I door dashed. Came hot and fresh and on time. The chicken teriyaki was excellent. Not too saucy great size pieces. Ordered white rice. Small container. Ordered 2 portions of Tuna maki. It was fresh, nicely presented and very tasty. Also had miso soup large size. Very tasty. Nice cubes of tofu and seaweed. If I lived here i'd. order again."

Shanti Indian Cuisine

★★★★☆ 4.1 (483) • $$

"Honestly, Shanti is hands down the best Indian restaurant around Dorchester/Boston area that I ever tried. Indian cuisine is on my list of top 5 favorite type of food to indulge. Normally I would get chicken tikka masala (extra spicy ) or butter chicken. But last night, I tried their tandoori chicken for the first time and it was amazing! I've had tandoori chicken before from other places but Shanti was so much more well seasoned. Of course , I had to get it spicy. Both the flavor and spice was amazing . You can either get it as a whole chicken or half chicken. I believe it was $17-$18 for half a chicken and it's probably $35-$36 for the whole chicken. Half chicken feeds 2-3 people. It usually comes with either rice or plain naan. TIP - MAKE SURE TO ASK FOR EXTRA LEMON. IT PAIRS SO WELL WITH THE CHICKEN. As always, always ask for their condiments. All their chutney sauces is amazing. It's a must have."

Crudo

★★★★☆ 3.8 (349) • $$$

"If I were rating Crudo on the food alone, it would be 4 stars (probably more a 4.5, but that's not an option). Unfortunately for Crudo, the vibe is just a weird one overall. To start with the positive:Ordered the jalapeno hamachi and the firecracker calamari - both came out quickly and were perfection. The hamachi was so fresh and absolutely delicious and really well portioned. The calamari was DELICIOUS and a massive portion for $16. The spicy aioli wasn't too spicy, but was a great add and the calamari felt really light despite being breaded. All the food was incredibly fresh and was presented beautifully as well. The service was also great - the bartender was attentive without being overbearing and the service was really quick. You could also see the sushi chefs prepping everything and see the fish displayed and all of it looked incredibly fresh (really gorgeous red tuna and perfect looking salmon - nothing looked at all gray or like it had been sitting out). The bar area and restaurant itself was beautiful too! Really awesome decor. Now for why I'm only giving it 3 stars (and I hate this, because the food really was awesome!). Maybe this is an indication I'm getting very old, but the music was LOUD. Like, really loud - I'm a fan of EDM, but this was super dubstep-y, deep, deep house and it just didn't fit the vibe of the restaurant at all. It was really difficult to hold a conversation - and I was there at 5:30 PM (maybe more indication I'm getting old). The drinks are also served in these MASSIVE glasses. It's a little gimmicky to be given a punchbowl of Sapporo (that also tasted flat). To me, it seemed to more make it seem like the cocktails were larger than they are and it just didn't do it for me. Overall, I wish I could separate out the food from the overall vibe, but they unfortunately go hand in hand. I would have stayed longer for more apps or sushi, but because of the extremely loud music that didn't really fit a sushi spot (and early o'clock as well), I wouldn't return especially since there are so many other great sushi options."

Shōjō-Boston

★★★★☆ 3.9 (1049) • $$

"Oh. My. Land. This place is absolutely wonderful. We had a wonderful visit to this amazing little place in Boston's Chinatown. The wait service was attentive and helpful. The beer was cold and frosty. The food - oh, the food. Everything was wonderfully delicious. We loved the rib-eye bao, it was everything they said it would be. It was tender and flavorful, fluffy and just spicy enough. The dumplings were even better. We loved the Wagyu beef dumpling, absolutely loved it! And the edamame dumpling was just as good, that corn soup was outstanding. We also had the duck-fat fries and they were just that. Duck fat fries, and I'd probably go for another order of the dumplings or bao buns before adding the fries next time. Loved this place!!"

Fuji at Assembly

★★★★☆ 4.1 (677) • $$

"Everyone in the area knows Fuji as absolute sushi legends. Everyone's got a go to order. Below is ours! Lychee martinis or sake! General gaos chicken with a side of white rice. Maki Moro super combo sushi rolls. Super underrated-- pork belly + scallions!! GET IT. We have excellent service at all times for take out, at the bar or for dinner. We love it here and you will to."

Lime Chelsea

★★★★☆ 4.4 (18)

"This is a nice find on this area. A little gem, definitely worth the visit. Would love to come back at some point."

Ho Win Palace Restaurant

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (149) • $$

"We ordered off their brochure at our hotel. The food did not arrive hot. The market price lobster for $34+ was disappointing/ where was the lobster meat? I saw and tasted basically shell.The shrimp came heavily battetef and looked like an overstuffed onion ring. The sauce was tasty,Their white rice and Happy family entree with chicken, beef, shrimp and scallops with vegetables was the best of the main dishes.The saving grace were three fortune cookies, 2 paper plates and 3 wooden chopsticks."

Lotus Test Kitchen

★★★★☆ 4.4 (63)

"I grabbed food from here while I was visiting Boston and it was probably one of my favorite fast casual food. I just needed something that we could just grab after a long day of walking and this place was perfect. The place is small so it's more of a pickup and eat at home place. The service was great and we were able to watch them make our food right there. I had the bulgogi bowl with a lot of fun add ons. Definitely get a bunch of stuff in your bowl."

Bon Me

★★★★☆ 3.9 (65) • $

"It's a sickness, y'all. And I don't wanna be cured.My first experience with the Bon Me truck was only a little better than lackluster, maliciously comparing an artisanal sado with a (humbly) superior street version from Mei Sum. It's a solid 'wich, yet I couldn't find myself craving it when my gullet needed a banh mi.Then I met you, noodle bowl. Soba noodles with spice rubbed boneless chicken thighs, a slew of julienned veggies and an addictive spicy peanut sauce that puts my world on edge. Toss on a handful of fresh cilantro, and charge me $6. I'LL PAY DOUBLE!Seems so simple, until I found myself hunting down the truck and finding an excuse to be nearby. You know, like all of you did with your college crush who broke your heart. Good thing the Blue Siren (as I'll refer to their apt-colored truck in the family) is parked near South Station every Tuesday. Which is when I meet my Yelpterns. Which is win I eat this box o' righteousness. Which is when I am happy.The only downside: the line BLOWS UP after 12p. Even arriving 10 minutes prior cuts your wait to a third. Know what you want and have your LevelUp at the ready. And remember, the noodle bowl is king, but that doesn't mean you should rob yourself of a thai basil lemonade to wash it down. Summasummasummatime!"

UNI

★★★★☆ 3.6 (561) • $$$$

"The vibe in this restaurant was great! We sat in the upstairs section. It's a little more lively, yet dimly lit, than the restaurant on the lower version. It's exactly what we needed. The place was happening for a Monday night. Our waiter was upbeat and helped us navigate the menu. We ordered a bunch of things to share:Bay scallop sashimiWhite truffle hamachi (special)Shrimp tempuraChow fun noodles Apple saladSpicy yellowtail rollEverything was really great and unique. My favorites were the bay scallop, chow fun noodles, and apple salad. I loved the citrus in the bay scallop dish. The texture in the chow fun noodles was unique and the freshness of the apple salad was great too. We ordered a bottle of sake to accompany our meal. We added on the spicy yellowtail because we were still a little bit hungry, but the items above were enough to fill our stomachs, but not feel overstuffed. This was a great place and dinner!"

Basil Rice

★★★★☆ 3.6 (90) • $

"Here now. I love their brown curry! It's over shrimp and brown rice a string beans.It's on Harvard st, across from Levine Chapel. Excellent excellent"

Chow n' Joy

★★★☆☆ 3 (141)

"Late night munchies. Definitely get the wings, they're delicious. I also got chow fun and it was kinda bland and I wish it was more saucy. Luckily, just plop a soy sauce packet in and it should help. 25 dollars for these two things tho? It's alright but at 12am it's greatFood: 7/10Value: 5/10"

Four Spoons Thai Inspired Cuisine & Bar

★★★★☆ 3.9 (198) • $$

"I feel like I just found a hole in the wall place that I desire everything. Rare to find a place I want to order A thru Z just for the heck of it. It a nice little restaurant with booth on one side and tables that can be arranged for groups. The decor is modern Asian chic, but under stated. Mellow vide where people come together with friend and family, and date to hang and enjoy. The staff is effective and gave us space. They always had a nice disposition and double checked. Hey, and my water was always full. We sat at the bar so we could survey the whole place. We been look for a good Thai restaurant to call home. We have a winner. I'm a lot more vegetarian lately. I wanted the Duck Curry, but went with an avocados tofu dish that was perfectly done. People in this neighborhood hoodLike the place too. Hive bags of takeout wereFlying out the door Will certainly come back to give these nice folks my money and appreciation. Will bring friend next time."