Boston Nesties
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Intro and what do you love about Boston?
Hi ladies... this is my first post on your board!
I'm thinking about moving to Boston early next year (am currently in London but grew up in Tampa) and I'm just looking for some thoughts on the city. I know those posts when people say "tell me about your city" are annoying so...
what 3 things do you love most about Boston, and what 3 things do you like the least? (aside from the winters!)
Also I currently work in digital marketing/SEO... anyone work in a similar industry?
Re: Intro and what do you love about Boston?
It has taken me all morning to reply to this due to the nest not loading your page! Ugh!
So the things I like:
1. Walkability
2. Things to do (always something to do!)
3. Great restaurants
Can I add a 4th? The fall weather. A 5th? Summer nights. A 6th? No mosquitos!
Things I dislike:
1. The housing costs (but they won't be anything to balk at with you being in London)
2. The traffic
3. The people (sorry... but NY-ers are much, much friendlier.
Thanks! Walkability is a big thing for me.... do you think it's necessary to have a car?
Also any great restaurant recs? I've got a long weekend planned in Oct to make my final decision - so looking for terrific things to do and I do love a good meal out!
It's going to depend on where you live/work. I've been car-free for 5 years now, but I've lived either on one of the main Subway lines or a bus line, and I can get to work much more easily by public transport than by driving. If you end up further out, it's difficult.
As for me, I like all of the things Punky mentioned. I find Boston less claustrophobia inducing than NY (I love to visit, but could never live there). I like the various neighborhoods and the fact that it feels like a small-town but still has the benefits of city living. And I love living in New England, where we have actual seasons, and where you can get to the beach or the mountains in 2 hours or so.
I think the biggest drawback is how expensive it is to live here. But, as Punky said, you're surely used to that coming from London!
If you live within city limits or downtown, you don't need a car. A car is more for taking weekend trips- or a job if you don't score one downtown. The public transportation is okay too!
I moved 2 years ago so my restaurant recs may be outdated. Rock will hopefully pop in here because she always eats at great places! You must go to the North End for some great Italian. Any restaurant- just wander til you see what sticks out at you!
Punky, I love you, but I have to disagree on two counts: we most certainly have mosquitoes and there is no way NYers are nicer than Bostonians! I'll admit we can be a gruff bunch, but as an example I had an experience once where a NYC cab driver said to me, "You must not be from here, you're too nice!" and I'd only been in the car like 20 seconds.
Anyhoo, I feel like this poll has been done before but it's been a long time.
The three things I love about Boston:
1) Pretty reasonable COL relative to other HCOL areas (i.e. SF, NY).
2) Cultural richness--great restaurants, theater, music, sports (both pro and lots of rec leagues to participate in), museums (art, science, aquarium), etc.
3) Four seasons. I never knew I would miss this until I moved to San Francisco and didn't have them anymore. Not that I like dealing with snow, but I really do enjoy experiencing the changes.
Three things I like least:
1) Not enough restaurants. Don't get me wrong, we have some great food here but there just aren't as many great places as there are in San Francisco. I love to eat
2) Taxachusetts
3) I can't think of a third that's not more of a personal thing, like the fact that we have a lot of close friends back in the Bay Area and we wish we could transplant them here.
I think I'll post separately on things to do and places to eat. This is already getting too long to read easily!
OK, here's my standard list of things to do in Boston:
Duck Tour - http://www.bostonducktours.com. Fun tour that provides a good overview of the city and its history via an amphibious vehicle. Book tix in advance via the web site
Freedom Trail - This walking tour will take you through most of the historic sites of Boston. You can do a guided tour or I've heard there's a downloadable iPod tour so you can do a self-guided thing.
Public Gardens/Boston Common ? Not such a great visit in the winter, but otherwise nice. There's a Make Way for Ducklings bronze statue here that the kiddies might like if you have them. The Swan Boats are also a personal favorite, though not necessarily a must-do.
Beacon Hill/Charles St. ? Quintessential old New England neighborhood with great architecture and quaint little boutiques to shop in. Just a few minutes walk from the Common.
Newbury Street (shopping) ? Just across the street from the Commons. Great for people watching and grabbing a bite to eat too.
SOWA Open Market ? Great outdoor artisan market that runs on weekends in the summer and fall. Check the website for dates.
Sam Adams or Harpoon Brewery tours
Faneuil Hall ? Historic area now full of shopping and restaurants. Mostly chain places, but can be fun to walk around, see street performers, etc.
North End ? our Little Italy. Mike's Pastry's cannolis are famous but be prepared for a huge crowd. Modern is another local bakery favorite
Fenway Park ? game tickets are hard to come by but you can sign up to take a tour of the stadium.
Museum of Science - great exhibits and a domed IMAX theater that's amazing and shows lots of great documentary-style films.
JFK Museum
Children?s Museum ? Really fun for the kids
Art museums ? We have top-notch art museums: Museum of Fine Art, Isebella Stewart Gardner Museum, Institute of Contemporary Art
Whale Watch Tour ? You can leave from the Aquarium downtown or, if you have a car or are willing to take the commuter rail, go up to the one in Gloucester and check out the neighboring Rockport area (very quaint seaside town).
Harvard ? Campus is pretty and Harvard Square is fun to walk around
A little farther out:
Salem Witch Museum ? a history of the infamous Salem witch trials. I haven't been there since I was a kid though and I think it might be kind of cheesy now.
House of Seven Gables ? also located in Salem
Walden Pond ? site where Thoreau penned Walden. You can see the site of his cabin as well as a recreation of the building.
There aren't mosquitos in the city- at least not when I was outside at night. We could sit at a Red Sox game or on our roof deck all evening and not get a single bite. We could even walk around Admiral's Hill in the early evening with the dog and not get any.
The burbs are different- we would be eaten alive when visiting ILs.
My understanding was that the OP was asking about the city of Boston though.
Interesting. I've never noticed this (and I grew up in the city). But then, I'm the girl that could be in a room with 1,000 people and one mosquito and I will be the one to get bitten!
OK, restaurants. I've mostly listed things that aren't too far from Boston, with a couple of exceptions (Blue Ginger, Parsons Table).
$$$$$
No. 9 Park (Boston) ? you must have the prune-stuffed gnocchi appetizer if you go. Trust me.
O Ya Sushi (Boston) ? The omakase is very good, but very pricey.
Salts (Cambridge) ? the honey lavender whole-roasted duck for two is amazing. Reserve it in advance; they only offer a few each night.
Blue Ginger (Wellesley) ? Ming Tsai?s Asian fusion restaurant. The butterfish is my favorite dish.
Mooo (Boston) ? steakhouse
$$$$
Parsons Table (Wincester) ? Disclaimer: I?ve not actually eaten here yet but loved its predecessor, Catch. Same chef/owner, new restaurant/menu. Intimate but not tiny, nice but still casual-friendly.
Anything in the North End (Boston) ? It?s our Little Italy. I mentioned it above too. I don?t have a favorite here, though some of the other ladies do, but for the most part you can?t go wrong with any restaurant here. Just wander around until something strikes your fancy. Then go to one of the pastry shops afterwards (Mike?s is the most famous, but others are equally good, like Modern).
$$
Legal Seafood (various locations) ? Get a bowl of clam chowder here. The rest of the food is pretty forgettable though.
Stella (South End, Boston) ? I?ve only had brunch there but I know Ginger Le Coeur likes it for dinner. The brunch offers large portions at reasonable prices. You can also walk over to the SOWA Open Market from there (see the things to do list) and those things together can make for a great summer/fall afternoon.
Geoffrey?s Caf? (Boston) ? I?ve never been but people keep mentioning their amazing donut muffins.
Cafe Luna (Cambridge) ? also has an amazing brunch menu. It?s small though so call ahead.
East Ocean City (Chinatown, Boston) ? great place for dinner. Everything on its menu is good, but they?re well-known for their seafood and their salted steamed chicken.
Hei La Moon (Chinatown, Boston) - good dim sum restaurant
$
Dumpling Caf? (Chinatown, Boston) ? the best xiao long bao (soup dumplings) I?ve had in town. I dare say I like them better than the ones I?ve had in Taiwan.
Hong Kong Eatery (Chinatown, Boston) ? wonderful Chinese comfort food (their wonton noodle soup is awesome).
Ho Yuen and Hing Shing (Chinatown, Boston) ? the best bakeries in Chinatown. For egg tarts, though, go to Crown Royal?sooooo good.
Not worth it
These are my personal opinions, of course, but two popular recommendations that I wouldn?t waste my time on are Top of the Hub (horrible service) and Fugakyu (so-so sushi at elevated prices).
Oh, and here's a link to a recent post with suggestions from other Nesties.
Thanks ladies!! This so helpful
And now I have some must-dos for my trip in October!
I'm getting really excited at the prospect of moving ... hope things run smoothly in Oct then it will be full steam ahead to get a job and get over there!