The Blue Diner 150 Kneeland St tel 617/695-0087. Classic restored Fifties diner with lively jukebox, slowly inching its way upmarket but with excellent traditional and unpretentious American food. Open till 4am on weekends.
Buzzy's 327 Cambridge St tel 617/242-7722 and 647 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge tel 617/864-2333. Locally famous for fabulous roast beef sandwiches, hand-cut french fries, and the fact that they never close.
Daily Catch 323 Hanover St tel 617/523-8567 and 261 Northern Ave tel 617/338-3093. Sicilian-style seafood restaurant, noted for its many styles of calamari. Expect to pay from $10 to $40 for an entree.
Division Sixteen 955 Boylston St tel 617/353-0870. While the food is good and the wine list inspired, the real draw is the atmosphere, a converted police stable with a decidedly 1920s feel, in which locals sip martinis and any number of frozen concoctions.
Durgin Park 340 N Market St, Faneuil Hall tel 617/227-2038. Crowded, hurried and proud of its surly service, but a Boston institution for its chunky prime ribs and seafood specialties - not to mention the baked beans. Tables are shared, and no reservations are taken. Entrees start from $7.
Gabriele's 1 1st Ave, Charlestown Navy Yard tel 617/242-4040. Excellent upscale Italian restaurant, with a terrace for outdoor dining.
Giacomo's 355 Hanover St tel 617/523-9026. Fresh, flavorful food, with an emphasis on seafood and pasta specialties - the pumpkin tortellini in a sage butter sauce is a North End classic. Note the restaurant doesn't take reservations or credit cards.
Golden Palace 14-20 Tyler St tel 617/423-4565. Chinese restaurant open until 11.30pm, with excellent and reasonably priced dim sum daily until 3pm. Entrees $7 and upwards.
Kingfish Hall 188 S Market Bldg tel 617/523-8862. Well-regarded, stylish seafood house worth the splurge ($20 to $30 an entree).
Legal Sea Foods at the Park Plaza Hotel , 50 Park Plaza tel 617/426-4444. Citywide chain deservedly renowned for its top-quality seafood, especially their excellent oysters.
Mamma Maria 3 North Square tel 617/523-0077. Widely acknowledged as the best of the North End's traditional Italian restaurants, noted for seafood dishes and fresh breads. Expensive and also popular for special occasions.
Pad Thai Café 1116 Boylston St tel 617/247-3399. Fresh Thai soups, salads and curries, with highly recommended house specials, all in the $5-10 range. Popular with students, the place gets crowded fast. Open daily for lunch and dinner, pad thai also delivers after 5:30pm.
Panificio Bakery 144 Charles St tel 617/227-4340. Consistently rated the best bakery in Boston; try to make time for their brunch, served weekends from 10am-4:30pm.
Rabia's 73 Salem St tel 617/227-6637. The best thing about this small restaurant is its Express Lunch special from noon to 2pm, when you can pay under $7 for a heaping plate of Italian leftovers.
Steve's Greek-American Cuisine 316 Newbury St tel 617/267-1817. One of Boston's classic cheap eats, with heavenly Greek food and divine grilled chicken sandwiches.
Trattoria Il Panino 11 Parmenter St tel 617/720-1336. An old North End standby popular with locals. The great Amalfi-coast chicken and pasta dishes are complemented by a good wine list and friendly service.
Tremont 647 647 Tremont St tel 617/266-4600. Part of the burgeoning South End dining scene, with big portions of New American food, much of it grilled, as well as superb desserts and a good selection of wines.
Bombay Club 57 JFK St, second floor, Harvard Square tel 617/661-8100. One of the very best of Cambridge's many Indian restaurants, with a good-value lunch buffet.
Cambridge Sail Loft 1 Memorial Drive, Kendall Square tel 617/225-2222. Fine array of inexpensive seafood near MIT.
Dalí 415 Washington St, Somerville tel 617/661-3254. Excellent tapas and Spanish entrees amid decor nearly as surreal as its namesake. Often crowded, the lively sangria bar makes the long waits tolerable.
East Coast Grill 1271 Cambridge St, Inman Square tel 617/491-6568. Fairly pricey, but tasty southern-style food - BBQ and the like - in a good restaurant area.
Elephant Walk 2067 Massachusetts Ave, Porter Square tel 617/492-6900 and 900 Beacon St, Boston tel 617/247-1500. Their French fare is very good, but the adventurous Cambodian side of the menu steals the show: try the excellent poulet dhomei - chicken with basil, bamboo shoots and pineapple.
John Harvard's Brew House 33 Dunster St, Harvard Square tel 617/868-3585. Cozy brewpub, serving a good menu with exciting little twists on American grill standards. $30 should suffice for a big meal with a couple of drinks.
Mr Bartley's Gourmet Burgers 1246 Massachusetts Ave, Harvard Square tel 617/354-6559. Delicious, shamelessly unhealthy burgers and other diner fare served in an Americana-festooned atmosphere.
Redbone's 55 Chester St, Somerville tel 617/628-2200. Excellent, inexpensive ribs, chicken and catfish with a big range of vegetable side dishes. Just off Davis Square, two "T" stops from Harvard Square.
Rhythm & Spice 315 Massachusetts Ave, Central Square tel 617/497-0977. Lively restaurant with a young clientele not far from MIT, serving good-value Caribbean food.
