Tag: new year’s eve

Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2013 in Boston
Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve.
- Are you looking for a place to ring in 2014 with a happy crowd?
- Will you be out and about dropping in on events or house parties?
- Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?
- Is a walk to view the ice sculptures and skating on the Frog Pond more yours style?
We'll leave the New Year's Eve reservation for those of you who like to be part of a bigger celebration, while we spend the evening with some sparkling wine, good food, and great companions. However, we have gathered resources to help you find a place for any kind of New Year's Eve you'd like.

We always recommend Hamersley's Bistro as a perfect place to enjoy a meal on a special occasion. It's been one of the few exceptions to our stay-at-home rule. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

And, here are a few suggestions published by Boston's great food sites last year: We'll update this section as we spot new information from these sources.
- 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.
- 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve," some good choices there.
There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 17, 2013
Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2013 in Boston
Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve.
- Are you looking for a place to ring in 2014 with a happy crowd?
- Will you be out and about dropping in on events or house parties?
- Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?
- Is a walk to view the ice sculptures and skating on the Frog Pond more yours style?
We'll leave the New Year's Eve reservation for those of you who like to be part of a bigger celebration, while we spend the evening with some sparkling wine, good food, and great companions. However, we have gathered resources to help you find a place for any kind of New Year's Eve you'd like.

We always recommend Hamersley's Bistro as a perfect place to enjoy a meal on a special occasion. It's been one of the few exceptions to our stay-at-home rule. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

And, here are a few suggestions published by Boston's great food sites last year: We'll update this section as we spot new information from these sources.
- 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.
- 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve," some good choices there.
There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 17, 2013
Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2013 in Boston
Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve.
- Are you looking for a place to ring in 2014 with a happy crowd?
- Will you be out and about dropping in on events or house parties?
- Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?
- Is a walk to view the ice sculptures and skating on the Frog Pond more yours style?
We'll leave the New Year's Eve reservation for those of you who like to be part of a bigger celebration, while we spend the evening with some sparkling wine, good food, and great companions. However, we have gathered resources to help you find a place for any kind of New Year's Eve you'd like.

We always recommend Hamersley's Bistro as a perfect place to enjoy a meal on a special occasion. It's been one of the few exceptions to our stay-at-home rule. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

And, here are a few suggestions published by Boston's great food sites last year: We'll update this section as we spot new information from these sources.
- 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.
- 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve," some good choices there.
There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 17, 2013
Uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs
The most intriguing thing about crossing the threshold into a new year can be the uncertainty of what lies ahead. So to help improve our odds of success, we’ll be uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs.

Since we’ve discovered some astonishing examples of these artisanal wines during 2012, why stop now? We’ll ring-in the new year with this bottle from Cédric Bouchard, a producer who’s gained an almost rock star status in the wine world.

He’s known for “single-vineyard, single vintage and single-grape bottlings.” (Imperatrice Fine Wines) Bouchard founded his own champagne house, Roses de Jeanne, in 2000 looking “to produce the unique and recognizable champagne wines different from all [of] others.”

Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010 (from Gordon’s Fine Wines & Liquors) is described as …
- “sweet red berries … flowers and mint … a weightless, crystalline finish” (Wine Library)
- “hand harvested … crushed by foot … unfined … unfiltered” (Polaner Selections)
- “stunning textural elegance … fabulous balance” (56 Degree Wine)
The drinking window for maximum enjoyment is open through 2018, but after reading these comments, we just couldn’t wait. We’ll uncork this bottle on the eve of 2013, see if it lives up to the hype, and report back in this post – watch our tweets for an update notice.

Update (1.2.13) Our Tasting Notes: Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010
- “scent of sugary caramel … loved the back-of-the-throat grab”
- “good, long finish (can still taste that sip long afterwards)”
- “appley, citrus character on first taste”
- “yin-yang on my tongue (sweet in front, tart in back)
- “All the terroir is here. This is what 2010 tasted like at this vineyard.”
- “No one messed with this wine, they just delivered the best of the vineyard’s flavor to our glasses, with a dash of sparkle!”
Not surprisingly, this special Champagne benefits from not being over-chilled. We enjoyed it more as it warmed and opened over a couple of hours. It was the perfect complement to our New Year’s Eve plates of salumi, cheeses, and breads – even holding its own with our favorite Boston Cream Pie from Flour Bakery.

We were impressed and can’t wait to discover more gems from the vineyards of Cédric Bouchard – the search is on!

Related Posts:

It’s New Year’s each month with Our Sparkling Resolution

Here’s Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite wine books.

The Food Lover’s Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover’s Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Shopping for Champagnes for the Holidays: 10 Favorite Bottles Under $60

DeRusha Eats: Grower Champagne

5 Reasons to Have Cider on Your Holiday Menu

Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston

Argyle Brut Rosé – a Treat to Greet November!

What’s Open in Boston New Year’s Eve and Day & MBTA Schedules 2012 – 2013
December 31, 2012
Uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs
The most intriguing thing about crossing the threshold into a new year can be the uncertainty of what lies ahead. So to help improve our odds of success, we’ll be uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs.

Since we’ve discovered some astonishing examples of these artisanal wines during 2012, why stop now? We’ll ring-in the new year with this bottle from Cédric Bouchard, a producer who’s gained an almost rock star status in the wine world.

He’s known for “single-vineyard, single vintage and single-grape bottlings.” (Imperatrice Fine Wines) Bouchard founded his own champagne house, Roses de Jeanne, in 2000 looking “to produce the unique and recognizable champagne wines different from all [of] others.”

Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010 (from Gordon’s Fine Wines & Liquors) is described as …
- “sweet red berries … flowers and mint … a weightless, crystalline finish” (Wine Library)
- “hand harvested … crushed by foot … unfined … unfiltered” (Polaner Selections)
- “stunning textural elegance … fabulous balance” (56 Degree Wine)
The drinking window for maximum enjoyment is open through 2018, but after reading these comments, we just couldn’t wait. We’ll uncork this bottle on the eve of 2013, see if it lives up to the hype, and report back in this post – watch our tweets for an update notice.

Update (1.2.13) Our Tasting Notes: Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010
- “scent of sugary caramel … loved the back-of-the-throat grab”
- “good, long finish (can still taste that sip long afterwards)”
- “appley, citrus character on first taste”
- “yin-yang on my tongue (sweet in front, tart in back)
- “All the terroir is here. This is what 2010 tasted like at this vineyard.”
- “No one messed with this wine, they just delivered the best of the vineyard’s flavor to our glasses, with a dash of sparkle!”
Not surprisingly, this special Champagne benefits from not being over-chilled. We enjoyed it more as it warmed and opened over a couple of hours. It was the perfect complement to our New Year’s Eve plates of salumi, cheeses, and breads – even holding its own with our favorite Boston Cream Pie from Flour Bakery.

We were impressed and can’t wait to discover more gems from the vineyards of Cédric Bouchard – the search is on!

Related Posts:

It’s New Year’s each month with Our Sparkling Resolution

Here’s Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite wine books.

The Food Lover’s Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover’s Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Shopping for Champagnes for the Holidays: 10 Favorite Bottles Under $60

DeRusha Eats: Grower Champagne

5 Reasons to Have Cider on Your Holiday Menu

Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston

Argyle Brut Rosé – a Treat to Greet November!

What’s Open in Boston New Year’s Eve and Day & MBTA Schedules 2012 – 2013
December 31, 2012
Uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs
The most intriguing thing about crossing the threshold into a new year can be the uncertainty of what lies ahead. So to help improve our odds of success, we’ll be uncorking 2013 with a Grower Champagne, Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs.

Since we’ve discovered some astonishing examples of these artisanal wines during 2012, why stop now? We’ll ring-in the new year with this bottle from Cédric Bouchard, a producer who’s gained an almost rock star status in the wine world.

He’s known for “single-vineyard, single vintage and single-grape bottlings.” (Imperatrice Fine Wines) Bouchard founded his own champagne house, Roses de Jeanne, in 2000 looking “to produce the unique and recognizable champagne wines different from all [of] others.”

Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010 (from Gordon’s Fine Wines & Liquors) is described as …
- “sweet red berries … flowers and mint … a weightless, crystalline finish” (Wine Library)
- “hand harvested … crushed by foot … unfined … unfiltered” (Polaner Selections)
- “stunning textural elegance … fabulous balance” (56 Degree Wine)
The drinking window for maximum enjoyment is open through 2018, but after reading these comments, we just couldn’t wait. We’ll uncork this bottle on the eve of 2013, see if it lives up to the hype, and report back in this post – watch our tweets for an update notice.

Update (1.2.13) Our Tasting Notes: Inflorescence Champagne Blanc de Noirs 2010
- “scent of sugary caramel … loved the back-of-the-throat grab”
- “good, long finish (can still taste that sip long afterwards)”
- “appley, citrus character on first taste”
- “yin-yang on my tongue (sweet in front, tart in back)
- “All the terroir is here. This is what 2010 tasted like at this vineyard.”
- “No one messed with this wine, they just delivered the best of the vineyard’s flavor to our glasses, with a dash of sparkle!”
Not surprisingly, this special Champagne benefits from not being over-chilled. We enjoyed it more as it warmed and opened over a couple of hours. It was the perfect complement to our New Year’s Eve plates of salumi, cheeses, and breads – even holding its own with our favorite Boston Cream Pie from Flour Bakery.

We were impressed and can’t wait to discover more gems from the vineyards of Cédric Bouchard – the search is on!

Related Posts:

It’s New Year’s each month with Our Sparkling Resolution

Here’s Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite wine books.

The Food Lover’s Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover’s Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Shopping for Champagnes for the Holidays: 10 Favorite Bottles Under $60

DeRusha Eats: Grower Champagne

5 Reasons to Have Cider on Your Holiday Menu

Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston

Argyle Brut Rosé – a Treat to Greet November!

What’s Open in Boston New Year’s Eve and Day & MBTA Schedules 2012 – 2013
December 31, 2012
Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston
This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve. Are you looking for a place to ring in 2013 with a happy crowd? Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?

We fall into the food-loving, quiet celebration group, and we'll tell you about some places where that's possible.

But, we have to admit one of our more memorable New Year's Eves was spent at the bar at Hamersley's Bistro. We had planned to slip in and out for a quick, quiet dinner and managed to stay for a much longer time enjoying the company of a great group at the bar. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants. This is perfect if you're meeting up with a group here in the city and the site even offers places like AKA Bistro in Lincoln for those who prefer a suburban location.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

Update 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.

Update 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve" Some good choices there.

There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Craigie On Main is planning two sets of seatings for two prix fixe menus. Call fast, these reservations will be snatched up quickly.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 14, 2012
Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston
This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve. Are you looking for a place to ring in 2013 with a happy crowd? Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?

We fall into the food-loving, quiet celebration group, and we'll tell you about some places where that's possible.

But, we have to admit one of our more memorable New Year's Eves was spent at the bar at Hamersley's Bistro. We had planned to slip in and out for a quick, quiet dinner and managed to stay for a much longer time enjoying the company of a great group at the bar. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants. This is perfect if you're meeting up with a group here in the city and the site even offers places like AKA Bistro in Lincoln for those who prefer a suburban location.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

Update 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.

Update 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve" Some good choices there.

There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Craigie On Main is planning two sets of seatings for two prix fixe menus. Call fast, these reservations will be snatched up quickly.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 14, 2012
Where to Dine on New Year’s Eve 2012 in Boston
This is an outdated post. Click below for the link to:

Where to Dine on New Year's Eve 2015 & New Year's Day Brunch 2016

Our readers are already searching our past posts to figure out where to dine this New Year's Eve in Boston. It's time for you to grab a reservation at a special place!

We all have our ideas of the perfect New Year's Eve. Are you looking for a place to ring in 2013 with a happy crowd? Or will you make a reservation for a quiet dinner before popping a cork for a private celebration?

We fall into the food-loving, quiet celebration group, and we'll tell you about some places where that's possible.

But, we have to admit one of our more memorable New Year's Eves was spent at the bar at Hamersley's Bistro. We had planned to slip in and out for a quick, quiet dinner and managed to stay for a much longer time enjoying the company of a great group at the bar. This year, they're planning a four-course prix fixe menu with a champagne toast if you're there at midnight.

Everyone can begin at Open Table. They maintain a list of special New Year's celebrations at area restaurants. This is perfect if you're meeting up with a group here in the city and the site even offers places like AKA Bistro in Lincoln for those who prefer a suburban location.

You can put a time into the reservation box on the main page and see what's available. Remember, many places have special prix fixe menus for occasions like this and some may require a credit card to hold a reservation.

The site Boston Chefs always posts a listing of its member restaurants that have special plans for New Year's Eve. Here is their New Year's Eve list. And, here's the list for New Year's Day.

Update 12.27.12: Eater Boston has added its Map of What to do on New Year's Eve.

Update 12.28.12: Grub Street Boston put up their, "Grub Guide: Where to Get Dreamy Takeout on New Year's Eve" Some good choices there.

There are also restaurants that have planned a special New Year's Eve menu but have built their reputation on high quality food. These are places where you can expect to have a wonderful meal any day of the year.
- Island Creek Oyster Bar is serving its regular menu and, for that kindness, we've put them at the top of this list.
- Eastern Standard, next door, is doing the same. Regular menu, great wine list, craft cocktails.
- Grotto on Beacon Hill, Kitchen in the South End, and Marliave downtown all join that list of places sticking with the food you love.
- Craigie On Main is planning two sets of seatings for two prix fixe menus. Call fast, these reservations will be snatched up quickly.
- Brasserie JO has a special menu but alway provides great food in a relaxed atmosphere, and their desserts are a party in themselves.
- La Morra in Brookline – chef Josh Ziskin says he saves some of his most prized dishes just for this evening. He's serving a four-course Italian dinner with a glass of Prosecco for toasting.
Where are you spending the evening? What's your favorite way to celebrate? Come back on January 1st and tell us about your New Year's Eve.

To be notified of updates to this post, sign-on to the comment feed for this post or follow us on Twitter for updates.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
December 14, 2012
Toasting a Sparkling December!

Long ago, we decided that we weren’t waiting for New Years Eve to raise a glass of sparkling wine and toast a happy ending and new beginning. So we’ve started each month with a bottle of bubbles since 2007! And, we’ve been sharing our bubbly selections with BostonZest readers since New Years Eve 2009.

That means we have amassed quite a collection of wine recommendations. They are all available any time you want them from the “Sparkling Wine & More” tab at the top of each page.

With a month of gift buying, parties, and holidays in front of us, we’ll say “Happy New Month,” sip a glass of Nino Franco Rustico Prosecco, and link you to a few bottles you might add to your holiday shopping list.

A Case of Sparkle

Ordering a case of a good, inexpensive, sparkling wine can be a great idea this time of year. Many shops will give you a case discount. If the store does not promote it, ask. You can also call ahead and have the wine merchant bring in the extra case of the wine you want.

We can suggest Dibon Cava, Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs, or the Nino Franco Rustico Prosecco we’re opening this month.

Pre-wrap a few bottles and you will be prepared for hostess gifts, thank you gifts, client gifts, or something special to hand out with a holiday cash tip.

Gift Wines For Wine Lovers

For someone who loves wine and would like to try something that will expand their wine life list or add a new category of taste to their holdiay, we would splurge on a “Grower Champagne.”

Central Bottle in Central Square Cambridge always seems to have a supply of these special bottles on hand. We recommend both the Champagne Chartogne-Taillet and Pierre Peters shown from ledgendary importer and wine educator Terry Theise. His annual catalogs are available online and provide a champagne education.

Pink for Romance!

Wrap up a romantic evening with the gift of a pink sparkler. It can be a value priced Louis Bouillot Rosé cremant. Or a splurge with a bottle of Delamotte Brut Rose from the maker of Salon Champagne.

Other pinks that tickle our fancy are Argyle Brut Rosé from Oregon, 3B Sparkling Rosé from Portuguese winemaker Filipa Pato, and for the utlimate fun evening try opening a bottle of Puro Rosé! (We had to make a video to show you how to open this one.)

Please add to our list by telling us about your favorite sparkling wine for the holidays. You can add a comment at the bottom of this post, sent it to @bostonzest on twitter or send us an email.

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite wine books.

The Food Lover’s Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover’s Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2009-2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Argyle Brut Rosé – a Treat to Greet November!

Check Out Our Wine List for Thanksgiving & Holiday Gatherings!

The best of West Coast sparkling wine

Another hotel caught serving sparkling wine to guests

Champagne Cocktail Ideas & Holiday Champagne Cocktail | Pottery Barn

December 1, 2012