A couple of weeks ago I went to Boston. While my actual work was in the suburbs, I unexpectedly ended up with one free evening. Even though it would have been easier to stay in my comfy Hampton Inn bed and catch up on Property Brothers, I decided to have an adventure and head to downtown Boston.
When I realized it was the idea of driving and having to park that made me almost not go, I searched for an alternative transportation method. I found it in…..the train! The last time I took a train, from White Plains NY to Times Square, was not super successful, so even though I knew it would be easier than driving it still wasn’t a simple matter. Luckily, everyone I met was incredibly helpful. The parking guy even let park and run and get cash (since they didn’t take credit card). Let the train adventure begin!
From Lowell to North Station it takes close to an hour. So I read a book, looked out the window, answered some email…basically just enjoyed the downtime way more than if I were driving. I was worried once I arrived that I wouldn’t know where to go, but another helpful person gave me quick walking directions. It was less than a mile, so I took my time and enjoyed looking at stuff.
I walked to Faneuil Hall:
And then past the Union Oyster House. A friend suggested I eat there, but it was super crowded with a line out the door. By this time I was super hungry, so elected to try somewhere else.
At one point, I looked at my map and thought, Oh no! I’m going to have to cross a highway! But when I got there, instead of the busy interstate I saw this lovely park, because the highway was underground. Genius!
I ended up having dinner at Neptune Oyster The waitress said everything on their menu was delicious, but they are known for their lobster roll. While you can get it the traditional way, cold with mayonnaise, their specialty is hot with melted butter. Y’all, I paid $27 for a sandwich and it was so good I would do it again EVERY WEEK. If you ever go to Boston, GO THERE. It is tiny, though—be prepared to wait. The couple in front of me were told they would have to wait an hour, but since I was by myself I got the last place at the bar immediately.
After dinner, I walked around the corner to Mike’s Pastry. On the five minute walk, I must have seen ten people carrying a Mike’s Pastry box, so I felt pretty confident I was making the right choice. They have what seems like one million varieties of cannoli there. I chose to go with the classic—chocolate chip. Apparently I had never had real cannoli before this because it was amaaaaaazing.
After that, I headed back to the station. I made the 8:30 train and was home and in bed (watching an episode of Property Brothers, FTW) by 10pm. I am so glad I got out of my hotel room and did something fun!
Readers, have you ever had a fun adventure on a business trip?
sounds like a fun side adventure!
Glad you enjoyed Boston. I’m still exploring this historical city.
Sea Food places are fun to go in Boston. If at all someone is in there for some Italian treat one should try the Rino’s in East Boston. Their wait times are so scary long that you better be prepared for that. But the food is ammmmazing. If Rino’s is not an option (you have good chances this may happen) Little Italy has some decent options.
Although I love Mike’s Pastry, across Hanover Street is another equally good and less crowded pastry shop – Modern Pastry. Strolling around the North End is so great. Favorite pizza there – hands down it is Regina’s. The other original restaurant at Quincy Marketplace (where Faneuil Hall is) is Durgin Park. Rude waitresses but it is an institution in Boston. JFK used to eat there and they have good food too!
I take the MBCR all the time Boston to Attleboro and as soon as i saw the ticket i knew you were on one of those trains.
Looks like you hit the top tourist restaurants in Boston. Hope you get to walk around the Charles river or parts of Cambridge next time.
The commuter rail in the Boston area is fabulous – I’m so glad you decided to get out of your hotel room and do that. Driving downtown is always a nightmare. And I’m glad that you enjoyed exploring my home town city.
I always try to have some fun on my business trips and often don’t rent cars in big cities like Boston, NyC, DC, etc. I use Über to get me around those cities instead. Give it a try. It is a fantastic service.
That’s funny we had the opposite experience. When I went to BOS I used the Yelp app to find the best oyster place. My app recommend Neptune as #1, but the wait there for lunch (even just for 1 person) was an hour. I headed to Union Oyster house (Yelp’s #2) and got a bar seat right away. It was excellent. Glad you got out! Amazing city!
One of Americas few really good cities.
Sounds like you had a great time touring Boston and found some nice places to eat. The North End has lots of good restaurants. Next time you can explore a different area.
I go to Neptune all the time and it is easily the best seafood in the city!
I had a really nice afternoon in Salem one free afternoon on a Boston work trip.
Just had the lobster roll there. it was awesome. I’m going to seek out more lobster rolls from other places in the north end