Considered the gold standard for world cuisine, the Michelin guide features exceptional eateries in some 55 cities around the globe – a slate that now finally includes Boston in the Northeast.
The process has multiple inspectors make multiple visits anonymously, which keeps chefs and servers on their toes. Moëca staff joked about the sudden excitement and paranoia when a lone diner came in and pored over the menu in the months leading up to the announcement; Tracy Chang, chef-owner of Pagu – who said she was “elated” by the guide news – said by email, “We have no idea who came in or when it happened, but we’re so proud of our team for consistently delivering on product, service and hospitality every single day.”
Citing “the team” was a common theme among the proprietors of the selected restaurants. Miller led off her press release also crediting other owners and workers in the local food industry: “For a small, woman-led restaurant to receive this recognition is deeply meaningful. It also shines a long-overdue light on the independent restaurant community across Greater Boston, especially in Cambridge and Somerville, where creativity, artistry and genuine hospitality thrive every day.” No Somerville restaurants ended up making the Michelin list, though many expected Sarma would.
A live televised announcement last month inspired anticipation in the Hub’s food industry – who would be recognized, who would not and who would earn a Michelin star? Twenty-six eateries in the Boston area were cited, though only one, 311 Omakase in Boston, earned a coveted star. This side of the Charles, eight well-regarded establishments were cited in the runner-up tier of Bib Gourmand (good food at at a good price) and the next tier down, Recommended (we liked it, so will you). We know these restaurants well, as we’ve visited all and extolled their virtues well before Michelin rolled into town. Below are brief notes on each selection from our stop-ins, write-ups and added context in this post-Michelin world.
Note that menus can change and some dishes featured may not currently be available.
Recommended
Giulia: Hard to believe Giulia is well into its second decade and still holding court in the fine-dining arena, but the key thing to know about this pasta supper club by chef Michael Pagliarini and wife Pamela Ralston is that you still need reservations. Show up at this fine Italian eatery between Harvard and Porter squares at 5 p.m. for its 5:30 p.m. opening and there’s already a line down the street looking to score a bar seat or one the few nonreservation tables. It’s that popular. And for good reason, including the wild boar pappardelle, silky bucatini with house-cured pancetta, warm semolina cakes (I cannot stress enough the pleasurable uniqueness of these cakes, best described as a hearty angel food with savory accents) and a carefully curated list of regional Italian wines. On a recent visit, the dry aged duck was a nice score, and high on my need-to-try list is the duck wing and smoked celery root tortellini with prosciutto broth. Giulia also is offering a white truffle side menu. (Pagliarini and Ralston’s seafood venture around the corner, Moëca, also made the list.)
Giulia, 1682 Massachusetts Ave., Neighborhood 9, Cambridge
Moëca: Pagliarini and Ralston’s third act (they briefly also had the fine Italian spot Benedetto in the Charles Hotel) is a seafood lovers’ Eden. Located on Shepard Street, where Chez Henri had been ensconced for so long, and just yards from Giulia, the atmosphere is one of quiet elegance and the food is prepared impeccably. The menu is a matter of flights, raw (crudos and meaty unicorn oysters with a chili versus a fruity vinaigrette accent), small fish and vegetable dishes (if you see a crab dip special, jump on it; it will be the best you’ve had – all fresh meat, almost no bread filler and with dairy accents of flavorful wisps instead of a cheesy overload that will sink you before the main event) and pastas and main dishes that include swordfish schnitzel and a dry aged Spanish mackerel (if you love the fish, you’ll love this, and it comes with an olive tapenade of sorts). The mains are sizable and shareable. On the pasta slate are Sardinian raviolis – now stuffed with leeks and potatoes – that feel like upscale pirogies, but the thing to have is the lobster gnocchi. On my last visit I was disheartened to see that the butter Maine lobster spaghetti had left the menu, but there was this dish of tender, soft pillows of potato pasta in a reduced brown butter and lobster stock sauce, thick and hearty, with semicrispy celery half-crescents for a textural changeup and plenty of succulent lobster chunks. It’s a revelation, and why Michelin came a-fishing. (Reviewed August 2022.)
Moëca, 1 Shepard St., Neighborhood 9, Cambridge
Oleana: The gem of Inman Square. Ana Sortun and her team have made this a top-tier destination for nearly 25 years; one Michelin measuring stick is consistency of quality. Small plates and unique tastes with Mediterranean and Middle Eastern accents is what comes up at Oleana. For veggies and meze there are a stuffed potato hummus, ricotta dumplings and spinach falafel. On the fish slate are tuna deviled eggs, trout with black lentils and a ginger-cashew relish, and shrimp saganaki with Yukon potatoes, pepper confit and brown butter. For meats, the standout is a quail kebab that surprises, lamb moussaka and lemon chicken – the menu’s one true big plate. And you can’t leave without the baked Alaska, meticulously prepared and an artwork of torched precision when it arrives at your table. The interior of Oleana has a playful, homey vibe, and the outdoor patio is one of the best in the city. The menu rotates seasonally. (Reviewed in September.)
Oleana, 134 Hampshire St., The Port, Cambridge
Pammy’s: On the Pammy’s website, Pam and Chris Willis describe their New American eatery with Italian and Mediterranean leanings as an extension of their living room. The menu is prix fixe: For $88 you get to choose three tapas-size dishes, with the choices on the rotating menu currently including a 48-hour simmered beef tongue, salted cod, spice-crusted duck with congee, Spanish mackerel and grilled oysters as well as dessert to wrap it all up. As with Giulia, reservations are a must. (Reviewed October 2020.)
Pammy’s, 928 Massachusetts Ave., Mid-Cambridge
Urban Hearth: Like Pagu, a place where you can feel the personality and passion pop – and another small-plate and sharable menu that’s tight and rotates with the seasons. The must-have is the smoked maple miso biscuit, but there’s a grilled monkfish (so happy to see this, as most other places serving the “poor man’s lobster” are doing it beer-batter fried, which reduces the subtle flavors and textures of monkfish to run-of-the-mill fish and chips); pork osso buco; duck rillettes; and a culinary curio of cauliflower crème brûlée. If you want to sample, the chef’s four-seat tasting table is a festive foray where you get to peer into the cozy kitchen space and watch chef-owner Erin Miller work just inches away. Urban Hearth in its North Cambridge locale is a cafe-styled bistro with limited seating, making it another spot where reservations are highly recommended. Urban Hearth will relocate next year to a bigger space in Inman Square that has been the Turing Tavern. (Reviewed in February.)
Urban Hearth, 2263 Massachusetts Ave., North Cambridge
Bib Gourmand
Jahunger: Unique food in a unique locale, following traditions of the Uyghur people in the mostly Muslim northwest region in China. Subat Dilmurat ported his adored cuisine experience from Providence and set up a second shop in Cambridgeport. At Jahunger, pulled noodles and spicy lamb dishes are the draw – noodles and spicy Asian cuisine headline the Bib Gourmand category in Cambridge in general. I suggest the silky egg and leek dumplings and the Original Meefen (spiced ground chicken and pulled noodles) or meefen (similar, but chili infused, with quite a kick). The chicken stew and “Lamb on Dry Land” (cumin-spiced lamb stir-fried and served on a crispy naan) are other menu highlights, and you can cap off a meal with signature sweet honey cakes. (Reviewed August 2024.)
Jahunger, 272 Brookline St., Central Square, Cambridge
Pagu: Go Pagu, where the culinary traditions of Japan and Spain converge. Spacious and blessed with a stunning open kitchen that extends into the dining area, the setting has a playful yet food-serious atmosphere – you can really feel the passion and personality chef-owner Tracy Chang has poured into it. Sure-fire winners are the soul-warming spicy knife-cut noodles with either a mushroom or pork (or both) gravy, miso-braised black cod and pork baos. Unique changeups include a duck paella and the green crab laksa – a Southeast Asian ramen dish that came about as a means to turn the ecologically harmful green crab into a food source. For bigger parties, you can get a suckling duck or tuna collar for the table. And if you want some of that reserved waygu to bring home from the menu, Pagu has an online market that stocks sushi-quality tuna and salmon and matcha cookie kits. Pagu also offers classes to get you beyond just wearing the apron. It feels karmically just to see Chang make the list, given her selfless efforts to support frontline workers and the Asian community confronting food insecurity during the pandemic. (Reviewed December 2022.)
Pagu, 310 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridgeport, Cambridge
Sumiao Hunan Kitchen: The surprise entry on the list and a worthy one too, especially if you like seafood and chili, because Hunan-style food is all about hot and spicy and fermented fire. The menu is a vast and intriguing gander, with entries such as lava frog (that’s right), ginger twin lobsters, wasabi shrimp cocktail, crispy duck and Impossible beef “on fire.” Favorites are the mala duck (with Sichuan peppercorns and chili) and double crispy fish (tender carp with green peppers and onions). (Reviewed March 2024.)
Sumiao Hunan Kitchen, 270 Third St., Kendall Square, Cambridge
Cambridge writer Tom Meek’s reviews, essays, short stories and articles have appeared in WBUR’s The ARTery, The Boston Phoenix, The Boston Globe, The Rumpus, The Charleston City Paper and SLAB literary journal. Tom is also a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics and rides his bike everywhere.
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