Searching for your next dinner spot?
Well, according to The New York Times, one of these two will be well worth your time. Two Boston (and we mean actual Boston) restaurants were named among the top 50 in the nation for 2025, ranking on “The Restaurant List 2025,” an annual list curated by The New York Times editors who dine all over the country to determine which restaurants have the best food, worthy of traveling for.
Methodology
The New York Times deployed 14 reporters and editors who took 76 flights to eat more than 200 meals across 33 states to compile this year’s selections – more than half of this year’s restaurants opened since the 2024 list.
Boston restaurants hold strong
Two Boston restaurants made the list of the top spots in the nation. La Padrona, the new Italian steakhouse nestled inside the swanky Raffles Hotel on Trinity Place made the list. James Beard award-winning chef, Jody Adams leads the kitchen dishing out perfect steak, melt-in-your-mouth ravioli, and tableside cannoli service.
The New York Times notes: “For women over 60, head-chef roles at buzzy new restaurants are as rare as starring roles in blockbuster movies. But Jody Adams has a new smash at the plush Raffles Hotel in Back Bay.” From the ambiance to the food and service, a night at La Padrona marks a memorable experience and reminds us why Italian dinner is always a good idea. Less than a year old, La Padrona is already making a name for itself past its 02116 zip code.
Also a newcomer to the Boston area, McGonagle’s in Dorchester opened its doors in December and aims to reinvent Irish dining in the city. Chef Aidan McGee (formerly of downtown’s beloved The Dubliner) leads the kitchen at this new Neponset spot. Of course, there are the classics like fish and chips, but McGee is a stickler for authenticity and surprise all the like. The chips are carved from an Irish chip-cutting machine, and unconventional Dublin-style spice bags have diners addicted to the mystery sack stuffed with a secret spice fried chicken.
Both restaurants, worthy of traveling to for these Times editors, but luckily they’re right in the city for Bostonians.
McGonagle’s: 367 Neponset Ave, Dorchester
La Padrona: 40 Trinity Place, Boston