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To wrap up the year, Eater Boston polled both local journalists and readers of this site to get their thoughts on the past year in dining: the good, the bad, and the most exciting things still to come in 2023. The results have been collected in the following series of posts. (Check out the full archive here.)
Below, we ask: What was your go-to takeout or delivery order this year?
Marc Hurwitz, founder of Boston’s Hidden Restaurants and Boston Restaurant Talk, food/travel writer for Dig Boston and NBC Boston/NECN:
“Either BoonNoon Market in East Arlington or New London Pizza in Concord. The former has great Thai food at cheap prices while the latter has really tasty New London-style pizza (which is basically Greek pizza).”
Valerie Li Stack, Eater Boston contributor:
“Shanghai Fresh: I’m always a little Shanghainese girl at heart. Naturally, when it comes to takeout, I gravitate toward traditional, umami-forward Shanghainese food that comforts me the most when I’m just too busy or tired (or both) to even turn on the stove. And Shanghai Fresh does just that. My favorites include minced pork wrapped in tofu sheets, swimming in a cloudy, pork-bone broth, stirred fried edamame with pickled mustard green, and red-braised pork belly, one of my all-time favorites.”
James Bennett II, WGBH arts and culture reporter:
“Dora Taqueria, no question. When you’re still figuring out your new kitchen, having a perpetual leftover taco/burrito situation is like finding a $50 bill in a pair of pants you haven’t put on for months.”
Matt Shearer, reporter for WBZ NewsRadio:
“The Doogy Deluxe from Hot Doogy in Natick. It’s a hotdog with bacon, mashed potatoes, corn, vinaigrette salsa, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, potato sticks, house tomato sauce, catupiry cream cheese, special green mayo and ketchup. (yes, I copied-and-pasted that from their website) So messy yet so delicious. I feel like this place is a hidden gem because it’s always so quiet, but they’re about to open a new location, literally right across the street at the Natick Mall. It’s basically the Dunkin business model, but for hot dogs.”
MC Slim JB, restaurant critic for Boston Magazine:
“I don’t do much takeout but got lucky with the new Yunnan Kitchen in my South End neighborhood. It serves the new-to-me Dian cuisine of Southwest China, with its echoes of Sichuan, Hunan, and Uyghur fare plus dishes all its own. I love the plates that bring the mala heat with fresh chilies and Sichuan peppercorns, like boiled pork in chili oil: a monster portion (big enough for three) loaded with raw garlic, fierce mala, and novel spices. It’s staggering in all the right ways.”
Devra First, restaurant critic for the Boston Globe:
“I don’t tend to do much takeout/delivery, but I really like the vermicelli bowl with crispy rolls and lemongrass seitan at Banh Mi Oi in West Roxbury and the vegetarian combo from Ethiopian Cafe in JP. When it’s pizza night, we sometimes order from A&N House of Pizza in Roslindale just so I can tack on side orders of avgolemono and spanakopita.”
Rachel Leah Blumenthal, food editor for Boston Magazine:
“I moved from Somerville to Medford about a year and a half ago — almost on the Malden border — so I’ve been having a blast figuring out my new delivery staples in the Medford/Malden/Everett range. I’ve been absolutely blown away by the pizza at the Square Deli in Everett (and the pasta, from the bits I stole from my toddler’s plate the other night, is killer too!) We also order a lot of Chinese — primarily Chili Garden in Medford or Bun’s House in Everett for Sichuan, District Kitchen in Malden for dumplings, and Asian Taste in Medford for old-school Chinese American, like those pork-stuffed eggrolls with the perfectly bubbly shell and a solid General Gao’s combo plate. Also showing up frequently in my inbox if I search for delivery receipts (ouch, this was a painful search!): poke from Waikiki in Somerville; ramen from Zuru Zuru in Malden; Vietnamese, most often bun dac biet, from Saigon NV in Malden; the 50/50 sub (half chicken parm, half meatball!) from Bob’s Italian in Medford; and fried chicken sandwiches from Neighborhood Kitchen in Medford.”
Reader responses
Nearly 100 people took part in Eater Boston’s dining survey this year (thank you, all!). Below, find the top ten reader responses for go-to takeout and delivery spots this year.
- “The greens + bacon sandwich with hots from Cutty’s. Don’t forget a cookie!”
- “Panang Curry from Sugar & Spice.”
- “Seoul Topokki’s set menu — topokki, kimbap, and fish cake soup, and add cheese.”
- “Lunch specials from Dumpling House in Cambridge.”
- “Greco!”
- “Sushi and apps from Fuji.”
- “Frank Pepe’s pizza.”
- “Peppino's Dosa.”
- “Hakata Ramen in Quincy.”
- “Stoked Pizza (mushroom & onion).”
These answers have been lightly condensed and edited for clarity.