It’s only been a couple years since Ōmori Izakaya debuted in Brookline Village, but the Japanese pub has already expanded to Malden, where its booze-friendly snacks, particularly yakitori and kushiyaki (skewers of grilled meats), are making a splash. There’s plenty of sushi, too; try the chirashi for a good sampling. Keep an eye out for lunch specials and shochu-based cocktails.

New Cambridge wine bar Dear Annie is a collaboration between the teams from two popular Somerville venues: funky wine bar Rebel Rebel and lovely farm-to-table restaurant Field & Vine. At Dear Annie, service is casual — order at the counter, and find a place among the communal seating. (And you can bring your own records to play, if you’d like.) The menu is pescatarian and changes with the seasons; think Jonah crab toast, Arctic char tartare, and slices of pie.

Proof of vaccination or negative PCR test required for indoor seating (not required for the heated patio outdoors).

Tradesman, a downtown Boston coffee shop and lounge that opened a few years back, has made a name for itself with over-the-top croissants, among other offerings. Now it has a Charlestown sibling, and the new location adds pizza to the mix, as well as mini doughnuts and more. Settle in with an espresso martini.

East Cambridge newcomer Geppetto, from the Puritan & Co. team, is part of the group’s trio of restaurants at the Cambridge Crossing development. The Italian-inspired restaurant is the type of place where one can eat dishes like black truffle and taleggio bread; tuna and lardo crudo; and pumpkin agnolotti with wild mushrooms. Oh, and there’s an amaro cart.

Proof of vaccination required.

There’s a little bit of something for everyone — locals and tourists alike — at Boston’s newest food hall, Hub Hall, located at the Hub on Causeway development right by TD Garden. There are 18 food and drink vendors, including a number of Boston classics, such as Mike’s Pastry, Monica’s Mercato, and Sullivan’s Castle Island, not to mention newer local groups like Smoke Shop BBQ, Cusser’s Roast Beef & Seafood, and Greco. All of the vendors are counter-service except for one, Momosan — a sit-down Japanese restaurant from Masaharu Morimoto of Iron Chef fame, featuring ramen and more.

Mario LaPosta is a veteran pizzaiolo who previously worked at the now-closed Babbo Pizzeria e Enoteca in the Seaport, not to mention various pizzerias around Italy; now he has his own pizzeria and restaurant in Newton, Da LaPosta, serving wood-fired pizza, pasta, and a few other items, like suppli and salt cod croquettes. While LaPosta’s pizza skills are serious, he isn’t afraid to have a little fun with the menu: There’s a clam pizza inspired by New Haven, for example, not to mention a “buffalo e bufala” pizza topped with chicken, Buffalo sauce, buffalo mozzarella, and gorgonzola. 

Parisian bistro Café Sauvage, from wife-and-husband duo Anaïs and Antoine Lambert, is meant to pay homage to the multicultural influences on the Paris food scene, from Vietnam to Ethiopia: “There is more to Parisian food than just beef bourguignon and escargots,” as Anaïs Lambert previously told Eater. So there’s steak frites and a croque madame, yes, but there’s also a banh mi, injera crepes, and roasted chicken that’s served with jollof rice and fried plantains. The intimate restaurant, located in the former Hsin Hsin Cafe space in Back Bay, features a striking accent wall with tropical wallpaper.

From chef Karen Akunowicz of the acclaimed Fox & the Knife comes a second Italian restaurant in South Boston, Bar Volpe. While its big sibling up the street focuses on northern Italy, Bar Volpe — which is also a pasta shop — focuses on the south, with dishes like culurgiones, a Sardinian stuffed pasta; fritti misti, inspired by Sicily (with a hint of Rhode Island); and rotisserie chicken stuffed with black truffle mayo.

Proof of vaccination required (prior to the January 15 mandate).

Fresh Food Generation isn’t a total newcomer: It’s been operating as a popular food truck and catering business for more than half a decade. But now the farm-to-table Caribbean American business has its own restaurant space, too, and visitors to the new Dorchester restaurant are loving dishes like the Jamaican jerk chicken rice plate and the kale salad with roasted butternut squash, which the menu promises turns “non-kale eaters into believers.”