Boston Area Recommendations

Here are some of my favorite spots to eat, drink, shop, and hang out in and around Boston.
Disclaimer 1: This list is by no means exhaustive, as there are plenty of spots that we love that I did not have the opportunity to write about.
Disclaimer 2: Sadly, we moved away from Boston in June 2014, so my recommendations are recent up until that point.

Boston:
Al Dente
B and G Oysters
Coppa
Drink (again here, here, and here)
Eastern Standard (Summer 2014 Update: As much as we will always love Eastern Standard, their food is not quite what it used to be. Drinks, however, are as wonderful as ever.)
Island Creek Oyster Bar
Lone Star Taco Bar
Marliave
Menton
Mike and Patty's
Mistral
No. 9 Park
Sam LaGrassa's (again here)
Sportello
The Barking Crab
The Hawthorne (again here and here)
Trident Booksellers Cafe

Boston Ballet at the Boston Opera House
Boston Public Garden and Boston Common (again here)
Boston Public Library
Boston Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall
Farm and Fable
Fenway Park (again here)
Formaggio Kitchen (South End)
Freedom Trail
Shakespeare in the Park and a Picnic

Weekend Tours of the Boston Area:
Tour #1
Tour #2
Tour #3
Tour #4

Medford:
Bestsellers Cafe (Spring 2015 Update: Closed)
Donuts with a Difference
Mystic Coffee Roaster
Magnificent Muffin and Bagel
Moulton's
Paul Revere Diner
Tenoch

The Fells
Lower Mystic Lake
Medford Winter Farmer's Market (again here)
Medford Farmer's Market

Arlington:
Barismo Coffee Roasters
Kickstand Cafe (never got to write a blog post, but I really like this place)
Punjab (never got to write a blog post, but I really like this place)
Toraya

Cambridge:
Algiers Coffee Shop
Area Four
Belly Wine Bar
Brick and Mortar
Central Kitchen
Garden at the Cellar (Fall 2014 Update: Closed)
Helmand
Hungry Mother (Summer 2015 Update: Closed)
L.A. Burdick
State Park
T.W. Food (Winter 2017 Update: Closing on February 19 to make way for a new concept from the same owners in the same space)
Voltage Coffee and Art (Fall 2015 Update: Will close and reopen as Barismo, from the folks behind Barismo Coffee Roasters)

MIT Museum
MIT and Harvard campuses (again here)

Somerville:
A4 Pizza (Fall 2015 Update: Closed due a building electrical issue. Looking for a new location)
Backbar
Bergamot
Bronwyn
Casa B
Diesel Cafe
Highland Kitchen (again here and here)
Pennypacker's
Posto
Spoke Wine Bar (again here and here)(Fall 2016 Update: Closing toward the end of the year. Heartbreaking.)
The Painted Burro (again here)
Trina's Starlite Lounge (again here)
Tu Y Yo

Dave's Fresh Pasta (again here)
Taza Chocolate Factory
The Boston Shaker

Greater Boston:
Captain Parker's for Cape Cod clam chowder (West Yarmouth, MA)
Chatham Squire for Cape Cod clam chowder (Chatham, MA)
Clancy's for Cape Cod clam chowder (Dennis Port, MA)
Kimball Farms Ice Cream (Carlisle, MA)
Mill No 3 Farmstead (again here) (Fitchburg, MA)
Neillio's Gourmet Kitchen (Lexington, MA)
Sweet Tomatoes Pizza (Newton, MA)
Trail's End Cafe (Concord, MA)
Woodman's of Essex (again here, here, and here) (Essex, MA)

Brimfield Antique Show (Brimfield, MA)
Concord Cheese Shop (Concord, MA)
Chatham Lighthouse Beach (Chatham, MA)
DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum (Lincoln, MA)
Essex for fried clams and antique stores (Essex, MA)
Night Shift Brewing (again here and here) (Everett, MA)
Red Apple Farm for apple picking (Phillipston, MA)
Rockport for little seaside shops and The Motif (Rockport, MA)
Salem for witch trial history, Nathaniel Hawthorne history, and cute little shops (Salem, MA)
The Old North Bridge where the "shot heard round the world" was fired (Concord, MA)
Tougas Farms for fruit picking (again here) (Northborough, MA)
Wachusett Brewery (again here) (Westminster, MA)
Walden Pond (Concord, MA)
Zen Nail and Beauty Bar (Woburn, MA)

New Hampshire:
Red Arrow Diner (Manchester, NH)

Parker's Maple Barn Sugar House (Mason, NH)
Portsmouth Brewery (Portshmouth, NH)
Sammy's Sugar Shack (Milford, NH)
White Birch Brewing (Hooksett, NH)

Vermont:
Das Bierhaus Rooftop Biergarten (Burlington, VT)
Elixir Restaurant (White River Junction, VT)
Farmhouse Tap and Grill (Burlington, VT)
Penny Cluse Cafe (Burlington, VT)

Ben and Jerry's Factory Tour (Waterbury, VT)
Cabot Quechee Store (Quechee, VT)
Central Street (Woodstock, VT)
Dan and Whit's General Store (Norwich, VT)
FH Gillingham and Sons General Store (Woodstock, VT)
King Arthur Flour (Norwich, VT)
Long Trail Brewing (Bridgewater, VT)
Mom and Pop's Maple Syrup (Rochester, VT)
Quechee Gorge (Quechee, VT)
Sandy's Books and Bakery (Rochester, VT)
The Bowl Mill (Rochester, VT)
Vermont Toy Museum (Quechee, VT)
Whisper Hill Bath and Body (Quechee, VT)