224 Boston Street

224 Boston Street Restaurant Review:

Beyond Newbury Street and what the tourists see of the North End lies the real Boston, where folks work and have families and live in triple-deckers and, increasingly, skip the pubs in favor of neighborhood eateries like Dorchester's 224 Boston Street. It's a microcosm of area diversity: old, young, gay and straight, émigrés and dyed-in-the-wool locals. The décor in many ways reflects the crowd---no two lamps or sconces look alike, the tableware is vintage yard-sale mix-and-match, and local artists provide the paintings. The menu, however, is all of a piece---a smart, yet accessible, piece. Everyone's favorites are here---burgers, meatloaf, swordfish, roast chicken---and they're all generally treated with care, though pasta and pizza tend to pale beside meat-and-threes. To complement it all, the wine list is just what you'd expect: affordable and eclectic---Uruguay and Slovenia show up alongside the dominant Californian and South African labels. Even as scores of razzle-dazzle chefs these days spin their latest ventures as casual neighborhood joints while charging $25 a plate, 224 Boston continues to keep it real.