A highlight of her visit was a stop by the popular restaurant Sonsie, located in Back Bay’s high-traffic Newbury Street shopping district. The talented chef was hankering for some pizza to eat with her hands like a real Italian should, and she selected an absolutely divine looking recipe with a mixture of white cheese, corn, and smoked bacon from the menu.

I caught the episode recently during one of my regular Food Network phases, which is when I watch the channel almost exclusively for days and then forget about it for a few months, before repeating the process all over again. Check out the clip of Giada’s Sonsie segment below. It even includes a bit of history about Boston and the origin of the word “sonsie.”

NOTE: If you require closed captions, you can enable that feature on the video players by clicking the CC symbol in the top right-hand corner.

Post from: The Boston Traveler

Since Boston is a college town, bookstores abound wherever you go, some even housing convenient cafes where customers can grab a cup of coffee or tea to go along with their reading distraction of choice. Coming Up: Ten Boston-area bookstores worth visiting, in alphabetical order.

Borders

Helpful staff; nice prices with ample bargains; occasional events; good selection of books, movies, and music; one of those aforementioned cafes; and located near several subway and bus lines, not to mention directly down the street from the central Downtown Crossing shopping area. It’s not the only Borders in town, of course, but it is one of the better situated ones.
[10-24 School Street, Boston, 617-557-4476 | website]

Brattle Book Shop

Have a thing for rare and antique books, not necessarily just used ones? Search no more because this antiquarian bookstore founded in 1825 is the place to find more than you could ever imagine possible. The selection is simply tremendous, and they buy used books, too. Even better, you’ll never mistake it for a chain bookseller either.
[9 West Street, Boston, 617-542-0210, 800-447-9595 (toll free) | website]

Brookline Booksmith

New books, used books, and author readings. What’s not to like? Patrons recently voted the independent business the #1 Regional Favorite and the #1 Choice in Brookline for bookstores.
[279 Harvard Street, Brookline, 617-566-6660 | website]

Comicazi

Yes, comics are books, too, and if that’s your thing, check out this full-service comic book retailer run by three guys who know the industry inside and out. You can even pick your preferred location — Davis Square in Somerville or Massachusetts Avenue in Arlington — and arrange to have new releases from your favorite comic book line(s) mailed directly to your home as they come out, often with no shipping charge. Now that’s what I call customer service; it almost makes me wish I was a comic book geekette.
[407 Highland Avenue, Davis Square, Somerville, 617-666-COMIX (2664) OR 1305 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, 781-641-2700 | website]

Harvard Book Store

One of many well-respected booksellers in close proximity, this particular Harvard Square bookstore — which isn’t affiliated with Harvard University across the street, mind you — is a browser’s heaven, complete with excellent author events and plentiful bargains on both new and used titles, whether academic or general interest.
[1256 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, 617-661-1515, 800-542-READ (toll free) | website]

McIntyre and Moore Booksellers

This bookstore that specializes in well-priced and uncommon used books recently moved a hop, skip, and a jump from its previous Davis Square location in Somerville to nearby Porter Square in Cambridge. A poster child for dedication, the business employs four book buyers who will even make house calls if they’re not too busy and a potential seller has an enticing collection that meets strict standards.
[1971 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, 617-229-5644 | website]

Raven Used Books

A specialist in scholarly used books, this Harvard Square seller purchases used scholarly books, as well.
[52-B JFK Street, Cambridge, 617-441-6999 | website]

Schoenhof’s Foreign Books

Not a native English speaker, learning a new language, or brushing up on your second, third, or fourth language skills? This is the place to find everything you need, no matter which group you fall into or which language you seek in a book (the store stocks learning materials in over 700 separate languages!). Yes, it’s yet another bookstore in the Harvard Square location, and with an establishment date of 1856, it also claims to be the oldest foreign language bookseller in the United States, period.
[76A Mount Auburn Place, Cambridge, 617-547-8855 | website]

The Children’s Book Shop

All children’s books, all the time, plus relevant titles for those who rear and teach young people.
[237 Washington Street, Brookline, 617-734-7323 | website]

Trident Booksellers & Cafe

More into magazines than books, perhaps with a side snack, beverage, or full meal? Located right in the bustling Newbury Street shopping district, this bookstore can’t be beat … even if you secretly like books, too. Free WiFi is available, as well.
[338 Newbury Street, Boston, 617-267-8688 | website]

Post from: The Boston Traveler

Newbury Street is an eight-block, mixed-use thoroughfare, lined on both sides by many dozens of retail and restaurant businesses housed in gorgeous, historic, renovated 19th-century brownstones. The intricate architecture alone is enough to make one stop and stare before taking scores of pictures and then moving on to the numerous additional stores and businesses on surrounding streets.

Bound on one side by the Boston Public Garden (Arlington T Station) and by Massachusetts Avenue (Hynes T Station) on the opposite side, Newbury Street has a distinct hierarchy of shops. The closer you get to Mass Avenue, as we call the state-named street for short, the quirkier and less expensive the stores become. As a result, the shopping district can accommodate just about anyone, whether a person has upscale or downscale tastes.

Newbury Street is also home to popular attractions that are historic in their own right, such as the original branch of the music chain Newbury Comics. But keep in mind that during peak times — for instance, the warmer months, when school is out and more people are on vacation — the wide and normally comfortable sidewalks can get very crowded.

I personally only visit the location at downtimes, when I know congestion will be limited. If you enjoy experiencing the sights and sounds of thriving, active neighborhoods, however, then peak time is probably the prime time for you to go.

Take a look at a brief video tour of Newbury Street, courtesy of Travelistic, after the jump and visit the shopping district’s official website to learn more about what it offers.

Post from: The Boston Traveler