From Barnes & Noble

"Phantom started with a stale, tough croissant that seemed more like a crescent-shaped dinner roll. The golden French toast sticks were too chewy to choke down and the leathery bacon was impossible to eat." As enthusiasts of PhantomGourmet.com know, the Phantom Gourmet doesn't mince words; he grinds bad eateries. In The Phantom Gourmet's Guide to Boston's Best Restaurants, he saves you steps and spares you inedible meals by pinpointing premier dining spots in the region.

From the Publisher

Boston's mysterious food critic has finally put his wealth of restaurant knowledge together in one volume with his choices for the Boston area's best dining options. The Phantom Gourmet infuses his book with the same mix of authority, panache and unmatched local expertise that have made his show so popular.

So whether you're a long time fan of the Phantom Gourmet, a Boston area resident looking to expand your dining horizons or a visitor to Beantown, The Phantom Gourmet's Guide to Boston's Best Restaurants gives you all the information you need to grab a great meal every time.

Library Journal

For more than ten years, the Phantom Gourmet has had something of a cult following among foodies in the Boston area, where his reviews appear on the entertaining Phantom Gourmet television show, at www.phantomgourmet.com, and in other local publications (including the Boston Herald) and where his well-guarded identity remains a subject of discussion. This breezy book is arranged in "Great Ate" categories: the Phantom recommends his top eight restaurants for dating, lobster, comfort food, Italian, sandwiches, ribs, sushi, and 53 other categories. The guide includes a number of restaurants outside of the immediate Boston area and provides a location index. The reviews are short and often focus as much on the d cor and ambience as on the food in fact, food consideration can seem to be an afterthought. More comprehensive reviews of many of these restaurants can be found at the Phantom Gourmet web site. This is an optional purchase but will likely find an audience in public libraries in New England. Linda M. Kaufmann, Massachusetts Coll. of Liberal Arts, North Adams Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Product Details

• ISBN: 0312349599
  
• ISBN-13: 9780312349592
• Format: Paperback, 224pp
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Pub. Date: May 2006
• Sales Rank: 421,101

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Introduction

 
As the Phantom Gourmet, Boston’s most trustworthy restaurant critic, I’ve guarded my top-secret identity like a sacred family recipe. I always dine in disguise; I have enough aliases to fake out the CIA; and I never leave a crumb of evidence in my path. Because I’m so mysterious, I get no special treatment. The experience I have is the same as you’ll have when you dine at the restaurants in this book.
 
Thanks to my boss, I’ve been on a belly-busting eating spree for the last decade. I’ve converted all that caloric energy into writing reviews for The Phantom Gourmet TV show on UPN-38, the CBS-4 News, WBZ News Radio 1030-AM, and the Boston Herald. Millions of people see, hear, and read my reports on the dining scene, then post their comments in the FEEDback Forum on PhantomGourmet.com.
 
The thing I hear more often than the clanging of pots is the pressing need for a restaurant guide “to go.” The market is flooded with all-you-can-read buffets on where to eat out, but this book is the ultimate menu of the most “Phan-tastic” restaurants in Boston and beyond. I’ve compiled a Great Ate list for every major food group (yes, French fries ARE part of the Phantom food pyramid) and neighborhood. Eight of my favorite places are singled out for each delicious category like Fried Clams, Fine Dining, and the Theater District. If you’re hungry for a certain something, I’ll tell you my eight favorite places to get it. If you’re headed to a particular neighborhood, city, or region, I’ll point you to the area’s eight greatest diningdestinations.
 
Forget aimless searching; this guide gets to the point so you can eat what you want. You can still search the A-to-Z index for your favorite spots and the page on which they’re listed.
 
I spend more time eating out than most people spend even thinking about food during their everyday lives, and I’ve got the gut to prove it. A big THANKS goes out to all you masters of the kitchen, for keeping me employed. To my “Phans,” I give a super-sized salutation. And to anyone who operates a restaurant, treat every customer like a critic . . . because you never know which one could be THE PHANTOM GOURMET. Until I’ve eaten my way through every restaurant in the land, consider me out to lunch.
 
—The Phantom Gourmet Mysterious Restaurant Critic
 
Copyright © 2006 by Phantom Gourmet, Inc.

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Phantom Gourmet Guide to Boston's Best Restaurants

St. Martin's Griffin

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