Exploring Seaport to Fenway-Kenmore in Boston, Massachusetts

Fort Point

The 40 feet tall Hood Milk Bottle containing a small restaurant is located on the Fort Point side of the Congress Street Bridge. During our visit to Boston in May the restaurant was closed and didn’t appear to be opening in the near future.

Hopsters Brewing Company has a large taproom with an outdoor patio and a brew your own beer experience. Sample a flight of 4 from the 19 beers on draft.

Admission to the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum is free with the exception of the lower deck. Take a self guided tour through the museum ticket plaza, gift shop, Abigail’s Tea Room, and outdoor balcony. Every year on December 16th the museum holds The Boston Tea Party Annual Reenactment and recreates the events that took place the evening of 1773.

2 blocks from Hopsters Brewing Company is the popular Trillium Brewing Company. The large tap room with open seating fills up quickly. There is also a small outdoor patio, upstairs dining area, and rooftop terrace. With over 20 beers on tap there is a beer for everyone from Just Add Noodles, a rice lager, to Double Seesaw, an American gose ale brewed with plums. We recommend the Barrel Fermented Wild Ale with Blueberries, part of the Fated Farmer series, and the vanilla, cacao, and chili Night & Day Imperial Stout with cold brew coffee.

Home to the Red Sox since 1911, Fenway Park is one of the oldest Major League Baseball stadiums in use today. Before game time, Jersey Street is blocked off to outside visitors and becomes part of the park.

Restaurant Recommendation: Grab a drink and enjoy the outdoor patio at Cask ‘n Flagon before the game.

Located on Lansdowne Street outside of Fenway Park is Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co. with a large tap room, lounge area, ping pong tables, shuffleboard, and pool tables. There are 6 beers on tap including 1 rotating draft.

In 1860, 20 year old Isabella Stewart married and moved to Boston. 17 years later the couple suffered the loss of their 2 year old causing Isabella to make her first of many trips to Europe. While visiting Venice, the couple found their inspiration for the Gardner Museum, The Palazzo Barbaro.

In 1891, Isabella’s father passed away leaving her $1,600,000 USD and her art collection continued to grow. 5 years later, the couple decided to hold their collection in a museum. 26 years after her husband, Isabella passed away leaving their museum for the education and enjoyment of the public.

In 1927 the museum’s first director organized an afternoon concert series to increase visitors. Still occurring every Sunday afternoon as of today, it is America’s oldest museum music program in history.

On March 18, 1990, two thieves disguised as police officers entered the museum stating they were responding to a disturbance. Then, handcuffed and tied up the 2 real security guards in the basement. 81 minutes later, the thieves left the museum with 13 pieces totaling $500,000,000 USD. The stolen artwork from the world’s largest property theft has still not been recovered.

Free audio tours are available by visiting gardnermuseum.org/audioguide on a smartphone while touring the museum. $15 USD per adult to enter. Admittance is free for anyone named Isabella. The museum in closed on Tuesdays.

The 11 story Mary Baker Eddy Library opened in 2002 as a place to enjoy Mary Baker Eddy’s ideas and achievements. The lobby of the library, The Publishing House, held massive printing and binding equipment during the Great Depression in 1934.

A bridge through the stained glass, 30 foot globe, provides a 365 degree view of the world in 1935. At this time, the Mapparium is one of a kind. Photos are prohibited inside the Mapparium but may be taken in the library. The tour of the Mapparium including a light show, informational session, and time to experience the acoustics lasts 15-20 minutes and costs $6 USD per person. The first tour begins at 10:20am and last tour departs at 4:00pm. Visitors are welcome to join an unlimited number of tours throughout the day at no additional costs.

Six colors are used to represent affiliation between nearby countries. Red, being the most difficult pigment to create at the time, was used frequently by the artist to showcase his abilities.
Because glass doesn’t absorb sound, the acoustics are also astounding. Speaking directly under the North Pole creates a surround sound effect. Two people standing at opposite ends of the bridge can hear a whisper as if they were standing next to each other.

Restaurant Recommendation: For fresh Thai cuisine and great service we recommend dinner at Thai Basil Restaurant.

Choose from 3 sampler flights: Harpoon Sampler, UFO Sampler, or the Specialty Sampler. There are over 20 beers on draft from UFO, Harpoon, and Clown Shoes to accompany a small menu of fresh pretzels made with Harpoon IPA.

Enjoy Nantucket’s Cisco Brewers, Nantucket Vineyards Wines, and Malus Malum Ciders at the Cisco Brewers Popup Seaport location along with food trucks featuring flatbread, a raw bar, and tacos.

The Lawn on D is a 2.7 acre adult outdoor playground with ping pong, corn hole, bocce ball, swings, giant checkers, chess, and Jenga, food trucks, music, and beer. Pets are not allowed, and outdoor food or beverages are prohibited during concession hours. Entry is free.

Democracy Brewing, recreating the public house, has 4 core drafts and 4 rotating drafts. Flights of 4 are available. The large tap room has a dining area and cozy alcoves to enjoy the menu of burgers, pub comfort food, soup, and salads. We recommend the spicy, Togarashi Popcorn.

This white, Greek “house” located at the private, Rollins Pl, off Revere Street in Beacon Hill, is actually not a house at all. Supposedly, the Scarlett O’Hara House is a well done 3D painting on a brick wall creating an optical illusion. Upon further investigation we can confirm this is not an actual house, but the pillars, porch, steps, and roof are actual structures and not a 3D painting.

May 2019