5 Best Restaurants in Government Center, Boston

Fuel up after your Faneuil Hall trip with dinner in this small yet mighty spot, just steps from the famed marketplace. A gorgeous marble bar wraps around the center, with high- and low-top tables that invite you to share the personal Roman-style pizzas thick and piled high. Seafood pasta dishes like Calabrian Chili Orecchiette and Squid Ink Lumache Frutti di Mare and entrées such as Chianti-Braised Lamb Shank and Livornese-style Local Cod satiate hearty appetites. Their wine-by-the-glass list is over 25 strong, and the craft cocktails range from smoky to fruit-forward and fun.

If all that shopping and snacking has made you thirsty, you might want to stop for a pint at the Black Rose; take a right at the far end of the South Market. The bar-restaurant features traditional Irish fare and live music seven nights a week.

A trifecta of Celtic celebration, this Quincy Market hot spot is part Irish pub, part lounge, and part live music hall. A destination for tourists and townies alike, the menu is a mix of classic Irish dishes, like chicken curry, warm Jameson bread pudding, and beef stew, alongside New England favorites, such as chowder fries, Samuel Adams chicken tenders, and clam chowder. Ned Devine’s features a cozy, upper-level dining room, a spacious dance floor for when bands are scheduled, and three bars that usually have the game on. The cozy interior, accented with exposed brick, is the perfect place to curl up with a fresh-drawn pint and relax after a day of sightseeing. When your energy is back on track, the live music draws big crowds on the weekends, with a $10 cover charge starting at 10 pm on Friday and 9 pm on Saturday.

With 15 unique sauces on the menu, including homemade hot beer mustard, truffle ketchup, cheddar ale, smoky chipotle mayo, and gravy, Saus believes in the power of condiments, which accompany its made-from-scratch sandwiches. The hand-cut fries are house-aged and twice fried, and they're known for their hand-rolled beer-brined pork bratwurst. Sandwiches are served on Central Bakery buns, and go from extra meaty (kimchi ranch crispy chicken or lobster roll) to veggies all the way (cauli-falafel).

Opening its door in 1826 and earning a place on the National Historic Landmark list, the Union Oyster House is Boston's oldest restaurant. Dine like Daniel Webster (alongside his nightly hangover-heavy tumbler of brandy and water) and order oysters on the half shell at the ground-floor raw bar in the oldest part of the restaurant. For a heartier meal, head to the dark and low-ceilinged upstairs via a narrow staircase (very Olde New England) to find “The Kennedy Booth,” the president's favorite. Small tables and chairs (as well as kitschy nostalgia) are charming, as is the simple and hearty portions of Yankee-style seafood and steaming bowls of chowder. The Shore Dinner is a New England feast of clam chowder, steamers or mussels, live lobster, native corn, red bliss potatoes, and gingerbread or Indian pudding. Sinking your teeth into more than you can handle? You aren’t the first. The toothpick was first used in the U.S. here. On weekends, make reservations or risk enduring waits of historic proportions. One cautionary note: locals hardly ever eat here.