The 9 best hidden restaurants and bars in Boston

At the back of the recently opened Michael Schlow seafood restaurant at the Encore casino sits a speakeasy so sleek you’ll forget you’re in Everett. Behind a wall-like door at the rear of Seamark, Old Wives’ Tale has nautical decor like bookshelves packed with compasses, antique anchors and tattered books. Behind the bar, bartenders mix up cocktails—such as the Yacht Club Italiano and the Waking Up in Osaka—that nod to New England’s seafaring history, but they’ll also make you a perfect martini if you ask.

Concealed beneath Greek restaurant Krasi with a mystical vibe, Hecate is one of the coolest bars to open in Boston proper in the past few years. As you descend into this basement speakeasy, your eyes slowly adjust to the candle-lit darkness. Instead of bartenders, “spirit guides” are behind the bar, crafting stylish drinks like a briny pickle martini.

This speakeasy style bar in Eastie is just a short walk from the Maverick stop on the Blue Line—but you wouldn’t necessarily know it. Next Door is hidden behind sister restaurant Pazza on Porter, located in what looks like an old locksmith shop at first glance. Check in at Pazza, and you’ll be led to a secret door where you’ll give the password to disappear into a 1920s-influenced bar serving elaborate cocktails and a short menu of bar bites (we’re partial to the charcuterie board). 

In the back of Charlestown’s new favorite swank spot, Prima Italian Steakhouse, sits a beautiful jewel box of a bar called Rose Room.With just eight seats at the bar and a few tufted booths to cozy into, you can make reservations for this space, and you absolutely should for your next date night. The Rose Room serves Prima’s full menu of pastas and Italian-inflected steakhouse fare, and the bartender will whip up whatever your thirst desires.

This recently opened hidden gem on Beacon Hill feels so germane to the neighborhood, it’s as if it has always been there. Just take a few steps down from the famous brick sidewalks of Charles Street onto Mt. Vernon. With prohibition-era influenced cocktails like Lionstail (bourbon, allspice dram, bitters and lime), and refined comforts like pan-seared scallops and lobster tortellini, the speakeasy-style space is just the place you will want to cozy up in every night for dinner.

In the back of after-work favorite JM Curley, an “Adults Only” sign hangs beside a closed blackout curtain. If you don’t know it’s there, you won’t find it—but if you push back the curtain, you’ll enter an intimate, reservation-only steakhouse. A la carte cuts include the obligatory filet mignon, ribeye and New York strip (you may also catch the occasional giant tomahawk on special, if you’re lucky), while sides range from the traditional creamed spinach to the trendier rosemary truffle fries. Wash it all down with an old-fashioned libation, like a tableside absinthe fountain that’ll have your crew in good spirits for the rest of the evening.

Discreetly located within Boston’s Leather District, Offsuit is a tiny, 20-seat bar tucked inside sister bistro Troquet on South. Head to the backdoor entrance and call—don’t knock—to be let into this homey nook serving classic cocktails and spinning tunes from a solid library of vinyl. While the space is sprinkled with sophisticated furnishings like marble tables, antique lamps and bookcases, this place doesn’t take itself too seriously, so expect wacky touches like Mr. Potato Head glassware and boozy milk and cookies. With a motto of “no frills, no fuss,” Offsuit also abides by the rule of no reservations.

Veer slightly off Winter Street in Downtown Crossing and head toward what looks like a salon—but you’re here for a meal , not a styling appointment. Once the beloved Locke-Ober, it’s now Yvonne’s, a posh, modish supper club that has preserved pieces of the past—like the refined 19th-century mahogany bar—while introducing creative cocktails and “social plates” meant for sharing. Soak in the dark, moody and sophisticated ambience of dim lighting and rich upholstered furniture. There’s even a second hidden door inside Yvonne’s book-laden library that leads to a secret underground club.

This endearingly divey bar can easily be missed, hidden away in an old brick warehouse near Fort Point Channel. Lucky’s corner entryway is set back almost in the shadows behind a column. A discrete sign on the awning above is the only thing that could tip off otherwise unaware passersby on Congress Street. If you’re scouring the Seaport and still can’t find it, just look for the orange glow radiating from its basement windows—a preview of the casually retro vibe you’ll discover inside. A popular place for after-work drinks, Lucky's also features live music on the weekends, when the line forming outside will certainly guide you to its exact location.