Want the intel on Boston's buzziest local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to analyze which eateries have been most discussed this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Boston businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are worth exploring, right now.
Bootleg Special
Open since 2018, this tapas bar and Cajun/Creole spot, which offers seafood and more, is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp.
Citywide, seafood spots saw a median 1.2 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, but Bootleg Special saw a 10.1 percent increase, maintaining a strong four-star rating throughout. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis Bootleg Special's review count increased by more than 150 percent.
It's not the only trending outlier in the seafood category: Eventide - Fenway has seen a 6 percent increase in reviews, and Lobstah On A Roll and Ocean Prime have seen 5.8 and 4.1 percent increases, respectively.
Located at 400 Tremont St. (between Arlington and Appleton streets) in South End, Bootleg Special offers garlic noodles, crawfish mac & cheese, seafood boils and more.
Tatte Bakery & Cafe
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about downtown Boston's Tatte Bakery & Cafe, the bakery and breakfast and brunch spot, which offers coffee and tea and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp saw a median 2.7 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, Tatte Bakery & Cafe bagged a 27 percent increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a strong four-star rating.
Open at 125 Summer St. (between High and Lincoln streets) since 2019, Tatte Bakery & Cafe offers pastries, desserts and brunch items like egg in a hole and French toast.
Milkweed
Mission Hill's Milkweed is also making waves. Open since 2017 at 1508 Tremont St. (between Carmel and Sewall streets), the well-established cocktail bar and New American and breakfast and brunch spot has seen a 7.2 percent bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.2 percent for all businesses tagged "Cocktail Bars" on Yelp.
Milkweed offers breakfast items like egg scrambles, pancakes and French toast. The lunch menu features soup, salads, sandwiches and more. The business also serves dinner. Over the past month, it's maintained a superior 4.5-star rating among Yelpers.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
