Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending right now?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to uncover which eateries have been in the limelight 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 closing the year out strong.
Rochambeau
Open since 2019, this bar and French spot is trending, compared to other businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp.
Citywide, bars saw a median 1.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Rochambeau saw a massive 357.1% increase, with a downward trend from a five-star rating a month ago to four stars today. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, Rochambeau's review count increased by more than 310%.
It's not the only trending outlier in the bar category: Bastille Kitchen has seen a 1.1% increase in reviews.
Located at 900 Boylston St. (between Hereford and Gloucester streets) in Back Bay, Rochambeau offers Parisian flatbread, grilled lobster frites, mussels Normande and more.
Rochambeau is open from 7 a.m.–2 a.m. daily.
Pazza on Porter
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about East Boston's Pazza on Porter, the lounge and Italian spot is a hot topic, according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Italian" on Yelp saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, Pazza on Porter bagged a formidable 105.9% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a solid 4.5-star rating.
Open at 107 Porter St. (between Paris and Chelsea streets) since 2019 the menu offers arancini, fried calamari, pasta carbonara and more.
110 Grill
North Dorchester's 110 Grill is also making waves. Open since 2019 at 1 District Ave., the New American, traditional American and gluten-free spot has seen a 70% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.1% for all businesses tagged "American (New)" on Yelp.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Boston's New American category: The Industry has seen a 6.3% increase in reviews.
110 Grill offers bistro wings, mushroom demi sirloin, vegetarian pesto pasta and more. Over the past month, it's maintained a solid four-star rating among Yelpers.
The business is open from 11:30 a.m.–9 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–10 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday and 11:30 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Stillwater
Chinatown's Stillwater is the city's buzziest cocktail bar by the numbers.
The cocktail bar, which offers comfort food and more and opened at 120 Kingston St. (between Avenue De Lafayette and Edinboro Street) in 2019, increased its new review count by 77.8% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.6% for the Yelp category "Cocktail Bars." It outperformed the previous month by gaining 1.8 times more reviews than expected based on past performance.
It's not the only trending outlier in the cocktail bar category: Trade has seen a 0.4% increase in reviews.
Stillwater's menu offers dishes like smoked pork mac and cheese, blistered shishitos, spaghetti Pomodoro and more.
Black Lamb
South End's Black Lamb is currently on the upswing in the seafood category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp saw a median 1.1% increase in new reviews over the past month, this cocktail bar and New American spot, which offers seafood and more, increased its new reviews by 25% — and kept its rating consistent at four stars.
There's more abuzz in the world of Boston seafood: Bootleg Special has seen an 8.7% increase in reviews, and Eventide - Fenway has seen a 4.7% bump.
Open for business at 571 Tremont St. (between Union Park and Upton Street) since 2019, Black Lamb offers roasted king crab, poached salmon, Wagyu beef tartare and other dishes.
Black Lamb is open from 11 a.m.–midnight Monday-Wednesday, 11 a.m.–1 a.m. on Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m.–1 a.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–midnight on Sunday.
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.
