Saturday in Boston: A Walking Day in Full Fall Color

My husband and I recently spent two days in Boston and packed in so much that one post wasn’t going to cut it. This is Saturday – a literary-filled day of walking everywhere. Sunday is coming next.

Early check-in at the historic Omni Parker House is the kind of small win that sets the tone for a whole trip. We arrived at 11, the room was ready 20 minutes later. We dropped our bags in the room and headed to our first stop – lunch!

Lunch at Tatte

Tatte Bakery came first, and it was packed. The food was good, but finding a seat took more patience than I had at that hour especially after being up since 4am. If you go at noon on a Saturday, plan on eating standing up or grabbing a spot the second someone leaves.

Boston Common, the Public Garden, and Beacon Hill

After lunch, we walked through Boston Common and the Public Garden. The Public Garden is one of my favorite places in the city, and October is when it earns that spot. Everything was glowing.

We made our way to the lovely Beacon Hill neighborhood, which is a must do every time I travel to Boston, but especially in the Fall. It’s hard not fall in love with the charm of Beacon Hill.

First….Beacon Hill is made for walking….very, very slow…more like stroll so that you can take it all in. Second, there’s something about Beacon Hill’s brick and cobblestone streets, and the classic Federal-style row houses that makes you feel patriotic and bougie at the same time. While I’ve been to this area many times, the reason for heading to Beacon Hill today was much more strategic…and literary-minded. I’ve been a fan of Louisa May Alcott (author of Little Women) and Henry David Thoreau for years. I’ve been to both LMA’s house in Concord and HDT’s Walden Pond on previous trips. But this time, I was hoping to take a peek at their Boston roots. I mapped out a route of houses lived in by many of the great authors – LMA, HDT, Nathaniel Hawthorn and Robert Frost (all of which were in a 1-2 block radius) and made my way to each, one by one. How exciting to literally stand in the doorstep of literary giants!

Now, back to Beacon Hill. Beacon Hill is lovely in any season, but the brick, the gas lamps, and the doorways with their fall wreaths were at their best this weekend.

A few stops on the Hill didn’t go as planned. East Coast Ivy, a boutique, was a nice pop-in but much smaller than I imagined from the pics I saw online. Another stop that I had high hopes for….Beacon Hill Books. It was so crowded we lasted barely two minutes before turning around and walking back out the door. Even Acorn Street, which I adore for its beauty and the magical ambience it gives all year round, was way too crowded for my taste. In the past when I’ve visited, I’ve gone to Acorn Street after an early morning run when there’s usually no one else around. Oh well, maybe next time Acorn Street. 

Newbury Street

We worked our way down to Newbury Street and stopped at Flour Bakery for a sweet treat and latte pick-me-up. It was the right reset before two hours of serious shopping, which included:

• Muji, a family favorite that I can’t walk past. We’ve been to several of these home goods stores around Europe and the US. The items are moderately priced and a great place to grab a few gifts for your family or yourself.
• Trident Booksellers – Another crowded bookstore on a Saturday, but we were still able to walk around a bit. Trident is smaller than chain stores like Barnes and Noble (and Beacon Hill Books is even smaller), which adds to the charm. But this also means that they almost never have the books that I’m looking for.
• Tracksmith – As a lifetime runner, Tracksmith is as bougie as it gets for serious racers. You can find premier singlets and other gear from top marathons around the world like Chicago, Sydney, Berlin…and of course, Boston. The store itself is worth the visit for its dark wood features and warm, inviting atmosphere. I’d expect nothing less from my fellow XC enthusiasts. 
• Central Perk, the Friends-themed café was quick side-quest and honestly quite overrated. I was able to visit the Central Perk Cafe in CA a few years back which was bigger and had more character.
• Aritzia – While not on Newbury street (but just a short walk away), we made a side trip to Aritzia at the Prudential Center to pick up a specific item for our daughter and try their super secret upstairs cafe (more on that in a different post!)

The Walk Back

The route home covered more history than I expected. We stopped at the statue of another literary giant – Edgar Allan Poe – to take a few pics, then looked in at the Granary Burying Ground where famous Americans like Paul Revere and John Hancock are buried. I wanted a photo of Tremont Temple Baptist Church, where Charles Dickens once read A Christmas Carol, but it was under construction. It’s a good detail to know even without a clean picture.

Dinner at Lucca in the North End

We had an hour to change, then walked to the North End for dinner at Lucca with friends who were staying across the river in Cambridge. The North End is wall-to-wall Italian restaurants, so there’s no shortage of choices.

We enjoyed our meal, but I’ll be honest about the noise. Lucca was so loud that conversation was hard. We were leaning across the table and repeating ourselves the entire meal. If you’re meeting friends you haven’t seen in a while, that matters. I’d go back for the food, but I’d ask for the quietest table downstairs or book an earlier seating. 

Dessert at Caffè Vittoria

After dinner, we walked over to Caffè Vittoria for dessert and after-dinner drinks. It’s an old-school, cash only, Italian café, the kind of place you settle into, and it was a welcome change after a noisy dinner. We could finally hear each other, at least a little better. 

A Nightcap at Emmet’s

We finished at Emmet’s, with live Irish music and one last drink. After a day that started at 11am and covered most of central Boston on foot, it was the right ending.

Coming up in Part Two: Sunday.