This is a great suggestion, thimes! I will call the Whole Foods closest to me and see if this is an option. I really appreciate the help!

My friend is getting married tomorrow and they are serving Mexican food at their wedding (no idea what exactly is on the menu). I offered to make a cocktail to serve at the wedding alongside the beer and wine, and she has requested margaritas. I'm planning on making a huge batch at home tomorrow, and I want to use fresh lime juice. Although we have a citrus juicer, I think I'd rather just buy fresh lime juice than spend half my day tomorrow juicing. Does anyone know where to get cheap fresh lime juice? I'm thinking Pro's Ranch Market on Roosevelt, but I've never gone there specifically for lime juice so I have no idea if (1) they have any (not just small glass bottles like Total Wine), (2) it's reasonably-priced, or (3) it's any good.

Any suggestions for a last-minute planner?

Thank you!

One final question for this extremely helpful board...we are taking a red eye and land in Boston at 6AM on a Thursday. We then have to get our rental car and kill some time before my brother in law's plane gets in around 8AM. Is there anywhere decent (and again, open early) to have some breakfast near the airport?

Appreciate the advice! Between you & opinionatedchef, I am tempted to do the ICOB thing followed by a cab ride to the South End. And thanks for calling me young...I'm to the point where I have to say I'm in my 'late twenties' :)

Skipping Clio altogether. No sparks for me when I look at the menu or pictures.

ESK is certainly tempting because the atmosphere seems like what we're looking for. It also looks like they have a huge bar - we prefer to sit there if possible. I've made resos at both ESK and Aquitaine for Saturday evening, so we'll see what sort of a mood we're in. Aquitaine seems to be near more places we'd like to try (Coppa and Toro, definitely), but the ESK/ICOB pairing is very tempting...

I always stick a pair of flats in my purse! :)

Appreciate the Caffe Nuovo/Ferrara's suggestion, but a bit out of the way for our purposes that morning. Thank you for the tip about Henrietta's...a breakfast buffet is something we have to be in the mood for. Good to know before we get there!

And a small update/plead for additional help. Our Saturday night in Boston will be our big outing, so I'd like to go to an area where we can walk around, enjoy, and stop in a couple of bars in addition to dinner (maybe a couple of snacks as well...we eat a lot). We'll be with a good friend who we enjoyed tapas crawls with in Barcelona...we'd like to replicate the walk-food-drink thing in Boston, if possible. I've made reservations at both Aquitaine and Eastern Standard Kitchen. For Aquitaine, I'm thinking we could swing by Coppa, Hammersely's, B&G (maybe...mixed reviews from this crowd), The Beehive, and *maybe* even Toro in addition to dinner. For ESK, I'm thinking we can swing by The Hawthorne, ICOB, and maybe Citizen Public House in addition to dinner.

What's your vote? Food, atmosphere, and drinks all being equally important. Also, we prefer to sit at the bar, so if one restaurant has a superior bar to the other...please let me know.

Many thanks again!

Also, good to hear that not all locals hate Legal...the view attracted me, as well as the fact that I ate at a Legal Seafood in an airport once during a layover - the husband chided me for ordering oysters in an airport, but they were surprisingly fresh. I have fond memories.

I'm intrigued by your rec of Best Little Restaurant, ipsofatso, as it doesn't seem anything like Jacob Wirth (which we're skipping, based on feeback here) or frankly, anything on my list...is it a favorite of yours, or an old Boston standby? Do tell!

I think Jacob Wirth came from some travel guide...maybe Frommer's or Lonely Planet. My dad came off the boat from Deutschland when he was a kid, so I'm always fascinated by old German places. Also, the promise of a Friday night singalong sounded good, but we won't be in Boston on a Friday...so out the window goes Jacob Wirth. Sounds more like a place for tourists like me :)

Another rec for ECG. Can you elaborate a bit on the food and the scene? I hadn't heard much about it until I read the replies to my OP.

Myers + Chang...brunch?

More early morning recs! Much appreciated, Felicity7! They are tough to come by for us early birds :)

Thanks, jinet12! Glad to hear another Balthazar/Gaslight comparison...since we've done one, we probably won't do the other.

Hungry Mother looks amazing, but it seems like they are only open for dinner, so we'll probably have to skip it this time around. Oleana looks very interesting, but alas, a little *too* interesting for the husband.

Thank you, total13! We will be leaving from Maine pretty early in the morning--are any of the places you recommended open early, or are they lunch spots?

Glad that the Hawthorne/ICOB seems to be a good plan so far. Clio looks a little stuffy from the pictures, or am I off-base? Any love for ESK for dinner? If we do Neptune for lunch, I'm not sure I can convince the husband to do ICOB for dinner...maybe another round of oysters and drinks pre-dinner, though. Hawthorne looks like a good after-dinner spot.

Trident Cafe looks like a good option--I wish we could sleep in, but we seem to get up even earlier than normal on vacation, for some odd reason. There is something great about walking around a city before the bustle starts, though.

Is Coppa worth a visit? The menu looks amazing...

Thank you - will add Henrietta's to the list. Our early morning escapades typically limit our breakfast options, so it's good to have this one!

Thank you for the input, Kat! We have been to Balthazar, and so will probably skip Gaslight. Sounds like Toro gets pretty busy...would it be a good place to stop in for a pre-dinner snack/drink, assuming that we'll be trying to beat the Saturday dinner rush?

I think between Beehive and Hamersley's, we'll give The Beehive a whirl. Good to know reso's aren't necessary for cocktails...some SF bars are impossible to get into without them, but it doesn't sound like that kind of place.

Thank you for your thoughtful response, opinionatedchef! I hope you don't mind...I'm going to copy and paste your 'Visiting' post into my Google docs to keep as a handy guide!

I think you have a great idea with Neptune/Regina's...give Neptune a shot, but if it looks like we're going to be late for the bike tour, we'll call in a pie to Regina's.

If we end up doing Neptune for lunch, we might forgo ICOB in favor of ESK...although, Aquitaine does look very enticing. I also read up on Bistro du Midi..any thoughts there?

We'll try to squeeze either Craigie's or ECG in as both look promising. ECG looks...eclectic? What is the vibe like? A college pal of mine will probably be tagging along and I'd guess we'll pay for her--in that case, which would be easier on the wallet (assuming we will consume several Bloody Marys)?

Thank you again--your post is extremely helpful!

Hi there, Boston Hounds, and apologies in advance for this long, rambling post!

I would appreciate some help putting together an itinerary for our upcoming trip to the East Coast. We will be in Boston in early October for a short weekend (with a night in Salem for a wedding)…I’ve done quite a bit of poking around your board, and I’m having a terrible time making decisions! We are staying Saturday night only right near Copley Square, and we will have a rental car although I plan on parking it once we get into the city and relying on walking/cabs/public transport. The more walking, the better!

The husband and I like all types of food and don’t really have a budget, though we’d like to avoid Mexican food (have a ton of it here in Phoenix) and sushi (the husband could take it or leave it). We are in our late 20s/mid 30s. We like good food, good atmosphere, and good people watching. For a frame of reference, in our most recent trip we went to NYC and our highlights were Minetta Tavern and Locanda Verde. Here are the meals we are looking for, and any info that might be helpful:

Saturday Lunch – Driving into town from Maine and need lunch before our bike tour at 2PM—bike tour departs near the aquarium, so lunch near there would be great! Thinking Neptune Oyster…or are we going to wait so long that we’ll be late for the bike ride?

Saturday Dinner/Cocktails – Somewhere dressy, but not stuffy. Just somewhere I could wear a nice pair of heels to and not feel out of place. Would like to do dinner somewhere that is in walking distance to a bar or two. Doesn’t have to be bar-only, can be a bar inside of a restaurant. Thinking of dinner at either Eastern Standard Kitchen or Island Creek Oyster Bar and then visiting the other for a cocktail/snack and possibly The Hawthorne as well. Might also venture over to The Beehive later since it looks relatively close to our hotel. Do we need a reservation at The Beehive? I am PRO reservations in a big way, and will be making them for dinner if possible.

Sunday Breakfast – I think we may venture over to Cambridge this morning. I was intrigued by Flour Bakery & Café, but they open so darn late! The husband and I are early risers and will probably need breakfast at 7AM, 8AM at the latest. Any recommendations for Cambridge (preferably) or Back Bay?

Sunday Lunch – Sunday lunch might be more like Sunday brunch because Lucky’s Lounge and their Sinatra brunch sounds pretty intriguing (is it just one guy singing, or a whole band?), and it looks like there are a couple of spots to have a cocktail with a view nearby. If we do Lucky’s, would you recommend Sam’s, Legal Harborside, etc. for a quick stop? Or am I missing a better Sunday lunch elsewhere all together?

Monday Lunch – I think this is reserved for Radius, unfortunately, because it would fit better in our Saturday but I don’t think they are open for lunch. My boss, who used to live in Boston and visits frequently, knows that my husband is a burger aficionado (is that a thing?) and highly recommended this place. I read the rave reviews for Craigie’s and The Butcher Shop, but if we go somewhere for a burger it has to be Radius per The Boss’s recommendation.

So that’s it! I have a bunch of other restaurants that look great but can’t quite figure out where to fit them in…should I swap any of these out? Am I missing anything?

Coppa
The Butcher Shop
Craigie on Main
Hungry Mother
No 9 Park
Gaslight Brasserie du Coin
The Gallows
Jacob Wirth
B&G Oysters
Toro

Additionally, if anyone has a breakfast recommendation in Salem, I’m all ears!

Many thanks for your time and advice! Can’t wait to eat my way through your fantastic city!

Thanks for everyone's suggestions so far...I would still love to hear a good lunch spot in the Haight Ashbury neighborhood--I've heard good things about Magnolia, but am I missing something better?

Yes--Gitane! I would love to stop in there for a drink, I think the atmosphere looks really fun. Thanks for the warning about Rickhouse--we will probably check it out anyway but we will at least be prepared for the crowd!

Thanks for the tip about Swan--we are going to try to go @ 11 on Friday. I originally made a reservation at Foreign Cinema for dinner Friday night but ended up switching it to Perbacco. Still thinking of FC for brunch...

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Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

Foreign Cinema
2534 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94110

Ooh, Barrique looks great but I think a little north of where we are planning to be. Dottie's looks awesome--if we don't end up picking up breakfast at the farmer's market, we will be here for sure! I am glad that you would recommend Swan--I think we are going to try to stop by on our way into town Friday around 11ish...I am guessing it's busier on the weekend, or is it just busy all the time?

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Barrique
461 Pacific Ave, San Francisco, CA 94133

Thanks for the recs--Acquerello does look wonderful but I ended up making a Friday night res at Perbacco. We are hoping to meetup afterward with a friend nearby--perhaps at Rickhouse since it is back toward the hotel, unless there is a better place nearby that we are missing?

If we visit the Presidio, I am thinking of stopping by the Ferry Building Farmer's Market on the way to grab a makeshift breakfast...

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Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

Rickhouse Bar
246 Kearny St, San Francisco, CA

My husband and I are spending a couple of days in SF (save for a quick trip out to Modesto for a wedding) and I would love help planning those meals (as well as suggestions for cool bars to grab an afternoon drink/snack).

Last time we were in town we ate/drank at:
XYZ (in our hotel)
Town Hall
Salt House
A16
Cliff House
Bourbon & Branch

We loved everything except for Town Hall, and the Cliff House was more view than food (although a great view at that). We don't really have a budget although I would prefer not to go absolutely crazy--Salt House and A16 had very fair price points, for example. We would like to stay away from Indian food as well as most Asian (unless you have a can't be missed Japanese, Chinese, or Thai place--husband is picky). If we are going to do pizza we would only like to do it once (we have great pizza in Phx and also just ate at Mozza in LA). We LOVE fresh seafood. Aside from those caveats, please help me plan! We will be staying at the Westin St. Francis and will have a car.

Here are some places I am thinking of visiting--keeping in mind that we want to see the Embarcadero, Haight Ashbury, Union Square area, and *possibly* the Presidio (breakfast?). Please let me know if some of these places are worth a stop for a drink but dinner elsewhere, or if some are better for lunch than dinner, or if you would scrap any completely, etc:

Boulevard (thinking lunch--really want to go here)
Waterbar
Swan Oyster Depot
Perbacco
Range
Delfina
Canteen
SPQR
Spruce
Flour + Water
Magnolia (or is there somewhere better in Haight Ashbury?)
Ame
Acquerello
Zuni
Foreign Cinema

Thank you!

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Zuni Cafe
1658 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94102

Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

A16
2355 Chestnut St., San Francisco, CA 94123

Delfina Restaurant
3621 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Town Hall Restaurant
342 Howard St., San Francisco, CA 94105

Swan Oyster Depot
1517 Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109

Foreign Cinema
2534 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94110

Acquerello Restaurant
1722 Sacramento St., San Francisco, CA 94109

SPQR
1911 Fillmore Street, San Francisco, CA 94115

Bourbon & Branch
501 Jones St, San Francisco, CA

Salt House
2 Shaw Aly, San Francisco, CA 94105

In the sister property of the Marriott Canyon Villas, the Desert Ridge Marriott, there is an Italian restaurant--Ristorante Tuscany. My husband and I ate there once while staying at the resort, it seems like it would fulfill your requirements. Also, a few miles southeast of you is Maggiano's, a pretty decent Italian chain. The food is good and they are adept at handling large parties.

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Maggiano's Little Italy
16405 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85254

Ristorante Tuscany @ JW Marriott Desert Ridge
5350 East Marriott Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85054

We returned from our trip! I would say more often than not we were the only couple eating at the bar--my husband and I rather liked it at first, because we never had to wait to be seated, but it made me uncomfortable over time because we seemed to be the ONLY ones doing it.

We never had trouble with reservations except for one night in Berlin--Friday night, tried two places around 7pm (Grill Royal and Bocca di Bacco). We ended up at Lutter & Wegner (Potsdamer Platz, by the Ritz Carlton where we were staying) and were pretty underhelmed :/

If we ever get back to Berlin, which do we make the res at: Grill Royal or Bocca di Bacco?

Thanks for everyone's help!

Sunfare: http://www.sunfare.com/

Full disclosure: I work in administration in the fitness industry. I am a desk jockey, not a personal trainer, but I know we recommend this company (I tried one entree--a chicken Caesar salad--and it was pretty good). They are not specifically geared toward weight-loss customers but they do offer healthier options. Hope this helps!

Linguafood, thank you for your response! That helps immensely--and good suggestion about calling same day, I rarely think to do that.

Hello to all! My husband and I are traveling through Germany next week, and I have a question about reservations at restaurants in Germany. I have noticed that many online travel guides as well as the chow boards suggest making reservations at a lot of restaurants. If we try to eat at a restaurant that is upscale or just popular (or both) for dinner without a reservation, are we going to be completely out of luck? I hesistate to make reservations (I usually do) because we are so unfamiliar with the cities and would like to get a feel for them before we decide where to eat (and in what part of town). I should mention that my husband and I actually prefer to sit at the bar of a restaurant (if there is one) and have dinner there.

Thank you in advance for your help! This may sound like a silly question, but in Phoenix (where we live) most restaurants that say "reservations suggested" have a few tables open for walk-ins and seating for dinner at the bar.

Hi Pannikin!

I usually just peruse these boards because I'm not sure how great my advice is, but I wanted to offer some help! Congratulations on your upcoming birthday--very exciting. I'm in my 20s, live around the area, and am and more of a bar, less of a club person as well. Here are some thoughts on your birthday:

The Rokerij is a great choice for dinner! Get there early and have a drink at the bar downstairs--you won't be disappointed.

I know you have a limo, but there are a few bars around that area that sound like they would appeal to you. All different vibes. Not sure how busy they will be on a Sunday night, though--check to see how late these places are open.

The Vig Uptown
16th St & Bethany Home
Hip but laid back. Huge enclosed patio w/bocce ball court. Have a "Vignature cocktail"

Merc Bar
24th St & Camelback (Esplanade)
Upscale, dark lounge atmosphere. Highly recommended. Famous martinis.

Rosie McCaffrey's
9th St & Camelback
Roaring Irish pub, casual and fun. Have some whiskey or a Guiness.

Stingray Sushi & Christoper's Crush
24th St & Camelback (Biltmore)
These are both technically restaurants with great bar areas. Both hip and upscale, and you can walk from one to the other. Sake bombs at Stingray and then maybe a glass of champagne at Crush?

Hope this helps! Happy birthday!

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Stingray Sushi
4302 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Rokerij
6335 N. 16th St., Phoenix, AZ 85016