Get your fill of turkey and stuffing at these stand-out holiday stopovers
Bambara Kitchen & Bar: The restaurant ensconced at Cambridge’s Kimpton Marlowe Hotel dishes out a three-course Thanksgiving repast from 3–8 p.m. that is centered around turkey two ways (breast meat and confit turkey leg), mashed potatoes, roasted mushroom stuffing, Brussels sprouts and cranberry compote, followed by apple and pumpkin pie.
Contessa: Perched high above the Back Bay atop The Newbury Boston, this elegant space serves Thanksgiving Italian-style, with such delicacies as meatballs, squash carpaccio and the cheese-filled pasta dish ricotta gnudi di pecora alongside roasted turkey with sage gravy, stuffing, Brussels sprouts with pancetta and more.
Harvest: The farm-to-table mainstay in Harvard Square hosts a three-course prix fixe Thanksgiving meal from 10:30 a.m.–8 p.m. that features options like beet carpaccio and lobster risotto to start, with organic turkey, pan-seared halibut and filet mignon among the temptations for the main meal. For dessert, there are fall stalwarts like pecan pie, apple pie or pumpkin tart.
Matria: Another Italian-themed eatery catering to the Thanksgiving crowd is this waterfront space at the InterContinental Boston that boasts both in-person and to-go meals. Dine in for a traditional turkey dinner topped off with the eye-popping chef’s dessert table (pictured), a cornucopia of nearly a dozen sweet treats from tiramisu and panna cotta to cannoli and gelato. The takeout version—which feeds 8–10 people with roast turkey, cheddar cheese mashed potatoes, chestnut focaccia stuffing and the like—can be ordered by November 21 for pick-up Thanksgiving morning from noon–4 p.m.
Plimoth Patuxet Museum: Enjoy the classic holiday meal in the place where it all began. Plymouth’s living history museum is home to the annual, nearly sold-out The Story of Thanksgiving Dinner—a plated meal with roast turkey and all the trimmings—and the Thanksgiving Day Homestyle Buffet, a dazzling array of seasonal treats that includes winter squash, glazed rainbow carrots, Cape Cod cranberry sauce, apple cider and fresh-baked cornbread. Both events take place at several times throughout the big day.
