I write about food quite a bit, and I often get the same questions over and over again. Good date spots. Places to take Granny for her 80th birthday. Quiet spots to abruptly break up with someone who thinks you’re actually planning to propose (really). And, the biggest, most vexatious request of them all: kid-friendly restaurants that are actually delicious, as opposed to germ factories featuring reheated pizza squares and limp quesadillas.
As luck would have it, Boston is enjoying a Jewish deli renaissance lately (and we all know there’s nowhere kid-friendlier than a loud, cacophonous, delicious Jewish deli—the pickles alone could keep a child occupied for an hour). Most notably, Mamaleh’s, helmed by staff from Cambridge’s Hungry Mother and State Park, have plans for an expansive takeout and sit-down deli coming up in the next few months. The teams from Tasty Burger and Commonwealth have also made similar rumblings, joining the ranks of stalwarts like S&S Restaurant and Zaftigs Delicatessen.
In the meantime, here are a few more prime perches for pint-sized gourmands.
Bagelsaurus
This teensy Cambridge shop has lines for miles on weekends, so visit during the week for sublime, uniquely topped bagels crafted by owner Mary Ting Hyatt. The blissfully chewy black olive bagel topped with hot smoked salmon and roasted tomatoes is truly a thing of beauty. And there’s no atmosphere, so your kids can’t break anything.
Clover Food Lab
This kosher food truck-turned-restaurant (complete with kids’ menu) is expanding like crazy, so chances are you’re almost always close to one of their chickpea fritter sandwiches. For tykes, get the peanut butter, honey and banana. Bonus: Meals are usually served in less than five minutes.
Cutty’s
Brookline’s newly expanded Cutty’s has husky, hearty sandwiches and a cheery vibe. Adults might enjoy the egg salad, radish and olive sandwich on wheat (the combo works), while kids can dig into grilled cheese and Thatcher Farm chocolate milk.
Inna’s Kitchen
Known for its global approach to Jewish cuisine, visit Inna’s at the Boston Public Market for knishes, latkes, falafel, hot pastrami, chopped liver and noodle kugel, and other nibbles to eat on-site or to feast on at home. Then treat your kids to dessert at Union Square Donuts. Of course there are plenty more delicious vendors at the market too. (Ahem: Beantown Pastrami Co.? Boston Smoked Fish Co.?)
Pure Cold Press
This vegan Brookline juice bar is sibling to popular kosher spot Rami’s, and it’s family-friendly without being kitschy. Most days you’ll find oceans of strollers lining the wide aisles and hordes of feasting parents enjoying a massive hot and cold salad bar, hot-pressed sandwiches and fresh, cold-pressed juices. Best of all, it’s clean and pristine.
