The South End is Boston’s great Victorian neighborhood: block after block of red-brick bowfronts around small garden squares, and a long run of restaurants on the ground floors.
Best forDinner and brunch, Victorian architecture, galleries and the Sunday market at SoWa.
The feelResidential, leafy and lived-in. Bowfront rowhouses and fenced squares on the side streets, restaurants along Tremont and Washington streets.
Getting thereOrange Line to Back Bay or Massachusetts Avenue; Silver Line SL4 or SL5 along Washington Street; Route 43 bus along Tremont Street.
From Downtown CrossingAbout 10 minutes on the Orange Line, or 10 to 15 minutes on the Silver Line SL5, which starts at Temple Place beside Downtown Crossing.
ParkingMany side streets are resident-permit only and meters on the main roads fill up on weekend nights. SoWa has paid lots off Harrison Avenue.
The South End Historical Society calls it the largest Victorian brick rowhouse district in the United States, and walking it, you believe them. Bowfront houses run in long, even rows, broken every few blocks by a small residential square with an iron fence and a garden in the middle. Tremont and Washington streets carry the restaurants and bars; the old warehouses of SoWa hold studios and a Sunday market.
It is a neighborhood for eating and wandering rather than sightseeing. There are no blockbuster attractions, the district is long from end to end, and people live on every block. If you want harbor views or Revolutionary history, go elsewhere first. If you want a long lunch and an afternoon on pretty streets, this is the place.
Getting around
Orange Line: Back Bay serves the northwest corner and Massachusetts Avenue the southwest side; Tufts Medical Center sits at the northeast edge. All three are accessible.
Silver Line: SL4 (from South Station) and SL5 (from Temple Place, by Downtown Crossing) run the length of Washington Street toward Nubian Square, with stops including Washington St @ E Berkeley St, Washington St @ Union Pk, Washington St @ Worcester St and Washington St @ Massachusetts Ave.
Buses: Route 43 runs along Tremont Street between Park Street and Ruggles. Route 1 runs along Massachusetts Avenue to Back Bay and Cambridge.
Bluebikes: Docks include Washington St at Rutland St, Tremont St at W Dedham St, the South End Library at Tremont and W Newton Streets, and Harrison Ave at E Dedham St.
On foot: The streets are flat, but brick sidewalks and high front stoops are the norm. The neighborhood is long: from Back Bay station to SoWa is about a 20-minute walk.
Parking: Resident permits cover many streets; see the parking chapter before you drive.
When to go
Sunday is the big day from May into November, when the SoWa Open Market is on. The Vintage Market runs every Sunday year-round, and First Fridays bring the galleries out once a month. Weekday evenings are the easiest time to get a table without planning ahead.
Every July, Villa Victoria hosts Festival Betances, a Puerto Rican cultural festival with music, food and a parade, organized by Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción (IBA). From late November through December, the SoWa Christmas Market moves indoors to the SoWa Power Station.
A short history
The South End began as marsh on either side of the Neck, the narrow strip of land, now Washington Street, that once linked Boston to Roxbury. Charles Bulfinch sketched a plan for the area in 1801, but serious building began around 1850, after the marsh was filled. Speculators put up fashionable single-family rowhouses around English-style squares. After the Panic of 1873, many wealthy families moved to the newer Back Bay, and by 1900 lodging houses had become the neighborhood’s typical home.
That made the South End one of Boston’s most mixed neighborhoods in the 1900s. It was a jazz center through the 1950s, home to many Black musicians and railroad workers, and later a center of the city’s gay and lesbian community. In the late 1960s, Puerto Rican residents facing urban-renewal clearance organized to stay and build their own housing, which became Villa Victoria. The South End Historical Society formed in 1966, the district joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and the city designated the South End Landmark District in 1983.
Local tips
Walk the side streets between Tremont Street and Columbus Avenue for the best unbroken rows of bowfronts.
On a SoWa Sunday, arrive early. The food trucks and the most popular stalls get crowded by midday.
Book brunch. Walk-ins on weekend mornings mean long waits at the well-known spots.
Address 539 Tremont St, South EndT Back Bay (Orange); Silver Line SL4/SL5 to E. Berkeley StHours Mills Gallery Wed–Sat 1–6 p.m. (closed between exhibitions); show times varyAdmission Ticketed eventsPhone 617-426-5000Webbostonarts.orgAccess Plaza Theatres: nine steps down, with a chair lift; accessible restrooms on the lower level; Cyclorama listed as accessible
Come for a show, but start with the Cyclorama. The domed rotunda went up in 1884 to hold a 400-by-50-foot painting of the Battle of Gettysburg that wrapped around its viewers under a 127-foot steel-trussed dome. When cycloramas went out of fashion it housed roller skating and boxing; Albert Champion developed his spark plug inside in 1907, and the Boston Flower Exchange traded there from 1923 to 1970.
The Boston Center for the Arts opened to the public in 1970 and now uses the Cyclorama for fairs, exhibitions and events, alongside the Calderwood Pavilion, the Plaza Theatres and the Mills Gallery. SpeakEasy Stage, the Calderwood’s resident company, is the main draw for theatergoers. The Cyclorama opens only when something is booked inside, so time a visit to an event.
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Union Park
Parks & GardensIf you have time
Address Union Park, between Tremont St and Shawmut Ave, South EndT SL4/SL5 at Union Park St; Back Bay (Orange)Hours Exterior only (private homes)Access Level brick sidewalks around a fenced garden oval
Union Park is the South End’s showpiece: a long oval green inside a cast-iron fence, shaded by mature trees and set with fountains, between two rows of handsome brick rowhouses. It belongs to the neighborhood’s first boom. Speculators began building here in 1850, once the marsh around the Neck was filled, and Union Park was laid out that decade, its houses finished by the end of it.
Strict rules on size and materials gave the South End its uniform rows; the district has been on the National Register since 1973 and a Boston Landmark District since 1983. There is nothing to buy and no plaque to read: walk the loop between Tremont Street and Shawmut Avenue, then go on to Rutland Square.
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Cathedral of the Holy Cross
Religious SitesIf you have time
Address 1400 Washington St, South EndT Silver Line SL4/SL5 to Union Park StHours Mon–Fri 9 a.m.–6 p.m., Sat–Sun 8 a.m.–6 p.m.; several Sunday Masses from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. with choir), some in other languages; see bostoncathedral.com/mass-timesAdmission FreePhone 617-542-5682Webbostoncathedral.com
Boston’s Catholic cathedral is far bigger than most visitors expect. Patrick Keely’s Gothic Revival church, dedicated on December 8, 1875, is 364 feet long and built of Roxbury puddingstone with gray limestone trim. It was New England’s largest cathedral until 1957, and neither of its planned spires was ever built.
The Hook & Hastings organ, Opus 801, has been here since 1875. A $26 million restoration of the cathedral, the first major one since construction, was finished in April 2019. Pope John Paul II prayed here with 2,000 priests on October 1, 1979, and in 2013 President Obama spoke at the interfaith service for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. Visit between Masses, and on a Sunday pair it with the SoWa Open Market a few blocks east on Harrison Avenue.
Tip SoWa Open Market runs Sundays 11 a.m.–5 p.m. through November 15.
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SoWa
Arts & TheaterWorth a visit
Address 450–550 Harrison Ave, South EndT Tufts Medical Center (Orange), 10-minute walk; Back Bay (Orange), 15-minute walkHours Open Market Sundays 11 a.m.–5 p.m., early May to mid-November; Vintage Market every Sunday year-round; galleries keep their own hours and open together on First FridaysAdmission Free; Christmas Market $10, under 12 free (2026: Nov 20–Dec 27, closed Mondays)Websowaboston.comAccess Level streets and lots; Thayer St is pedestrian-only on market days
SoWa is the South End’s gallery district and its Sunday ritual. The Open Market at 500 Harrison Avenue runs Sundays from early May to mid-November, 11 a.m.–5 p.m.: farmers, makers, food trucks and live music on pedestrian-only Thayer Street, among the 20-odd galleries and the artist studios of 450 Harrison. Downstairs at 450, the Vintage Market trades every Sunday of the year. On the first Friday of each month the galleries and studios open their doors together, and the Power Station, built in 1891 to run the West End Street Railway’s streetcars, is the district’s event hall.
From November 20 to December 27 the Christmas Market takes over, $10, closed Mondays. Come on a Sunday in season and walk the galleries before the 5 p.m. close; the Boston Center for the Arts is 10 minutes west on Tremont Street.
Where to eat
Restaurants in South End
The South End eats along Tremont Street, Columbus Avenue and Washington Street, where chef-owned dining rooms in Victorian bowfront blocks sit beside bakeries and pizza counters. Dinner is the main event, so book ahead on weekends. On a Sunday from May to mid-November, graze the food trucks at the SoWa Open Market, then walk Tremont at six and take the first bar seat that opens.
1704 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Massachusetts Avenue (Orange Line), 13-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (Worcester Square stop), 1-minute walk
James Beard Award winner Ken Oringer’s Barcelona-inspired tapas bar has been a Washington Street fixture since 2005. Start with the grilled corn with alioli, lime, espelette and aged cheese, then share salt-cod croquettes, fried potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and grilled octopus, with a cocktail or a glass of natural wine. Dinner nightly from 5 p.m., plus Sunday brunch 11 a.m.–3 p.m. Reserve ahead, especially on weekends.
B
Mistral
French Mediterranean · $$$$
223 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02116 · T Back Bay (Orange Line), 4-minute walk
Chef-owner Jamie Mammano has cooked French Mediterranean food here since 1997: a seasonal menu built on olive oil, herbs, seafood and Provençal produce, served in a light-filled dining room beside a busy bar. It is a natural pick for a milestone or a dinner before the theater or the Symphony. Reservations are strongly encouraged, especially on weekends, and most guests dress smart casual or better.
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Myers + Chang
Pan-Asian · $$
1145 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Tufts Medical Center (Orange Line), 11-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (East Berkeley Street stop), 1-minute walk
Joanne Chang, the baker behind Flour, runs this Asian diner with her husband, Christopher Myers, mixing Taiwanese, Chinese and Southeast Asian flavors. Order Mama Chang’s pork-and-chive dumplings, tea-smoked pork spare ribs and the Taiwanese cool dan dan noodles, plus something wok-charred. It opens at 4 p.m. Monday–Wednesday and at 11:30 a.m. Thursday–Sunday, with a dim sum brunch menu. Book online.
D
Flour Bakery + Café
Bakery and café · $
1595 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Massachusetts Avenue (Orange Line), 13-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (Newton Street stop), 2-minute walk
Joanne Chang opened the first Flour in the South End in 2000, and the bakery has since spread across Boston and Cambridge. This Washington Street café is the place for the gooey sticky bun that beat Bobby Flay’s on Food Network’s Throwdown, or a BLT at lunch; a mid-morning sticky bun is the classic South End start. Open 7 a.m.–7 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m.–6 p.m. on weekends.
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Picco
Pizza and ice cream · $$
513 Tremont St, Boston, MA 02116 · T Back Bay (Orange Line), 8-minute walk
Its name is short for Pizza & Ice Cream Co., and it does both: char-crusted pies on cold-fermented sourdough and ice cream made in-house from local milk. Try the sausage, fennel and ricotta pie or the white Alsatian with bacon, Gruyère and shallots. Save room for the brownie sundae. Open daily from 11 a.m.; handy before a show at the nearby Boston Center for the Arts.
F
Yunnan Kitchen
Chinese (Yunnan) · $$
1721B Washington St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Massachusetts Avenue (Orange Line), 12-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (Worcester Square stop), 1-minute walk
Chef Yisha Siu, a James Beard Award nominee, cooks the food of China’s southwestern Yunnan province in a small, bright dining room. Order the stir-fried beef with longhorn peppers (or the milder mint beef) and the sticky-rice pancakes. Open daily from 11:30 a.m. Reserve ahead: the waitlist is in person only, and parties are seated only when complete.
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Baleia
Portuguese · $$$
264 E Berkeley St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Tufts Medical Center (Orange Line), 11-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (East Berkeley Street stop), 5-minute walk
SRV’s owners looked to Portugal for this sunny-yellow South End room, where seafood leads. Let the kitchen choose with the “Explorador” tasting menu: crisp sardines with chermoula, cod paired with caldo verde and chouriço, and pão de ló, an olive-oil cake, to finish. Dinner only, from 5 p.m. nightly; book ahead, and ask about validated parking.
H
Mike’s City Diner
Diner · $
1714 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118 · T Massachusetts Avenue (Orange Line), 13-minute walk; Silver Line SL4 and SL5 (Worcester Square stop), 1-minute walk
Daily 7 a.m.–2 p.m.; closed Thanksgiving and Christmas · 617-267-9393 · mikescitydiner.com · Breakfast and lunch only; takeout and online ordering
Chef Jay Hajj opened this South End diner in 1995, and its huge portions and fresh-roasted turkeys have drawn President Clinton and Guy Fieri. Come hungry for breakfast and order the Emergency Room: eggs, pancakes, bacon or sausage, home fries and toast. At lunch, get the Pilgrim, turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce, which Food Network ranked among America’s best Thanksgiving dishes.
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SRV
Italian (Venetian) · $$$
569 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118 · T Massachusetts Avenue (Orange Line), 2-minute walk
617-536-9500 · srvboston.com · Reservations recommended (Resy, up to 28 days ahead)
Named for the Serene Republic of Venice, this Venetian-style bàcaro and wine bar comes from the group behind Baleia and makes its pasta from fresh-milled flour. Start with a few cicchetti, the small bar bites, such as baccalà mantecato on black bread or arancini, then share the cappellacci with Gorgonzola, pear and walnut, or the lobster risotto. Dinner only, nightly.
Where to stay
Hotels in South End
The South End is Boston’s Victorian quarter, with a dense run of restaurants on Tremont and Washington streets. Hotels here are few and small, which is the appeal. Back Bay station (Orange Line) sits at the neighborhood’s edge, and Copley Square and the SoWa market are both easy walks.
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The Revolution Hotel
Boutique · $$
40 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116 · T Back Bay (Orange Line)
Access Street-level entrance; accessible rooms, some with roll-in showers; Hoyer lift on request; captioned TVs
The site at 40 Berkeley Street was dedicated in 1884 as one of the country’s first YWCAs, and its 1953 dormitory for young working women reopened in 2018 as the Revolution. Tristan Eaton’s 65-foot mural of Boston history wraps the lobby, some rooms share a bath down the hall, and Spy Bar waits underground.
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Staypineapple Boston, A Delightful Hotel
Boutique · $$
26 Chandler Street, Boston, MA 02116 · T Back Bay (Orange Line)
Access No accessibility information published; ask about stairs and room access before booking
Longtime visitors knew this 56-room hotel as the Chandler Inn. Seattle-based Staypineapple bought it in 2018 and gave it the brand’s sunny makeover, pineapple wallpaper included, while leaving the historic street front alone. It sits on a brick South End block a few minutes from Back Bay station, with the Trophy Room as its bar.
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Inn at St. Botolph
Boutique · $$
99 St. Botolph Street, Boston, MA 02116 · T Prudential (Green Line E)
Access No accessibility information published; ask about stairs and room access before booking
A small inn on a residential street between the Prudential Center and the South End, the Inn at St. Botolph rents suites instead of standard rooms, every one with a kitchenette. It suits longer stays and families who would rather make their own breakfast, and the Prudential stop on the Green Line is around the corner.
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