PRICE:
Frommer's Very Highly Recommended

Huge portions, a dizzying menu, and funky decor have made the East Coast Grill madly popular since 1985. Just walking into the colorful, noisy restaurant is exciting, but the legions of repeat customers know that the real excitement is on the menu. The kitchen handles fresh seafood (an encyclopedic variety), barbecue, and grilled fish and meats with equal authority and imagination. The influence of founder Chris Schlesinger, a national expert on grilling and spicy food, is apparent in the exuberant menu descriptions ("super-fresh catch o' the moment," "wings of mass destruction"). To start, consider the raw-bar offerings, or try the sublime fried oysters. The seafood entrees are exceptional -- always check the specials board, because you may luck into something memorable, like 13-spice grilled monkfish. Barbecue comes on abundant platters in three styles: Texas beef, Memphis spareribs, and North Carolina pork. Vegetarians can opt for the "all-vegetable experience of the day." Desserts are tasty, but if you've played your cards right, you won't have room. A note to parents: Because there's no children's menu, I don't feel comfortable adding a "Kids" icon, but the menu includes plenty of options for less adventuresome palates, and when I dined here (anonymously, as always) with two well-behaved but active little boys, the staff couldn't have been nicer.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Boston 2009, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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