5 Boston neighborhoods worth leaving your usual dinner spots for

Taquería Jalisco gives you a reason to head to Bennington Street. The menu goes beyond tacos to tamales, tortas, soups and breakfast dishes. A few tacos let you try different fillings; a bowl of pozole or a plate of chilaquiles makes a different sort of meal. Choose what you want to eat rather than treating every taqueria as a burrito stop.

Eastie is spread out, so check your route before adding the waterfront. Bennington Street and the parks around Jeffries Point aren’t the same destination. Allow time for the walk or a separate ride instead of promising yourself that everything is around the corner. The neighborhood deserves more than a quick skyline photograph between meals.

Coreanos on Brighton Avenue serves Korean dishes alongside Korean-Mexican combinations. Its own menu features bulgogi bibimbap, Korean fried chicken and tacos. Order a bowl for yourself or split chicken and a few smaller dishes with a friend. This is a casual meal to build an evening around, without the ceremony of a long tasting menu.

Allston is also worth treating as a place to compare menus on foot. Start around Brighton and Harvard avenues and see what appeals before committing. If you’re specifically looking for a barbecue meal, use our Korean barbecue guide to choose the right restaurant. Coreanos shouldn’t be mistaken for a tabletop-grill booking.

Roundhead Brewing Company occupies the Powerhouse at Westinghouse Plaza. Beer, pizza and room for games make it a different proposition from a small dining room. The brewery lists ping-pong and skee-ball, so a visit can include something to do between ordering and deciding whether to stay for another round.

Its pizza kitchen takes inspiration from Latin American food, and the taproom’s event calendar is worth checking before you go. Roundhead also adds a 20 percent fair-wage fee to taproom food and drinks and to food ordered online for pickup. Include that in your budget. This is the Hyde Park brewery, which is a separate destination from its seasonal beer-garden appearances elsewhere.

Pho Hoa at 1370 Dorchester Avenue has served the neighborhood since 1992. The current menu includes pho, vermicelli bowls, spring rolls and dishes for sharing. Anh Hong joined forces with Pho Hoa in 2022, so don’t plan two separate restaurant stops around those names.

Farther north along the avenue, Bánh Mì Ba Lẹ at 1052 Dorchester Avenue is a market and takeout stop for sandwiches made with bread baked in-house. Keep the distance in mind: it isn’t next door to Pho Hoa. A banh mi to take home makes more sense than forcing a second full meal immediately after a bowl of soup.