Restaurants in Braintree

At Estragon, Madrid-native Head Chef Julio de Haro prepares artistic small plates of Spanish specialties, drawing on family recipes passed down over generations. Sangria, specialty cocktails, and more than 100 Spanish wines complement meticulously arranged pintxos and lamb empanadas. Patrons may eat in the chandelier-lit main dining room, cozy up to the 15-seat bar, or visit the eatery's library, home to the last existing copy of Ernest Hemmingway's recipe for huevos rancheros.

Today's Groupon has the perfect recipe for a relaxing evening with friends or a low-pressure, high-success date—and it’s not assembling a Frankensteinian creature. With today's Groupon, taste award-winning beers and satisfying grub served to the strains of live music in a restored, 19th-century space in Faneuil Hall: $15 gets you $30 worth of food and libations at The Tap, the lively pub the Boston Globe calls "a charmingly renovated, full-service centerpiece of the city's ongoing downtown restaurant boom." That means if The Tap were a Ninja Turtle, it would be Leonardo and Michelangelo.

At 88 Wharf Riverfront Grill, chefs craft New American dishes from scratch with ingredients such as fresh meats including North Atlantic lobsters, greens, and tart macintosh apples. Visitors enjoy entrees such as nested tenderloin steak and appetizers that include steamed mussels in a dining room noted for soft lighting and hardwood floors, as well as water-front views and an intimate bar. The grill also hosts special events and private functions.

Discovered in 1953, pizza is the only food to have been eaten on the moon, blessed by a pope, and endorsed by Olympic marathoner Gezahegne Abera—the ‘triple crown’ of food honors. With today’s Groupon, $10 gets you $20 worth of food and drink at Mangia Neopolitan Pizza. Mangia isn’t considered a sit-down restaurant per se, so your Groupon is good toward carryout and delivery ($1.50 charge) of pizzas, calzones, salads, and drinks, but only at the South End location. Pizza Problems sold an unprecedented 300 copies in 1981, and was even briefly adapted into a Saturday morning animated series, although viewers objected to Pepperoni’s portrayal as a softheaded comic foil. Activavision Studios recently announced plans for a 30th anniversary relaunch of the Pizza Problems franchise, a mature-rated gore fest featuring the sultry voice talents of David Hyde Pierce.

At Redbones, eaters seated at the counter gaze at the busy pitmaster and team of cooks, who pull five types of ribs, fish, and jerk barbecue from atop the charcoal. During dinner, diners peruse a menu of authentic bites with vegetarian and gluten-free options available. The pulled-pork sandwich graces a toasted roll with pickles and slaw, chaperoned by a toothsome pair of beans and potato salad ($9.99), and the grilled salmon with crispy potatoes ($15.99) pairs seafood and tubers better than a fish tank carved from a giant potato. More than five types of ribs include the thick-cut, country-style Arkansas–style variety ($13.99+) and the slow-smoked, oversized Texas–style flavor (16.99+), and the sausage dinner couples homemade encased meat with dirty rice and beans ($10.99).

Dining out is much more pleasant than dining in—it's annoying to take turns role-playing waiter, and restaurants are much less likely to have Roombas underfoot. With today's Groupon, $25 gets you $50 worth of drinks and dining at Bina Osteria, a restaurant with great food and atmosphere.