Phantom's Favorite Restaurants of 2005 Phantom dines at hundreds of restaurants every year in search of unforgettable dining rooms and memorable meals. Phantom drools just thinking about the 8 GREATEST eats of 2005.

Arrows (The Greatest: Fine! Fine! Fine! Dining)
Berwick Road
Ogunquit, ME 03907
(207) 361-1100
www.arrowsrestaurant.com

When there’s a $50 per person cancellation fee, you know you’re in for something special. Arrows is the current record holder for Phantom’s all-time highest restaurant rating (98 out of 100!). Set amidst dense woods and gorgeous gardens, this 18th century farmhouse is immersed in whimsical romance. Dress code diners tuck into the glass encased porch, where a sprawling birch tree and square lanterns illuminate a woodland fairy scene. The playful menu changes daily, with 90% of the restaurant's produce grown on the grounds. They cure their own hams and fish, and each entrée is actually 4 mini creations. Seasonal inspirations might include red wine and honey poached beef or cedar plank salmon with rosemary rhubarb candy.

New Rivers (The Greatest: Rustic Atmosphere, Modern Cuisine)
7 Steeple St.
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 751-0350
www.newriversrestaurant.com

New Rivers is a cozy Providence bistro where the modern American cuisine contrasts brilliantly with the old world charm. Intimate, adjoining rooms are painted a deep forest green with scarlet accents and pear portraits. Tiny linen tables and twinkling lights add to the warm, inviting atmosphere. The progressive menu allows a loophole for smaller appetites, offering entrees in 4 and 8 ounce portions, all with locally farmed ingredients. Servers in jeans and button downs jive with the unpretentious atmosphere, while serving charcuterie like pheasant rillettes with shallot marmalade and rosemary mustard. Other standouts include the juniper crusted venison loin and wild salmon with beet chips and turnip bisque.

Taranta (The Greatest: Peruvian Italian Fusion)
210 Hanover St.
Boston, MA 02113
(617) 720-0052
www.tarantarist.com

Just when you raise a brow at Taranta’s unusual Italian-Peruvian fusion, the hot-sweet Latin-Mediterranean flavors fuse into amazing dishes that 2 hemispheres could never imagine on their own. Theirs is an intriguing menu of seafood, spice, pasta, and root vegetables. Terra cotta dishes come straight from the oven to the petit tables, with Phantom favorites like butter basted trout over Peruvian potatoes. The amazing house specialty is the brined pork chop with a sugarcane-hot pepper glaze, giant corn, and seared yucca cakes. Bring a date, because the rustic exposed brick atmosphere is incredibly romantic.

Twenty-Eight Atlantic (The Greatest: City-Style Splurge)
Wequassett Inn
Route 28 Pleasant Bay
Chatham, MA 02633
(508) 430-3000
www.28atlantic.com

If you’ve got the bank, roll to Twenty-Eight Atlantic at the Wequassett Inn. The prices are outrageous, but no one seems to bat an eye, unless it’s directed toward the gaping view of Pleasant Bay below. Twenty-Eight is exclusive and extravagant with a country club Park Avenue atmosphere of oversized tables and tuxedo checked chairs. The lofty space is nautically cosmopolitan, and the trendy menu crafts American luxury with incredible seafood. Every dish is intricately plated, like the caramelized scallops nested in golden potato webs over pillows of peekytoe crab. Each course outdoes the last, dripping in delicacies like caviar butter, oxtail ragout, truffles, and foie gras buttons.

Taqueria Cancun (The Greatest: Tamales, Tostadas & Tacos)
192 Sumner St.
East Boston, MA 02128
(617) 567-4449

You won’t need much cash at this East Boston taqueria, where the tamales, tostadas, and tacos are awesome. The menu is Mexican meets Salvadoran, which means lots of tortillas, rice, and beans. Phantom especially loves their enchiladas piled with spicy pork, guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream. The pupusas, or ground corn cakes stuffed with mean and beans, make a tasty appetizer, and the Montanero plate is a mountain man feast of flank steak, a runny fried egg over rice, and glistening pork rinds. Definitely save room for desserts like the gushing sweet plantain empanadas.

Pigalle (The Greatest: French Romance)
75 Charles Street South
Boston, MA 02116
(617) 423-4944
www.pigalleboston.com

At Pigalle, renowned chef Marc Orfaly gets pre-theater dinner applause from Phantom. Stunning dishes reassemble familiar ingredients into something deliciously surprising. The classy menu is exceptionally seasonal with fine French, Mediterranean, and even Asian influence. Phantom gives a standing ovation to the tuna tartare served on an iced scallop shell. Other specialties include the ribeye steak frites and the hardy bean cassoulet of pork, duck confit, and lamb. Pigalle is a handsome black and tan setting with curved leather banquettes, vintage chandeliers, and beaded sconces. Settle into the 6 seat bar for inexpensive eats from one of Boston’s top kitchens.

Metropolis Cafe (The Greatest: Urban Brunch)
584 Tremont St.
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 247-2931
www.metropolisboston.com

If this tiny tin of a neighborhood eatery doesn’t hook you on the bistro charm, it will with the fancy farm fresh eggs. Converted from an ice cream parlor, the artsy décor includes a stool lined, wrap-around bar and a tin ceiling. Floating star lamps and jazz add to the appealing atmosphere, but once you’re settled in, the real show starts with the food. Metropolis does dinner all week, but Phantom likes to hold out for the Saturday-Sunday brunch. Fancy translations of omelets and mimosas team up with grilled blueberry muffins, apple chicken sausage, and spectacular banana pancakes. Their huevos rancheros are especially delicious, balanced over cumin spiced black bean hash.

Tomasso Trattoria & Enoteca (The Greatest: Italian Antipasti)
154 Turnpike Rd./Rte. 9
Southborough, MA 01772
(508) 481-8484
www.tomassotrattoria.com

Most Italian restaurants in America serve gigantic mounds of starchy pasta, but Tomasso plates their homemade noodles the traditional way, as a manageable 2nd course before the entrée. This way you can order more plates without erupting like Mount Vesuvius. Phantom’s pick is the orechietti with housemade sausage and broccoli rabe. Tomasso is also outstanding for its small antipasti plates like chickpea fries and ricotta meatballs. The hand picked wine list and city-caliber service are just the parmigiano on top. Plus, you’ll still have room for dolci desserts like free-form tiramisu and rustic fruit tarts. Everything is wrapped into a stylish space with a huge bar and counter seats along the open kitchen.