Deadhorse Hill

CITY GUIDES | NEW ENGLAND

Where to Eat in Worcester Right Now: The City’s Best Restaurants

By Eric Barton | Dec. 30, 2025

AUTHOR BIO: Eric Barton is editor of The Adventurist and a freelance journalist who has reviewed restaurants for more than two decades. Email him here.

I grew up a few towns from Worcester, so for years my relationship with the city was simple: drive in, sweat through a show at the Colosseum before heading straight back home.

Back then, Worcester, didn’t feel like a place people talked about for dining, at least not in the way they talked about Boston or Providence. The shift snuck up on me, because the best restaurants in Worcester now look and feel like a real Worcester food scene, not a collection of decent options near the highway.

There are serious kitchens, smart menus, and the kind of spots that make “Worcester restaurants” a search worth making on purpose. Here is the list of the best restaurants in Worcester right now.

Alma Gaúcha Brazilian Steakhouse

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Alma Gaúcha is the Worcester outpost of the Boston restaurant, and it brings the same “meat is the main event” worldview to 526 Main Street. The concept leans on rodízio and the South American parrilla tradition, with a prix fixe setup built for long dinners and big appetites. It also has private rooms, which is a polite way of saying it wants the birthday crowd and the expense-account crowd, too.

Best for: A celebratory, all-in steakhouse dinner

Armsby Abbey

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Worcester’s food scene owes a debt to Armsby Abbey. It’s the OG of farm-to-table dining in the city, and it still does it better than most. The mac ‘n’ cheese, made with gooey Vermont cheddar, is as indulgent as it sounds, but it’s the pork belly that’ll keep you up at night. Perfectly crispy on the outside and melt-in-your-mouth tender, it’s served with whatever seasonal sides the chefs are currently obsessing over. It’s dark, cozy, and packed every night—for good reason.

Best for: Beer and cheese in a room that takes both seriously

BirchTree Bread Company

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You know how people get obsessive about bread? BirchTree Bread Company is why. Their sourdough has the kind of cult following that inspires early-morning pilgrimages. It’s served crackly on the outside, pillowy on the inside, and with just enough tang to keep you coming back for more. The Crompton Collective location makes it feel like you’re eating in an industrial-chic greenhouse. Whether it’s a smoked salmon tartine or just bread slathered with butter, it’s the kind of meal that reminds you simple can be extraordinary.

Best for: Pizza night with great bread energy

Bocado Tapas Bar

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Tapas done right is a beautiful thing, and Bocado knows exactly how to do it. The menu reads like a Spanish vacation: chorizo, gambas al ajillo, patatas bravas. The portions are perfect for sharing, assuming you’re the kind of person who shares croquettes (I’m not). The sangria is everything you want it to be: refreshing, a little dangerous, and endlessly drinkable. The Winter Street location feels intimate and convivial, like the best kind of dinner party you didn’t have to host.

Best for: A long, late table of small plates

The Boynton

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Located on Highland Street, The Boynton Restaurant & Spirits has been serving Worcester since 1938. Known for its extensive menu and craft beer selection, the buffalo chicken pizza stands out with its spicy sauce and generous toppings. The lively atmosphere and friendly service make it a popular spot for both locals and visitors.

Best for: A big menu when the group cannot agree

Deadhorse Hill

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Deadhorse Hill is an ode to Worcester’s industrial history, with a dining room that’s equal parts rustic New England and Brooklyn loft. What’s on the plate is decidedly elegant: chef Jared Forman’s menu changes with the seasons, but it’s always packed with dishes to make diners rethink whatever they thought they knew about local ingredients. One week it’s duck with perfect jus; another it’s a pasta dish that tastes like the world’s fanciest comfort food. To end the week, it’s Sunday gravy, a dish that exemplifies what Forman’s doing at Deadhorse Hill, using farm-sourced meats to create something special, here with Chickering Farm iberico pork ribs, braciole, meatballs, house-made rigatoni and ricotta; on the side there’s Oxford Farms greens and sourdough garlic bread from Iggy’s.

Best for: A dinner that feels like Worcester showing off

Green Island Oyster

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Green Island Oyster is a seafood restaurant and rum bar on Harding Street, with a raw bar up front and a menu that runs from oysters to lobsters to fried seafood. It also bakes in a daily deal called the “Green Oyster Cult,” which is dollar oysters during select happy-hour windows, plus add-ons like tuna tartare or crème fraîche and caviar when the point is to be unreasonable. Order from the signatures when dinner needs to feel like dinner, like the wood oven roasted haddock and the fried-seafood platters.

Best for: Raw-bar nights that turn into a full meal

Luci’s Tacos

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Luci’s Tacos is Deadhorse Hill’s taco truck, and it shows up around Worcester as a pop-up for events. This means dinner starts with figuring out where it is parked, then ordering like this was the plan all along. When it is in town, the tacos land with the same grown-up attention that makes Deadhorse Hill a favorite.

Best for: Killer tacos at a pop-up event

Mare E Monti

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I’ve had a lot of chicken parm in my life, but none quite as well executed as the version at Mare E Monti. The chicken is appropriately crispy, the red sauce tangy and clingy, the noodles on the side just the right amount of toothy, and of course, over the top, a blanket of cheese providing that beautiful stretch. This family-run Italian spot is tucked away on Wall Street, where it feels like a secret—the kind of place you’ll want to keep to yourself but can’t stop telling people about. Cozy, classic, and quietly luxurious.

Best for: Old-school Italian comfort without the fuss

Nuovo

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This Shrewsbury Street spot is unapologetically glam, with sleek decor and a menu that leans into Mediterranean decadence. The pan-seared scallops, served with a citrus beurre blanc, are perfectly cooked and plated like a work of art. It’s the kind of place where you dress up a little, order a martini, and toast to life’s indulgences.

Best for: A dressed-up waterfront dinner

Pepe’s Taqueria

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You don’t need a fancy setting to serve up great food, and Pepe’s Taqueria proves it. The Park Avenue spot is all about authentic Mexican flavors, with tacos that rival anything you’d find in a big city. The al pastor, smoky and sweet, is my go-to, but the barbacoa isn’t far behind. Add some salsa verde, and you’ve got a taco worth crossing town for. It’s simple, unassuming, and ends the best way known to man: with churros.

Best for: Tacos with a casual vibe

Vejigantes Restaurant Worcester Best Restaurants

Vejigantes Downtown Worcester

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Vejigantes took its Puerto Rican menu from Boston’s South End and dropped it into downtown Worcester, inside a historic space once known as Bull Mansion. The menu shows up with alcapurrias, bacalaitos, and the whole “from the mortar” section of mofongo variations, including stuffed options. It also sells margaritas, including a house vejigantes margarita and a coroneame, which is a margarita with a Corona tipped upside down inside it.

Best for: A loud, festive night that starts with mofongo