4 Best Restaurants in Side Trips from Boston, Massachusetts

Shaped like a giant fried-clam box, this small roadside stand is the best place in the region to sample Ipswich's famous bivalves. Since 1935 locals and tourists have been lining up in droves for clams, oysters, scallops, and onion rings.

According to local legend, this is where Lawrence "Chubby" Woodman invented the first fried clam back in 1916. Today this sprawling wooden shack with indoor booths and outdoor picnic tables is the place for seafood in the rough. Though it's in Essex, it's a quick drive from Gloucester and worth getting a to-go order to take to the beach. For fun, you can get into a lively discussion with a local over whether clam bellies or strips are the better choice.

Enormous windows in this quiet, homey restaurant offer excellent views across Sandy Bay, along with plenty of chowder, fish cakes, lobster, and other seafood dishes. While the restaurant is only open seasonally, next door is Brackett's café, Brother's Brew Coffee Shop, which is open year-round and serves breakfast.

Cyclists, families, and sightseers pack into this brick building, which was used to store munitions during the Revolutionary War. Wood floors and blackboard menus add a touch of nostalgia, but the extensive menu includes many classic dishes, including mac and cheese, fish and chips, and steamed mussels. Breakfast offerings, served all day, include a variety of eggs Benedicts, a breakfast burrito, and omelets. At lunch, try the house-made chili or a variety of salads.