So many new restaurants offer modern takes on food and drink in a sleek and trendy environment. Others give a retro vibe, with menus that bring back classic dishes.
For those who prefer the latter, finding an eating establishment that’s the real deal (compete with history oozing from its every pore) really can’t be truly recreated. Rather, it’s earned through years and years of operation.
These kinds of places seem to get fewer with each passing year, but a number of such spots still exist in the region, including a hotel restaurant called The Winthrop Arms that sits high above the ocean and feels like it is far, far away from Boston, though it’s in a community that actually borders the city.
The Winthrop Arms Hotel and Restaurant isn’t the kind of place that you just happen across in your travels. Its location on a little peninsula in a residential part of Winthrop keeps it very well-hidden.
The neighborhood is filled with charming old homes, and the Arms itself is in a structure that has been around for a long time — the business has roots that date all the way back to 1916. And unlike some historic spaces that have been modernized so much that they lose much of their charm, very little has changed here; the minute you walk through the front door, you feel like you’ve stepped back in time.
The front lobby has a patterned tiled floor that you almost never see anymore, and the dark woods (including mahogany) and old-fashioned lights almost keep you from leaving the lobby area, which you certainly don’t have to do, thanks to the little bar situated toward the back of the lobby.
A long patio that offers refreshing sea breezes on warm days can be found further back and along the left side of the building, while a staircase in the lobby leads up to the hotel rooms. The rest of the space is dedicated to dining (and functions), with multiple areas set up with tables and booths, and, because of the vast amount of space, it’s very unlikely that you’ll have to wait to be seated.
The old-school feel of The Winthrop Arms doesn’t stop with its atmosphere, as the menu here reaches way back for some classic dishes, some of which you don’t see all that often at restaurants anymore.
Some popular items (in addition to the free plate of crackers and cheese) include a plate of baked stuffed mushrooms with a special house stuffing; a hearty fried ravioli and house-made marinara appetizer that can be made into a meal by placing a double order; a perfectly browned and crusted macaroni and cheese appetizer — one of their signature dishes and easily one of the best mac and cheeses in the entire Greater Boston area and, like the fried ravs, can be double-ordered to turn it into a meal; an extraordinary scratch-made chicken pot pie, another signature dish at The Arms, which comes stuffed with peas, carrots, gravy and plenty of pulled chicken; a savory lobster pie that can be ordered as is or with scallops and shrimp added; and a classic prime rib dinner offered on Friday and Saturday nights, which comes with a potato and a house salad.
Another favorite at The Winthrop Arms is the plate of marinated steak tips, and because the North Shore is known in part for its outstanding steak tip spots, it should come as no surprise that the tips here are fantastic, lean and tender with a nice char on the outside. Besides the lobster pie, seafood lovers might also want the fried clams, which the restaurant says has been ranked sixth in Massachusetts, or the seafood scampi, which includes scallops and shrimp with garlic and oil along with linguini and broccoli.
PHOTOS: The Winthrop Arms Hotel and Restaurant
Dessert lovers can look forward to such sweet treats as warm chocolate chip cookies, lemon meringue pie, tiramisu or limoncello, depending on what’s available at any given time.
For those interested in an alcoholic beverage, the wine list includes an array of red, white and rose options by the glass or bottle, with most coming from either California or Italy, while beer choices include a mix of mass market and local craft brews, though you may also find some familiar European beers as well such as Heineken and Grolsch. The Winthrop Arms does have a full bar, so if you’re in the mood for cocktails or spirits, there are plenty of options here.
There really isn’t a place in the Boston area quite like The Winthrop Arms, a throwback that goes along the lines of such now-closed institutions as Durgin-Park, the No Name, Anthony’s Pier 4 and Doyle’s. If you miss these places, take a trip over to Winthrop (with GPS on) and check out this wonderful place that locals have been frequenting for decades.
The Winthrop Arms Hotel and Restaurant, 130 Grovers Avenue, Winthrop, MA, 02152. winthroparms.com