(3.5/5 stars) $$
Written by Felix Poon
All Photos by Felix Poon

Students often ask me the question: where is the best place in Boston for clam chowder? There are a lot of places in Boston to get clam chowder, it’s true. And depending where you go, you’ll get different chowder. In my opinion, the bigger and fresher the clams, the better the clam chowder. Extra points for chowder that is nice and creamy, and for restaurants that have good atmosphere. So what is my pick? The Boston Public Library.

“What? The Library?” you might ask in surprise. That’s right. The Boston Public Library has a small café called the Map Room Café. On their menu they have soups, salads, and “gourmet” sandwiches like garlic & herb-roasted sirloin, herb-roasted lamb, or apricot chicken salad. I always get the bowl of clam chowder, which is creamy, and rich in clam flavor. I also got the tuna salad, which comes with vine-ripened tomato, romaine lettuce, and an egg on rye bread.

The sandwiches always come with a dill pickle, and the chowder comes with oyster crackers. Sandwiches at the Map Room Café are good, but they are not great. It’s the chowder that I come for, and the atmosphere. This café has beautiful maps of Boston back in the old times, before parts of Boston Harbor and the Charles River were filled with land, and you could only come into Boston through Washington Street on the “Boston Neck”. So enjoy your soup, salad, and sandwich while gazing up at the history of Boston’s geography and urban development! Or, if the weather is nice, bring your food into the courtyard.

From CELOP, take the Green Line to the Copley Square station. The library is right at the T station exit.