Five Food Spots in the Polish Triangle

The Polish Triangle is an area of Boston that starts on the border of South Boston and Dorchester and extends into the Edward Everett Square portion of Dorchester. Bordered by Columbia Road, Boston Street and Dorchester Avenue, the Polish Triangle became an officially recognized part of the city on October 18, 2008. Traditionally it was home to a large majority of Polish-Americans, though it is now more diverse than ever. It’s also the home of your favorite Boston blogger (yours truly of course).

Inside the triangle are a sprinkling of Polish restaurants, markets, businesses, and households. But, as mentioned above, the Triangle has become much more diverse over the past ten years and is also home to many non-Polish businesses and restaurants. Here’s five of my favorite eateries inside the Polish Triangle.

Cafe Polonia

A block from the Andrew Square T station, Cafe Polonia delivers authenticity along with its convenience. Kielbasa (Polish sausage), potato pancakes, borsch, pierogies and more tasty meals from Poland are served with real Polish beer. Keep in mind the alcohol percentage will be a bit higher on these than the average American brew. Go with a Polish plate to get a sampling of kielbasa, pierogies, and cabbage.

611 Dorchester Ave, Boston MA 02127 (617) 269-0110

Real Tacos

Wow, I’ve eaten here so many times I’ve likely put a few kids through college by now. As the name says, these tacos are real!

Beyond tacos, this Guatemalan eatery has bomb burritos, perhaps the best in Boston, delicious quesadillas and an amazing guacamole dip. Very reasonably priced, this place is often patronized by the police. That means it’s good, really good.

860 Dorchester Avenue Boston MA 02124 (617) 282-3135

Sugar Bowl Cafe

Across the street from Real Tacos is a wifi-enabled coffee and ice-cream shop. The coffee is great, if a bit pricey, the staff is super friendly, and the space is very relaxed and often filled with people working away on laptops or discussing plans. Yes, sometimes you have to do a double check to make sure the Sugar Bowl Cafe is in Dorchester. They also serve tasty sandwiches, including breakfast all day long! Yeah, breakfast!

857 Dorchester Avenue Boston MA 02124 (617)-265-9000

The Avenue Grille

Aaah, the Avenue Grille. It’s mentioned here as it was one of the first of the new, higher quality restaurants to open inside the Polish Triangle. It paved the way for more restaurants to come in, and for that it’ll always hold a special spot in this Triangler’s memory. But time (and multiple ownership changes) have not been kind to The Avenue Grille.

When they first opened, their burgers quickly become known across the neighborhood. Big, fat, juicy, mouth-watering, hand-made patties that were grilled to perfection, served on fresh buns with fresh toppings. The Avenue burger was topped with grilled peppers and onions and so good I’d easily pay $20 today for one of those burgers.

Unfortunately, over time as the restaurant changed hands, it’s quality diminished, all the way to today’s iteration, which is just another pizza/sub shop. The menu used to be custom printed on fine paper, now it’s just another glossy take-out menu. I’ve included it here for historical purposes, and to give an ode to the place that started it all, but would not recommend visiting there today, except for nostalgic reasons. Put another way, I used to bring dates here, now it’s more of a greasy hangover cure.

865 Dorchester Avenue Boston MA 02124 (617) 288-8000

DJ’s Market

Not quite a restaurant, this place has been around for forever. When you first walk in, it’s easy to dismiss this place as just another convenience store, but walk to the back and you’ll quickly find out that’s not the case. They have a full deli counter in the back that makes excellent, affordable sandwiches. For a great tasty value, try the small kielbasa sandwich for under $4, yup that’s right, under $4!

120 Boston St Boston, MA 02125 (617) 436-9766