Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
Scrod is a young Atlantic cod or haddock, typically under 2.5 pounds, broiled with breadcrumbs and lemon butter. The defining Boston seafood-room weeknight order from the 1920s through the 1980s.
The word scrod came into Boston use around 1850 as a fishing-fleet term for the smallest cod or haddock landed that day. The Parker House Hotel popularised broiled scrod on its menu by 1880 with a butter-breadcrumb topping; the dish became the city's mid-20th-century seafood-room default at Locke-Ober, the Coach Grill, Anthony's Pier 4 and dozens of hotel rooms. The collapse of New England cod stocks in the 1990s shifted scrod to haddock by industry default, but Legal Sea Foods, Atlantic Fish Co and Union Oyster House still list the dish on the menu year-round. Boston is the only American city where the word still appears on menus without parenthesis or explanation.
2 editor picks for Scrod in Boston, ranked by editorial score. All Boston signature dishes · Scrod across every city.
Union Oyster House on Union Street has shucked oysters in Boston since 1826, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in the United States.
OrderA dozen Wellfleets at the U-shaped bar and a cup of clam chowder.
TipSkip the dining-room tables and sit at the historic raw bar. The bar is the original 1826 plank.
Legal Sea Foods on Long Wharf, near the New England Aquarium in Boston, has anchored the chain's flagship since 1968. Kitchen leans seafood.
OrderA cup of clam chowder, the recipe served at five presidential inaugurations.
TipLunch with a harbor-side window is the best seat. The raw bar runs daily until 22:00.
Scrod makes more sense with someone from Boston explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
Guided tour · 3 hours
Sample and learn about iconic Boston dishes as you’re treated to the city’s best spots for Lobster Rolls, New England Clam Chowder, Boston Baked Beans and Brown Bread ...
Guided tour · 2 hours
Choose a 2-hour express or 3-hour full Boston food tour. Taste clam chowder, arancini, brick oven pizza, cannoli, and more while exploring the North End’s history and ...
Guided tour · 2.5 hours
Sample Boston's most iconic seafood dishes on a guided walking tour. Enjoy fresh, local favorites and learn about local history during your adventure.
