10 New Venues in Boston for Fall 2023 Meetings and Events

Perhaps the most highly anticipated new Boston venue in 2023, Raffles Boston cascades into the sky over the Back Bay neighborhood. The 147-room hotel opened its doors in September and features over 4,800 square feet of private event spaces in a variety of configurations. The 19th-floor main ballroom, which features views of both the neighborhood and the Charles River, is a 2,660-square-foot space that accommodates as many as 200 guests, depending on the setup. There’s also a 941-square-foot prefunction space with a terrace, which welcomes 100 guests. Meeting and event room options are also plentiful and include the 18th-floor Malraux Meeting Room A&B, which measure 836 square feet and can accommodate 70, and the Michener Meeting Room A&B on the 19th floor, which measures 1,050 square feet and accommodates 80. Each space features full AV capabilities.

Set to open in the Seaport in October, Boston will be the 40th Alamo Drafthouse Cinema location. The 41,856-square-foot Boston cinema has a total of 10 theaters, with 780 seats in total. There’s also a 7,999-square-foot mezzanine and several options for private functions, meetings, presentations, and full or partial buyouts of individual theaters. The Alamo will serve up craft beers and delectable cuisine in its dine-in theaters and communal spaces. The Press Room, a separate, full-service bar, is also a printing museum and functioning letterpress print shop with over 10,000 vintage movie ad plates from the 1930s through the 1980s on display. Equipped with full AV, all theaters feature Cinionic laser projectors with HFR capabilities.

One of the most acclaimed steakhouses in the country, Grill 23 & Bar revealed its revamped private dining rooms in summer 2023 for parties ranging from 10 to 140 guests. One of the most unique spaces is The Wine Room (pictured), a 282-square-foot space for as many as 18 seated guests. It features open windows that face the main dining room and hundreds of bottles of fine wines. The largest event space is the 1,688-square-foot Full Suite, consisting of four rooms that join to create one large dining suite. It features a marble fireplace, plus stunning views of Back Bay, and accommodates as many as 125 seated guests or 150 for a cocktail-style event. All of Grill 23’s private dining spaces feature full AV capabilities.

Located at The St. Regis Residences, Boston in the Seaport, SAVR is an American bistro that opened in July and features a variety of opportunities for private events. The Whiskey Room is a 200-square-foot private dining space that accommodates 20 seated guests or 25 for a reception-style event. Equipped with HDMI connections and a 65-inch TV, it features a custom-built whiskey wall and floor-to-ceiling harbor views. A seasonal terrace off the room provides the opportunity to enjoy the waterfront’s natural beauty. The second floor, which measures 3,463 square feet, is also available for private events for as many as 80 seated guests or 120 for a cocktail-style event. It also features a 1,697-square-foot wraparound terrace with stunning views of the water and the Seaport neighborhood. The restaurant is also available for full buyouts and can accommodate as many as 180 seated guests or 200 for a cocktail-style event.

An Italian steakhouse on the edge of City Square Park in Charlestown, Prima opened in June. Available for full or partial buyouts for as many as 180 guests, it features a variety of private dining spaces. They include the Rose Room, which accommodates 40 seated guests or 45 for a cocktail-style event, and the main dining room. Cap off your meal of hand-rolled pasta with Prima’s house-made gelato.

Warm and welcoming in the beloved neighborhood of East Cambridge, Gufo is an Italian restaurant, bar, cafe, and community space that opened in July. Serving up pizzas, pasta, and other unique plates (try the snap pea Caesar with radishes!), the 3,700-square-foot venue can accommodate a variety of private dining events, from its main dining room to its outdoor bocce space. For a full restaurant buyout, Gufo can accommodate as many as 100 guests for a seated dinner and 130 guests for a cocktail reception or buffet-style event. This capacity is for April through October, when Gufo is able to utilize its covered patio space. For a full restaurant buyout from November through March, Gufo can accommodate up to 68 guests for a seated dinner and 100 guests for a cocktail reception-style event. The covered, weatherized, all-seasons patio, which measures 760 square feet, is also available for events, as is the 2,400-square-foot uncovered patio and bocce space. There is no space rental fee, but there is a food and drink minimum. The covered patio and indoor space feature AV capabilities.

The third location of Bar ‘Cino is a 4,070-square-foot Italian-inspired restaurant tucked in Watertown Square. Featuring a menu of shareable dishes and Rhode Island-style grilled pizza, Bar ‘Cino opened in July. It features a semiprivate dining space named La Piazza, which accommodates seated parties of as many as 24 guests. There’s also a patio, which accommodates 60 guests, and a 29-seat bar. Full buyouts of the 85-seat restaurant are available Monday through Thursday during the daytime only, and AV rentals are available during that time period.

A lively Spanish tapas bar and restaurant, Boqueria brings the flavors of Barcelona to Boston. A spinoff of the flagship location in Manhattan’s Flatiron neighborhood, Boqueria opened its 5,300-square-foot Boston location in Fort Point on the cusp of the Seaport in September. Boasting exposed original wood columns, the venue features a semiprivate dining table for eight that utilizes the structure of an original partially enclosed brick shaft. The hot spot is also available for full buyouts for as many as 124 seated guests or 140 for a cocktail-style event. There are no TVs, but audio capabilities are available upon request.

After being closed for nearly a decade, the Gifford House has returned to its former glory as one of Provincetown’s most legendary destinations after a full renovation. The 33-guest room inn, which has housed everyone, from four U.S. presidents to the theater company where a young Al Pacino is believed to have gotten his start, has introduced The Wilde, a 100-seat, black box-style multifunctional speakeasy for private events. Measuring 1,600 square feet, it features a stage with adjacent backstage space, an upright Steinway piano, a new state-of-the-art AV system, and a dedicated full-service bar. The space also has access to an expansive commercial kitchen with an option to work with the property’s in-house chef or outside catering for any private event.

Allston’s love of art and music flows freely at Fields West, which opened in August in a historic building filled with reclaimed brick walls, an original timbered ceiling, cherry floors, and crown molding. Available for full or partial buyouts, the neighborhood bar and restaurant, which serves everything from cacio e pepe tots to 29 draught lines of beer, can accommodate as many as 130 guests. The 1,178-square-foot dining room seats 75, while the 762-square-foot lounge accommodates 75. It features full AV capabilities, including an in-house lighting and sound system and two 50-inch HDTVs in the dining room. Don’t skip the curated collection of local artwork that adorns its walls.