We often assume we have to go far to experience the feeling of getting away, and we in turn forget how great the cities that make our homes are. There is always more to discover, even if it’s just 30 minutes down the road. And believe it or not, it’s most often those places we’d never think to venture out to that end up surprising us the most. This is why we made a decision to explore and get away in our own backyard – Woburn, Massachusetts.
Whenever I travel somewhere new, close or far, I find it important to immerse myself in that place and culture, to experience it in its most authentic way. There are several elements I look for when discovering a new place, that I believe can be combined to be truly experience and understand that place, of which include:
· Natural Landscape
· Food
· People
· Cultural History
· Art/Design
Woburn, Massachusetts. To be completely honest, if you’d asked me about Woburn before today, I would’ve probably told you it’s just another random town in MA. Well that, and that it’s pronounced Woo-Burn, not Wo-Burn, despite what Standard English might tell you. But when I got the invitation to go visit The Hilton Boston-Woburn, I couldn’t help but get excited at the idea of packing a weekend bag with my boyfriend and taking an adventure to that random town in MA. Why? I didn’t actually want it to be a random town. I wanted get to know the area and be able to speak on my thoughts and experiences there. And well, here’s just a few things I learned:
NATURAL LANDSCAPE
The Hilton Boston Woburn is located just 20 minutes outside of Boston, and right in the heart of Woburn. Before arriving on Friday evening, we’d set a plan to check in, meet some friends for a couple drinks at the hotel bar and then Uber into Boston for the night. After all, it was a cheap ride and the options in the city were endless!
While a night out on the town would have been great, it turned out that after a couple drinks at the hotel bar, Rivet Room – we didn’t want to leave! Rivet Room was a classy bar, located right next to the indoor poolside, which also happened to be the center of the hotel. All the room balconies faced inward toward the pool and made their way up with each floor. The overall structure of the building was so beautiful, unique and lively in its architecture, and this bar had a front row seat to all of it. The vibe was flowing and the music was playing. The atmosphere was too nice to leave, so we decided to order food and spend our night right there. Best decision ever made!
The next morning we had breakfast (which was amazing, by the way. *Foodies refer to the food section below!) and then made our way into Woburn to explore the area. We were shocked at how much there was to do! A Dave and Busters, a few shopping plazas, very diverse food selections with really great restaurant choices. We had a delicious lunch, did a bit of shopping and then ultimately decided we wanted to go back to the hotel.
Something about being in a hotel made us feel like we were getting away, but especially being at the Hilton Boston Woburn. We kind of just wanted to hang out in our room and overlook the action going on below from our balcony. We could hear people chatter, live music being played and the mouth-watering smells making their way up to our room. Being at the Hilton Boston Woburn felt like you could be a part of the action, all while staying in the comfort of your room.
When dinnertime came around, we were ready to finally experience all those delicious smells we’d smelled all afternoon coming from the hotel restaurant, The Matadora. Which leads me to the food portion of this blog…
FOOD
Matadora – Matadora is a Spanish steak and tapas restaurant located right inside the Hilton Boston Woburn. Right off the bat, and you can’t miss it…the first thing you notice is the huge metal bull standing at the entrance of the restaurant. It’s quite impressive really! Secondly, as a design admirer, I couldn’t help but notice how sophisticated the restaurant design was, giving off an urban industrial chic vibe.
We sat down and started with a couple of drinks. Now, I’ve had some pretty great drinks in my lifetime, so an amazing drink for me has to not only be good tasting, but also unique and aesthetically creative. My boyfriend Sean had a beer (I hear that was good), and I got a divine creation – the Malaga’s View, Gin, Crème de Cassis, Campari, Citrus. I ended up getting three of those.
For dinner we got the charred octopus, the patatas bravas and their famous flaming chorizo, which literally comes out flaming! All three were hands down some of the best tapas I’ve had, but the flaming chorizo was good enough to order TWO more.
Overall, everything about The Matadora was on point. From the quality of their food to the presentation – these plates are more than just bites to fill your tummy; they were art pieces in of themselves!
Continental Breakfast – The breakfast is probably what surprised me the most. Having travelled throughout Asia and Europe, I thought I’d seen the best breakfast spreads around. But again, the Hilton Boston Woburn knocked it out of the park with the quality in the taste of their food. It was your standard continental – breakfast potatoes, bacon, sausages, pancakes, fresh squeezed juices, cereal, fruits and oatmeal…oh and the make your own omelet station (with the option of chorizo!). But everything was just so delicious. Really some of the best pancakes I’ve ever had.
Rivet Room – I mentioned the Rivet Room earlier, but never told you guys how delicious our dinner was that night. We got the fried chicken burger, a regular burger with fries and the Bolognese. I feel like a cheesy salesman always saying, “It’s so amazing! The greatest ever!” – but really, I would go back just to eat at each one of these places again.
PEOPLE
While absolutely everyone at the hotel was charming and energetic, there’s always that one person or staff member who can make your experience an unforgettable one. For us, that was Jenny. Jenny was our bartender and waitress at the Rivet Room. Her hustle was what first stood out the most as she filtered our drinks out one by one. But as we got to talk, we got to know how sweet and outgoing Jenny was. She asked us all about our jobs, our families, where we were from, and really made us feel welcomed and appreciated. We in turn learned all about Jenny and left feeling as though we’d made a friend.
ART/DESIGN
As an art and design lover, I’ve always admired how hotels can make you feel a certain way, simply in the way they’ve designed their spaces. I very much appreciated The Hilton Boston Woburn for it’s very unique architecture and design. Having room balconies facing inward/inside and overlooking the restaurant and pool area made for a very inclusive atmosphere. The glass elevators and bright white theme of the hotel added to the modern industrial feel, leaving us feeling like we’d completely left Massachusetts.
All in all, our experience at the Hilton Boston Woburn and The Matadora restaurant was one to remember. Though we didn’t go far, we truly felt as if we had gotten away and were coming back refreshed. We would come back just for the food, and I’m happy to say that I no longer see Woburn, MA as another random town in MA, but rather, one that holds great memories and delicious food!
