The North End When the Cannoli War Is Still Warm

Boston's North End is the city's oldest residential neighborhood — cramped, brick, Italian since the 1920s, and currently locked in a decades-long cannoli war between Mike's Pastry and Modern Pastry on Hanover Street that neither side has won because winning would require admitting the other one is also excellent.

I take Mike's side (the florentine cannoli, shell dipped in chocolate, filled to order) but walk to Modern for the torrone and the lobster tail pastry, because loyalty is a virtue but flexibility is a survival skill in a neighborhood with this much good food per square foot. Hanover Street is the artery — narrow, loud with conversation and scooter horns, lined with red-sauce restaurants and caffes where the espresso is served in cups the size of a thimble and the strength would alarm a cardiologist.

The side streets are where the North End earns its affection. North Square holds the Paul Revere House — the oldest remaining structure in downtown Boston, a wooden colonial from 1680 that feels like it wandered in from another century and decided to stay. The Old North Church on Salem Street is where the lanterns were hung ("one if by land, two if by sea"), and standing in the nave you feel the particular weight of a building that participated in history rather than just witnessing it.

Insider tip: Skip Hanover Street for dinner and eat at Neptune Oyster on Salem Street — the lobster roll (hot, with butter, on a griddled split-top bun) is a secular religious experience, and the raw bar is the best in the city. The wait is long. Bring a book or make friends in line. Both work.