Where to have a graduation dinner in Back Bay

A graduation dinner in Back Bay works best at a restaurant on a direct Green Line ride from the ceremony. Book the table for well after the ceremony ends, not for the minute it finishes. Grandparents may not manage stairs, the photos will run long, and the graduate's friends want to stay out after the family goes back to the hotel.

This post, part of our Back Bay guide, lists six restaurants, then covers the ride from commencement, stations with elevators and which kitchens close early on a Sunday. For event rooms across the city, see graduation party venue ideas in Boston.

Which Back Bay restaurants suit a graduation dinner?

Choose by budget first, then by how many people need to sit together. All six take reservations and suit groups.

Our picks in Back Bay

Chosen by the Where2Meet team. Photos, ratings and addresses load live from Google Maps.

• Krasi

  Book this Greek restaurant on Gloucester Street for a moderately priced table after a morning or afternoon ceremony. It serves weekend brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. every day. Hynes is about a 6-minute walk.

• Rochambeau

  Private rooms make this French restaurant the pick for 30 or more relatives, since its Bordeaux Room divides into sections for 30 and 40. Prices run expensive, so set the budget before you book. Hynes is about a 4-minute walk, and Prudential about 7.

• Contessa Boston

  Splurge on this rooftop Italian restaurant when the family wants one big-budget meal, because it's very expensive. Reserve ahead and ask about your party size. Arlington, an accessible Green Line station, is about a 2-minute walk.

• LUCIE drink + dine

  Relatives staying at The Colonnade hotel don't have to travel for this moderately priced dinner, since the restaurant shares its address. It has no dinner service on Sunday or Monday. Prudential, an accessible E branch station, is about a 2-minute walk.

• Back Bay Social

  Graduates and their friends can stay late at this moderately priced Boylston Street restaurant, open until 2 a.m. every night. Its window high tops seat 30 as a semi-private area. Hynes is about a 6-minute walk, and Copley about 7.

• Dillon's

  May weather matters less at this Boylston Street restaurant, since its patio is heated and open all year. It's moderately priced and takes reservations, so ask for the patio when you book. Hynes is about a 3-minute walk.

Google Maps

The hours, price levels, reservations and walk times on these cards come from Google Maps as of November 2026. Walk times start at each MBTA station. Room counts come from each restaurant's own event page, linked under Common questions.

How do you get from commencement to Back Bay?

Ride the Green Line inbound. Two of the city's ceremonies sit a short walk from trains that reach Back Bay without a transfer.

• Boston University. BU plans its 2027 ceremony for Sunday, May 16, at Nickerson Field. Babcock Street, on the B branch, is about a 4-minute walk from the field's 285 Babcock Street address.
• Northeastern University. Northeastern's 2027 Boston ceremonies are set for Saturday, May 8, at Fenway Park, pending city approval. Kenmore is about an 8-minute walk from the park's 4 Jersey Street address.

Inbound trains from both stops reach Hynes, then Copley, then Arlington. Pick your exit before you board, because the group will be hard to gather once the train fills.

Which station works for grandparents?

Use Arlington, Copley or Prudential, which the MBTA lists as accessible. Hynes has no elevators, even though it's the closest stop for several restaurants here.

From Copley, these are the walks:

• Back Bay Social. About 7 minutes.
• Krasi. About 9 minutes.
• Rochambeau and Dillon's. About 10 minutes each.
• LUCIE. About 9 minutes.

Prudential saves that last walk, but only E branch trains stop there. Riders from Kenmore or the B branch change at Copley to a westbound E train. Check each station's MBTA page for elevator alerts on the day.

What time should you book on commencement day?

Set the time by when the ceremony ends and when the kitchen is open. The two clash most on a Sunday.

• After a Saturday morning ceremony. Northeastern's graduate ceremony is scheduled for 10 a.m. Rochambeau, Back Bay Social and Dillon's stay open all afternoon, while Krasi, Contessa and LUCIE close between lunch and dinner.
• After a Saturday afternoon ceremony. Northeastern's undergraduate ceremony is scheduled for 4 p.m. All six restaurants serve until at least 11 p.m. on Saturday, so a late table is easy to plan.
• After a Sunday ceremony. BU's 2026 ceremony began at 1 p.m., and the page above doesn't give a 2027 time yet. On Sunday, LUCIE closes at 2 p.m., Contessa stops from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., and Rochambeau closes at 9 p.m.

If your table is mostly friends and no ceremony is involved, see where to have a group dinner in Back Bay. For the same occasion in New York, see where to celebrate graduation in downtown NYC.

How to do it in Where2Meet

Send one Where2Meet link to the family, and add Nickerson Field or Fenway Park yourself, since the graduate will be busy in a gown. Ask relatives from out of town to add their hotel, then compare Contessa and LUCIE by transit time from each starting point. Let the family vote, and the parent paying for the dinner makes the final pick.

Common questions

How big a graduation dinner can Back Bay restaurants seat?

Rochambeau lists 12 at its Rosé Table and 75 in the full Bordeaux Room. Back Bay Social seats 65 at its Down Bar, and Dillon's seats 40 in its Back Bar. Ask Krasi, LUCIE and Contessa directly about larger parties.

How early should you book a graduation dinner?

Book as soon as the school posts its date. BU and Northeastern had both posted their May 2027 dates by fall 2026, so other families can start booking early too.

Where can graduates go after the family dinner?

Back Bay Social and Dillon's are the late picks. The MBTA's subway guide says to reach a downtown transfer station by 1:30 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, or by 12:35 a.m. on other nights, to make the last connections. None of those stations are in Back Bay, so leave earlier.