New Year's Eve dining options

Restaurants are today’s living rooms where we spend some of the best parts of our lives, so it’s no wonder they’re epicenters for some of the year’s most noteworthy events. New Year’s Eve has been big for restaurants for as long as we can remember, and each year most of them, from the corner bistro to the gilded hotel dining rooms, compete to put on the bash to end all in welcoming in the new year. And, since the upcoming New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday, many places are offering brunches and breakfasts for those wanting to recover from the big night, or perhaps to extend the holiday spritz.

One of the glitziest New Year’s Eve feasts is the multi-floor bash at UPSTAIRS ON THE SQUARE in Cambridge (617-864-1933). New Year’s Eve ‘‘just kind of evolved’’ over the years, says Mary-Catherine Deibel, one of the owners of the restaurant that has been a gathering place for Cantabridgians for decades. On New Year’s Eve 2002, the restaurant had just opened in its new, more spacious digs in Harvard Square, so the celebration was subdued, she says, with music provided by a trio that had played at the smaller UpStairs at the Pudding location a few blocks away. This year, by contrast, the restaurant is planning ‘‘a big rollicking party,’’ says Deibel. Diners at both the casual downstairs Monday Night Club Bar & Zebra Room, as well as the more formal Soiree Room upstairs, can congregate late in the evening to dance in the new year to the music of Catharine and the Greats. ‘‘Last year,’’ Deibel says, ‘‘the tables were pushed back and everybody danced.’’ All the regulars, including other Harvard Square restaurant owners, come in. Deibel reports that many of those reserving spots are coming for the third or fourth year.

The downstairs menu will include cornmeal blinis with smoked salmon and American caviar; grilled ribeye steak au poivre; and brioche chocolate bread pudding with caramel sauce. There’s an early seating from 5 to 6:30 p.m. ($75 per person for the four-course menu), and a late seating starting at 8:30 p.m. ($100 per person). Upstairs, some of the dishes will include truffled risotto with wild mushrooms; seared breast of duck with cherries; cote de boeuf with potato gratin; and dacquise with almond meringue. The early seating begins at 5:30 p.m. ($85 per person for the four-course meal), and late seating begins at 8:15 p.m. ($135 per person).

Not everyone wants a sitdown extravaganza on this particular night, so some chefs improvise to create a lively, eclectic evening. Pino Maffeo, chef of RESTAURANT L on Newbury Street, will innovate with a menu of passed hors d’oeuvres such as prawn tempura with soy kalamansi dipping sauce; bison mini burgers; and lobster-on-a-stick with pineapple, sticky rice, and coconut broth. The restaurant is open 7 p.m.-1 a.m. that night, and the cost is $35 per person. Celebrants can buy tickets for the evening either at the restaurant or by calling 617-266-4680.

Vegetarians sometimes feel left out of holiday dinners, but SEL DE LA TERRE (617-720-1300) near the waterfront is making a special meatless menu for Dec. 31. Some of the vegetarian dishes include truffled forest mushroom soup; sauteed potato-herb gnocchi with chanterelles and Swiss chard; and a cheese course with handmade crackers. There will be plenty of choice for non-vegetarians, too, with dishes such as Wellfleet oyster nage with fennel, Champagne, and orange; braised beef shortribs with escargot-potato cake; and seared diver scallops with duck confit and haricots verts. Live jazz will provide the night’s musical background. At midnight, guests can step outside to watch the fireworks over the harbor. Reservations will be taken for seating from 5 to 11 p.m. Cost is $95 per person for both menus, $35 additional for wine pairings.

Many restaurants try to cover all the bases, offering a multitude of dining options. One of those, BLU, in the Sports Club LA in Boston’s Ladder District, goes early till late. Early-birders can settle in at 5 p.m. for a four-course dinner of such dishes as celery root raviolis with truffle oil and chervil; rack of lamb with braised lamb shank; and chocolate custard with pistachio kataifi. Cost is $65 per person. The 7 p.m. seating is $95 per person and includes five courses with an added dish of bacon-wrapped monkfish with polenta. And the crowning deal is a 9 p.m. seating with hors d’oeuvres, five courses, and a midnight champagne toast for $125 per person. Call 617-375-8550 for reservations.

Similarly, the Boston Harbor Hotel (617-439-7000) offers three dining options. Chef Daniel Bruce plans an international dinner buffet starting at 9 p.m. in the INTRIGUE CAFE that includes a spread of Viennese desserts, accompanied by live music. Cost is $100 per person for adults, $50 for children. In the hotel’s ATLANTIC ROOM (617-439-3995), there will be dinner — a five-course affair with Champagne — and dancing to an eight-piece band from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Cost is $220 per person. Meanwhile, MERITAGE (617-439-3995) will display Bruce’s creativity on a more intimate scale with a five-course dinner paired with wines specially chosen from the restaurant’s 12,000-bottle collection. Cost of the Meritage dinner is $150 per person. Reservations can be made for 5-11 p.m.

One of the fun things about the evening is that you can go tony, or you can go funky. At the tonier end, there’s a four-course feast at HAMERSLEY’S BISTRO (617-423-2700) on Tremont Street in the South End, featuring such dishes as seared foie gras with prunes and Southern Comfort; wild mushroom Wellington with Madeira sauce; and Dover sole braised in Champagne. Cost is $125 per person, and seatings begin at 5:30 p.m. L’ESPALIER (617-262-3023) in the Back Bay is going all-out with a feast that includes such dishes as lobster, Perigord black truffles and chestnut nage; roast stuffed pheasant with chanterelles and foie gras crouton; and organic beef filet with potato fondue. Cost is $185 per person, $75 additional for wine pairings. There is also a vegetarian tasting for $175 per person, with such dishes as pumpkin gnocchi and white asparagus; white truffle polenta of confit garlic and Chantenay carrot broth; and cranberry kumquat port sorbet. Reservations will be taken for 5:30-10 p.m. SPIRE (617-772-0202), downtown in the Nine-Zero Hotel, plans a four-course menu by chef Gabriel Frasca that includes such dishes as Chantennay carrot soup with lobster; braised short ribs with pommes puree; halibut with garlic-chive spaetzle; and pain perdu with maple-walnut ice cream. Dinner will be served 6-10:30 p.m. Cost is $105 per person, $140 with wine pairings.

If you’re going funkier — and less expensive — make the trip to Inman Square in Cambridge for the EAST COAST GRILL AND RAW BAR (617-491-6568) celebration. Some dishes include cream of Cape turnip soup with lobster; grilled bone-in rib eye steak with lime-cumin butter and fries; and a big bowl of seafood in a Provencal broth. Cost for the four-course meal is $60 per person, and reservations will start at 5:30 p.m. TREMONT 647 (617-266-4600) in the South End plans a casual five-course dinner for $75 per person, with a menu that includes oysters Rockefeller; grilled veal sirloin with shrimp and olive skewers; and stuffed crispy quail with herbed pappardelle. Reservations will be taken for between 5:30 to 11 p.m. For an even thriftier eve, try BELLA LUNA (617-524-6060) in Jamaica Plain, where a three-course dinner including such dishes as seared duck breast with shiitake mushroom salad; sesame-encrusted yellowfin tuna; and fresh pear tart with walnut cream anglaise will come to $35 per person. Music and breakdancing will follow at 10 p.m. at the Milky Way lounge downstairs.

Once you’ve charted your course for the evening, it’s time to think about the morning after. For New Year’s Eve, THE FIREPLACE (617-975-1900) in Brookline is planning a $70 chef’s menu, along with signature dishes from its regular menu. Reservations will be taken for 5-11 p.m. But the fanfare this year is reserved for New Year’s Day, when the restaurant throws a pajama party. Since the morning lands on a Sunday, Jim Solomon, the Fireplace’s chef/owner, decided to ‘‘do something we haven’t done before,’’ which includes extending brunch hours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Along with a Bloody Mary bar and Champagne flights, some of the special brunch dishes (all $18) will include a grilled petit fillet with eggs,, and a lobster Benedict. From noon to 5 p.m., the restaurant will offer take-out dishes including super sloppy Joes with green apple slaw; spit-roasted half chicken with mushroom pudding; and country ribs.

The OAK ROOM (617-267-5300) in the Fairmont Copley Plaza also extends the night’s celebration with a morning-after brunch. A New Year’s Eve gala includes duck with foie gras and currant brulee; cranberry-crusted Kobe rib eye medallion; and rich chocolate and caramel praline mousse dome with gold leaf dust. Cost is $195 per person, $80 for children 12 and under. Seatings will be from 8:15 to 9:30 p.m. Add to your 2006 to-do list the following morning with a three-course ‘‘Resolution’’ brunch with dishes that stretch from breakfast to lunch. The brunch costs $45 per person for adults and $20 for children over 5, and will be served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.