-- Boston's Hidden Restaurants --

Mill City Gourmet

15 Union Street, Lawrence, MA 01840
(978) 794-0199 Find location!

Photo of the Mill City Gourmet, Lawrence, MA Much progress has been made over the years on the renovating and restoring of the once-abandoned factories of Lawrence, Lowell, and Haverhill, as well as other communities located on the Merrimack River north of Boston in the Merrimack Valley. A prime example is the enormous Everett Mills complex, a building in the heart of Lawrence that spans several city block and has 6 floors of space. Much of this building has been fixed up and now houses a variety of businesses that are scattered throughout the space. And on the first floor of the Everett Mills is a friendly little cafe called the Mill City Gourmet that caters to the workers in the building as well as folks who work and live in the surrounding neighborhood.

The Mill City Gourmet is located in the back of the Everett Mills complex near the head of Essex Street (Lawrence's main drag). The space it resides in oozes charm and character, as it retains the historic feel of the mill with its brick floor and walls, low hanging lights, and high ceiling complete with pipes and wires. The cafe is counter service only, with a mix of diners ordering takeout or grabbing one of the several tables within the room for dining in.

A varied menu greets diners at the Mill City Gourmet, whether they come for breakfast or lunch. The cafe features most of the basics for breakfast, including omelets, pancakes, French toast, and breakfast sandwiches. Most of the lunch menu consists of soups, salads, and sandwiches, with different soups offered each day and a variety of salads featured, including a boneless buffalo chicken Caesar salad that has breaded chicken in a delicious homemade buffalo sauce. Sandwiches include Stone Mill, which is an excellent steak and cheese sandwich on a fresh ciabatta roll; a tangy dijon chicken wrap that includes fire grilled chicken and apple wood smoked bacon; a juicy char-broiled angus burger that can be ordered with hickory BBQ sauce; and a Greek salad wrap that comes with everything you would get in a traditional Greek salad, plus chicken. Desserts at the Mill City Gourmet are also good, with cookies and brownies offered.

Very few people know about the Mill City Gourmet, probably because it is hidden in the back of a sprawling mill building (and also because the cafe is not open for dinner or on weekends). But for many who work or live in Lawrence, this funky dining spot is a terrific option for fresh, healthy food at reasonable prices. It may not be worthy of a trip from Boston, but the Mill City Gourmet is surely a place to seek out if you find yourself in this historic old mill city near the New Hampshire border.