Tired of drawn-out dinners tucked away in stuffy restaurant corners, during which the only person you see is your harried server as she drops your appetizer on your table and heads back to the kitchen? So, apparently, are a lot of people, because these days the popularity of dining at the bar is soaring. Besides affording you the best view of the TV (if your restaurant of choice has one), eating at the bar gives you the opportunity to interact with other diners and chatty bartenders. And bar grub is no longer all fried this and pre-made that; today's bar dining is innovative and varied in cuisine and price. Some of our favorite stools are at Davio's (75 Arlington Street, Boston, 617.357.4810), the Washington Square Tavern (714 Washington Street, Brookline, 617.232.8989), Eastern Standard (528 Comm Ave, Boston, 617.532.9100), and No. 9 Park (9 Park Street, Boston, 617.742.9991).
