Beside the Seaport’s only rooftop swimming pool, one Boston bar and restaurant rises above to offer warm summertime sensations and flavorful food and drink selections — no matter the season in New England.
At Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar, located on the fifth floor of Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport, guests can be treated to a high-life experience, even if they’re not staying overnight at the hotel.
Wayne Kirsten, the food and beverage director who oversees Omni Boston Hotel’s eight dining outlets, said the Omni brand focuses on food and beverage as a staple in its hotels and resorts, unlike some of its competitors who, he said, see these as added expenditures.
“Our model is: food and beverage puts heads in beds at the end of the day,” Kirsten said. “It brings people into the hotel when you have all these great different options.”
The Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport located at 450 Summer St.Chris McLaughlin
Summertime & Poolside Vibes
Kirsten said he hesitates to call Lifted the hotel’s “summer restaurant” due to its year-round operations, but added it is perhaps best suited for warmer temperatures thanks to its “al fresco, outdoor dining feel.”
The L-shaped eatery bends a corner of the 22-story hotel tower, offering views through its retractable garage door-style windows toward Downtown Boston, the Fort Point Channel and the wider Seaport neighborhood’s seemingly ever-evolving array of shiny glass towers.
Winding past the main bar and dining area — capable of seating up to 115 guests during regular service at booths, tables and high tops — and the hotel’s rooftop pool deck comes into view, creating a mesh between indoor and outdoor.
The built-in rectangular swimming pool — accompanied by a square hot tub — is surrounded by sunbathing guests in lounge chairs. A glass partition lining the edge of the pool deck gives an uncompromising look out to the massive Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC) next door.
The rooftop swimming pool adjacent to Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar at Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport.Chris McLaughlin
Danielle Donovan, who represents Lifted and Omni Boston Hotel, said even in the middle of winter with frigid temperatures and snow on the ground, people can — and often will — swim in the pool due the hotel keeping it open and heated.
However, Donovan clarified that in order to use the pool, one must either be a guest at the hotel or sign up for a ResortPass, which grants access to the hotel’s pool, the building’s gym on the fifth floor, and the spa located off the ground floor lobby.
The gym and lobby can also serve as changing areas for those with access who’d like to slip into their swimsuits, Donovan said.
However, no matter if one wishes to go for a dip or not, Donovan made clear that anyone, regardless of hotel guest or pass holder status, is free to ride the elevator up to grab a drink or a bite to eat.
On The Menu
Kirsten described Lifted’s menu as “lighter” fare — better for poolside dining than, say, a heavy steak — with a mix of influences from the American Southwest, East Asia and New England.
Executive Chef Yousef Ghalaini oversees Lifted’s menu in addition to other eateries in the hotel, such as Kestra, which offers three-meal restaurant service from breakfast to dinner and is known for its Mediterranean flavors.
Ghalaini, a Western Massachusetts transplant to Boston originally from Lebanon, is also a champion from the TV series “Chopped.”
He highlighted local tie-ins to the menu, from the appetizer tortilla chips, which source their corn entirely from the Pioneer Valley, to the Maine lobster, which appears in over-the-top dishes like the “Lob-stah Louie.”
The “Lob-stah Louie” entrée menu item from Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar. The dish is Maine lobster and lump crab on iceberg lettuce with tomato, bacon and egg.Chris McLaughlin
The meal comprises crab and lobster meat piled high on a head of iceberg lettuce and served with thick-cut bacon, tomato and egg.
Other seafood entrées featured on Lifted’s menu include the “Salted Caramel Lobster Roll” with lobster coated in melted butter and a caramel sauce, along with the “Crispy Fish Tacos” made with beer-battered fish and garnished with coleslaw, and the “Spicy Tuna Poke Bowl” filled with a mix of pickled vegetables and tuna chunks dripping in spicy mayo sauce.
The “Spicy Tuna Poke Bowl” on the menu at Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar in the Seaport. The dish is made with sushi rice, pickled daikon and carrot, edamame, seaweed salad, tuna chunks and spicy mayo.Chris McLaughlin
Kirsten also showcased a handful of Lifted’s alcoholic beverages, such as its “Lime & Coconut,” a fusion of light rum, coconut cream, pineapple and lime juices, which he called a “riff” on the piña colada.
Playing into the popularity of “spicy cocktails,” Lifted also serves a “Rays for Days” drink with tajin spice around the glass rim leading to a medley of tequila, Grand Marnier, orange bitters, hot honey syrup and lemon juice.
For a “cool summer favorite,” Kirsten suggests the “Salted Watermelon” cocktail, also with a tequila base, but topped off with sparkling rosé wine and a wedge of watermelon sliced into the salted rim.
The “Salted Watermelon” cocktail from Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar in the Seaport. The drink is made with tequila, sparkling rosé, lime watermelon purée and salt.Chris McLaughlin
The food and beverage director said the menu stays fairly consistent throughout the seasons, but that changes are made twice a year.
Kirsten also noted Omni Hotel Boston’s other dining options — all housed in the same expansive footprint at 450 Summer St. These include upscale pub The Sporting Club, celebrating local teams and athletics; fine dining restaurant Coquette, with French, Spanish and Basque influences; and Cocorico, a French boulangerie serving pastries, breads and specialty coffees.
The Atmosphere and Clientele
One of the biggest drivers of clientele to Omni Boston Hotel’s restaurant selection is its proximity to the BCEC across Summer Street.
Lifted opens daily at 11 a.m., but Kirsten said since the pool opens well before at 6 a.m., people sitting poolside will sometimes already be waiting for the chance to snag a cocktail from the bar.
He said typically there’s a lunch rush midday before activity picks back up again for the after-work crowd. Later in the day, dinner service continues until the kitchen closes at 9 p.m., followed by a nightcap drinking crowd until 11 p.m. on weeknights and Sundays, and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
Kirsten said on weekends, in particular, activity ramps up significantly. “Saturdays and Sundays,” he said, “This place is crazy. People standing, the pool is packed, all depending on the weather, but it’s a crazy scene.”
Donovan said for special events, those interested can also rent out a side room that can be closed off with lounge-style seating and a supplementary bar, or even buy out the entire restaurant, which can host up to 200 people for reception-style events.
Seating within a side room available for hosting private events at Lifted Rooftop Restaurant and Bar in Boston’s Seaport.Chris McLaughlin
She said much of the bar and restaurant’s style mimics those one might see in a city like Palm Beach, Florida or on the classic TV show “The Golden Girls,” with many pastel and Earth tones, geometric art pieces, and eclectic knickknacks accentuating the décor.
Omni Boston Hotel itself is a newer addition to the area, having opened in 2021, with Lifted opening concurrently. Despite opening in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Donovan said the restaurant and bar was able to bring in new staff and guests at a time when other restaurants faced headwinds.
The hotel and its bars and restaurants have convenient access to the Massachusetts Turnpike, which runs parallel to the building. For public transportation, the MBTA Silver Line bus stops at World Trade Center station just down the street. On foot, it is located less than a mile down Summer Street — or about a 15-minute walk — from Downtown Boston across the Fort Point Channel.
