Anyone find Boston to be kinda suburban?

Let me preface this by saying I live in Boston and love it. I am not trying to cast any hatred on it. However...

I noticed this after visiting Philly and NYC recently. Once you get out of the downtown core (I.e. Financial District, Back Bay, South End, North End) I find the city to be far less urban. Neighborhoods like Dorchester and Roxbury do have a lot of multifamilies but they are detached with setbacks. Also the further you get into the neighborhoods you begin to see a lot more detached single families and such. I feel like the outer neighborhoods in Philly and New York retain much more of a dense character. It is odd to me that Boston gets called the most European American city, when even 2nd tier European cities have a greater abundance of dense attached housing outside of the downtown core. By that, I mean like big apartment blocks with commercial storefronts on the ground level. Or even row homes. Would be curious to get your thoughts. I really think the city could improve by upzoning its less historic neighborhoods.