Casbah to Become Basha Cafe... Again

A new restaurant called Basha Cafe will be opening in the space that was formerly Casbah, which was actually a prior incarnation of Basha Cafe before that. In a rare twist of events, the new owner will be giving the restaurant the same name and a similar menu as it once had, essentially reviving Basha Cafe for all of its former fans. Prior reports suggested that the owner of Casbah, who also owned the now-closed Harvard Square landmark Casablanca, was turning Casbah into a barbecue restaurant called Fat Man Cafe, but that's no longer happening, at least not at this New Street location near Fresh Pond.

According to the transcript from a recent city of Cambridge license commission hearing, the new Basha Cafe temporarily soft-opened using a series of one-day licenses, though its website says that the restaurant is now closed as it prepares to reopen. The new owner was an employee at Casbah and tells Eater that the restaurant will serve "all the Lebanese goodies" including falafel, tabouleh, hummus, eggplant, grilled kebabs, seafood and vegetarian dishes. The new Basha Cafe plans to be open seven days a week: stay tuned for more details.

Restaurant resurrections of this kind are unusual: one other example that springs to mind was when the Joshua Tree in Allston became Barley Hall before going back to being the Joshua Tree. Can you think of any others?

· All Coverage of Casbah on Eater [~EBOS~]
· License Commission General Hearing [City of Cambridge]
· Basha Cafe [Official Site]