/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/45579470/Legal_Seafood_Roger_Berkowitz_in_Restaurant-Market.0.0.jpg)
George Berkowitz opened Legal Sea Foods, a fish market, in Cambridge's Inman Square in 1950, right next to his father's grocery store, Legal Cash Market. The first restaurant opened up in 1968, adjacent to the fish market, and it was a casual spot: communal picnic tables, simple fish dishes, paper plates. Current owner Roger Berkowitz, George's son, has been in charge in 1992. The company now has more than 30 outposts spread through seven states.
In honor of Classics Week, here's a look back at a 1987 menu for the Park Plaza location:
And here's Roger Berkowitz with the Legal van:
-
Still Going Strong: Boston Proper
22
- 15 Years In, Boston Mainstay Pho Viet’s Still Feels Like Home
- The 1980s Are Alive and Well at the Breakfast Club in Allston
- Allston’s Model Cafe Is the Model of a Good Neighborhood Bar
- Allston’s Super 88 Food Court Is a Cheap Destination for Heaping Helpings of Asian Fare
- Ashur Restaurant: Roxbury’s Home for Delicious North African Food
- Boston’s Holy Pizza Trinity Has Been Feeding the City for Decades
- Coppa Is Much the Same as It Ever Was, 10 Years in
- Donato Frattaroli on Lucia's 35th Anniversary
- The Haven: Boston’s ‘Scottish Headquarters’ Since 2010
- Hot Pot Happiness Times Two at Shabu-Zen
- How Omni Parker House's Boston Cream Pie Became a Slice of Local History
- Lennie Timpone on a Lifetime at Santarpio's
- Monica’s Mercato & Salumeria: Boston’s Home for Italian Specialties and Incredible Sandwiches
- For Pit Stop Barbecue, Southern Comfort Has Always Been Top Priority
- Richie Zapata on 18 Years at Regina Pizzeria
- Roslindale’s Pleasant Cafe Is a Reminder That a City’s Dining Scene Is More Than the Sum of Its Shiniest New Parts
- Sipping Tequila at Casa Romero
- The South End’s Delux Cafe Has Defied — and Nourished — Its Neighborhood
- Steve DiFillippo Looks Back on 30 Years of Davio's
- The Stockyard Is More Than Just a Landmark on I-90
- Victoria's Diner Moves Into the Future Without Abandoning the Past
- Villa Mexico Cafe Has Been Cranking Out Burritos and Mole for 20 Years
-
Still Going Strong: Beyond Boston
17
- 20+ Years of Comfort Food Classics at Grafton Street
- Alden & Harlow Carries on in Harvard Square, Evolved but Familiar
- Bottega Fiorentina Has Been Dishing Out Tuscan Food in Brookline for 25 Years
- Breakfast, Borges Style, at the Neighborhood Restaurant and Bakery
- Cafe Sushi: Cambridge's Comfortable Home for Innovative Sushi
- Clear Flour Bread: New Owners, Same Neighborhood Bakery
- The Coast Cafe: Cambridge's Home for Soul Food for More Than a Decade
- Flavorful Meat Right Down to the Bone at Machu Chicken
- Head to Shangri-La in Belmont for Dim Sum Brunch
- 'It Always Started With Quality Product': Legal Sea Foods CEO Considers 40 Years in Chestnut Hill
- It’s Been a Comfortable, Welcoming Decade at Trina’s Starlite Lounge
- The More Green Street Changes, the More It Stays the Same
- The Plough & Stars Has Been a Constant in Cambridge’s Central Square for 50 Years
- State Park: The Restaurant That’s an Escapist Dive
- Tasting Trailblazers at Cambridge Brewing Company
- Watertown’s Deluxe Town Diner: A Polished Greasy Spoon
- Winter Hill Bakery Is a Somerville Icon
-
Gone but Not Forgotten
8
- Boston Restaurant Industry Veterans Reminisce About the Shuttered Spots They Miss Most
- A Decade of Eastern Standard
- Discussing Dive Bars at Jamaica Plain’s Drinking Fountain
- Drinking Jägermeister at Jacob Wirth
- Long-Lost Lamented Restaurants
- Take a Trip Down Memory Lane at Mandy & Joe’s in Brighton
- Tradition at Durgin-Park, Served Up Since 1827
- How the Pandemic Changed Newtowne Grille
- Maps 8
- Photo Essays 5
-
Miscellaneous
12
- The Art of the Meal at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
- Best Kept Secrets at Albert’s Market in Cambridge
- Boston Restaurant Industry Veterans on the Ultimate Classic Restaurants
- Boston Restaurant Industry Veterans Recall Their Very First Local Jobs
- Comedian Ken Reid on Chop Suey Sandwiches, Hilltop Horror Stories, and More
- Comedian John Hodgman on Serving Milkshakes to Strippers in Boston’s Combat Zone
- Comedian Josh Gondelman on Anna’s Burritos, Wheaties, and More
- Comedian Rob Delaney on the Tragic Demise of Brigham’s and More
- Comedian Tom Cotter on Coolidge Corner, Cold Tea, and the 'Cash Cowloon'
- Industry Veterans Reveal the Classic Boston Restaurants That Impacted Their Careers
- Locally-Born Chefs Share Childhood Dining Memories
- The Reluctant Burger Titans of Boston
Sign up for the newsletter Eater Boston
Sign up for our newsletter.