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With 2015 drawing to a close, today we're looking back at the year's interviews and sharing some of the most-read ones, from owners reflecting on their restaurants' milestone anniversaries to chefs talking about their upcoming openings.
Worden Hall Opens This Month With Approachable Food and a Penny-Topped Bar
The team behind Five Horses Tavern opened Worden Hall in Southie in late August 2015. Earlier in the month, they spoke of their plans for the restaurant and their eagerness to be a neighborhood spot. "I like neighborhoods that are diverse and have all walks of life," said owner Dylan Welsh. "We cater to young professionals all the way up to my grandparents coming in at 5 o’clock." Located at 22 West Broadway, Worden Hall takes comfort food seriously, serving up deep-dish pies, spuckies, and more.
Image credit: Bill Nurse, Dan Henn, Tim McQuinn, Dylan Welsh/Jacqueline Cain for Eater
Bread & Salt Hospitality Team to Open Juliet in Union Square
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In May, Josh Lewin and Katrina Jazayeri announced that they'd open their first permanent restaurant, Juliet, in the former Sherman Cafe space in Somerville's Union Square. Their company, Bread & Salt Hospitality, had previously spent seven months in residence at Wink & Nod in the South End, which has been acting as an incubator for long-term pop-ups since opening. In this interview, the duo went into detail about the plans for Juliet, a European-style cafe with multiple dining experiences, including serious breakfasts, full-service dining, and commuter-friendly takeout options. "Community is super important," said Lewin, "and people say that a lot, and they often mean it, but what we mean by that is that we really want to observe how people interact with us at Juliet and how they enjoy it and adjust to it. It’s very important to us that we’re not just dropping a cookie-cutter concept on a neighborhood." Juliet is almost ready to open.
Image credit: Josh Lewin and Katrina Jazayeri/Rachel Leah Blumenthal for Eater
The Pour: Lone Star Taco Bar Eyes May for Cambridge Debut
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As part of former associate editor Jacqueline Cain's beer-focused column, The Pour, she caught up with Deep Ellum and Lone Star Taco Bar co-owner Max Toste in April, leading up to the long-anticipated opening of the East Cambridge location of Lone Star. (The doors finally opened in early July, and it's been packed ever since.) Toste discussed his love of roses and sherries and his intention to offer drinks that would pair well with the food, like beers that have dry, mineral flavors. "I really don’t think a Belgian quadruple makes any sense with the food we’re serving," he said, explaining that the beer list wouldn't look like the one at Lone Star's big sibling, Deep Ellum.
Image credit: Co-owners Aaron Sanders (left) and Max Toste/Rachel Leah Blumenthal for Eater
Will Thompson Wants Hospitality to Be Woven Into Menus
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For Cocktail Week 2015, Yvonne's beverage director Will Thompson wondered about how the cocktail industry could do a better job of maximizing both hospitality and business, especially when it comes down to things like how menus are designed and what's on them. "It's insane, because what we say we all do for a living is hospitality," Thompson said, explaining that the industry as whole could do a lot better coding menus. "We should be about the dispelling of anxiety, right? You go out, and you don't want to feel like a dickhead."
Image credit: Will Thompson/Rachel Leah Blumenthal for Eater