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May 2017 wasn’t too busy on the restaurant opening front, but there are a few newbies to welcome, including North Square Oyster in the North End, a new Blackbird Doughnuts location in Fenway, a couple new spots for Hong Kong-style desserts, a ceviche bar from the owners of acclaimed South End Greek restaurant Kava Neo-Taverna, and more; see the full rundown below.
It was also a very quiet month for closings, with only Bondir Concord, a BU location of Panera, and Prince Postale saying farewell. Plus, Journeyman announced its closure in May and officially closed June 3, and a few other businesses announced that they would close later this summer: Tufts’ Brown & Brew Coffee House, Golden Garden’s original Belmont location, and Karoun Restaurant in Newton. Visit them while you can.
Read on for a summary of May 2017, including the most-read news stories and maps, the openings, and the closings.
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- Two New Hong Kong-Style Dessert Spots Have Opened in Boston: Puffle cones and shave ice galore.
- New York’s Num Pang Arrives at the Pru Tomorrow With Fast-Casual Cambodian Sandwiches: Here’s a sneak peek inside.
- The Halal Guys Are Definitely Bringing Piles of Chicken to Boston: It’s still too early for specifics, but get excited, chicken fans.
- Renegades Pub Will Soon Let the Taps Flow in East Boston: Plenty of craft beer and burgers to go around.
- Goodnight Fatty Gets Permanent Weekend Space to Sell Its Cookies and Bottomless Milk: Enter the cookie oasis through an alley in Downtown Salem.
- A Boston Pastry Chef Will Soon Open Honeycomb in Hamilton: Scratch-made pastries, coffee, and more.
- Trillium Brewing’s Fort Point Expansion Will Include a Full-Service Restaurant and Patio: It will span two floors at 47 Farnsworth St.
- East Ocean City and Chau Chow City Shutter in Chinatown: Each had been around for decades.
- New York’s Iconic Magnolia Bakery Finally Arrives in Boston This Fall: What year is this?
- Nantucket’s LoLa 41 Gets a Boston Proper Sibling Tomorrow: LoLa 42 debuts at the Twenty Two Liberty building on Fan Pier.
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- The Hottest Restaurants in Boston Right Now, May 2017: This month’s update included the additions of Les Sablons, ReelHouse, Terra at Eataly, Shaking Crab’s Quincy location, and Bess’s Cafe.
- The Ultimate $1 Oyster Guide, Spring 2017: Where to find dollar oyster deals in Boston and beyond.
- Where to Eat at Boston Logan International Airport (BOS): The best meal of your entire life: It probably wasn't in an airport. However, if that's where you need to be, here's where you should eat.
- Vital Brunch Spots to Know in Boston: Whether you're up for a classic dish, dim sum, or something with a little Southern flare, here are some essential Boston-area brunches that'll knock your socks off.
- These 170+ Patios Are Officially Open for 2017: Go forth and dine al fresco.
- The Cocktail Heatmap: Where to Drink Right Now: You should probably be spending spring with a cocktail (or several) in hand. Here are some hot new cocktail destinations to try this season.
- 20+ Things You Should Eat Today: Recommended eating (and drinking) around Boston.
- 32 Essential Boston Coffee Shops: Start your caffeine adventure here.
- The Coolest New Boston Ice Cream Shops: Scoops upon scoops upon scoops.
- The Boston Outdoor Dining Guide: Patios, rooftops, and picnics galore.
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- 753 South (753 South St., Roslindale): Small plates, beer, and wine in Roslindale Village. Sibling to Delfino.
- Aqua Pazza (135 Richmond St., North End, Boston): Italian seafood from the ever-growing DePasquale Ventures restaurant group.
- Baja Box (793 Quincy Shore Dr., Quincy): An outdoor taco, nacho, and ice cream counter next to sibling spot The Clam Box.
- Blackbird Doughnuts (20 Kilmarnock St., Fenway, Boston): The popular South End doughnut shop has expanded to Fenway.
- Cabonnay (55 Bridge St., Manchester, NH): Wine-focused restaurant with a rooftop garden patio and an art gallery.
- C Fruit Life (171 Brighton Ave., Allston, Boston): Hong Kong-based dessert chain with shave ice “snowdaes,” smoothies, fruit-based desserts, and more.
- Clover (1 Oxford St., Cabot Science Center at Harvard University, Harvard Square, Cambridge): The newest Clover location is on the Harvard campus (but open to the public). Primarily a coffee counter, it does serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner items as well, but it’s a somewhat different approach than other Clover locations.
- The Club Car (1 Main St., Nantucket): The classic Nantucket spot reopened under new ownership with Boston roots, serving California-inspired cuisine made with local ingredients.
- Flaming Grill and Buffet (950 American Legion Hwy., Roslindale): A buffet with a wide variety of American, Chinese, and Japanese food, including lots of fried things, dumplings, soups, sushi, and pizza.
- Finn McCool’s (200 High St., Downtown Boston): “Boston” poutine, corned beef nachos, cornbread chorizo mac & cheese, and other comfort food in the former Julep Bar space.
- The Gate (3171 Washington St., Jamaica Plain, Boston): Irish and American pub food, from sweet potato poutine to lamb burgers, with desserts by Third Cliff Bakery.
- Goodnight Fatty (10 Derby Sq., Salem): Late-night cookie pop-up Goodnight Fatty has found a permanent home in downtown Salem, open regularly from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays inside multimedia production company Sperling Interactive. Enter by the Higginson Square alleyway.
- Haute Coffee (1 Canal Pk., East Cambridge): The Concord-based coffee shop has expanded to Cambridge’s Lechmere area, serving breakfast and lunch sandwiches, coffee and tea, granola, and more.
- Ice Age (8 Tyler St., Chinatown, Boston): Ice cream served in puffle cones (Hong Kong-style egg waffles). Located on Tea Do’s second floor.
- LoLa 42 (22 Liberty Dr., Seaport District, Boston): Sibling to Nantucket’s LoLa 41. Sushi, burgers, steak, and more.
- North Square Oyster (5 North Sq., North End, Boston): Seafood towers, lobster rolls, and lots more from the Ward 8 team and executive chef Douglas Rodrigues (Liquid Art House, Clio).
- Num Pang (800 Boylston St., Prudential Center, Back Bay, Boston): A new fast-casual option inside of the Prudential Center. The New York-based chain serves Vietnamese-inspired sandwiches, rice bowls, and more.
- Puro Ceviche Bar (264 Newbury St., Back Bay, Boston): “A ceviche bar with Latin soul” serving small plates in the cozy space that used to house Trattoria Newbury. The Kava Neo-Taverna team is behind it.
- The Railpenny Tavern (8 Exeter Rd., Epping, New Hampshire): Barbecue bacon burgers, cider-braised pork pot pie, fish & chips, and strawberry shortcake a half hour west of Portsmouth. Franklin Oyster House alum Gillian Roun is executive chef.
- Renegades Pub (1004 Bennington St., East Boston): Local beers, a lot of whiskey, and comfort food in the former Victory Pub space.
- Smokin’ Betty’s BBQ (94 Lafayette St., Salem): Smoked meats, gruyere beignets, fried green tomato po’boys, smoked Nashville hot chicken sandwiches, and more from the owners of Gulu-Gulu Cafe and Flying Saucer Pizza Company. There’s also a shuffleboard-bowling table.
- Spoke Wine Bar (89 Holland St., Davis Square, Somerville): Spoke has been reborn under new ownership, former Spoke bartender Mary Kurth. Small plates, good wines, cozy vibes.
- True Taste Seasonal Kitchen (301 Reservoir St., Needham): A delivery-only restaurant featuring gluten-free meals that cater to a wide variety of dietary needs, particularly people following Paleo or Whole30-style diets.
- Turtle Swamp Brewing (3377 Washington St., Jamaica Plain, Boston): Not fully open yet — but keep an eye on Instagram for weekend hours, which include food truck visits, crowler fills, pints, and more.
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May 2017 closures:
- Bondir Concord (24 Walden St., Concord): A few months after announcing that the space would be sold, Bondir chef-owner Jason Bond closed Bondir Concord as planned; Fiorella’s will take its place. Bondir remains open in Cambridge.
- Panera Bread (888 Commonwealth Ave., Boston): The BU campus location of Panera shuttered due to high rent. This is one of several recent Panera closures.
- Prince Postale (71 Prince St., North End, Boston): A shipping store — but also a burrito shop (and knishes, bagels, pastries, coffee, and more).
Closures announced in May 2017 that will happen at a later date:
- Brown & Brew Coffee House (474 Boston Ave., Medford): This longtime Tufts coffee shop will close August 11. A new cafe, Kindlevan Café, will offer a similar menu when it opens within Tufts’ almost-completed Science and Engineering Complex.
- Golden Garden (63 Concord Ave., Belmont): The Chinese restaurant’s newer Malden sibling will remain open, but this original Belmont location will close at the end of its lease on June 30.
- Journeyman (9 Sanborn Ct., Union Square, Somerville): Once a high-end tasting menu-focused restaurant, Journeyman had recently converted some of its nights into a more casual concept centered around a wood-fired grill. Closed June 3.
- Karoun Restaurant (839 Washington St., Newton): Open for decades, this Lebanese restaurant will close at the end of June. The building housing it was sold and will be demolished later this year.