Andy Husbands Shutters His South End Mainstays This Weekend

Two staples of South End dining enter their last weekend in business as chef and owner Andy Husbands prepares to focus his attention on other projects. The adjacent Tremont 647 and Sister Sorel (645-647 Tremont St.) close down on April 1 after 21 and 16 years in operation, respectively.

“It was not an easy decision but it is the right decision as I enter the next stage of my life both personally and professionally,” Husbands wrote in a newsletter about the closures.

Sticking with tradition, the final day of service will feature Tremont 647’s pajama brunch (where, yes, people wear pajamas). It’s one of the recurring theme days, along with taco Tuesdays, that made the restaurant a popular neighborhood destination over its two decades in business, serving a menu of classic American dishes with Husbands’ own spin, from chipotle marinated tofu tacos to fried chicken to cheese-stuffed tater tots. Husbands also used the restaurants to host charity events, including dinners to benefit the Share Our Strength organization, which tackles childhood hunger in America.

After the restaurants close this weekend, Husbands will turn his attention to his newer venture, the Smoke Shop BBQ, which has two locations in Kendall Square and Fort Point, with another on deck for Somerville’s Assembly Row. Plus, he’s “working on a few other exciting projects,” he wrote in the newsletter.

Meanwhile, a replacement for Tremont 647 and Sister Sorel lies in wait. The forthcoming restaurant, tentatively called Whaling in Oklahoma, comes from chef Tim Maslow, chef and owner of the now-defunct Ribelle in Brookline. The restaurant will have a Japanese spin to it, but like much of what Maslow does, it will push the boundaries of traditional cooking, opting for “fun bar food” and lesser-seen items, with key ingredients like miso and furikake made in-house, as previously reported.

• Tim Maslow Is Coming Back to Boston [EBOS]
• Tremont 647 Coverage on Eater [EBOS]