It’s Time to Buy Pies for a Good Cause

Welcome back to AM Intel, a round-up of mini news bites to kick off the day.

Pie Time

Looking to include some pie in your Thanksgiving takeout plans this year? It’s time once again for the annual Community Servings Pie in the Sky fundraiser — this is its 28th year — albeit with some COVID-era changes this time around.

The Jamaica Plain-based organization, which has been around since 1990, aims to provide home delivery and other nutritional services and education to locals living with various illnesses; it’s one of many Boston-area nonprofits fighting against food insecurity during the pandemic (and beyond). For each $30 donation, Community Servings is able to provide a week of meals for one of its clients, and you get an apple or pecan pie (while supplies last), available to pick up at an outdoor site on November 24.

In normal years, volunteer bakers and restaurant partners bake and distribute countless pies for the fundraiser, but this year the process is centralized at Community Servings’ own kitchen and Hyde Park bakery Boston Baking Inc. Whole Foods is also participating: Look for Pie in the Sky pies at all Massachusetts locations from November 18 to 26; $5 of each sale goes to Community Servings.

Not interested in pie? You can still donate to Community Servings here.

Grocery Store Expansions

Two local grocery stores are growing.

Neighborhood Produce, which first opened in Somerville’s Winter Hill (415 Medford St.) in late 2017, expanded to Somerville’s Ball Square (691 Broadway) in October. “We’ve always had the idea to open additional locations in any neighborhood that lacks access to fresh food, and it’s exciting to stretch our wings and grow,” the team wrote on Instagram.

In addition to produce, the shops carry local meat, dairy, and eggs; grains, nuts, and other items in bulk; and a variety of pantry staples and household items. The tiny Winter Hill shop is currently open for in-person, counter-service shopping, with one person allowed in at a time, while the larger space in Ball Square is only open for online pickups to start, with a one-hour turnaround. (Prescheduling for a later time/date is also available.) Order here.

In other grocery expansion news, Daily Table — a nonprofit grocer with locations in Dorchester and Roxbury and a mission to provide affordable food for everyone — is expanding to Cambridge’s Central Square. Located at 684 Massachusetts Ave., the Cambridge location is slated for a January 2021 opening and is currently hiring. All positions start above $15 an hour.

The existing locations (450 Washington St., Dorchester; 2201 Washington St., Roxbury) are currently open seven days a week, with the first hour each day reserved for shoppers 60 years old and up.

The organization is always accepting donations, but volunteer opportunities are currently suspended due to the pandemic.

In Other News...

• Somerville bibimbap shop Perillas (1 Bow Market Way) is graduating from its shared kitchen space and expanding across the river to Boston, opening a base of operations as well as a second Perillas storefront in the new space. The business is currently accepting investments via the crowd-investing platform Mainvest to jumpstart this expansion.
• Moody’s Delicatessen & Provisions in Waltham (468 Moody St.) has rebranded to Molti on Moody, embellishing its deli fare with grab-and-go pizza, sandwiches, salads, prepared dinners, and more. (Moody’s full-service restaurant and bar, the Backroom, is continuing as is.) Order online for in-store pickup, or just show up and browse in person.
• For the Dunkin’ super fan who has almost everything, browse the 2020 holiday merch shop when it opens on November 17 for a wide variety of pink-and-orange Dunkin’-branded merch, including mini fridges, bedding, tandem bikes, dog leashes, scrunchies, and more. Many of the items can be personalized.

Got a news tip for the Eater Boston team? Email boston@eater.com.