Esquire Names Boston Sake Bar the Koji Club One of the Best Bars in America

Boston’s buzzing bar scene received another national nod this past week: On June 1, Esquire magazine named three-year-old Boston sake bar the Koji Club one of its best bars in America in 2023. The beloved spot, run by acclaimed sake enthusiast Alyssa DiPasquale, is the city’s first dedicated sake bar, and it aims to approach sake from an educational yet accessible, everyday-drinking standpoint. Editor Kevin Sintumuang wrote for Esquire that stepping into the tiny space “felt like a world away here more Tokyo than Beantown” and, once inside, bargoing strangers quickly became companions. “Within minutes we all started to feel like friends deep into a sake journey,” Sintumuang wrote.

North End restaurateurs drop outdoor dining lawsuit

Four restaurateurs who filed a lawsuit against Mayor Michelle Wu claiming that the city’s outdoor dining fees in the North End amounted to discrimination against the restaurateurs for being white and Italian have now filed a motion to dismiss the suit, the Boston Globe reports. “The charges in this lawsuit were completely without legal merit, and the plaintiffs are right to abandon their legal path to nowhere,” a city spokesperson said in a statement on the news.

Celebrate World Oceans Day at Pagu’s next roundtable event

Central Square restaurant Pagu continues its community-centered monthly event series on Thursday, June 8, with a dinner and discussion that focuses on the intersection of the food industry, oceans, and ongoing sustainability efforts. Guest chefs include Will Gilson of Puritan & Co., Ggoma Supper Club’s Tae Strain, Taberna de Haro’s Deborah Hansen, and Ilma Lopez of Chaval and the Ugly Duckling in Portland, Maine. Tickets start at $99 apiece.

Inside the legendary Irish bar Sligo Pub’s last day

The Davis Square landmark shut down this past weekend, and the Boston Globe was on the scene to talk to some of the lifelong customers who showed up for the bar’s sendoff. “This is one of the greatest bars that ever existed,” one regular told the Globe.