At least five more dining spots in the Greater Boston area have closed their doors temporarily.
According to multiple sources, Ciao Bella, Forcella, and Libertine in the North End, Ward 8 near where the North End and West End meet, and Gulu-Gulu Cafe in Salem have all shut down for now, with a Facebook post from Ciao Bella stating that it is taking a break for a little while, a source telling us that Forcella and Libertine have shuttered for now (with OpenTable pages for both places--which have an ownership connection--saying that they plan to reopen in February), a note on the Ward 8 website indicating that it will remain closed until the 25% capacity limit is lifted (January 24 at the earliest), and Gulu-Gulu Cafe simply saying on Facebook that it has closed for the winter.
The five dining spots join a very large number of restaurants and bars in the local area that have temporarily closed due to the pandemic.
[February 19 update: A source tells us that Libertine is open once again while a Facebook post from Ward 8 indicates that it has also reopened.]
[March 30 update: A Facebook post from Forcella indicates that it reopens April 1 while a post from Gulu-Gulu Cafe mentions that it reopens April 6.]
[April 8 update: Ciao Bella is open once again, though under a new name--Ciao Roma.]
by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]
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