Create Gallery + Cocktail Lounge Is Saying Farewell to Bow Market in Somerville

An eclectic Somerville spot that focused on cocktails and art is leaving its space.

According to a source, Create Gallery + Cocktail Lounge is saying goodbye to its home at Bow Market, with a Facebook post from owner Louis DiBiccari saying the following:

We're disappointed to announce that March 22nd will be our final service at Bow Market. I'm very grateful to the store owners here for embracing us as a part of their community for the last three years. CREATE Gallery & Cocktail will undergo some brand restructuring & relocate soon....Not 100% ready to say much more right now but the evolution of CREATE will get me back in a kitchen & I'm stoked to start cooking again....Thanks again for supporting our little nook on the second floor. Forever grateful

Create Gallery + Cocktail Lounge, which first opened in the summer of 2019, has been known in part for its draft cocktails along with its works from local artists. DiBiccari had formerly been involved with Tavern Road in Boston's Fort Point.

As soon as we find out more about the new concept from DiBiccari, including where it will be located, we will post an update here.

[March 29 update: A check on its Facebook page confirms that Create Gallery + Cocktail Lounge is now closed.]

by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)

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Bantam Cider in Somerville's Union Square Is Closing

A local cider company and taproom is saying farewell.

According to Patrick Maguire of Maguire Promotions & Hospitality Consulting, Bantam Cider in the Union Square section of Somerville is closing down, with an Instagram post from the Merriam Street place saying the following:

...as we look into the future, and having recently evaluated various scenarios, we understand now more than ever before, that we would ultimately need to make some compromises to continue to grow. The most obvious would have us rethink our choice of ingredients and processes to reduce our expensive production costs. While this could be a savvy business decision, it just isn't something we want to do, nor is it something we're willing to hand off to someone else to do. In fact, we believe it's the kind of compromise that would kill what we've always considered the ethos of Bantam. And faced with this as an inevitable predicament, we've decided to retire Bantam Cider as it is today, something we're proud of.

The note mentions that Bantam's ciders will be available in retail stores for a few more months.

Bantam Cider first opened its facility in 2014, with its cider taproom being the first to open in the entire state; the company eventually ended up producing more than a dozen varieties of ciders, including ones that were available all year long, limited ciders, and ciders only available at the taproom.

The address for Bantam Cider is 40 Merriam Street, Somerville, MA, 02143. Its website can be found at https://www.bantamcider.com/

by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)

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Vinal Bakery Moving into Former Pizza Palace Space in Somerville's Union Square

by Marc Hurwitz

A pop-up bakery is going to be moving into a permanent home, and it will be located in one of the hottest parts of Somerville.

According to a Twitter post, Vinal Bakery is opening a brick-and-mortar shop in Union Square, taking over the former Pizza Palace space on Somerville Avenue. The bakery business is known in part for its pop-ups at Bagelsaurus in Cambridge where it sells English muffins, and it also offers such items as banana bread, scones, breakfast shortcakes, tarts, and more.

If all goes as planned, Vinal Bakery could be opening its shop in the spring of 2019.

The address for the brick-and-mortar location of Vinal Bakery is 222 Somerville Avenue, Somerville, MA, 02143. The website for the business can be found at https://www.vinalbakery.com/

[April 19, 2019 update: Eater Boston states that Vinal Bakery is now open in Union Square.]

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[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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Remnant Brewing Opens at Bow Market in Somerville's Union Square

by Marc Hurwitz

A new brewery debuts tonight in Somerville, opening at a new development that is also in the process of debuting.

Boston Magazine is reporting that Remnant Brewing opens at 8:00 PM this evening at Bow Market in Union Square, offering a handful of beers on draft tonight while it plans to debut its patio tomorrow--though the bad weather coming could delay those plans. In addition to its patio, the brewery will also have a bar and a standing area inside as well as a cafe that features coffee during the day. Initial hours for Remnant Brewing will be 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM tonight and 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM tomorrow and Sunday.

In addition to Remnant Brewing, some of the food/drink vendors coming to Bow Market will also be popping up over the weekend, tentatively being up and running Saturday afternoon and Sunday.

Bow Market is located between Somerville Avenue and Bow Street, with its website being at http://www.bowmarketsomerville.com/ while the website for Remnant Brewing can be found at https://www.remnantsomerville.com/

[Earlier Article]
Bow Market Planned for Somerville's Union Square

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[Related article from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): Slideshow--Ten Good Places to Get Beer in the Boston Area]

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The Comedy Studio Is Moving from Cambridge's Harvard Square to Bow Market in Somerville's Union Square

by Marc Hurwitz

A few months ago, we reported that a legendary comedy club in Cambridge was closing down and looking for a new home. Now we have learned that it will be moving to an upcoming development in Somerville.

According to an article from Cambridge Day, the Comedy Studio in Harvard Square is leaving its current location above the Hong Kong Restaurant on Mass. Ave. at the end of the year and plans to reopen at Bow Market between Somerville Avenue and Bow Street in Union Square. The comedy club will join a number of other businesses coming to the development--which is currently under construction--including vendors at more than 30 stalls as well as a brewery called Remnant Brewing. (The stalls will include Jaju Pierogi, Maca Macaronerie, Buenas, North South, and more.)

The Comedy Studio, which is leaving Harvard Square in part due to rising rents, has helped launched the careers of some big names since opening in the mid-1990s, including Bill Burr and Emma Willmann, and it has also hosted such well-known comedians as Sarah Silverman and Colin Jost over the years.

The website for the Comedy Studio can be found at http://www.thecomedystudio.com/

Thanks to @Fara1 for bringing this to our attention.

[August 26, 2018 update: An events page indicates that The Comedy Studio officially opens in Somerville on September 6.]

[Earlier Article]
The Comedy Studio Above the Hong Kong Restaurant in Cambridge's Harvard Square Is Leaving Its Space

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Gracie's Ice Cream in Somerville's Union Square Closes for the Season

A popular ice cream shop in one of Somerville's hottest neighborhoods is getting ready to close, but it will be back in a couple of months with some new offerings.

Eater Boston is reporting that Gracie's Ice Cream in Union Square will shut down on December 28 and will remain closed until March 1, at which point it will reopen with some minor renovations and options from a new "hot drinks program" as well as pastries, confections, and more. Aaron Cohen of @EatBoston and Ben Dryer of the former Sherman Market and the Sherman Cafe first opened Gracie's in November of 2014, serving such ice cream flavors as black raspberry chip, peach basil, cinnamon blueberry, coffee and chocolate, Swedish apple pie, and grape nut.

The address for Gracie's Ice Cream is 22 Union Square, Somerville, MA, 02143; its website can be found at http://www.graciesicecre.am/

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Slumbrew Is Opening a Brewery and Taproom in Somerville

After more than 100 years of being without a brewery, the city of Somerville will soon have two of them.

A post on its Facebook page today indicates that Somerville Brewing Company's Slumbrew brand has signed a lease for a space on Ward Street (just southeast of Union Square near the Cambridge border) for a brand new brewery and taproom. Once it opens, Slumbrew will become the second brewery in the city, with Aeronaut Brewing Company opening on Tyler Street, which is the other side of Union Square, later this spring. Up until now, Slumbrew has been making their beers out of Mercury Brewing Company in Ipswich.

As mentioned in the earlier article on Aeronaut, Somerville hasn't had a brewery since the 1880s.

The address for this new brewery in Somerville is: Slumbrew, 15 Ward Street, Somerville, MA, 02143. The website for Slumbrew can be found at http://www.slumbrew.com/

[April 17 update: According to Somerville Brewing Company co-owner Caitlin Jewell, Slumbrew will be having a soft opening starting tonight and lasting through Monday.]

[Earlier Article]
Aeronaut Brewing Company Planning to Launch in Somerville

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Bantam Cider to Open Tap Room in Somerville's Union Square

The folks behind a small local cider company are getting ready to open a tap room in one of Somerville's hottest neighborhoods.

The Boston Globe is reporting that Michelle da Silva and Dana Masterpolo of Bantam Cider are going to be debuting a tasting room at their facility on Somerville Avenue in Union Square, with full pours of cider and flights offered as well as tours of the space (a total of eight taps will be set up, with options including smoked, sour, oak-aged, and more). Initially, the tap room will be open on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, with an expected opening date of March 1.

[March 3 update: An event page from Bantam Cider indicates that the grand opening for its tap room will be this Saturday (March 8).]

According to the article, Bantam Cider's facility has the capacity to make 4,000 barrels of cider per year.

The address for Bantam Cider's plant is 230 Somerville Avenue, Somerville, MA, 02143. Its website can be found at http://www.bantamcider.com/

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