Boston Restaurant Talk

Wednesday, December 02, 2015

Atrium with Restaurant Space May Be Coming to Downtown Boston

It looks like a brand new atrium could be built in the heart of downtown Boston--and it may include some restaurants.

The Boston Herald is reporting that Boston Properties is hoping to build a weather-protected glass atrium on the Congress Street plaza of its office tower at 100 Federal Street in the city's Financial District, with the structure including restaurant space and retail space, room for kiosks, and a winter garden. Bryan Koop, who is senior vice president and regional manager of Boston Properties, says the proposed atrium would "complement the outdoor space at Post Office Square Park and will be programmed with restaurants and events to bring a more active and lively streetscape to the base of the tower."

The atrium's design plans have been submitted to the city of Boston, though it is not known when any decision may be made on the proposal or when the structure could be completed (keep checking back for updates).

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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]

Food Network's Top 5 Diner Dishes in America Include Items from Modern Diner, Agawam Diner at # 1 and 2

A popular food-based TV channel, magazine, and website has come out with its picks for the five best diner dishes in the United States, and items from a couple of New England diners have come out at the very top of the list.

According to the slideshow/article from the Food Network, the custard French toast from Modern Diner in Pawtucket, RI, and the chicken pot pie from Agawam Diner in Rowley are at #1 and #2, respectively, with items from diners in San Francisco, La Jolla, CA, and Austin also making the grade. Both of the New England spots have been visited by our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants), with the latter being featured in a review that can be found below:

http://www.hiddenboston.com/AgawamDiner.html

Modern Diner can be found at 364 East Avenue in Pawtucket while Agawam Diner is at 166 Newburyport Turnpike (Route 1) in Rowley.

For a complete look at the picks from the Food Network, please go to the following link:

Top 5 Diner Dishes in America

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[Note: Please join the Friends of Boston's Hidden Restaurants Facebook Group Page to get more info on dining spots and also chat with others about Boston-area restaurants.]

McKinnon's Meat Market in Somerville's Davis Square Squelches Rumors That It Is Closing

A landmark butcher shop that declared bankruptcy last week has allayed the fears of its worried customers as to its exact status.

According to a note at the top of its weekly ad, McKinnon's Meat Market in Somerville's Davis Square states that "there is no truth to the rumor that [the shop] is closing," which jibes with a Twitter post from last night that shows an identical message. There has been some chatter of late about a possible closure of the Elm Street store, including a post within the Davis Square LiveJournal that went up three days after we reported that the market was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

As mentioned earlier, McKinnon's has until December 7 to file a statement of financial affairs and the schedules of what they owe.

The address for McKinnon's Meat Market is 239 Elm Street, Somerville, MA, 02144. Its website is at http://www.mckinnonsmeatmarket.com/

[Earlier Article]
McKinnon's Meat Market in Somerville Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

[Note: Please join the Friends of Boston's Hidden Restaurants Facebook Group Page to get more info on dining spots and also chat with others about Boston-area restaurants.]

Quincy Dynasty in North Quincy Has Closed for Renovations; Status Unknown

A Chinese restaurant located a bit south of the Boston line is closed for the time being, and it is not known for sure what kinds of changes may be coming to the space.

According to several posts within a couple of Facebook groups, Quincy Dynasty in North Quincy is shuttered, with a sign on the door of the Billings Road eatery apparently saying that a sushi bar may be added to the space and a note on its website saying it is closed for a "remodeling." No one has been able to confirm whether the restaurant will reopen as Quincy Dynasty or will become a completely new space, and phone calls to the dining spot have gone unanswered. As soon as we find out what will be happening to the place, we will post an update here.

Quincy Dynasty is a spot that our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants) has featured as an under-the-radar place to go for both traditional Chinese and Chinese-American fare. A link to the review can be found below:

http://www.hiddenboston.com/QuincyDynasty.html

The address for this restaurant in North Quincy is: Quincy Dynasty, 49 Billings Road, Quincy, MA 02171. Its website is at http://www.quincydynastychinese.com/

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

[Related article from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): Slideshow--Twelve Food Items from Asian Restaurants in the Boston Area]

Tuesday, December 01, 2015

Yenching in Cambridge's Harvard Square Has Closed

A decades-old restaurant in the heart of Cambridge has shut its doors for good.

The Harvard Crimson is reporting that Yenching in Harvard Square closed suddenly on Sunday, with a note in the window of the Mass. Ave. eatery saying "It has been a great pleasure serving you. Thank you not only for your patronage but also your friendship." It is not yet known why the dining spot shut down, and workers at the restaurant declined giving any further comments on the closure to the Crimson; as soon as we find out more, we will post an update here.

Yenching first opened its doors 40 years ago, offering Szechuan-style fare and Chinese-American dishes such as spare ribs, crab rangoons, kung pao chicken, shredded beef, Singapore noodles, chicken chow foon, and moo shi pork.

The address for this Chinese restaurant in Harvard Square was: Yenching, 1326 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138.

Thanks to @bellegardbastos for initially bringing this to our attention.

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

[Related article from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): Slideshow--Twelve Food Items from Asian Restaurants in the Boston Area]

Cosi Faces Possible Stock Delisting

A Boston-based chain of dining spots that offers soups, salads, and sandwiches has seen its shares of stock drop precipitously over the past year, and now it faces a possible delisting.

The Boston Business Journal is reporting that Cosi received a notice last month from the Nasdaq Stock Market that the bid price of its common stock has closed below $1 for 30 consecutive business days; this triggered a warning that its stock could be delisted if it doesn't surpass the $1 threshold for a minimum of 10 consecutive business days by May 16, 2016, which is 180 days from the date of the initial notice. (Cosi's stock has plummeted almost 70% this year and it is now under 50 cents a share.) The BBJ says that the company had net losses of approximately $16.2 million last year, and it has seen a total of $309.7 million of net losses since it first started out.

Cosi, which was established in 1989, has more than 100 locations across the country, including shops on Federal Street, High Street, Milk Street, State Street, and at South Station in downtown Boston along with others in the Seaport District, the Back Bay, at Logan Airport, and at MIT in Cambridge. Its website can be found at http://www.getcosi.com/

Follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston

[Related article from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): Slideshow--Twelve Sandwiches from Restaurants in the Boston Area and Elsewhere in New England]