Butternut Bakehouse in downtown Belmont, MA is open and rocking. Stopped in today and picked up a few baked goods for a snickety snack tonight and breakfast tomorrow. This location is much larger than their Arlington store. Plenty of indoor seating, which was fully occupied when we visited. There is free parking in the lot behind the stores on Leonard St
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I can’t wait to go! I think it is the best bakery in Boston.
Lucy’s has opened on Rte 60 in West Medford. Haven’t tried as yet, chuckled over pricing. https://lucys.getbento.com/online-ordering/lucys/menu
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Reminds me of Clover’s pricing a while back. I suspected it was some formula for costs plus x percent profit being used, hence the wacky prices.
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exactly…
Pho Linh in Quincy has morphed into Le Madeline, described as classic Vietnamese with a modern flair, as of today!
This is in the North Quincy area at the corner of Billings Rd and Hancock St.
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Ooh! I’m going to have to remember this and treat my aunt to a meal there soon. I can’t see a menu yet.
I was looking for a menu too. They book reservations through Resy, and I did spot a special Valentine’s day 5 course tasting menu on this page:
https://resy.com/cities/qnc/venues/le-madeline/events/valentines-day-2024-02-14
This adorable little Thai coffee shop and bakery called Maprang is open in Union Square right next to Reliable Market. I walked by and had a flat white which was excellent- did not note what beans they are using, and took home a gluten free slice of Basque cheesecake which was heavenly, as well as a ham and cheese croissant for my husband. Of note is that they are open til 6 which fills a niche for desserts that is sometimes hard to fill.
s Edit: I guess they've been doing custom cakes for a while, as their facebook page has pictures from last fall, but the newspaper clipping in the window mentioned the storefront was new-ish. I think.
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I did a lot of walking around today. In north Cambridge, on Mass Ave near Curio Spice, Chicken & Co Thai Chicken and Rice has a soft opening menu posted. We did not see anyone eating there, but it did appear they were open. I think it may be a spot that has had a long-running string of unremarkable Thai restaurants?
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Just adding a minor correction/upate:
Le Madeline had a note on their door that reads they are still doing some refreshing of the interior. Plans to be open for dinner as of Feb 8.
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Opa Greek Gyros is open again just outside Davis Square. Chatter on the Davis Square FB page is that it’s new owners. I can’t confirm, but they were definitely serving food this weekend. My big question is whether they will still carry Sophia’s Greek Yogurt, as the prior owner was Sophia’s son so obviously had a hook up.
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Out of the Blue in Davis Sq is closing. One of those places I remember going to a couple of times (at least once with my parents) but didn’t feel compelled to return. Still, it’s sad to see a down-to-earth mom-and-pop kind of place close.
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I was just reading Devra’s Lunar New Year article with zeal…until I read that one of the places replaced Rangzen, a former lunchtime haunt of mine and my colleagues. It closed back in Sept 2023 (so technically this belongs in a 2023 Q4 thread). I wish them well; they certainly fed us well for many years. 
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I had a number of lunches there when I worked in Kendall Sq. We need more Tibetan and Nepalese food places.
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someone working there reports yes, they will continue to have access to Sophia’s yogurt
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The Seaport outpost of Yume ga aru kara - local udon favorite - has opened I hear as of last Monday. It’s in the Suprette on Seaport Blvd. If all goes well, I will try to hit the spot within the next 2 weeks.
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Made it to Pescadore in Kenmore Square for the first time, and was wowed by the seafood. Unfortunately our waiter told that the restaurant is shutting down permanently in the coming weeks.
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Finally made it to the new Seaport location of Yume ga arukara (YGA). It’s technically still a soft opening per their website, but there was a 45 minute wait on Thursday when we got there! It probably moved a bit quicker than that, but be prepared if you’re planning to drop by.
I’ve never been to their original location, and have never had chilled udon before. DC and I both had their chilled spicy udon with beef. So delicious! Loved the chew and texture of the noodles, and the spicy level - while wasn’t super spicy - did add just enough kick to the noodles. Great flavor to the sauce. I like the open kitchen set up, so if you sit at the bar, you can watch them prepare the food. Not a very big space at all, which contributes to the wait time. The wait staff will come out and take your order though so that once you sit down, your food comes almost immediately.
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Similar system to Porter Square, although my experiences are all pre 2020. Did they assign you seating as they do at Porter so that they know who gets what order?
[There used to be a deli at the University of Chicago (it may still be there) where the lunchtime line stretched over a couple of blocks. They took your order in line as you were steadily moving, and by the time you got to the cash register it was ready for you. ]
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