HB said it did actually open earlier this month. I think the final tally (well, I assume final) goes announced summer 2015, multiple delays, two chefs leave without ever being able to cook a meal, finally opens Set. 2016 and now closed before the month is out.
haha, todayâs update via Hidden Boston is that Pink Samurai is now under ânew managementâ and will reopen.
Contrast this with Dosa Factory saying their Waltham/Moody Street storefront will open soon.
The banner out front has been up since 2010.
Charcoal Guidos on the same block sat idle for two or three years but this is the record as far as I have seen persoanally.
How does one afford to have an idle restaurant for 5 years or more anywhere in the Boston area?
When itâs the âlegitâ storefront for some not-so-legit enterprise?
East End Grille on Broadway in East Somerville seems closed, website down, phone off. Only surprising thing is that it stayed open as long as it did. This is not the East Side Grill in East Cambridge that seems to have also recently closed.
I have inside intel on this one⌠the owners of the building, who for some reason thought that they could run a restaurant, have applied to the City of Somerville to use the first floor for retail space and turn the second floor [build out a second floor] for apartments. Obviously, they knew nothing about the restaurant biz and were ripped off by a succession of employees. My hairdresser, who is currently located in one of this landlordâs other Somerville buildings, has been promised half of the retail space if this application is successful.
I think it was one of the worst restaurants Iâve ever been to. We only went back out of desperation when we needed to get out of the house because it is so close to home. In the last months they seemed to have âpaint nightâ all the time; otherwise, there was hardly anyone ever there. The building does have a parking lot, however!
We actually enjoyed going there on occasion. Fine dining it certainly was not, but the chicken marsala and the red sauce and stuffed eggplant were decent and the prices not too bad. Salads clearly had bottled dressing and were nothing to write home about. I donât remember the bread.
Definitely a townie vibe and the last time we were there, our server seemed to be drowning in perfume. Never knew about the parking lot, but I guess that doesnât matter any more!
we never went as far as to order an entree beyond a sandwich or a hamburger. It was loud, loud, loud, but I did like their nachos, because they actually put beans on them, not just cheese and sour cream. We asked for extra beans and extra japalenos and got them. The last server we had was excellent, and she was from Spain. She was gracious and the service was great. I feel bad that she lost her job. She probably had no idea when she signed upâŚwe donât mind a townie vibe at all, we go to the Mount Vernon on occasion when we also need to get out of the house. Itâs interesting the owners were ripped off. We noticed several changes in âmanagementâ over the years.
Well, I guess Iâm losing it all together. I was talking about the East Cambridge East Side Grill, and not the East End Grill in Somerville, which you clearly stated in your post. Sorry! W
Whenever we headed to La Brasa, we were always a bit curious about East End Grill but never did check it out. Sounds like we didnât miss much. I do always feel a bit sad for the people who are involved with the investment, concept, etc., though. May they all do well in the future.
He owns dozens of buildings, retail/apartment buildings, in Somerville. He will be just fine! The staff? Hard to know.
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why is there a piece of pie next to my name?
The staff may well be fine, given the current server/food service worker shortage. Letâs hope!
The East Side Grill seemed open when I passed by during RibFest yesterday. Perhaps the issues were solved. Will investigate with my neighborhood local guests next week.
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Our East Somerville house window replacement was up for review before the Somerville historical commission recently. Two other agenda items were the building of the former East End Grille on Broadway and the former La Hacienda building near the Somerville Target. Very interesting!
That does sound [unexpectedly] interesting! What luck that you were on the same agenda. What is being said about the La Hacienda space?
the spot (the letters H-O-T emphasized in red) is opening in the old mirim korean market location on harvard ave in allston
I didnât go to the historical commission meetingâŚstayed home with the kidâŚbut from what I understand, itâs considered an historic neighborhood not because of the âfirst pizza made in Bostonâ but because it was a meat packing area. I think the proposal was deferred for âfurther studyâ. Much of Somerville is filled with the remains of meat packing and other industrial processing. We did have our soil tested for toxic remains and it came out OK, but we are two blocks from Charlestown. We had heard for months that La Hacienda building would be sold, but the staff denied it completely until it just closed. We just went for a drink and garlic bread when we needed to get out of the house from time to time. Itâs kind of hard to find the historical commission reports on the city of Somerville web site, but they will eventually be posted.
I consulted with the other adult in the household who did attend the meeting. Apparently there was a factory making K-rations during WWII near the La Hacienda building, which may have been used for worker housing.
Last night, as we drove by the La Hacienda building the two adults in the car mused as to WHAT original detail might be hidden under the vinyl and faux stone siding that would garner the attention of the Historical folks. Of all the buildings being redeveloped, this is not one I would have guessed to have any need for special attention!
