2019: More of the Same? The brisk spring/summer market cooled a bit in the fall, with some prices softening and days on market increasing, as is typical. Given recent stock market volatility, higher interest rates, and a little more new inventory in the pipeline, some observers speculate the market may stabilize or soften a bit. Anecdotally, I can say that the only softening I have seen locally is minor and is mainly on properties under $700K. The higher end of the market seems quite active. Given the number of new buyers I encountered viewing properties this fall with the goal of buying in the spring, I think the spring market will be strong again this year, although we may see some flattening out of prices. ~Thalia
Best Real Estate Agency
Best Real Estate Agent
New Listings
6 Spring Road, Arlington
494 Medford Street, Somerville
Lovely Arlington Heights bungalow, perched on a hill with views, with 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, large front porch, front/back/side yard, and parking in front on recently paved private way. Walk to the Minute Man bike path, Trader Joe’s, and shops along Massachusetts Avenue.
Well-appointed two-family on a corner lot in Magoun Square. Unit 1 has 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom on 2 levels; Unit 2 has 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom. 2-car driveway. Great, walkable location near restaurants and 2 Red Line subways now—as well as 2 new GLX stops in the near future.
$645,000
4 Olive Square, Somerville $719,900
Attached 2-level single family with 2+ bedrooms, 2 full baths, and 2 parking spaces steps to Union Square. The house offers handicapped accessible baths updated in 2015. Ideal condo alternative.
$849,000
221 Highland Avenue, Unit 2, Somerville Between Davis and Porter Squares, this updated, 2-level Spring Hill condo has 3-bedrooms, 1 1/2 bath, in-unit laundry, private back deck, and two parking spaces. Near the Arts at the Armory (home of the Winter Farmer’s Market), Dulock butcher, Highland Kitchen, 7 Ate 9, and more.
Coming Soon
Thalia Tringo
President, Realtor ® 617.513.1967 cell/text Thalia@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
11 Bailey Street, Somerville West Somerville attached single family on 2 levels with 2+ bedrooms, 1 bathroom, study, enclosed porch, back deck, and fenced yard.
Jennifer Rose
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.943.9581 cell/text Jennifer@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Lynn C. Graham
95 Orchard Street Unit 2, Somerville On one of Davis Square’s most beloved streets, this charming second floor condo has 3 bedrooms, study, tile full bathroom, and 2 parking spaces. High ceilings, wood floors, large, shared fenced backyard.
Free Classes First Time Home Buyers:
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.216.5244 cell/text Lynn@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Brendon Edwards
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.895.6267 cell/text Brendon@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
an overview of the buying process Wednesday, January 23RD OR Tuesday, February 12TH 6:30 – 7:45 pm If you’re considering buying your first home and want to understand what’s in store, this is a quick and helpful overview. Led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, it includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
How to Buy and Sell at the Same Time:
Seth Kangley
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 315.382.2507 cell/text Seth@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
for homeowners contemplating a move
Wednesday, January 30TH OR Thursday, February 21ST 6:30 – 7:45 pm If trying to figure out the logistics of selling your home and buying a new one makes your head spin, this workshop will help make the process & your choices understandable. This workshop, led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
Sarasvati Lynn
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.949.6942 cell/text Sarasvati@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Basic Home Maintenance:
preparing your home for winter Tuesday, January 15TH 6:30 – 7:45 pm Do you worry about pipes bursting? Ice dams? Clogged gutters? Broken downspouts? Heat loss? Damage from broken tree limbs? Heating system failure? Routine maintenance is the best way to prevent damage to your most important investment: your home. Come to this class to get a checklist and explanation of the things you need to do to maintain your home—and sanity.
How Individuals Can Buy Property Together as a Group Tuesday, February 5TH 6:30 – 8:30 pm When two or more people, whether or not they are related, buy property together, what are their options for taking title? How do you determine each one’s financial contributions, percentage legal interest in the property, and expense allocation? What kind of arrangements can be made in the event one or more parties want to move on but others want to keep the property? What type of financing is available? We will address these and other questions, followed by a Q&A session. Lead by our team and a local real estate attorney. If you are a first time homebuyer, please attend the First Time Home Buyers Workshop (January 23RD) or make an appointment with one of our agents so you’ll have your prerequisites for this class. To reserve space in any class, please email Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com. Admission is free, but we appreciate donations of canned goods for the Somerville Homeless Coalition.
Adaria Brooks
Executive Assistant to the President, Realtor ® 617.308.0064 cell/text Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
About our company... We are dedicated to representing our buyer and seller clients with integrity and professionalism. We are also commi ed to giving back to our community. Our agents donate $250 to a non-profit in honor of each transaction and Thalia Tringo & Associates Real Estate Inc. also gives $250 to a pre-selected group of local charities for each transaction. Visit our office, 128 Willow Avenue, on the bike path in Davis Square, Somerville.
JANUARY 14, 2019 - MARCH 10, 2019 ::: VOLUME 55 ::: SCOUTSOMERVILLE.COM
contents 6 // EDITOR’S NOTE 8 // WINNERS & LOSERS Plastic straws might be on their way out of the city, and Peruvian spot Celeste was named Best Restaurant of the Year by Eater Boston.
22
10 // WHAT’S NEW? Tasting Counter goes digital, Tufts goes solar, and recreational marijuana goes equitable. 28 // CALENDAR
FREE TIME FERVOR 14 // HOW TO KEEP YOUR VOICE STRONG WHEN YOU’RE VOICING DISSENT WholeTone Music Academy’s Protest Choir sings with purpose. 16 // THE ’VILLE GETS A NEW WINE HAVEN Joe’s Liquors’ wine destination is a family effort. 18 // GOING CARDBOARD IN THE DIGITAL AGE In tech-savvy Greater Boston, a whole culture has developed around board gaming. 22 // THE FEAST OF FRIENDSHIP These local women meet monthly to try recipes and build community. 26 // WINTER BUCKET LIST You can’t fight the cold, but you can embrace it with these ideas for local winter fun.
18
Photo, top: Women gather for Gourmet Night. Photo by Adrianne Mathiowetz. Photo, bottom: Board Game Bonanza at Aeronaut. Photo by Sasha Pedro. On the cover: Nora Maynard of WholeTone Music Academy. Photo by Sasha Pedro.
A board game, it’s much more of a social interaction. The game is the excuse to get together and talk and laugh and have a few drinks, in a way that’s really missing.
YOUR DENTAL HEALTH IS PART OF YOUR OVERALL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. START THE NEW YEAR OFF RIGHT WITH A DENTAL VISIT. THE REST OF YOUR BODY WILL BENEFIT!
DR. KATIE TALMO received her DMD from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in 2010. Upon graduation, she joined her father, Paul Talmo, in his practice located in the historic English Tudor house at 180 Highland Avenue on the corner of Highland Avenue and Benton Road. Dr. Talmo graduated first in her class from Tufts and continues to be involved in her alma mater where she teaches parttime as an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Comprehensive Care.
Her patient-centered treatment philosophy focuses on prevention and conservative treatment modalities. She is a member of the American Dental Association and the Massachusetts Dental Society and is a fellow of the International College of Dentists. She is engaged in the community, serving as the Advisory Committee Chair to Somerville High School’s Dental Assisting Program. Dr. Talmo also travels to the Dominican Republic to provide dental care as part of a global outreach mission project. Schedule an appointment to visit Dr. Talmo in her newly renovated office space.
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• FAMILY AND COSMETIC DENTISTRY • TEETH WHITENING • CROWN AND BRIDGE WORK • RESTORATION OF DENTAL IMPLANTS • VENEERS • CLEAR ORTHODONTIC ALIGNERS
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DR . K AT IE TALMO , D .M. D . • 6 1 7 . 8 6 4 . 6 1 1 1 • 1 8 0 HI G HL A ND AVE N U E
EDITOR’S NOTE
T
he people of Somerville are doing amazing things in their work lives, but we think that what you do outside of work is important enough to merit its own issue. After all, what’s a better indicator of what people care about than how they choose to spend their free time? People here push hard for the causes they care about, so we profiled a protest choir that helps people voice dissent (p.14). To unplug and destress, we found that people are flocking back to board games (p.18) and trying their hands at gourmet cooking (p.22). And for the wine lover, there’s a new liquor store Photo by Adrianne Mathiowetz. from an old favorite (p.16). Looking for something new in this city of endless activities? We put together a winter bucket list, full of ideas for what you can dive into even as the temperatures drop (p.26). Whether you see your passions highlighted here or find something new you want to get involved in, we appreciate you taking some of your free time to be here with us. Best,
Reena Karasin Reena Karasin, Editor-in-Chief rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com
PUBLISHER Holli Banks Allien hbanks@scoutmagazines.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Reena Karasin rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com ART DIRECTOR Nicolle Renick design@scoutmagazines.com renickdesign.com CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Jerry Allien jallien@scoutmagazines.com SCOUT FELLOW Alyssa Vaughn avaugh@scoutmagazines.com STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Sasha Pedro EDITORIAL INTERN Lilly Milman CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Catherine Seraphin, Emily Frost, Eric Francis, Jillian Kravatz CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Adrianne Mathiowetz, Irina M. / IM Creative Photography COPY EDITOR Joe Palandrani BANKS PUBLICATIONS 519 Somerville Ave, #314 Somerville, MA 02143 FIND US ONLINE scoutsomerville.com somervillescout
scoutsomerville scoutmags
Office Phone: 617-996-2283 Advertising inquiries? Please contact hbanks@scoutmagazines.com.
CORRECTION: The headline of the Davis Square neighborhood plan article in our Celebrating the Seasons issue mistakenly states that the plan had been finalized. In fact, the plan was still in draft form. Scout regrets this error. 6 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
GET A COPY Scout Somerville is available for free at more than 220 drop spots throughout the city (and just beyond its borders). Additionally, thousands of Somerville homes receive a copy in their mailbox each edition, hitting every neighborhood in the city throughout the year ... sometimes twice! You can sign up for home delivery by visiting scoutsomerville.com/shop.
T
he flavors of Greece can be found in Davis Square at Opa Greek Yeeros. Traditional dishes are served up daily by George and his crew with ingredients imported straight from Greece to ensure the authenticity and quality of every item on the menu. It’s not only the menu that is steeped in tradition; Opa is a family affair. George’s mother has owned and run Sophia’s Greek Pantry for over 15 years and now she keeps Opa stocked with homemade fresh Greek yogurt, delicious desserts and pastries.
We Cater
From roasted chicken and lamb to stuffed grape leaves and cheese platters, our comprehensive catering menu will wow your guests at any event. See our menu online at
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Work where you live, Live where you work.
GREAT BITES AT SOMERVILLE’S FAVORITE PLACE TO PEOPLE WATCH
• It takes a diverse community to run a vibrant hotel and we hope you’ll join our team. • Hiring Somerville Residents. • Full/Part Time Jobs, Flexible Schedules. • Comprehensive Benefits. • Hotel Room Discount Program Worldwide. STOP IN MONDAY – FRIDAY, 10 A.M. – 4 P.M.
Best Place to People Watch
PLUS: • TRIVIA TUESDAY • MUSIC BINGO THURSDAY
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(617) 628-2379
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to complete an application or visit us online: www.hospitalityonline.com/holiday-boston-somerville Part of the Somerville Community since 1974. Locally, Owned and Operated 30 WASHINGTON STREET SOMERVILLE, MA 02143 BOSTON BUNKER HILL
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W&L
WINNERS
LOSERS
FANS OF SHOPPING LOCAL While the ’Ville’s proposal for Amazon’s HQ2 certainly was alluring (More jobs! The Green Line Extension! Futuristic new buildings!), plenty of critics feared a hub for the tech giant would raise rents, crowd the T, and harm local business. Fortunately for those dissenters, Amazon announced in the fall that Somerville and Boston, which were both finalists, were passed over in favor of Long Island City, N.Y.. and Crystal City, Va. Celebrate by supporting your favorite local business, and by soaking up the Assembly Row and Union Square views that could have been lost to HQ2.
MAYOR CURTATONE Mayor Joseph Curtatone got one of the worst cases of shingles you can get in the fall, which landed him in the hospital for several days and cleared his public appearance schedule for weeks, according to the Somerville Patch. While not life-threatening, Curtatone’s case was severe, affecting his facial nerves and inner ear, which controls balance. He planned to wear an eye patch as he resumed his public duties, and he may still be months away from a full recovery, the Patch reports.
PAPER, BAMBOO, AND METAL STRAWS Now might be the time to invest in your very own reusable straw. Two years after the plastic bag ban, the city is taking plastic reduction to a new level by moving toward banning plastic straws and stirrers, the Somerville Journal reports. The ordinance, proposed by the Board of Aldermen’s Open Space, Environment, and Energy Committee, is still being revised and has not yet been moved to the general board, but it would essentially ban city facilities, food establishments, and schools from offering plastic straws (with the exception of medical facilities, for sanitary purposes). “I want to be careful about the language,” Alderman J.T. Scott said at the committee meeting, the Journal reports. “It would be great to have a list of exempt and included facilities.” CELESTE You may not have even noticed the 24-seat Peruvian outpost that opened in Union Square this year, but Esquire certainly did. On its annual list of “Best New Restaurants in America,” the magazine ranked Celeste as No. 5, saying that dinner there “is the most fun you’ll have anywhere within 20 miles of Boston.” The restaurant’s intimate, “dinner party” atmosphere, as Boston Globe food critic Devra First put it, sets it apart from the crowd, earning rave reviews in local outlets and the coveted Eater Boston Restaurant of the Year award.
TUFTS STUDENTS Tufts announced over the summer that starting in the 2019-2020 school year, students who live on campus will start paying different amounts for different dorm styles, the Medford Transcript reports. This “tiered housing” model sparked backlash from students and city officials, who believe the system will economically segregate the campus, with lower-income students being locked out of the nicest dorms. The Tufts Daily reports that 200 students staged a walkout and campus march in the fall in response to the policy. President of the Somerville Board of Aldermen Katjana Ballantyne was among the speakers to address the crowd at the march. That night, six students from the student organization Tufts Housing League slept in a cluster of tents they deemed “Tier Town,” a “visual representation of housing deficiencies on campus,” the Daily reported. SOMERVILLE HOSPITAL Two years after a series of failures at Somerville Hospital culminated in 34-yearold Laura Levis’s death outside the locked emergency room door, the hospital’s leaders are finally acknowledging their share of responsibility, the Boston Globe reports. The tragedy of Levis’s preventable death—from the 911 call that was answered by a regional dispatcher rather than Somerville Police, to the nurse who only looked outside for Levis for 12 seconds—was documented by her husband Peter DeMarco in a widely shared Boston Globe Magazine article this fall. Ten days after the story came out, the leaders of Somerville Hospital’s parent organization, Cambridge Health Alliance, sat down with DeMarco to apologize.
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES For even more Free Time stories, check out these online-exclusive articles on scoutsomerville.com.
THE LOCAL ACTIVISM INCUBATOR Indivisible Somerville fosters local activism by helping people mesh social action with their lives.
LONELY BARKS CLUB Petwell Supply offers speed dating for dog lovers.
THE COMMUNITY THAT GOES WITH THE FLOW Local flow artists spin fire, juggling pins, and more.
Someone rustle your jimmies or tickle your fancy?
Let us know at scoutsomerville.com/contact-us, and we just might crown them a winner or loser. 8 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
—BY ALYSSA VAUGHN
modern gifts for modern kids CLOTHES, TOYS, BOOKS AND MORE!
Best Kids Shop
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9
WHAT’S NEW
BY ALYSSA VAUGHN
CITY BEAT
EAST SOMERVILLE MAIN STREETS GETS A NEW DIRECTOR
E
ast Somerville Main Streets’ new director, Jennifer Atwood, is planning events, supporting small businesses, and fostering a sense of community. Atwood, who previously worked with the Mass Cultural Council, has several goals for the neighborhood, including getting East Somerville recognized as a cultural district. She aims to help the neighborhood through upcoming changes. “The Green Line Extension’s going to be changing a lot of things for the area, the improvements to the Kensington Underpass are eventually happening, and even the casino going in and the improvements that are going to be happening over at the Sullivan Square station—those are the big pillars of change that are happening,” Atwood told Scout.
TUFTS GROWS ITS SOLAR PROGRAM
Tufts is ready to soak up the sun. Over 200 solar panels were installed on the roof of Lewis Hall earlier this winter, the Tufts Daily reports. The panels will produce about 100,000 kilowatt hours of energy annually, saving the university $118,000 over the next 20 years. The Lewis Hall installation is part of a sweeping effort across campus to install solar panels, all in pursuit of Tufts’ goal of becoming carbonneutral by 2050. SPRING HILL
A NEW CHAPTER FOR THE SOMERVILLE HOME The Somerville Home, a residential care facility for senior citizens, closed after
10 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
91 years in operation this fall. However, the story isn’t over for the large Summer Street institution—according to the Somerville Times, the building will be renovated by Riverside Community Care, a nonprofit that provides “mental healthcare, developmental and brain injury services, youth and early childhood programs, addiction treatment, and trauma response” programming. The facility will house programs for adults, children, and families, and may one day contain a couple of apartments for individuals being served by the agency.
ALDERMEN MAKE MOVES TOWARD MARIJUANA EQUITY The Board of Aldermen is moving to ensure that there’s diversity within the city’s
emerging marijuana industry. Under a new ordinance, Boston. com reports, for the next two years the city will only approve marijuana businesses that fall into three categories: existing medical dispensaries; locally owned retailers; and “Economic Empowerment applicants”— retailers that are either majorityowned by or mostly employ people from communities disproportionately affected by previous drug law enforcement. Approvals also have to be given on an alternating basis, meaning that medical dispensaries cannot move ahead with offering recreational marijuana unless an equal number of locally owned or “Economic Empowerment” businesses get permits also. The goal of this policy is to “ensure that groups marginalized by the so-called War on Drugs, such as people of color, have equitable access to the new industry in Massachusetts,” Boston.com writes. DAVIS SQUARE
REPUBLICANS EYE ACTBLUE’S SUCCESS
One ripple in the blue wave originated right in Davis Square. The 98-employee nonprofit ActBlue processed so much cash in small-dollar donations that it earned the ire of post-midterm Republicans, according
to the Boston Globe. ActBlue reports that 4.8 million donors used its tools to donate $1.6 billion to Democratic candidates and leftist organizations during the 2018 election cycle, at an average donation amount of $40. After the election, GOP leaders said they desperately needed to figure out how to attract and wield online, small-dollar donations. However, they shouldn’t expect help from the ActBlue team: “I’m not interested in helping them kind of figure that out,” Executive Director Erin Hill told the Globe.
BOARD OF HEALTH RESTRICTS E-CIGARETTE SALES Parents of teens can breathe a sigh of relief. Earlier this winter, Somerville became the first municipality in Massachusetts to ban the sale of e-cigarettes and menthol cigarettes in businesses that are open to youth under the age of 21, the Somerville Journal reports. Starting on April 1, 2019, e-cigarettes and menthol cigarettes will only be available for purchase in 21-plus tobacco stores. This new regulation has emerged as teen e-cigarette use has sharply increased nationally (from 2.1 million in 2017 to 3.6 million this year), and as more information on the dangers of adolescent e-cigarette use has become available.
Photo, top left, courtesy of East Somerville Main Streets. Photo, top right, courtesy of Somerville Public Library. Photo, bottom right, courtesy of Sebastian Mariscal Studio.
CONSTRUCTION ZONES
DAVIS SQUARE
WEST BRANCH LIBRARY CLOSES FOR RENOVATIONS
Say goodbye to the peeling paint and leaky roof at the West Branch Library. Renovations to the 110-year-old building— which has a spot on the National Register of Historic Places—have finally been OK’d after a lengthy deliberation process, and are set to begin in January, according to the Somerville Times. The renovations will include new multipurpose spaces, a skylight on the second floor, an accessible entry, and increased programming for children and adults. Until the library reopens (slated for mid-2020), there will be a small, temporary branch located in the Tufts Administration Building—so there’s no excuse for overdue library books. POWDER HOUSE SQUARE
POWDER HOUSE COMMUNITY SCHOOL REDEVELOPMENT
COMING SOON
Redevelopment of the Powder House Community School is
officially underway. The school is being transformed into an “inclusive urban village,” according to the Boston Globe, meaning it will be a mix of residences, commercial outposts, a makerspace, and an alternative high school called “Powderhouse Studios.” To reinforce the “inclusive” part of the community, there will be affordable housing, live-and-work units for artists, and housing specifically designated for people 55 and over.
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THE GREEN LINE EXTENSION
The Green Line Extension project is still chugging along, with crews working on drainage installation, constructing noise, and retaining walls, Ward 5 Alderman Mark Niedergang wrote in an email to constituents. The dreaded one-year complete closure of the Broadway/Ball Square Bridge is scheduled for late February or early March. “Of course the absence of motor vehicle, bicycle, and pedestrian traffic in Ball Square will hurt the local businesses,” Niedergang MOVED wrote. “I encourage you to make Herculean efforts to patronize those local businesses.”
New Year calls for New Hair and visiting our new location! Opening Soon! Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates on our move! @hairbychristineandco BEST HAIR SALON: 2013–2018 BEST HAIR COLOR: 2016–2018 BEST HAIRCUT: 2016–2018
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11
WHAT’S NEW
FIRST COURSES
WINTER HILL
PROOF
P
ROOF isn’t your average liquor store. Now open in Winter COMING MOVED SOONcarries Hill, PROOF wine, beer, and spirits. It will also serve as a “gathering spot,” general manager Jay Cahill told Boston Magazine, complete with an extensive programming calendar. Come to buy booze, stay for cupcake decorating, cigar rolling, or a cooking demonstration.
TASTING COUNTER GOES DIGITAL
Nabbing a seat at the 20-seat bar at the renowned Tasting Counter can sometimes be a gamble—but now, you can experience some of the restaurant’s unique flavors at home. Tasting Counter has launched a retail website, TC Market, where their house-made condiments are up for sale, Boston Magazine reports. A wide variety of Tasting Counter’s 12 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
signature funky flavors are yours for the taking, from “craft beer malt vinegar” to “lacto-fermented hot sauce.” UNION SQUARE
SAUS
Saus, the downtownBoston eatery known for its beer, fries, and extensive list of dipping COMING MOVED sauces, has crossed the Charles SOON and landed in a colorful corner of Bow Market. However, this
second location comes with a twist: Everything on the menu, from the burger to the chili dog, is vegetarian, and can be made vegan upon request, according to Eater Boston. That means you can dive into a pile of poutine without breaking your healthy New Year’s Resolution (right?). DAVIS SQUARE
GENKI YA
Popular local chain Genki Ya has brought its sushi to Davis Square, Eater Boston COMING MOVED reports. Known forSOON its extensive menu and customizable options, the Davis Genki Ya also has a liquor license and a full bar. This is the chain’s fifth location in the Greater Boston area, with
other locations in Brookline, Cambridge, Boston, and Dedham. UNION SQUARE
JULIET DISHES OUT AFFORDABLE DINING
Juliet, the Union Square outpost that is constantly playing with the way restaurants are run (see: its no-tipping policy and its calendar of rotating dining experiences), has found a way to make its upscale fare accessible to a wider audience. Through a partnership with Food for All, the Cambridge-born app that allows restaurants to sell food (often what’s leftover) at discounted prices, Juliet will make five meals available four nights a week
Photo, top, courtesy of PROOF. Photo, bottom, by Reena Karasin.
for only $6. The meals will be available for pickup between the hours of 8 and 10 p.m. DAVIS SQUARE
REVIVAL
While Cambridge lost its beloved Crema Cafe, partner Steve Postal promised in a COMING MOVED column for Eater Boston the SOON that cafe’s soul will live on in Revival, a venture from the Crema team now open in Davis Square. Like the other Revival location, which opened in mid-2018 in Alewife, the Davis spot will serve breakfast, lunch, and coffee, with a rotating list of specials.
TWO NEW INDIAN TAKEOUT SPOTS
Temperatures are plummeting, and who are we kidding—these are the peak months of the year for ordering delivery from the couch. Luckily, the city is gaining not one, but two new Indian takeout spots to spice up this cold season, Eater Boston reports. For Spring Hill residents, there’s now Curry Express, which boasts a wide menu including momo, curry, and tandoori dishes. Union Square residents will get Masala Square, which will serve Indian and Nepali fare in the former Godavari Mini space.
UNION SQUARE
URBAN AXES
U
nion Square’s
COMING MOVED new, SOONmuch-
anticipated watering hole is providing a new way to entertain yourself as you drink: axe throwing. Initially popularized in Canada, the sport is simple: chuck 1.5-pound hatchets at a wooden target. Basically a cooler, scarier game of darts. Groups of at least six can reserve a 2.5-hour slot to get their lumberjack on, and smaller squads are encouraged to take advantage of walk-in hours. Nervous about what might happen when you combine beer and a sharp weapon? Never fear, training coaches are spread throughout the facility to keep an eye on the flying axes.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.” An excerpt from E.F. Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered
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scoutsomerville.com | Free Time Fervor 13
FREE TIME FERVOR
HOW TO KEEP YOUR VOICE STRONG WHEN YOU’RE VOICING DISSENT WHOLETONE MUSIC ACADEMY’S PROTEST CHOIR SINGS WITH PURPOSE BY REENA KARASIN PHOTO BY SASHA PEDRO
T
he Protest Choir sounds soulful. “May the life I lead / Speak for me / May the life I lead / Speak for me / When I come to the end of the road / And I lay down my heavy load / May the life I lead / Speak for me.” The choir was made up of queer- and trans-identifying individuals and people of color. They gathered at WholeTone Music Academy in the spring of 2017 to learn how to amplify their voices—both literally and in effect. The power comes through on the recordings that remain from the Protest Choir’s first run. But to see the songs in person, or with the energy of a rally to tap into, could only magnify their impact. Like so many others, Nora Maynard was spurred into 14 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
action by President Donald Trump’s election. The founder of WholeTone Music Academy went to Standing Rock to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline, and when she returned to Somerville, she looked to what she could do at home. “I felt like I needed my work to be a little bit more politically oriented,” Maynard says. “I realized that one thing I could offer would be a way to help people who were protesting not lose their voices. I went to a bunch of marches, and realized that almost all the time, I heard the person on the megaphone losing their voice.” She originally thought she could give free voice lessons to organizers—which, she notes, she would still be happy to offer—but that plan morphed into the Protest Choir. Maynard thought singing could help build solidarity among protesters, and even sidetrack counter-protesters. Maynard chose to limit who the first iteration of the choir was meant for: “It was only for people who were queer, trans, and people of color, because I felt that’s where there was the most need, and those are people who have been politically engaged for the longest, and whose voices I want to amplify the most.” The Protest Choir sessions were made up of three parts: a body mapping and awareness workshop, “a vocal workout,” and time to sing march songs, Maynard explains. The Protest Choir was exactly what Anaís Azul needed. She was frustrated with a system at her college that meant she couldn’t take voice lessons—even though she was studying music composition and loved singing. In the choir and in Maynard, she found the opportunity for vocal growth. Azul ended up taking voice lessons with Maynard for a year, and now works at WholeTone. As an undergrad at the time, she couldn’t pay for the lessons, but cooked Maynard food in exchange. That’s a trend that holds true for the choir: No one will be turned away because they can’t pay—just discuss a barter with Maynard. Azul got the chance to apply what she’s learned when she was asked to lead songs at a
rally decrying the deportation of Moroccan native Siham Byah. The 2017 deportation separated Byah, a single mother, from her then8-year-old son, according to the Boston chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. The cause is particularly meaningful to Azul, who is an immigrant. “I sang a song I had written called ‘Listen,’ which is a protest song about being an immigrant in the Trump era,” Azul says. “I felt like I couldn’t have done that without Nora, I couldn’t have done that without the awareness she gave me of my body.” “To lead songs and hold space for that creativity to blossom in a place that can be really, really infuriating—when you’re in a protest, you’re either very sad, or angry, or something like that—the music brings a sense of peace,” she adds. “And so to be able to bring that, and to have such a positive response from folks at the rally, was really beautiful. And it was just with my voice.” Maynard says she’s attended a handful of marches with people from the choir, including a 2017 climate rally and a 2018 march in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Maynard is gearing up for a second round of the Protest Choir, which starts Feb. 6. She plans to do 12 weekly sessions, and alternate meetups between all-inclusive lessons and sessions intended specifically for queer or trans individuals or people of color. The choir will meet on Wednesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m., but Maynard is still working to find a location that has an accessible bathroom. Each session will cost $10 to $30 on a sliding scale, but Maynard asks that anyone who can’t afford to pay talks to her about a barter. You don’t have to be a trained singer to be part of the choir, Maynard emphasizes—if you “feel like you can sing along with the radio,” you’ll be just fine. “Finding the Protest Choir, and finding Nora, was honestly life changing,” Azul says. “She really holds spaces for growth, spaces that don’t make you feel like anyone is trying to be better than anyone else. We’re all just here to support each other and grow and sound together.”
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The ’Ville Gets A New Wine Haven JOE’S LIQUORS WINE DESTINATION IS A FAMILY EFFORT BY EMILY FROST | PHOTOS BY SASHA PEDRO
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aul Robichaud admits it’s an unlikely combination: an encyclopedic knowledge of tools and a deep appreciation and understanding of fine wine. “Not everyone understood how you could be in the tool business and know about wine,” he says. “It was hard to explain to anyone.” But the pairing made him a fixture in his neighborhood of East Somerville for a generation as the owner of a tool shop and a neighboring liquor store. His family is counting on extending his legacy with their new venture—a larger liquor store that aims to impress with the family’s knowledge and broad selection of wines.
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t’s a chilly December afternoon, and the sun is already setting as Robichaud, 70, surveys his revamped retail space along a busy stretch of Broadway. His eyes settle on a white sign at the back of the store with red hand lettering that reads “ROBI TOOL SALES.” The sign is a reminder of what the space used to hold: Robichaud’s decadesold tool store that survived the arrival of Home Depot in the neighborhood. Recognizing that he can’t put in the same long hours anymore, Robichaud decided to close the doors at 168 Broadway last January. But the old space didn’t stay dark for long. In its place, Robichaud has transplanted his other business, Joe’s Liquors, from across the street at 160 Broadway. The relaunch mixes the familiar and the new, and that’s how the family wants it, Robichaud says. For one thing, it will keep the same name, Joe’s Liquors—an homage to Robichaud’s father, Joe. Robichaud is adamant that’ll never change, despite the new emphasis on wine. Regulars of the 21-yearold liquor store will still find Robichaud near the counter, ready to talk about the latest case of Bordeaux he’s acquired (his favorite blend) and sporting the cap of one of his three children’s alma maters. But they’ll more frequently be guided by two of Robichaud’s children, Colleen Robichaud-Mountzouros, 27, and PJ Robichaud, 31, who are taking on larger roles at the new store. “We don’t want to be the local nip and beer store,” says Robichaud-Mountzouros. “We want to be the nice store that all the locals want to come into.” Whereas in the old location you’d have to know there was a room dedicated to wine and seek it out, in the new location the bottles are displayed on handcrafted wooden shelves and along easily accessible aisles. The layout is less of a labyrinth and will help highlight what’s available, says Robichaud-Mountzouros. Robichaud-Mountzouros learned about wine from an early age, always taking sips of what her parents were drinking, and year by year, developing her palate. She’s also taken wine courses through
The Court of Master Sommeliers. Her father had a much more on-the-job wine education as a 21-year-old assistant to the wine stewards at Anthony’s Pier 4, which in its heyday was one of the most successful restaurants in the country, Robichaud-Mountzouros says. Because cork technology was not as advanced in the early ’70s, waiters would taste every bottle before serving it to customers. “I would taste sometimes 200 different wines in one night,” says Robichaud. “It was a crash course in the greatest wines that were made.” While there’s always been a selection of customers in the know who come in seeking the older, more expensive wines that Robichaud collects, the base of customers interested in mid-priced wines has grown in recent years. His children have helped him adapt to the new demand. “Dad had this opinion that the only wines that sell were under $8 or over $50, nothing in between,” says Robichaud-Mountzouros. Robichaud-Mountzouros has a broader taste than her dad does, she says. At the expanded shop, there are $500 bottles of wines and $10 bottles, too. There will be weekly tastings on Friday evenings, and often on Saturdays as well. And she’ll shepherd customers based on their interests, encouraging them to branch out and try new bottles. Robichaud-Mountzouros is confident in her suggestions because there’s not a bottle in the store she can’t personally vouch for, she says. “I try not to drink the same thing twice. And that’s my advice to customers ... As you get more comfortable, go more broad,” she says. Robichaud believes that what kept his tool shop alive and well in spite of competition from big box retailers like Home Depot is also what will keep Joe’s Liquors afloat. “With the big boxes, with every strength you have a weakness. Their weakness is a lack of knowledge. There’s room for someone who really specializes,” he says. Bigger wine stores also have the pressure to move product faster, he adds. “If there’s a great vintage, I’ll buy what I can and I’ll hold it back
and try to build a library of the great vintages,” says Robichaud. “People come, and they’re amazed at what we have.” As a small store, Joe’s Liquors can buy smaller quantities of rarer, more interesting wines, he adds. “What we’re interested in is the uniqueness of the products that we sell. Many times they’re not widely available.” Robichaud has a deep and long-held interest in Bordeauxs and Champagnes. He also knows his Sauternes—and his passion is reflected in the wines he collects and sells. The store carries bottles of 2000 Bordeauxs, which Robichaud-Mountzouros describes as “one of the best, at least in my lifetime,” as well as bottles of 2001 Rieussec, a Sauterne that was named Wine of the Year by Wine Spectator in 2004. Robichaud reads French newspapers and studies factors like the weather and the local economy to decide which wines to buy. “My dad has this uncanny ability to choose wines that are going to be extremely long living,” Robichaud-Mountzouros says. “That’s something you have to learn from experience. You can’t learn [that] from a book.” “With Sauternes, we have one of the best collections you’ll find outside some of the biggest hubs in the world,” she adds. To be known as a destination for specialty wines in the greater Boston area while at the same time remaining friendly and welcoming is the sweet spot where the Robichaud family wants to land. “We want to make sure we’re welcoming our neighbors. We want to hear about their kids or their sister’s new house,” says Robichaud-Mountzouros. While Robichaud isn’t going anywhere, he knows he can’t work all day, seven days a week anymore. But he’s confident his kids are ready to step in and that he’s handing them a solid business. For her part, RobichaudMountzouros acknowledges she has huge shoes to fill and many, many more stories to amass. “It’s been a journey, but I’ll be honest, it’s been fun,” says Robichaud.
scoutsomerville.com | Free Time Fervor
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GOING CARDBOARD IN THE DIGITAL AGE IN TECH-SAVVY GREATER BOSTON, A WHOLE CULTURE HAS DEVELOPED AROUND BOARD GAMING BY ERIC J. FRANCIS | PHOTOS BY SASHA PEDRO
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op into Aeronaut Brewing Company on a Monday night, grab a lager or an IPA, and let Christine Platzek introduce you to some of the regulars. Maybe the ones who are trying to plant the best bean fields, or those desperate to sort out which people around the table are actually fascists trying to bring Hitler to power in Weimar-era Germany. For almost two years, Monday night has been board gaming night at Aeronaut. Platzek, who lives in Somerville, is the volunteer organizer who got it started and continues to shepherd it along, as sometimes 50 or more gamers crowd around tables to play games like Bohnanza (the bean-planting
18 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
card game), Secret Hitler (from the same people who created Cards Against Humanity), and dozens of others. “People are very welcoming, it’s not a very competitive gaming community,” says Platzek of the crowd, about half of whom are regulars on any given night. “The purpose is to meet people.” They’re people like Alex Fern Gilkeson, who found a community here shortly after moving to Boston. “I came to the city knowing nobody, and I’m an extravert who goes a little crazy if I don’t get out every once in awhile,” says Gilkeson. “I need to socialize. I love board games, I like meeting new people, so
I made the trek out one week about two-and-half months ago, and have been coming every week since then.” It’s much the same for Robert Berlet, who has been coming for more than three years. “It’s mainly the community,” says Berlet, who developed a love of board gaming as a kid. “It’s hard to find a 10-person game of Secret Hitler, even if you have a lot of friends who game. It’s a nice crowd, the games are great, and the beer is good.” “I think it continues to grow and develop in a way I’m really proud of,” says Platzek, “with a good number of new people and a good number of people who come in week after week.”
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he popularity of board gaming among denizens of a tech hub like Greater Boston may not be the contradiction it seems at first. In fact, it’s a natural bridge between the impersonal digital world and the face-to-face reality of the analog world, according to journalist David Sax, author of the 2016 book “The Revenge of Analog.” “What’s interesting is many of these people are the same people who play multiplayer video games at home over the internet,” says Sax. “The difference is, with that you’re really just playing a game. But in a board game, it’s much more of a social interaction. The game is the excuse to get together
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and talk and laugh and have a few drinks, in a way that’s really missing.” For those who don’t have their noses stuck in modern board gaming, it may come as a surprise just how many new titles come out each year. For example, at the annual International Spieltage in Essen, Germany this past October, over a thousand new board games were announced or released. Visit BoardGameGeek.com, the largest internet board gaming resource, and you’ll find that many gamers have hundreds of titles in their personal collections. The market is so lively that when Porter Square Books had the opportunity to open a holiday pop-up shop at the Porter Square Shopping Center between Thanksgiving and Christmas, they partnered with the Cambridge Arts Council to open seven stalls featuring local artists, and one for the bookstore that focused on board games. “We all love games, but we don’t have room in the store to carry [many of] them,” says Dina Mardell, the manager and coowner. “So we thought this was a great idea.” Asked for her own recommendation, she quickly named a recent spinoff of the 2015 word-sleuthing game Codenames, which was a mega-hit for veteran Czech designer Vlaada Chivátil, called Codenames: Duet. 20 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
“Oh, my gosh, it’s so good!” Mardell exclaims. “First of all, you can play it with two players, but you can also play with a bigger group as a co-op. It’s a hot seller.” Cooperative games, or coops, are an increasingly popular segment in the industry. Instead of playing against one another, everyone is working toward the same goal, so either you all win or you all lose. Arguably the most popular of those is Pandemic, where players are fighting global outbreaks of four diseases, trying to find cures before they run out of time and resources. It was one of the pop-up shop’s best-sellers. Another Mardell recommends is Mysterium. Originally published in Poland, this game casts one player as a silent ghost who communicates through dreams by passing out cards with images. The other players are investigators who try to solve the mystery of the ghost’s murder by interpreting those images and determining who did it, how, and where. Sound like the old standby Clue? Sure… if Clue had gotten degrees in fine arts, theater, and psychology. Sax devoted a full chapter of his book to board games, and did a lot of his research at Snakes & Lattes, a board game café in Toronto. He says such cafés are becoming the Third Space for gamers,
a term coined by the critical theorist Homi K. Bhabha to describe a place (after home and work) where people regularly gather and interact. “These board game cafés … have really become the kind of hubs of social interactions, of friendships, of community,” says Sax— and that makes them an antidote to the “epidemic of loneliness” that is proliferating in many parts of the developed world. “With something like board games, the games are kind of, ‘Hey, let’s do this thing. It’s just a bunch of cardboard. But, you know, we’ll get to see each other and talk to each other and feel a sense of belonging to a group.’” The Boston area has its own Third Spaces of that stripe, in the form of the Knight Moves board game cafés in Somerville and Brookline. Think coffee shop but with more table space and a huge lending library of board games, which are all-you-can-play for a cover charge of $5 Monday through Wednesday or $10 Thursday through Sunday. “People have said I’m kind of like a sommelier of games,” says owner Devon Trevelyan, who opened the Brookline site in 2013 and Somerville three years later. A product of the tech scene himself—he worked for Harmonix Music Systems —Trevelyan is also a lifelong gamer. Between contracts with Harmonix, he would work at Eureka! Puzzles on Beacon Street, where he eventually helped start an event-based board game service that brings games to parties, corporate events, bar mitzvahs, and the
like and teaches people how to play them. That became a huge chunk of Eureka’s business, but Trevelyan wanted to try something new and took the plunge with Knight Moves (the name an homage to his past as a competitive chess player). “It turns out the reason I’ve been able to stay in business for five years is that people crave faceto-face interaction—a social way to get together that doesn’t really exist anymore,” he says. “I think it’s kind of a renaissance period where people are intrigued and want to learn how to play games and be close to someone, without being on your phone.” Given that, it’s probably not surprising that he often sees customers at his cafés who are there on dates. “A lot of people will see our good reviews, then go on OK Cupid and say, ‘Let’s meet there,’” says Trevelyan. Which is a great thing … it’s much more engaging to see who someone is in how you work together, how you tackle problems. You learn a lot more about someone playing a game than you do having dinner—you still talk, but it’s much more open.” Even five years after opening the first Knight Moves café, Trevelyan says he gets the exact same feelings of satisfaction when someone walks through his doors for the first time and asks about board games. “People have weird ideas of what board games should be, and any time I teach a game, it’s about choices. You’re given agency to make something happen, and people are always surprised that’s what it is about,” he says. “I think that is just the tip of the iceberg, and opens up the horizon to the fact there’s a community that exists that plays board games.”
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Davis Square – Winter Hill – Prospect Hill Eser (Hebrew for 10) brings together individuals in their 20s and 30s for conversations about diverse topics including race, love and sex, the passage of time, the Holocaust, bioethics, Jewish humor and more, while building connections and community. Eser welcomes participants from all religious, political, gender, and economic backgrounds. No prior formal Jewish education or knowledge of Hebrew is required. All classes meet from 7-9 pm - March thru May - Program Fee: $95* Registration: register.hebrewcollege.edu/eser-2019 *The program fee should not be an obstacle to participation. For scholarship information: email Sara at eser@hebrewcollege.edu
• A special place to celebrate your life cycle events: Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Baby Namings, Weddings, etc. • Adult Education – Spring semester registering soon for March! • Young adult programming – for info email TBB20s30s@gmail.com • Weekly Children’s School K-8 (monthly pre-K) • Weekly Torah Study: 8:00am Tuesdays at Porter Square Panera (no Hebrew needed) • Monthly Song of the Heart – Come sing with us! • Monthly Book Group, 7:00pm at Porter Square
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BY ERIC J. FRANCIS | PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ
T The Feast of
FRIENDSHIP Local women meet monthly to try recipes and build community 22 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
he tables are covered in butcher paper that’s tied on with blue-and-white strings, just like the boxes that come from Mike’s Pastry in Harvard Square. There are many flavors of Polar seltzer, bottled by the Crowley family of Worcester. And soon, more than a dozen friends from all over Greater Boston will converge on Emerald Miller’s home in Somerville, bearing dishes that originated in or were inspired by Boston, the city she loves so much. For six years, Miller has been part of Gourmet Night, a group of women that meets every month to try new, gourmet dishes based upon a common theme. It’s the host’s prerogative to choose it, and for December Miller chose Boston—
because in January, her family is moving to Kansas City, where her husband, Josh, is starting a new job. “It’s bittersweet, leaving Boston,” says Miller from her kitchen, an aromatic spiced cider simmering on the stove. “I love this place.” Thus the Mike’s Pastry table dressing, an homage to her favorite local bakery. And the Polar water, which she was relieved to learn can be bought locally in Kansas City. And the friends: Women she’s come to know and love as she’s shared a table with them month after month, year after year, trying new cuisines and new techniques. “On my checklist for leaving Boston, this gourmet night was No. 1,” Miller says. “It’s a good way to say goodbye to people I’m close to.” Gourmet Night was started in March 2010 by three Cambridge friends—Malia Morris, Jen Smith, and Alicia Galbraith. In fact, it was Morris, who now lives in California,
who invited Miller to her first dinner in 2012. She says the group “just sort of happened naturally.” “We all liked to cook individually, and had been a part of dinner clubs before,” she says, “but we were looking for something a little more tailored, a little more technical.”
made in 30 minutes with on-hand ingredients; and esoteric themes like hipster food and … toast. If this sounds like just the thing you’ve been looking for, well, we’re afraid Gourmet Night will have to RSVP its regrets—they’re full up. However, Miller is quick to say that anyone interested in bringing
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What they found was also special, says Morris, because while she’s tried to start up similar groups in other cities since leaving Cambridge, they never quite took off. “I think the sort of magic thing about the Boston group is that it’s really founded first on friendship,” she says. “It’s ultimately a place for women to come and be in a safe place and be creative—the food is a great byproduct of it.” Over the years, members of Gourmet Night have picnicked on top of the Tufts University library, cooked in the MIT basement common room, and held a Harry Potter-themed dinner in the dining hall of Harvard’s Dunster House. In honor of Valentine’s Day, each February they invite their husbands to come to Gourmet Night—and feature themes like Flirtations and Made For Each Other. They have ventured to Italy, Mexico, Spain, the southern United States, and other regions of the world; tackled challenges like allergenfree recipes or dishes that can be
friends together to step up their culinary game should follow @BostonGourmetNight on Instagram to ask questions about how they can go about starting their own club. “We’d love to share our tips on themes and guidelines to make a successful Gourmet Night,” Miller says. “I only say that because ... I think we’ve reached a maximum. I don’t know if our Boston apartments can fit much more.” For December’s Boston night, the members didn’t go for low-hanging fruit like cream pie or baked beans. The menu is remarkably varied, and as each dish is introduced, its cook is eager to talk about what they made and why. “I brought some crab cakes, which are only loosely associated with Boston … but it’s a very forgiving crowd,” says Zanny Perrino, who lives in Reading. Her crab cake recipe doesn’t include eggs, so she warns the group that they’ll be crumbly, and she says the sauce of avocado and habanero pepper “tastes like frosting, but is actually good
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with crab cakes.” And you know what? That’s exactly how it comes across: Creamy and sweet, but with a hint of warmth that really complements the crab. B. Swain, who lives in Arlington, created a boysenberry, beet, and blackberry salad inspired by fresh ingredients from farmers markets. She roasted the beets in a salt mound with horseradish, orange zest, and thyme from her garden. It was served on a bed of quinoa with crushed pistachio, and offered a remarkable medley of flavors. “The thing I loved from the beginning is being pushed to expand my culinary skills,” says Swain, who was invited to her first Gourmet Night eight years ago. “I wanted to learn how to do pastries, create cream sauces. Every time I go, someone brings something new to the table— there’s something to learn.” It was just the second Gourmet Night for Lauren Neeleman, who recently moved from Utah to Belmont and was invited by her roommate, Jeralee Johnson. Neeleman brought lobster mac ’n’ cheese with four cheeses and a homemade sauce. “I love food and having an excuse to make gourmet food,” she says. “The last time I made a kale and wild rice salad. The secret is massaging the kale by hand.” Johnson’s contribution was a focaccia inspired by Not Your Average Joe’s, with two dipping sauces: one with olive oil, parmesan, garlic, herbs, and red pepper flakes, the other a peach melba jam with raspberries. Johnson says her first impression of Gourmet Night was that “this is a bunch of moms who want someone to appreciate their food.” And that sentiment gets quick support from several other members. Husbands and kids, it seems, don’t always notice when you’ve mastered a new technique or discovered a creative ingredient substitution. But during this dinner, everyone is effusive with their praise of each dish, and full of questions about how it was made. For Swain, “This is a moment to shine and be praised by your peers.” Peers and, more importantly, good friends. Each woman who 24 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
walks through the door adds to a growing emotional warmth, and everyone wants their turn to give Miller a hug and tell her how much they’ll miss her. “I will fly to Kansas City to have you do my hair,” says Rachael Young as soon as she walks in, adding, “She’s the only person I let cut my hair.” Young has brought salmon poached in thyme milk, served with watercress oil and confit radishes in a reduced balsamic glaze. It’s her fifth year of Gourmet Night, and she loves it. “It’s a fun way not only to get together with women we love to see, but cooking something I don’t normally cook on a day-to-day basis,” Young says. “It’s a way to push myself a little more than I would.” Every dish, from Ashley Dickson’s roasted balsamic cranberry and brie crostini to Julie Haun’s stuffed quahogs, is met with enthusiasm and undisguised interest. The Polar seltzer water flows and the conversation never abates, save for when someone is telling the story behind her dish. As it nears 10 p.m., Emerald Miller closes out her final Gourmet Night dinner with chocolate macarons and orange scones. But it may not actually be the last time these passionate cooks get together. “We’re hoping to schedule a reunion in 10 years, and invite everyone who’s ever come,” she says. “We have people in Florida, in California...” And, as of January, in Kansas City.
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SWEAT IT OUT
Be. In Union hosts yoga classes with a twist—a twist of the thermostat dial, that is. The studio offers a blast of heat for beginner and expert yogis alike, with classes heated between 80 and 95 degrees. The heat is a blessing for cold, tight muscles. If a high-temp workout sounds intimidating, ease in with the studio’s restorative yoga class. Instructor Kristi McNeil guides students with feel-good poses, essential oils, and an extra-long savasana (yoga-talk for lying down and relaxing) with bolsters, blocks, and blankets at your disposal.
FIND YOUR INNER ADAM RIPPON Any local knows the nightmare of dodging tourists in below-freezing temperatures while skating on the famous frog pond at the Boston Common. Avoid the crowds, cold weather, and commute by skating at the Veteran’s Memorial Skating Rink in Somerville. The rink is open to the public Monday through Thursday 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., Friday 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and Sunday 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. If you prefer pucks over public skates, check out the StinkySocks adult hockey league. The league offers a range of commitment levels, from game-by-game play to travel tournaments, and plays regularly at the Veteran’s Memorial Skating Rink.
CABERNETAWAY THE COLD Since its opening last fall, Bow Market’s wine bar Rebel Rebel has poured a steady stream of natural wine (read: no chemicals, no filtering, and no added sulfites). This hangout isn’t just focused on drinking wine, though—it’s made educating future connoisseurs a priority, too. Rebel Rebel hosts events regularly, including Meet Your Wine(maker) gatherings and a themed Natural Wine 101 workshop every Sunday. Some previous topics have included orange wine, California wine, and blind tastings. Bonus? There’s outdoor seating with heat lamps, and they even provide blankets— both solid and liquid.
GET CRAFTY The Somerville Public Library brought back a popular winter event series this year: Getting Cozy at the Library. Held on the first Sunday of every month at 2 p.m., the event is inspired by hygge—a Danish word and concept that emphasizes cozy, comforting moments amidst the dark days of winter. What better way to get your hygge on than an adults-only craft day? BYO project, or use the supplies available at the library. Hot cocoa is provided, and cozy attire including hats, warm socks, and scarves is encouraged. February’s craft event will be making pop-up Valentines. 26 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
Be. In Union photo by Lena Weiss. Wine bar photo courtesy of Rebel Rebel. Get Crafty photo courtesy of the Somerville Public Library. Taza Chocolate photo by Michael Piazza. Farmers Market photo courtesy of the Somerville Winter Farmers Market.
CHOCOLATE BEATS THE CHILL Taza Chocolate doesn’t have to be reserved for those holiday cookies you made in December. Swing by the factory to take a tour, learn about the chocolatemaking process, and shop their factory store. Once your kitchen is stocked, check out their website for recipes to beat the cold weather, including Mexican hot chocolate, bourbon truffles, paleo brownies, or even short rib chocolate chili. Cocoa is a go.
GET TROPICAL WITHOUT THE AIRFARE It’s warm. You’re surrounded by friends. You have a cold, tropical drink in your hand. Are you on the beach in Hawaii? Nope. You’re at Tiki Mondays at Highland Kitchen. A Highland Ave. highlight on everyone’s least favorite day, Tiki Mondays feature a special menu of tropical drinks, with daiquiris, rum cocktails, cocktail umbrellas, and tiki-man glasses. As an added bonus, the restaurant also serves its award-winning buttermilk fried chicken to add some Southern comfort to your frozen soul.
SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL FARMERS
Farmers markets are often reserved for the warmer days of spring, summer, and fall. But for Somerville residents, it’s a year-round affair. The Somerville Winter Farmers Market is held on Saturdays through April 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Center for Arts at the Armory. Expect some familiar faces from the Union Square Farmers Market selling fresh produce, cheese, meat, baked goods, and more. Sprinkle in some live music and cafes, and you’ve got yourself one delicious and productive Saturday morning—all under one roof.
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SHARE THAT POST-FLOAT WITH SOMEONE YOU
BRING A FRIEND! 2 90-MIN FLOATS
$130
515 MEDFORD ST (MAGOUN SQUARE) • 844-44-FLOAT
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scoutsomerville.com | Free Time Fervor 27
CALENDAR
JAN. 17 | FOOD & ENTERTAINMENT
Photo courtesy of the Rockwell.
FEB. 1 | THEATER
SMOKE & SHADOWS: SUPPER CLUB 7 p.m., $85 Saloon—255 Elm St., Somerville Anything that’s a joint venture between Saloon and the Rockwell is sure to be a treat. Top Shelf Burlesque dancers will perform in tandem with a three-course dinner (and a cocktail paired with each course). The dinner and entertainment combine into a “journey from preprohibition vaudeville through the glamorous sounds and styles of the 20th century,” according to the Rockwell.
SUITCASE STORIES 8 p.m., $27 The Somerville Theatre— 55 Davis Square, Somerville The Boston Globe has assembled a night of live storytelling that “exposes the complexity of immigrant experiences through personal narratives.” Fittingly, some of the proceeds will go toward services for local immigrants and refugees.
FEB. 2 | FOOD
JAN. 19 | NATURE
WINTER BIRD WALKS 8 to 9:30 a.m., $12 for non-members Mount Auburn Cemetery— 580 Mount Auburn St., Cambridge An upside to winter: spotting local birds is easier without leaves on trees or “the distractions of the migrating birds,” the Friends of Mount Auburn point out. They recommend bringing binoculars and wearing warm clothing for this event.
Photo courtesy of the Harvard Square Business Association.
FEB. 8-9 | DANCE
JAN. 25-27 | FOOD
Photo by Bill Manley.
TASTE OF CHOCOLATE WEEKEND Free Harvard Square Restaurants and retailers will have chocolate on the brain for Harvard Square’s annual chocolate festival. Last year’s event offered chocolate appetizers, chocolate cocktails, and chocolate entrees, plus a free chocolate tasting on Brattle Plaza.
Photo courtesy of Aeronaut.
Photo courtesy of The Dance Complex.
NACHMO! BOSTON 8 p.m., $12 online, $15 at the door The Dance Complex— 536 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge January is National Choreography Month (NACHMO), which means February’s the time to reap the rewards of the flurry of creativity. The pieces featured at this show will be wide ranging in terms of style and format, but they’ll all be choreographed by local artists.
FEB. 16 | FOOD
O.N.C.E IN VALHALLA 7 p.m. to 1 a.m., $100 O.N.C.E. Somerville— 156 Highland Ave., Somerville Ten courses of delicious food. Viking lore. Mead and ale. “Song, story, and feats of strength and daring.” This annual event from O.N.C.E. Somerville is sure to delight the foodie and the mythology nerd alike.
WINTER BBQ CLASS WITH ANDY HUSBANDS 12 to 3 p.m., $100 The Smoke Shop BBQ— 325 Assembly Row, Somerville Like wings? Learn to make them from the master. Test out signature rubs—Dalmatian Rub, Zesty Rosemary Rub, and Competition Style Rub—plus try your hand at making your own. Bonus: taste a winter whiskey cocktail.
FEB. 1 | MUSIC & DANCE
FEB. 16 | MUSIC & DANCE
JAN. 26 | FOOD & ENTERTAINMENT
Photo courtesy of O.N.C.E. Somerville.
“SOME LIKE IT HOT” CHILI COOK-OFF 1 to 2:30 p.m., Free Harvard Square It may be cold outside, but Harvard Square thinks some chili could warm you up. This free, annual event will have a wide range of chilis, including “super spicy” and vegan varieties.
FIRST FRIDAY FLAMENCO 8:30 to 11:30 p.m., Free Aeronaut Brewing Company— 14 Tyler St., Somerville Flamenco Boston will bring traditional flamenco dance and music to Aeronaut. Can’t make it on Feb. 1? You’re in luck— Flamenco Boston comes to the brewery every first Friday.
28 Free Time Fervor | scoutsomerville.com
BALKAN BEAT PARTY 7 to 10:30 p.m., $20 Arts at the Armory— 191 Highland Ave., Somerville This “celebration of the music and dance of the Balkan peoples” will feature artists Sarma and Gogofski. Take a dance lesson from 7 to 8 p.m., then party for the rest of the night.
Burritos
$7.50 $7.50 $7.50 $7.50 $7.50 $8.50
$7.50 $7.50 $3.00 $4.00 $3.50 $5.50 $1.00 $6.50 $6.50 $3.50
$6.00 $4.00 $3.50 $4.50
$1.00 $2.80 $2.50 $2.00
LATIN AMERICAN FOOD ALSO AVAILABLE
Fried Dough (mini) Homemade Cake Gelato / Ice Cream Tiramisu
Desserts
Canned Soda 2 Lt. Soda Energy Drinks Juices
Beverages
Add Sauce $0.50 (Buffalo, BBQ, Caribbean BBQ)
Chicken Tenders (5) Chicken Wings (7) French Fries Spicy French Fries Garlic Bread Garlic Knots (8) Add filling Mozzarella Sticks Nachos Onion Rings
Side Orders
*Chicken Parmigiana Italian Homemade sausage Steak & Cheese Beacon BLT Steak & Cheese Bomb
Subs
$4.00
Soup of the Day
$7.00
Quesadilla
*Chicken, Pork, or Beef $7.50
*Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase risk of foodborne illness. Before placing your order, please inform your server if any person in your party has a food allergy.
Vegan options available.
SUNDAY – THURSDAY 10 A.M. – 11 P.M. FRIDAY – SATURDAY 10 A.M. – 12 A.M.
HOURS:
WE DELIVER
147 BEACON STREET, SOMERVILLE 617-868-6100 BEACONSTPIZZA.COM
Beacon St. “Gourmet Pizzas” SMALL: $11.50 LARGE: $17.50 EXTRA LARGE: $20.00 ADD $1.00 FOR HALF AND HALF PIZZA
Brazilian
Tomatoes corn, *chicken, bacon, green olives, and onions
Buffalo Chicken
Blue cheese sauce and buffalo *chicken
Carnivora
Pepperoni, meatballs, homemade sausage, salami, and chorizo
Hawaiian
Ham, Pineapple, cheese, and homemade sausage
Margarita
Garlic, plum tomatoes, fresh basil, and mozzarella di bufala
Mediterranean
Pesto, feta cheese, tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, olives, and onions
Mexican
Pork or *chicken, chorizo, banana peppers, green peppers, red peppers, jalapeño peppers, and onion
Vegetarian
Broccoli, mushrooms, onions, red peppers, green peppers, tomato, and black olives
White Roman
Garlic butter, cheddar, feta, mozzarella, parmesan, and ricotta
*We use Halal Chicken.
Cheese
Pizza & Calzones
Vegan Cheese
Toppings
SMALL: $1.50 EACH LARGE: $2.00 EACH XL: $2.50 EACH
w/Marinara Eggplant Parm Meatballs *Chicken Parm Primavera Seafood
$7.00 $8.00 $9.00 $9.00 $9.00 $10.50
Pasta Dinners
Meats
SMALL (12”): $12.00 LARGE (16”): $16.00 XL (18”): $21.00
Veggies
SMALL (12”): $8.00 LARGE (16”): $11.00 XL (18”): $14.00
Cheeses
Blue Bufala Mozzarella Feta Goat Gorgonzola Ricotta Vegan
Ham Bacon BBQ Pork *BBQ Chicken *Buffalo Chicken Homemade Chorizo Meatballs Homemade Sausage Pepperoni Salami Prosciutto
Seafood Seafood Anchovies Calamari Shrimp
$6.00 $5.50 $7.50 $8.50
Artichokes Banana Peppers Fresh Basil Green or Red Peppers Jalapeno Peppers Broccoli Breaded Eggplant Potatoes Fresh, Roasted Garlic Scallions Caramelized Onions Button Mushrooms Portobello Mushrooms Sweet Corn Tomatoes Pesto Vegan Sausage
Salads Caesar Garden Greek *Grilled Chicken
Dressings
Balsamic, Blue Cheese, Caesar, Greek, Italian
Indicates a vegan item.
Please consider shopping with these and other Scout sponsors.
HEALTH & WELLNESS DIRECTORY
RESTAURANT DIRECTORY
REAL ESTATE DIRECTORY TEAM JEN & LYNN
LEONE’S SUB AND PIZZA
Thalia Tringo & Associates Real Estate Lynn 617-216-5244, Jen 617-943-9581
292 Broadway, Somerville 617-776-2511, leonessubandpizza.com Pizza and subs fit for a king since 1954. Now being delivered by Dash!
DR. KATIE TALMO, D.M.D.
180 Highland Ave., Somerville 617-864-6111 Dr. Talmo provides a personalize approach to dental care. Come enjoy a comfortable dental experience in her newly renovated office space.
TeamJenandLynn@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Bringing our expertise and good humor to help you find a perfect home or say good-bye to your old one.
MIKE’S FOOD & SPIRITS
SOMERVILLE FAMILY PRACTICE
1020 Broadway, Somerville 617-628-2160 somervillefamilypractice.net Now accepting new patients.
SHOPPING DIRECTORY PORTER SQUARE BOOKS
25 White St., Cambridge 617-491-2220, portersquarebooks.com Porter Square Books is your fiercely independent source for great books, magazines, fun gifts and more.
~ $1,495,000
OPA GREEK YEEROS
the Morrison Ave. and Grove St., is the very large, open, level yard. Owned by the same family since 1955, this unspoiled home is ready for a new family to make their own updates and memories.
378 Highland Ave., Somerville ~ $519,000 617-718-2900, opayeeros.com Lovely Agassiz 2 bedroom/2 bath condo with private porch on a pleasant side street between Harvard and Porter Squares. Near great shops, restaurants, and Harvard campus. Authentic Greek cuisine and a lively ~ $349,000 atmosphere. Expanding soon! Roomy Ten Hills 2 bedroom/1 bath condo with charming details, reonvated kitchen, parking, and storage.
95 Elm St., Somerville 617-764-4110, magpiekids.com Modern gifts for modern kids. Clothes, toys, books and more!
Residential Sales Specialist, ealtor R ® cell/text Jennifer@ThaliaTringoRe alEstate .com
Lynn C. Gr aham
Residential Sales Specialist, ealtor R ® cell/text Lynn@ThaliaTringoRe alEstate .com
IRENE BREMIS THE IBREMIS TEAM
617-905-5232, irenebremis.com irenebremis@gmail.com Real Estate Consulting, Listing, Marketing, Sales & Rental Specialist.
~ $229,000 is in an elevator building with parking.
Coming Soon
MASS AVE DINER
In the heart of Davis Sq., this 2 bedroom/1 bath condo in a brick building has a parking space.
906 Mass. Ave., Cambridge 617-864-5301, massavediner.com Since 2010 Killer Brunch Renovated 1 bedroom/1 bath near Prospect Hill with centralServing air, in-unit laundry, private porch, and shared yard. and Diner Fare. Now Open Late and Serving Craft Beer and Wine!
617-623-3330, magpie-store.com
MAGPIE KIDS
Jennifer Rose
Near Medford Sq., this 1 bedroom/ 1 1/2 bath condo
416 Highland Ave., Somerville Unique jewelry, apothecary, art, edibles, housewares and more!
617-733-8937 CambridgeRealEstate.com SomervilleRealEstate.com Making your next move a reality.
This is a very rare opportunity to own a single family home with garage on one of the largest lots in Davis Square . The Victorian-era house has 4 bedrooms and one and a half baths on two levels. The detached garage
Equidistant from Davis and Porter Squares, this 3 bedroom/1.5 bath condo on two levels has in-unit laundry, 2 porches, private yard, and exclusive driveway for 3 cars.
MAGPIE
CHARLES CHERNEY TEAM AT COMPASS REAL ESTATE
9 Davis Square, Somerville 617-628-2379, mikesondavis.com Pizza, Pasta, Seafood, Burgers and Please call Dine us for more on the dining market, more! in information our casual room or to get a sense of the current value of your home. Todd,Square Niké, Jennifer, Lynn a open to~Thalia, Davis orandwatch Our New Listings game at the bar! Prices are already up quite a bit over 2013, which was the strongest market in years. More inventory has started to appear, but it is still not enough to satisfy demand. Consequently, prices should continue to rise in 2014.
LA POSADA RESTAURANT
505 Medford St., Somerville 617-776-2049, laposadasomerville.com Somerville’s spot for delicious, hand-crafted Latin American cuisine.
THALIA TRINGO & ASSOCIATES REAL ESTATE
617-616-5091, thaliatringorealestate.com
Our agents strive to make your experience of buying and selling as smooth as possible. From start to finish, we are here to help you. Free classes.