Business

Sweetgreen Opens Friday, Meals Sold on Opening Day Benefit Watertown Food Pantry

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Arsenal Yards is home to the newest location of sweetgreen. The following announcement was provided by sweetgreen:

On Friday, August 27, sweetgreen, the seasonal restaurant with the mission of connecting people to real food, opens its newest Boston-area restaurant at Arsenal Yards (100 Bond Square, Watertown, MA 02472). 

The space will be able to accommodate 24 guests inside, with a spacious patio for an additional 26 diners to enjoy salads and bowls during Boston’s summer months. Sweetgreen features fresh, seasonal food, including salads, warm bowls and plates. Earlier this year, sweetgreen went through a complete rebrand, and the Arsenal Yards space will reflect the company’s newest look decorated with updated posters, graphics and photography. For every meal sold on opening day, sweetgreen will donate a meal to its local impact partner, Watertown Food Pantry, to nourish those who are  food insecure in the Watertown community.

Around Town

Celebrity Chef Opens New Orleans Inspired Restaurant in Watertown

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Charlie BreitroseThe patio seating outside Buttermilk & Bourbon is part of Chef Jason Santos’ vision of bringing a taste of New Orleans to Watertown. One of Boston’s celebrity chefs brought his New Orleans inspired cuisine to Watertown, where he had his first opportunity to build a restaurant from scratch. Buttermilk & Bourbon officially opens on Monday, Aug. 9, but chef and owner Jason Santos hosted an opening night celebration on Aug. 5 at his newest location at Arsenal Yards.

Business

Celebrity Chef Opening Restaurant at Watertown’s Arsenal Yards in July

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Buttermilk & BourbonCelebrity Chef Jason Santos will open his second location of Buttermilk & Bourbon at Arsenal Yards. The menu includes buttermilk fried chicken. The following announcement was provided by Arsenal Yards:

Boylston Properties and Wilder proudly announced that they’ve leased 3,000 square feet at Watertown’s Arsenal Yards to local celebrity chef and restaurateur, Jason Santos. Following the success of Buttermilk & Bourbon in Boston’s Back Bay, the nationally-recognized chef will open his second location of the popular restaurant in the new neighborhood in mid-July 2021, bringing a taste of Southern hospitality to Watertown. The New Orleans’ inspired restaurant will be an exciting addition to the eclectic mix of offerings at Arsenal Yards, which will offer a true neighborhood experience with its more than one million square feet of retail shops, residential apartments, life science space, and a 146-room hotel when construction is completed later this year.

Business

Town Taking Application for Additional Outdoor Seating at Restaurants

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Deluxe Town Diner was one of several Watertown restaurants approved to have outdoor seating in 2020. Restaurants can apply again in 2021. Diners may have more outdoor dining opportunities in 2021 as the Town of Watertown is allowing restaurants to apply for additional outdoor space for temporary seating. Last year, the Town allowed some restaurants to have seating on the sidewalk in front of their business, or other places on their property, and 15 did so. The temporary permits were given to allow for increased capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Business

Watertown Restaurant First Awardee of Group Looking to Save Local Eateries

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Watertown’s Donohue’s Bar & Grill received the first grant from the Step Up to the Table Foundation, a group looking to save local restaurants during COVID-19. Donohue’s was nominated by Josh Vernon, who sent in a letter talking about how much the restaurant has given back to the community since it opened in 1998, particularly to the Watertown Boys & Girls Club. “When you mention Donohue’s to anyone from the Watertown area, they think of family and a wonderful place to gather together for all reasons JD would never ask for help, so as a friend and customer I felt he deserved this nomination so he can continue giving back to his community and supporting his staff,” Vernon wrote in his nomination. Like restaurants across Massachusetts, Donohue’s has faced many hurdles during the pandemic, from being closed in the early days of COVID, to continued reduction of capacity and other restrictions. See a video, below, posted by the Step Up to the Table Foundation when it told owner JD Donohue about the grant:

Business

Watertown Restaurants Cooking Something Up for New Year’s Celebrations

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Several Watertown restaurants have special menus planned to ring in 2021. City Works & Pour House will host a Brew Year’s Eve event on Dec. 31, 2020 with a special menu, including filet medallions, short rib and Cajun linguine. See more details here. Branch Line will be cooking up special meals to take home to celebrate New Year’s Eve, including entrees of prime rib or lobster thermidor.

Arsenal Yards

New Mediterranean Restaurant Opening in Arsenal Yards

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Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh has opened at Watertown’s Arsenal Yards. The following information was provided by Arsenal Yards:

Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, the leading fast casual Mediterranean franchise concept best known for its preservative-free, nutrient-rich menu, today officially opened the doors of its newest location at Arsenal Yards in Watertown. The new eatery is now welcoming guests at its location at 41 Bond Street, offering a modern twist to Old World cuisine, breaking down the traditional paradigm of the Mediterranean diet. “Bostonians are loving the delicious, healthy food that Garbanzo offers, and we are very excited to officially open our doors in Watertown today,” said Derek St. George, co-owner of Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh in Watertown and Boston.

Business

Fees for Liquor Licenses, Others in Watertown Waived for 2021

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Watertown Town Hall

The Licensing Board voted to waive fees for liquor licenses and other fees charged to do business in the Town of Watertown for all of 2021 in an effort to help them endure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. On Thursday night, the Board heard a proposal to eliminate the annual fees for liquor licenses for restaurants, which is $2,700 for most. After a discussion, Licensing Board members decided that not just those, but also fees for other businesses should be removed for 2021. Other communities have already made changes to their liquor license fees, said David Doneski, the attorney that works with the Licensing Board. Newton and Needham approved a 50 percent reduction in fees, and Malden and Quincy waived the entire fee.