The Cold Stone Creamery in the Charles River Plaza closed last week. Signs on the door are directing customers to their location in the Landmark Center near Kenmore Square (Brookline St). That location, however, was not the nearest other store. Does this mean that their locations in Charlestown, Park Plaza, and Huntington St are also closed?
Update: The Charlestown location is still open (11/10/2008)
Walking by Government Center this evening, it was hard to miss the tower of lit jack-o-lanterns, the bins of pumpkins, the tents being erected, and the pumpkin themed orange port-a-potties.
All of this though is to get you in the Halloween spirit, while helping out a good cause, Camp Sunshine.
Saturday, October 18th is the Boston Pumpkin Festival at Boston City Hall Plaza from 12pm - 8pm.
In 2006, Boston set the Guinness World Record of 30,128 carved and lit jack-o-lanterns. Unfortunately the record could not be surpassed last year, with a still impressive 21,000 pumpkins being carved and lit. Perhaps with your help a new record can be set this year.
Please note that tomorrow, October 15th, is the last day to register to vote in MA for the November 4 elections.
For more information, please visit the Election Commissions website: http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/
Forms must be postmarked (mail-in) or dropped off at your local City Hall by tomorrow.
During the month of September, Cold Stone Creamery has been helping to raise money for the Make-a-Wish foundation.
As a thank you for everyone's contributions, they are having a free ice cream day on September 25th (details). Two flavors inspired by Make-a-Wish children will be available:
Jack's Creation - Marshmallow ice cream with OREO® Cookies,
Chocolate Chips and Fudge
Emily's Creation - Nutter Butter® ice cream with
White Chocolate Chips,
Kit Kat® and Yellow Cake
We stopped by Roadhouse Craft Beer & BBQ last night expecting long lines to accompany the delicious beer and BBQ, except there was one problem: they are not open yet.
Signs indicate that they will be opening on September 8th. The tipoff for the delayed opening perhaps were these Craigslist ads interviewing for line cooks and dishwashers this past Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (today).
Looks like there will be no Boloco opening up in Beacon Hill after all.
Newest rumors on the Hill though are that b.good, the "healthy burger" restaurant will be opening up in the old Paris Creperie location on Cambridge Street near the Red Line overpass. Since the days of the Creperie, the Spotted Apron was briefly in business at that location (their still hanging signage is almost the only proof that they ever existed).
Sadly my knowledge of Swedish cuisine only consists of a dinner that a co-worker made 8 years ago and the Swedish meatballs that I've had at IKEA. After next Wednesday, my knowledge of Swedish cuisine will still, sadly, be from those two sources.
The IKEA in Stoughton will be having an all-you-can eat crayfish party on August 20th from 6pm to 9pm. Their (in)famous meatballs will also be making an appearance.
Little gem for the baseball fans. In a utter random coincidence, hotel that I am staying in Machester, NH is actually connected to a minor league baseball park!!
Until this weekend, Manchester NH mostly conjured up some miserable memories for me. Mainly because I got stuck driving in a snow storm and took me about 3 hours to get back to Boston (Yes, I was cursing the entire time).
Yes, it is true. We here at BostonOnTheGo is finally getting in on
web 2.0 shinanigins (or tom foolery, if you will) by adding Twitter to
our site!
Follow @bostononthego via twitter:)
(You can also click on the little bird on the side as well)
If you are planning to make a big purchase in MA soon, STOP! (or at least drive up to sales tax free NH to make it)
The weekend of August 16th and 17th will be a Tax Holiday in Massachusetts.
This means that the 5% sales tax will be waived for most items bought in MA, provided it is under $2,500 and not an item classified as tobacco products, restaurant meals, utilities, or cars/boats.
We don't want to prematurely end summer, but a sure sign of fall fast approaching is the state and county fairs that are upcoming. As a kid there would always be field trips to the State Fair, and in the grades when one wasn't scheduled, my parents would take us kids there.
So this post comes to you with fond memories of midway rides and games, boring agricultural exhibits, fried dough, turkey legs, and the stuffed animal that was occasionally won:
August 15th - 24th
The Marshfield Fair
Marshfield, MA
September 12th - 28th
Eastern States Exposition (The Big E)
West Springfield, MA
September 28th - October 5th
Fryeburg Fair
Fryeburg, ME
October 3rd - 13th
Topsfield Fair
Topsfield, MA
This Thursday at 8PM, film "The Princess Bride" will be showing at
Devotion School in Coolidge Corner as part of the Summer In The Parks
series.
There are other films and locations left for this series. Checkout: www.coolidge.org/park
Starbucks announced recently their plans to close up to 600 of their stores in the US. The list of stores closing has been made available, which includes 7 stores in MA. None in Boston, but one each in the towns of Burlington, Dartmouth, Newton, North Attleboro, Sharon, Stoughton, and Worcester.
The loss of jobs at Starbucks is obviously unfortunate, but their closure of stores really was inevitable after years of over-expansion in the US with new stores cannibalizing sales from existing ones. The weak economy clearly has not helped matters either.
All of this brings to mind an article from The Onion a few years back titled, 'New Starbucks Opens in Rest Room of Existing Starbucks'.
For those of you who are interested in Boston architecture or have always wanted to be part of a biker gang, the Midnight Bike Tour of Boston is fast approaching.
This Tour started back in 1989 and is an opportunity to bike around Boston at night viewing historic and architectural sites around the city. The ride is usually around 30 miles or so (and from our understanding is at a rather leisurely pace and occurs rain or shine). In recent years the Tour has started with anywhere from 130 to 170 bikers.
This year it will be starting the night of August 9th and ending the morning of August 10th.
An amazing Major League Baseball All-Star game tonight at Yankee Stadium. Low-scoring, clutch hits, great defense (besides Dan Uggla), the drama of another potential tie, and an incredibly close finish.
A 4:50 minute game over 15 innings. It was worth seeing every minute of it. But now at 1:40 stinking AM, before announcing the MVP of the game, Fox Sports has taken two full commercial breaks.
Finally, for the love of all that is holy, they tell us. The MVP is JD Drew (although he really should be DJ Drew) of the Boston Red Sox. Well deserved for his 2-run tying HR and getting the key walk that moved the eventual winning run to third base with less than two outs.
The Z-Square in the Park , the Park being Post Office Square Park, is now officially open.
In other news, it looks like the finishing touches are being put on the latest incarnation of The Littlest Bar. The new The Littlest Bar is located on the corner of Broad and Franklin streets (next to The Times and across the street from JA Stats) and appears to be quite a bit bigger than the old one. The old one was located on Province Street in Downtown Crossing but was torn down to make way for a condo project (45 Province).
Every now and then we come across something that isn't entirely Boston related, but is cool nevertheless. Matt Harding has been traveling the globe sharing his dance moves and pure unadulterated joy. He was in Boston at ROFLCon at the end of April, but no indication where he chose to get his dance-on. Enjoy the video and the music (music is Garry Schyman's Praan).
Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.
From Au Bon Pain ...
"If you are looking for a good excuse to stretch your legs, we've got one for you. Join us anytime after 2pm on Thursday, June 26th for a FREE Iced Coffee. Stop by for an afternoon break! Bring a friend and 'treat them' to an iced coffee as well. Offer good for one complimentary medium iced coffee per person on 6/26/2008 after 2pm only. No purchase necessary. No coupon required. Not redeemable for cash."
Find the nearest location to you.
It's a bit budget for them to do it only after 2pm and, truthfully, it would have been much better if they made their pastries or baked goods free. Mmmmm, Cherry Strudel ... drool.
And yes, we realize that the photo is not of an iced coffee.
Mmm... Meat... Me hungry...
Once up on a time, there were girls, boys, and marsupials in the land far far away...
That’s pretty much all I got... Sorry to disappoint for those who expected to read about some fairy tale story involving girls, boys and marsupials. There is no story here.
But, there is an album released by The Wombats, titled “A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation” (<- iTunes Store link) and its first track is called “Tales of Girls, Boys, and Marsupials”.
It’s about time that this album got released here in the US. Damn the record companies for putting on DRM (For those who are not geeky enough to know what DRM is, click here) and not releasing albums quickly in different parts of the world! I guess better late than never.
Originally, this was release in UK last year as The Wombats’ debut album. Anyhoo, listen to tracks such as “Moving to New York”, “Let’s Dance to Joy Division”, “Kill the Director” and “Patricia the Stripper”. These folks are indie-rock-disco and a laugh! Lyrics maybe silly, but do you really need deep and meaningful lyrics when you are drinking and having fun?!
Photo from The Wombats' album
If you are in South End, try to pop by Laconia Gallery for an interesting show called “MINDmatters, Mechanisms and Mysteries of the Mind".
According to the Gallery press release, “This exhibition may show how science affects human experience and artistic expression. In this exhibition by 8 artists working in several disciplines there is new emphasis on brain mapping, identity stabilization, integration of self, and healing. Several of the participating artists have had intimate contact with dementia, brain surgery, and bi-polar disorder. Notably absent are reflections on Freud, dreams, sex or violence. Lingering references to visions, parapsychology, and spiritual disciplines (so pervasive in the 80’s) share space with the new imagery inspired by neuroscience.”
Better hurry though, it ends on June 28th, 2008.
Photo is from Laconia Gallery (Constance Jacobson, Tome Series, #20)
Yeap, if you are scratching your head what the title of this post means then don't worry. You are not alone!
I have been waiting for some new music from Girl Talk since his last album ("Night Ripper" in 2006). Little birdie told me this morning (ok, it was an e-mail) that Girl Talk has released a new album called "Feed The Animals".
On the off chance that you haven't had a chance to go to one of the many outdoor events with food, here's another one on June 27: The 11th Annual Chefs in Shorts
Tickets are $60 but include beer, wine, and food tasting from various chefs in the Boston area. And to make you feel better about going, proceeds go to the Greater Boston Food Bank.
This Friday and Saturday there will be the American Craft Beer Fest at the World Trade Center, located in the Seaport area.
Highlights include 75 brewers and 300 beers to sample, and the opportunity to talk to some really friendly and knowledgeable beer masters. The Extreme Beer Fest (where all the beers had high alcohol content) back in February was a huge hit, and this one surely will be as well.
Tickets are $40 dollars per 3.5 hour session. Time to get your drink on ... 2 ounces at a time.
It appears the Boston Burrito War is spreading to Beacon Hill.
Anna's Taqueria has just opened up their latest store - this time in Beacon Hill (Cambridge St and Garden St). Indications are that Boloco is planning to open a store a mere block away at Cambridge St and Irving St. Could a Qdoba, Baja Fresh, Chipotle, or Boca Grande be close behind?
Prior to Anna's, burrito options in Beacon Hill consisted of Viva Burrito on Staniford St (large portions but kind of bland) and the hidden gem Villa Mexico. Why is Villa Mexico a hidden gem? It's a gem because the food is handmade and absolutely flavorful and delicious. And it's hidden because it's located in Grampy's gas station (on Cambridge St across from MGH). That's right ... a gas station. It's perfectly fine though because the restaurant and gas are staffed by different people. And while service can be a bit slow since things are handmade, it is definitely worth the wait.
Quick update ...
Amtrak has postponed their bridge repairs between New York and Boston. There will be service between June 14th and 17th.
For those traveling between Boston and New York, Amtrak has always been a nice alternative to buses and planes. With buses there is always the fear of being delayed by traffic jams and of possibly dying in a fiery rollover accident (yes, I am talking about Fung Wah buses). With planes there is always the hassle of security lines, not ending up quite in the city, and the guilt of a large carbon footprint.
In any case, there will be NO Amtrak service between Boston and NY between June 14 and 17th. Work will be done on a bridge during that time and, while this is probably a good thing, four days seems a bit on the short side.
Disclaimer: I have only ridden Amtrak once since an agonizing Thanksgiving weekend trip from NY to Providence back in 1999 ... but that's a story for another time.
Tomorrow is supposed to be a scorcher in Boston with highs into the low 90s. Sure there'll be rain too, but that's only going to add to the humidity and make the day more miserable.
Friendly's ... the restaurant with the little red sign that serves diner type food and the Happy Ending Sundae ... is offering free ice cream to customers tomorrow (details).
They're not the easiest to get to if you don't have a car, but when it's free, it's hard to complain.
A couple of months ago we brought you info about Hungry Mother (opening) and (review)
If you haven't had the chance to try out Hungry Mother yet, you may want to wait a couple of weeks. The Boston Globe just came out with a review today, and if history repeats itself, the line will be out the door for the next few weeks.
On Thursday nights during the summer, the ICA has its HarborWalk concert series featuring Berklee College of Music students, faculty, and alumni. It's great music, a beautiful view, and, best of all, FREE. Seating is limited to the wooden steps/deck at the ICA so find a nice summer's Thursday and leave work early!
The ICA Calendar lists the various musicians who will be performing there this summer.
Few weeks ago on my music binge spree, I stumbled up on a band named "Bryan Scary and the Shredding Tears". I have to say their whole album (Flight of the Knife), (<-iTunes Store link) just blew me away!
My humble apologies to those who look forward to the annual Scooper Bowl in Boston! I have been careless in my blogging and I am guilty for not posting this wonderful event. Yes, this is for you, Mr. CakeBread ;)
Unless you've been living under a rock with you eyes closed and your ears shut, you may have heard of a lovely film called "Once".
You know what they say about brunettes: Smart, Sophisticated, Exotic, ... I could go on and on, but you lazy arses can read it for yourselves at urban dictionary.
If you want to pretend to be a culture vulture instead of just knocking back beers at a backyard BBQ, then you can head over to the MFA for memorial day open house this coming Monday (May 26th, 2008).
It's the time of the year again when a city like Boston, with all its various colleges and universities, gets overrun by overzealous parents celebrating their kids graduating from college.
With near fights breaking out over parking spaces, moving out of apartments, dinner reservations, and everything in between, it's important to keep track of when and where these graduations are going down so that they can be avoided at all cost.
Fortunately the bulk of them happened this past weekend (Simmons, Bentley, Tufts, BC, BU, Emerson, Suffolk, and Brandeis). Upcoming ones of note are UMass Boston's on May 30th, Harvard's on June 5th and MITs on June 6th.
On the bright side, this is also a good time if you're looking to fill your apartment with mismatched and possibly bug riddled furniture.
If you've been watching some tele, I am sure you have come across one of the new iPod commercials that features "Shut Up and Let Me Go" by The Ting Tings.
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