Internet Provides Incorruptible System?

April 14, 2008 By

A new restaurant in New York City has ditched the phone and adopted a unique reservation system: the Internet. Momofuku Ko, a new French Asian restaurant (perhaps similar to our own new French Asian house, see Banq Restaurant) by famed chef David Chang, runs a no favor or hook-up gathering place.

The only way to land a spot is to log on to Ko’s web site, create an account, register with a credit card and take a shot at finding an empty space on a bingo-like grid. Seats are released at 10 a.m. everyday for the current seven-day period.

It wasn’t the intent to make people frustrated,” Chang said. “It was just something we thought would be easier. Why would we need a phone? People have the Internet. At the end of the day, it’s a silly, silly reservation system. But we have to be straight up. We are trying our best to make some system work that is not corruptible.”

Are people scalping reservations? Yes. But, Chang is not a fan of that,”I … loathe reservation scalpers,” Chang said. “I’d take a bat to their head if I could. You can quote me on that.”

Is this action by Chang a forerunner to relying exclusively on the Internet here in Boston, including other industries, such as Boston real estate? Time will tell.

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Boston Restaurant Week

February 12, 2008 By

If you’re like us, Boston’s Restaurant Week always sneaks up on you, and you rarely have an opportunity to grab a table at that new restaurant that you have yet to try. Well, Restaurant Week has been announced for a little while now (scheduled for March 9 – 14 & 16 – 21), but there are still many great tables to grab. For more information, see the Boston Restaurant Week Official Site, and to make reservations, head directly to the Boston Restaurant Week Reservations page on Open Table. Bon Appétit.

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Hamersley's Bistro and Atelier 505 Two of a Kind

November 26, 2007 By

It’s no surprise that a stone’s throw from one of the South End’s most upscale condo developments, Atelier 505, sits one of the South End’s most coveted French restaurants, Hamersley’s Bistro. The two are similar on many counts, along with several distinctions.

Condos at Atelier 505 mimic the availability of tables at Hamersley’s. There are currently two units for sale at Atelier 505 (see PDF for more details), priced from $940,000 to $1,495,000. A table at Hamersley’s Bistro seems just as rare with coveted weekend time slots filling up weeks in advance, and larger parties without reservations being turned away at the door. Price per square foot at Atelier, and menu prices at Hamersley’s, are high for the overall area, but commensurate with your expectations. Ambiance, quality, and experience are stellar at both establishments. You’ll be greeted at the doors with a warm welcome, however, the wait staff at Hamersley’s is perhaps a touch on the pretentious side.

Atelier, being a French word, is pronounced differently than it looks. There’s an emphasis on the first letter (sounding like the doctor placing a small wooden stick on your tongue and asking you to say “ahhh”), and the last letter, “r”, is not pronounced, as the word finishes with the sound of you pronouncing the letter “a”. Atelier means craftsman’s workshop or studio.

Both the condo development, and the Bistro, are worth a look. We can’t get you a reservation at Hamersley’s, but we can get you an appointment to see the available units at Atelier 505. Use the Contact Us link at the top of this page for more information.

Hamersley's Bistro Boston South End

Atelier 505

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Sapeo South Boston No More

October 24, 2007 By

Recent updates to the ground floor commercial space in Allele Boston has a Jae’s Cafe TBD restaurant moving in, rather than a spin-off of Newbury Street’s Tapeo, as reported earlier in the summer (Tapeo Restaurant to Open in South Boston).

A restaurant in Allele, regardless of who gets the coveted spot, will make a great addition to what is quickly becoming the hottest area to call home in Boston.

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J.J. Foley's South End Opens Cafe

October 20, 2007 By

We had the opportunity to stop into J.J. Foley’s in Boston’s South End for a grand opening expansion party. The well known bar has just expanded to add a cafe where one can now get lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.

The spread of food, including mimosas, bloody mary’s, and full samples from the new brunch menu, was excellent, the staff was friendly, and the atmosphere was great – hopefully they will keep the restaurant in the southernmost room, where they had the grand opening party, as it definitely has more of an upscale bar feel than the other two rooms in the property.

J. J. Foley’s is located at 117 E. Berkeley Street (between Harrison and Washington Streets) on the west side of Berkeley.

J. J. Foley's South End

Filed Under: Boston Restaurants

Boston banQ Restaurant Seeks New Chef

October 12, 2007 By

As we reported back in July, the boutique luxury Penny Savings Bank condo development in the South End will house a new restaurant called banQ – what an appropriate play on words. The restaurant is moving towards a grand opening, and they are on the lookout for a new chef.

Boston Chefs recently reported the following:

banQ Restaurant is currently seeking a dynamic, creative and energetic sous chef for a start up restaurant team. The ideal candidate will be actively involved in menu development, training and staff education. The qualified applicant will have five years restaurant experience, understanding of food and labor costs. They seek someone who is as passionate about food and service as they are. They offer a competitive salary, benefits and the opportunity to grow with a new company.

The banQ Restaurant, along with a new Citibank branch will round out the commercial ground floor spaces below the 23 luxury condos at the Penny Savings Bank.

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Tapeo Restaurant to Open in Allele South Boston

September 22, 2007 By

We’ve been informed that Tapeo of Newbury Street will open a second restaurant near the Red Line Broadway T-Step area in the ground floor of Allele Boston, a new boutique South Boston condo development at 150 Dorchester Avenue slated for an early 2008 opening.

Tapeo will create a new name, possibly “Sapeo“, and will plan to open following the February / March opening of Allele. Sapeo South Boston will acquire a significant amount of outdoor space along Dorchester Avenue, and it’s rumored that the current retail space on the ground floor of Allele will not be large enough, so Tapeo / Sapeo will pursue acquiring two ground floor condo units to add to their planned space.

The Allele condos are moving along quickly, from the below exclusive picture taken yesterday from the roof deck of the Lofts at 36 A, you can see that exterior work, including balconies, windows, and brick siding, is progressing. For more information about Allele, or any of the hot new developments in South Boston, please contact us.

Allele South Boston Condos

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Banq Restaurant to Open at Penny Savings Bank

July 26, 2007 By

As you may know, the 23-unit luxury condo development, Penny Savings Bank, in the South End recently opened to residents. In addition to the residential units that fill the former bank, two commercial spaces exist along Washington Street. One of those commercial spaces will be filled by Citibank (you cannot have a condo development called Penny Savings Bank without a bank involved, can you?). The second of the commercial spaces will be occupied by the Banq Restaurant, offering French cuisine with an Asian flare.

The Banq Restaurant will occupy approximately 6,600 square feet on the ground floor of the Penny Savings Bank development at Washington Street and Union Park Street at 1375 Washington Street (click for Google Map) in the South End.

Banq officially opened in February 2008.  Reservations can be made by calling 617.451.0077.  Their hours of operation are Monday – Saturday from 5:30pm to 1am, and Sunday from 5:30pm to 11pm.

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