Chef Ben Elliott opens West Concord’s Saltbox Kitchen (84 Commonwealth Ave. at Main Street) on July 9, where he’ll serve meals using produce sourced from his family’s nearby Saltbox Farm. It’s a cozy little cafe, though the Saltbox team has a big-city pedigree: Elliott worked under Barbara Lynch at No. 9 Park, and chef de cuisine Aran Goldstein toiled at the Liberty Hotel’s Clink. Grab a sour cream biscuit sandwich for the train or a slice of caramelized onion and fontina quiche for dinner from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
Shrimp toast and spicy tuna rolls have arrived in the North End. Crudo’s motto is “sushi, sake, socialize,” and so the restaurant (78 Salem St. at Stillman Street) serves raw fish, shareable Asian fusion plates, and cocktails from two bars on two floors. General manager Jameson Visconte, who hails from the MGM and Crazy Horse in Las Vegas, oversees the restaurant. “My background is Vegas, so I wanted to bring a deeper kind of cool, funky, lounge-y experience to the dining scene in the neighborhood,” he says. Chef Ken Iwaoka comes from Copley Place’s Osushi.
A new branch of Lone Star Taco Bar opens this weekend in Cambridge (635 Cambridge St. at Lambert Street). It’s bigger than its Allston counterpart, with 65 seats and a roomier bar. The cocktail program is a bit different, too, says co-owner Max Toste, who also runs Allston’s Deep Ellum. “There’s more focus on rose and white wines, a little more American whiskey, 16 craft drafts, plus tons of cool mezcal and tequila,” he says. One thing that won’t change: brunch until 4 p.m., every day.
The Seaport’s new mezze parlor, Committee (50 Northern Ave. at Courthouse Way), is now open for weekday lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. So is its 66-seat patio. Dine al fresco until 2 a.m.
Advertisement
Kara Baskin can be reached at kcbaskin@gmail.com.