Restaurant Opening Guide, Summer 2016: Somerville

It turned out to be a quiet opening season in Somerville compared to other recent seasons, but we saw the debut of swanky Italian restaurant Fat Hen inside of La Brasa's former market space, as well as vegetarian-friendly pizzeria Veggie Crust in the former A4 pizza space. Plus, a new location of Coolidge Corner board game cafe Knight Moves opened in Teele Square, Forge Baking Co. busted into an adjacent space to open an ice cream shop, MEM tea opened a retail and education storefront in Davis, Assembly Row got a Pretzelmaker location, and shared culinary workspace/event space Foundation Kitchen expanded into a Washington Street spot on the edge of Union Square. Read on for all the details.To see what opened elsewhere in the Boston area in summer 2016, head this way. Want a fall preview? You can find that right here.

Originally published on June 29, 2016. Date of most recent update appears above.

Table Of Contents (all h2's added automatically)

Assembly Row

  

Pretzelmaker

An international pretzel chain that is often found at malls — no, not that mall pretzel chain but the other one — is now open at Somerville's Assembly Row with pretzels, pretzel dogs, pretzel bites, blended drinks, and lemonades.

Address: 451 Artisan Way
Opening Date: Late July 2016
Online: Website / Twitter / Instagram

Image credit: Instagram

Davis Square

  

MEM Tea

Facebook

The Watertown-based tea company has opened a retail storefront and training center in Somerville. The space is not a cafe (customers can't buy cups of tea there), but there are plenty of packaged teas for sale and instruction on brewing techniques for wholesale customers as well as the public.

Address: 196 Elm St.
Opening date: September 17, 2016
Online: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Image credit: Facebook

East Somerville

  

Fat Hen

A 30-seat restaurant is now open inside of La Brasa, within a space that was previously being used as a market. It features "bowls of fresh pasta, braised meats, and locally grown or foraged produce" and a "modest but mighty" beverage program with a focus on "niche, offbeat" Italian wines and beers. L'Espalier and Sel de la Terre alum Michael Bergin is in charge; he has also worked at popular New York City Italian restaurants Del Posto and A Voce.

Featured Coverage

• Gaze Upon Fat Hen, Your New Pasta-Filled Date Night Destination [Gallery]

Address: 124 Broadway
Opening Date: August 4, 2016
Online: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Image credit: Rachel Leah Blumenthal for Eater

Grid View

• Fat Hen in Somerville. Photos by Rachel Leah Blumenthal for Eater.

Spring Hill

  

Forge Ice Cream Bar

Not far from Porter Square, Forge Baking Co. has opened a 20-seat ice cream shop next door. It's meant to have an old-timey feel, complete with an antique dipping cabinet, vintage stools, and a soda fountain. The daily menu includes eight flavors of ice cream, as well as other desserts, like a Choco Taco-inspired treat.

Address: 626 Somerville Ave.
Opening Date: July 6, 2016
Online: Website

Image credit: Forge logo/Official Site

Teele Square

  

Knight Moves

A Coolidge Corner board game cafe opened a second location, this one near Tufts University. The cafe's compact menu includes cheese plates, Nutella milkshakes, coffee and tea, and some other snacks.

Address: 1159 Broadway
Opening Date: July 2, 2016
Online: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Image credit: Knight Moves in Coolidge Corner/Facebook

Union Square

  

Foundation Kitchen

A Somerville-based shared culinary workspace has expanded into a new space that will allow for pop-up restaurant events, demonstrations, and more.

Address: 3 Washington St.
Opening Date: Early July 2016
Online: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Image credit: Official Site

  

Veggie Crust

After an electrical issue in a Somerville Avenue building caused long-term closures for its restaurant tenants A4 Pizza and Dosa N Curry, A4 terminated its lease and said goodbye to Somerville, at least for now, but Dosa N Curry finally reopened and then opened a second restaurant, Veggie Crust, in A4's old space. Veggie Crust serves vegetarian and vegan pizzas (with gluten-free options available), as well as vegan "nice cream."

Address: 445 Somerville Ave.
Opening Date: August 25, 2016
Online: Website / Facebook

Image credit: Facebook

Main Image: Somerville's Prospect Hill Monument/David Persson on Shutterstock