Welcome to Eater’s periodic roundup of weekend food and drink events worth checking out around town. Want to let us know about an upcoming Boston-area event? Get in touch at [email protected].
Friday, September 8
ROXBURY — Pasta Tana’s debuted recently in Roxbury, and this weekend is the perfect chance to carbo-load. Chef Yuri Gama dishes out fresh pasta like penne arrabiata with a zippy sauce, mushrooms and truffle fettuccine, and gnocchi with pesto. Other delights not often found at Italian spots include barbecued pork ribs and an acai bowl. Finish off with Italian chocolate cake, too.
SOMERVILLE — The Somerville Greek Food Festival starts at noon and runs through Sunday, September 10 at 9 p.m. The free event at the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Orthodox Church is your chance to enjoy a host of Greek food, with dancing under a large tent to live Greek music.
Saturday, September 9
BROOKLINE — Pop over to Curds & Co. for a day of cork-popping and sipping wines curated for the fall by the team at the shop and events space during the second annual Pour-A-Thon. Tickets are $15 ($20 at the door) and the event starts at noon. Come hungry, as a “grazing table” will be on site, plus the cheese shop’s grill will be fired up for you to purchase grilled cheeses to pair with glasses of wine.
CAMBRIDGE — Sharpen your culinary claws with a hands-on training class called “Lobstah!: Cooking and Preparing Seafood Humanely,” held at the Foundry from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Learn the basics of how to cook lobster and other seafood in a more humane way at this event, which includes a shared lunch of smoked lobster salad, roasted eggplant, and ground cherry sorbet, plus a clove oil blend for you to take home. Bring containers for leftovers. Tickets are $30.
Sunday, September 10
BOSTON — Swim over to the Boston Fish Pier from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the Boston Seafood Festival. Get your fill of lobster rolls, oysters, and other classic seafood dishes, while local chefs make a splash with seafood dish cooking demos, all surrounded by views of the Boston Harbor. There’s plenty of activities like face painting for the guppies, too. General admission for adults is $25, plus a few packages include a lobster bake.
BOSTON — The raucous (and delicious) Sunday Service drag brunch is back at Tenderoni’s (and long live drag brunch in Boston and beyond) after a few months off. The 21+ event lasts from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and tickets are $20. Along with performances — bring dollar bills to tip the performers — savor brunch specials in addition to chef Tiffani Faison’s creative riffs on Italian American pizza joint fare.
BOSTON — Yellow Door Taqueria and Bar Mezzana team up for the Ink Block Party from 2 to 6 p.m. at the courtyard between the two restaurants in the South End. Come enjoy oysters from Island Creek Oysters along with grilled pizza, corn, and burgers from the folks of Bar Mezzana, plus tacos and Campari sorbet floats from Yellow Door. Activities on the outdoor courtyard include giant lawn games, a photo booth, and dancing to beats by DJ BREK.ONE. Also on offer will be frozen margaritas, cold beers, natural wines, and Italian aperitivo to sip in the summer air. Tickets are $95 a pop and include food and two drinks.
Friday, September 1
ALLSTON — Celebrate Allston Christmas with a Christmas in September bash at Silhouette Lounge from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. Scarf down all-beef hot dogs ($1 for the first hot dog between 4 to 6 p.m., $3.50 each from 6 p.m. to closing) called “Sil Dogs,” and enjoy drink specials like the Grinch — a shot of peppermint RumChata with crème de menthe — as you rock around the Christmas tree in the festively decked-out lounge.
SOUTH BOSTON — City Tap House in Fort Point blasts back in time with a weekend-long Y2K-themed spectacular. Starting Friday at 8 p.m. through Sunday at 3 p.m., head to the brewpub for live DJs, drink specials (the ingeniously named Total Request LIME is a cherry-lime spritz), and more. Weekend brunch specials include odes to nostalgic snacks like Gushers and Dunkaroos.
Saturday, September 2
BROOKLINE — Buzzy Bar Vlaha—celebrating the rustic cuisine of nomads within northern and central Greece, which is “a little off the beaten track,” according to culinary director Brendan Pelley—launches weekend brunch starting at 10 a.m. Highlights on the new menu include boukies, or small shareable plates based on parcels of food nomads ate for breakfast on their journeys. These dishes include pork and fennel sausage wrapped in phyllo and served with honey mustard yogurt, plus Greek yogurt with honey, walnut, and kiwi. More usual brunch suspects include scrambled eggs with wild mushrooms, tomato, and black truffle, and shakshouka served with grilled sourdough.
PROVINCETOWN — Chef Jake Hernatski (an alum of No. 9 Park and Cambridge’s now-shuttered Shepherd) kicks off a series of pop-up dinners every Saturday through November at Gifford House, which is currently enjoying a renaissance under new ownership. Tickets for the four-course prixe-fixe event are $90, with a seating at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. The menu features fried mussels with Pernod sabayon, pan-roasted skate with zucchini and anchovy butter, and blueberry pie with sweet corn ice cream, along with other delights. Stay tuned for more events in the series.
SOUTH BOSTON — Cannonball Cafe, which opened on Dorchester Avenue in late fall 2021, hosts a farmers market from 9 a.m. to noon. Head to the petite cafe’s lively outdoor space for fresh produce and more, with Charlotte’s Crafts as the day’s featured vendor. The cafe is open until 1 p.m., and you can fuel up with coffee, smoothies, and breakfast sandwiches, too.
Sunday, September 3
BOSTON — Bring your best glam-rock gear and show off your style (or more accurately, Styles) for a Harry Styles-themed brunch or dinner at Sunset Cantina. Hosted by Hidden, the menu is hush-hush — though assume plenty of food puns on his smash hits like “Watermelon Sugar High.” Tickets are $55 a pop and include a meal and a glass of booze or a soft drink. Try your luck at trivia and games, too.
