Results tagged “backbay”

Amar Raavi took a trip up to the sky walk in the Prudential Center and captured some of the wonderful sights of the Back Bay. With 111 Huntington and the Christian Science reflecting pool dominating the foreground, Boston just seems to go on forever.

     

Post 390, which opened on Friday, October 2nd, is billing itself as a “neighborhood restaurant.” This, despite the fact that it is being run by Eric Brennan, who has served as the executive chef for larger-than-life brands like the late Excelsior and the Four Seasons. This, despite the fact that it is being funded by big names like Kenneth Himmel, the restaurateur behind the Time Warner Center in NYC (home to Thomas Keller’s Per Se) and the CityPlace in West Palm Beach. This, despite the fact that the restaurant itself is a far-from-intimate two-floor space, with walls shaved clean of any hints that it was once a postal building, as its name hints. This, despite the fact that it is sandwiched between two larger-than-life iconic Boston buildings (the Prudential and its sidekick, the Trinity Church) in a “neighborhood” of high rises. All this means that it requires no small feat of imagination—in fact, it may require an outright suspension of disbelief—to see Post 390 as a “neighborhood restaurant.” But thanks to a food and beverage program that is strong straight out of the gate, a reasonably priced menu of true comfort foods, a few well-placed fireplaces and a staff with a built-in sense of warmth and hospitality (led by the grinning Brennan himself), Post 390 could transcend all that to become exactly what its clever marketers and anxious investors want it to be.

-- Danielle Bremner, who writes graffiti as "UTAH," was sentenced to six months in prison by Boston Municipal Court after she pleaded guilty to tagging buildings in the Back Bay and trains in an MBTA yard in East Boston. Bremner, who lives in New York, had been a fugitive from prosecution for more than a year when she was arrested in Chicago in August 2008. She has also been convicted of vandalism charges in New York. [Herald]

-- The victim of a savage beating that was the alleged work of a group of well dressed men succumbed to his injuries today. The man was found beaten outside of Club 33, in the Back Bay, where an alleged verbal altercation turned into an alleged beating at the hands of 12 men, 9 of whom were wearing matching red tuxedos because they had just been to a funeral. The victim, Jose Alicea, was 22 when he died. The 12 suspects were arraigned today on charges of aggravated assault and battery and held on bail ranging from $100,000 to $200,000. The Suffolk County District Attorney has not announced new charges in light of the victim's death. [BPDNews, Suffolk County DA]

-- Boston cops have captured a suspect in the bloody shoot out that left two dead near Ka-Carlos, the Dorchester Cape Verdean restaurant. An investigation led cops to Emmanuel Depina, a 26-year-old Boston man, who surrendered to the Dorchester District Court this morning. [BPDNews]

An SUV driver made a quick study of first a light pole, and in turn a Quality Mart, at the intersection of Beacon and Mass Ave earlier this evening. We're guessing the store is closed for business for a while. No one was hurt that we know of.

We've seen the dinosaurs of our city, aging restaurants like Great Bay, Aujourd'hui and Icarus, go down this week, felled by the figurative dust cloud of the recent recession. Great Bay closed its doors this weekend; Aujourd'hui, in the Four Seasons, will become a private function room later this month; Icarus will close on July 1. All have cited the economy as a major factor in their decision.

Drinks and snacks at the bar are a great way to unwind at the end of the day, but the food and drinks can add up fast. Many restaurants in Boston take this into account and have developed special bar menus for these economic times. 33 Restaurant & Lounge's $3 Menu is just one delicious example.

-- Bostonist has been known to read the Craigslist personals and erotic services ads for amusement—a lurid and sometimes hilarious glimpse at a semi-private underworld. But we rarely consider, in concrete terms, the plight of sex workers. More details were released today regarding Tuesday's murder of a Craigslist masseuse operating out of the Copley Marriott that give us an insight into at least one tragic story.

-- Boston police report that a 26-year-old woman was shot to death at a hotel room in the Copley Marriott last night. The victim was reportedly a masseuse who was advertising in the erotic services section of Craigslist. Police believe that robbery was the motive behind the killing and have released a photograph of "a person of interest." The incident may be related to an earlier prostitute robbery that took place at the Westin Copley hotel. [BPDNews, Herald]

Everybody has one: the crazy dog-obsessed friend. The friend who won't come to your parties unless she can bring Fluffy; the friend who never goes out of town because he doesn't trust a kennel or caretaker to prepare Fido's food correctly. These people can be hard to buy for, but you've got a new ally in town: Pawsh Dog Boutique.

-- Cops found an alleged "mother lode" of drugs in the Boylston St. apartment of Taghi Tajgardoun, a 28-year-old who now faces charges that he was the kingpin of a massive drug trafficking operation. Authorities say that they seized $90,000 worth of marijuana, $10,000 worth of cocaine, $25,000 cash, and four Iranian passports when they raided Tajgardoun's home. Among Tajgardoun's more legitimate businesses: real estate. Shocking. Police say that they began to suspect Tajgardoun when he allegedly received a package of weed from California through the U.S. mail. [Herald]

"Idaho" was arrested on outstanding charges that she vandalized property in the Back Bay. Bremner, whose rap sheet is international, faces 33 counts of vandalism. Her bail was set at $10,000. [Herald]

-- Elvia McField, 56, was found stabbed to death in her home on Amory St., near the boundary between Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. Police arrested 66-year-old Charles Cherry and charged him with the murder. [WCVB; BPDNews]

To provide an update on our MassDebate articles opposing and "meh"-ing the proposed redevelopment of the Shreve, Crump & Low building, it seems that Back Bay residents have united in strong opposition to the proposed modernist design, prompting the Boston Redevelopment Authority to put the project on hold. Citizens say there's too much glass, not enough tribute to the way the building used to be, and nothing "Boston" about it. Developer Ronald Druker says "We have an obligation to do a contemporary building and not to do a cartoon of a Back Bay building from the 19th century... Office buildings require consistency, and that's what we're in the process of creating." Consistent with what, we ask--genericness?

According to WalkScore.com, Boston is America's third most walkable city, behind San Fran and NYC. The city ranking system is slightly unclear, but appears to be based on averages of neighborhood walkability, or perhaps numbers of most walkable neighborhoods. Walk Score says Boston's best areas for walking are the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Fenway, and the South End. Somewhat ironic that a wonderful walking city is in massive transportation debt.

                      

Bostonist was permitted to set foot in Boylston Street's gleaming ice palace of an Apple Store this morning, in advance of its Friday opening. An Apple spokespersonage gestured and informed us that the store's floor is from Italy and that the store's employees are from the Boston area. (Bostonist recognized and was recognized by a former Diesel barista.) The staircase, we're assuming, is from the future. Mayor Menino blessed the whole endeavor and laid hands on a MacBook.

Update: The DA's Office just sent out confirmation. They say both stabbings happened on the outbound platform and that the stabbing victims are expected to survive.

Turns out Green Line service is down between Government Center and Lechmere. Here's the T Alert that was sent out:

--Revere police arrived to a crime scene today at 3:15 p.m. They reported a fatal stabbing and a non-fatal shooting. There aren't many details available at this point, but a source tells the Herald that the victim was attacked by her son. [Boston Herald]

While waiting for the bus at Mass Ave and Washington Street in the South End, we used to always wonder why an entrepreneur never converted the former Alexandra Hotel into high-end condos. It wasn't for the lack of effort.

--Cambridge was the scene of a violent attack on a homeless man. Early on January 29, the man was walking with his girlfriend in Central Square on Norfolk when three men attacked him, and one of them stabbed him in the back. [Cambridge Chronicle]

Ex-SNL writer Patricia Marx, who was also one of the first women to be elected to the Lampoon, will be at Borders Back Bay to talk about Him Her Him Again the End of Him, about a woman who cannot wash a supremely snotty, pretentious man out of her hair. Check out the first chapter, in which Marx's heroine describes her first encounter with "Eugene" and tries to remember what her dissertation was about in the first place. 6:00 pm. Free.

--A parking rage incident turned so ugly in Chelsea early this morning that a man was shot in the stomach. The Chelsea police chief said the whole mess started solely because one parked car was "touching" another parked car. And this is what happens when people with anger-management issues have guns. [Boston Globe]

--Useful, detailed advice on how to get your car started in the bitter cold. [b0st0n LiveJournal]

Unlike the Top 10 Most Commented stories, the top 10 favorites represented a selection of all the fun, the playful, and just plain odd that this city has to offer. You loved sex scandals at the local schools, Vendetta Gunn, and the local productions On Broadway and "BU Tonight." But we were really surprised at how much you loved … Barbie. Yeah, Barbie.

This Bostonist swung by the newest sushi restaurant to invade Back Bay last week, and the overall impression was a good one. First off, Haru is a New York city implant, and the location in Dick's Last Resort's old spot in the Prudential Building is the chain's first in the city. Thank you very much, New York. We'll take your trophy AND your sushi. That'll be just fine. But Bostonist digresses. The decor at...

It might be a stretch to claim that all the children at Sunday's Boston Comic Con were present to support their parents, but there was one incontrovertible example. Two toddlers, swaddled in the costumes of Superman and the Flash, raced through the Back Bay Events Center in strollers, pushed by their parents. "I think he's going to win," said the mother, pointing at the one dressed as Superman. "He's really the fastest." The convention was...

Boston Comic Con Sunday, October 21, 10am-5pm Back Bay Events Center (180 Berkeley Street), $8 The comics industry is known for its oddballs, and Jim Steranko is a case in point. He is best known for his late sixties work at Marvel Comics, where he brought a designer's eye to drawing Nick Fury for Strange Tales. He drew across the whole page, defying panel boundaries, to a surreal effect. But comics may have been the...