Select Cafe, which started out as an Emack & Bolio's ice-cream shop, then became a coffeehouse complete with open-mic nights, before gradually turning into a daytime gathering spot for the neighborhood's Albanian men, shut this week.
The old Emack ice-cream signs are down from the walls of the cafe across from the commuter-rail station; much of the rest of the shop now sits in piles near the back.
H/t Ezra Freedman for noticing the demise.
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Comments
their coffee was just ok -
By anaonononadnad
Wed, 11/06/2013 - 10:15pm
their coffee was just ok - and the food was bad. what do you expect?
Not to mention
By anon
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:10am
you'd have ten guys give you the death stare on your way in!
they sold coffee?
By mrotown
Wed, 11/06/2013 - 10:57pm
I thought this was the Albanian Embassy
That's too bad
By ABBQ
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 6:44am
I thought the coffee was pretty good, especially an Americano made from a true espresso shot.
I also liked their Mozzarella, tomato and presto on a baguette.
They were nice people and they let us hang with them Sunday mornings. We knitting and the Albanian men hanging out and talking loudly until it was time to go home to their Sunday dinner. We always outlasted them. :-)
Presto
By Judy
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 10:11am
Dang, I never had presto. It sounds magical.
It was.
By ElizaLeila
Fri, 11/08/2013 - 8:32am
It was ever so much more magical than your basic pesto. It is definitely too bad you missed it.
What?
By Matt
Sat, 11/09/2013 - 9:25am
What do you mean by "true espresso shot?" Everyone but dunkin donuts makes espresso now and they never cleaned their machines.
They probably fell to the same problem that took down Arbri Cafe
By pappatom
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:14am
Namely, the regulars glaring at people as they came in and making them feel unwelcome.
Used to take the family there for ice cream all the time when it was E&B, but after getting stared at un-welcomingly a couple of times after it became Select we started going to Jimmy's.
Weird
By adamg
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:57am
I used to get a bagel or something there, always thought it was kind of cool it had become an Albanian men's hangout (never any women, though), never got any death stares or anything. Maybe it's my rugged eastern European looks or something :-).
Thank goodness for Jimmy's.
Glared at?
By Anon
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 12:21pm
I look very Scandinavian and never felt glared at, stared at, or otherwise unwelcome. And no dart ever missed the board when I asked what the pentagram on the wall was for.
Sunday Knitters
By ElizaLeila
Fri, 11/08/2013 - 8:35am
If they were glares, they never scared off the knitters on Sundays. Then again, we're tough to scare since we are holding pointy objects. ;-)
just to tell the truth
By TONY
Sun, 12/01/2013 - 7:48pm
Lots of people talk with no seance and they don't know the truth .
I know the owner of select cafe and his family good people and hard working .
So they just sold the business nothing wrong with that and people who bought they will open soon .
AND i just want to add this for the people making fake announcement on line .
Too bad the Greek's spa isnt
By kvn
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:48am
Too bad the Greek's spa isnt there anymore, fresh made blueberry muffins ,maybe 400 am . It was where , if Google street is right , Romano pizza joint is. Cant believe Tony's Market next door is the only thing I recognized and is still there. Who knew Bob Lodgen had a son Alex to give his packy too?
No bagels, and now no coffee!
By Rozzie
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:51am
No bagels, and now no coffee!
Bob's Pita Bakery now advertises "Bagel" on their awning
By adamg
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 9:59am
Went in the other day, though, and they were selling pre-packaged bags of plain and sesame bagels, so, meh.
Fornax has coffee, although, no, it's not a coffee house (and I can not leave there without buying a loaf of bread or baguette).
Diane's bakery
By anon
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 10:38am
has a bacon, egg and cheese STUFFED croissant. Awesome!
And coffee
By adamg
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 12:28pm
Granted, nothing fancy, just a pot that probably sits there all morning, but it's black and caffeinated.
and cheap
By adnadadnoonadndnad
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 1:24pm
you can get an entire breakfast there for $3.
Love that bakery
By Iresd
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 2:16pm
Diane's breakfast sandwiches are fanTAStic.
Bob's has always had bagels
By Jeff F
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 5:59pm
But calling them 'pre-packaged' isn't quite fair - they're quite good and made fresh locally, usually within day of sale. You're correct that Bob's/Droub Bros only carry a few varieties (plain, sesame, loaded, whole wheat). And because they only sell fresh, when they're out for the day, they're out (ditto for their pita). Not as great as getting bagels made-on-premises, but a light-year beyond what you'll find in nearby supermarkets, even upscale Roche Bros/WholePaycheck etc. (Btw, anyone in Rosi who likes cooking and isn't shopping at Bob's for South Mediterranean/Mid Eastern ingredients is missing out on an absolutely brilliant resource).
Occasionally I enjoy sitting in Diane's with a danish or breakfast sandwich and cup of coffee (the folks there are real sweethearts), but there's only a few chairs - it's mostly a pickup and go bakery.
I know that Jimmie's owner Donna Cabral has been looking to expand for a while - with fresh coffee, crepes, etc. I wonder if Select's space would appeal to her. Not as visible as the 4240 bldg on Washington, the other obvious place in Rosi sq for a coffee house/cafe, but maybe easier to park near/stroll to, and well-placed to serve the twice daily stream of commuter line riders (who the Select cafe + previous owners never seemed to market to, much to my bewilderment).
This is GREAT NEWS
By anon
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 11:06am
Its a prime place and configuration for a sit-down restaurant/bar.
restaurant?
By anon
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 1:19pm
Roslindale might have reached peak restaurant. There's a pizza place going into the old Bob's Pita location (which is a huge space for a pizza restaurant IMO) giving us a new place to go with Redds', Birch St. Delfino, Sofia's, Village Fish, and Shanti. All in about a 1 minute walk. A cafe / coffee shop might do well, a Roslindale equivalent of the JP Licks in JP, but I don't know if there's enough critical mass of daytime customers during the week.
Coffee
By Roslindaler
Thu, 11/07/2013 - 4:57pm
Agreed, we need a real coffee shop. Like a coffee shop for people that love coffee and are obsessed with good coffee. I would not particularly want to see ice cream there, as I like Jimmie's and would not want to hurt their business. Maybe Jimmies could expand? If they expand, they should partner with Boston Common Coffee or the free trade coffee place that has a branch on Causeway Street near North Station. I think there are probably enough people who work from home in Roslindale that they would go do their work in a coffee shop if it was up to snuff.
Can't miss
By Sock_Puppet
Fri, 11/08/2013 - 7:01am
1. Swap the old Albanian men buying one cup of coffee per hour and glaring at everybody who comes in the door for yuppies with laptops buying one cup of coffee per hour and glaring at everybody who comes in the door...
...
3. Profit
That sounds much like the fate
By roadman
Fri, 11/08/2013 - 2:13pm
of the McDonalds that opened in Central Square Lynn in the late 1970s as part of the Union Street Walkway project. Closed in under a year due to lack of business. To this day, it remains the ONLY McDonald's franchise in history that closed because they weren't making money.
Select Cafe
By BriaBoston
Fri, 11/15/2013 - 2:42pm
I want to support our local Rozzie businesses and went to the Select Cafe a bit in the beginning. What I was most interested in from the Select Cafe was good coffee, espresso and pastries. Rarely did I get that. Or, even a smile at checkout. I gave up. If you consider Canto 6 on Washington Street, it's always packed. It's a hole in the wall, but packed (and parking rarely to be had) - because it has excellent coffee and excellent pastries and good customer service. I so wish we could get a place like Canto 6 in Rozzie. I think it would thrive with all the young folks here, the School of Modern Languages, the people who take the train in the morning...the clients are there, but the food and service hasn't been.
Good coffee, better pastries, best service.
By gradontripp
Thu, 11/21/2013 - 4:52pm
Canto 6 is a regular stop for my wife and her coworkers on their way to work.
Coffee shop
By Donna
Thu, 11/21/2013 - 4:28pm
Hey folks, thanks for all the nice comments about Jimmies. I am willing to expand to The former select cafe. I actually need a bigger place with more seating. I have great vision for an awesome coffee shop. I may need your input and support.
I have been around Roslindale for 25 years as a business owner. I own a house here and lived here for 20 years.
It may be an uphill battle to get a coffee shop at that location. Lots of reasons. If anyone knows of a good location in Roslindale that will be supported by all, I am willing to make the move. Email me at [email protected]. Oh, and don't worry we will get great bagels.
Donna, that would be great
By Kathode
Thu, 11/21/2013 - 4:48pm
Maybe you can sell JP Licks coffee! They have great coffee.
Roslindale Village has more
By Just Sayin'
Fri, 11/22/2013 - 11:50am
Roslindale Village has more than enough spots to stop and grab coffee, pastries, etc. We don't need Jimmies moving into that space. Here's hoping it does't work out for her!
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