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Upscale Hyde Park restaurant shuts doors
By adamg on Mon, 09/16/2019 - 6:18pm
Restaurant this afternoon, doors locked, but tables and chairs still in place.
Hyde Park Main Streets is confirming a query from Boston Restaurant Talk that the Fairmount Grille on Fairmount Avenue suddenly shut today - even before it was due to open.
The restaurant, which brought "upscale dining at affordable prices" to the neighborhood, replaced Townsend's in 2013, after the landlord changed the locks when the older restaurant stopped paying its rent.
In 2017, owner Chris Rassias began work on a new, 1920s-themed restaurant in a theater in downtown Worcester, but those plans fell through earlier this year.
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Comments
So where's the liquor license going?
That's usually at the root of these closures these days, right?
So now there’s what? Maybe 2
So now there’s what? Maybe 2 places to get a drink and eat in Hyde park... if that!
Antonio's Bacaro and ...
Rincon Caribeno. Assuming the Cavan and Master McGrath's don't have food, I guess the next place is the Village Manor, but you did say Hyde Park, not Dedham ...
Can confirm that Master
Can confirm that Master McGrath's has food. (Typical pub menu of burgers, wings, tips, fish and chips, etc.)
Cool
Thanks, I stand corrected!
Actually, the Cavan has food
Actually, the Cavan has food too and I heard its pretty damn good!
Not enough mouths to feed
Sadly Hyde Park doesn't seem to have enough customers (for a number of reasons) to keep restaurants open. Chris gave it a good long shot, too bad it didn't t work out. Plenty of barber shops though!
A bit expensive
Too expensive for townies and not enough hipsters in the area because the transit sucks.
#SaveFairmountGrill
Someone let me know where we mail angry postcards too.
What is wrong with this place
Me and my wife aren't new to the neighborhood, but we are living here again, and it really sucks that another step forward in this area like the Fairmount Grill is resulting in 10 steps back as it closes. Hyde Park sucks. Cleary/Logan squares have the potential to be Roslindale Square, but everyone here sucks. There is no sense of Community. There is no business or any drive for businesses to open. There is absolutely nothing to be happy about. We have two zone 2 commuter rails and one zone 1A commuter rail, and a bunch of buses that get no one to anything on time. It is a disgrace. And don't tell me to move: this is the only neighborhood of Boston that doesnt kick me, my wife, and my two kids out within 12 months of moving in. Why can't we make this better?
Be the change you want to see
Be the change you want to see in the world.
Cross you fingers
For Readvilles redevelopment, I am.
Just wait until they build
Just wait until they build the 500+ apartments in Readville! It'll go from bad to worse.
I live in Wolcott and support
I live in Wolcott and support it. I tried to live without a car in this area and it sucks. It took hours to get to different areas on the T and nothing really within walking distance. I just sucked it up and got a car. I miss living in JP and Quincy, where I could live without a car.
It takes an organized community
I lived in Roslindale in the early 90's and there was a very active community that evolved, primarily around the reopening of the Roslindale Market, that is still paying dividends today.
Parking...
I think parking/traffic is the biggest issue.
Community to blame
Simply put the community who
cry for better restaurants and
stores, don’t support the
Folks who are brave enough
to open them.
Ok, well make us want to
Ok, well make us want to support them. Make the windows inviting! Clean the doorways, advertise in English as well--some of us still only speak the native tongue . Come out to community events and show us what you are offering.
I think any of us would support them if they actually made it look like they cared enough for us to.
We here in 'Merika don't have
We here in 'Merika don't have an official language.
I think it's a common
I think it's a common misunderstanding, but you can still use businesses even if you are unable to read the sign. Additionally, you don't even have to look at a sign! For example, let's say you go to a restaurant. Go inside, ask for a table, ask what's good there, order that, eat the food (making sure to chew and swallow), and then pay for the meal (using money) and provide a tip (also in money). For those watching closely, you may have noticed that at no point did we have to read a sign or even a menu. But what about if we don't know what a store sells? Look for context clues! Does the store have hammers and nails in it? It's probably a hardware store. Go there if you need hammers and nails. Does the store have clothes in it? It's probably a clothes store. Go there if you need clothes. By using context clues and being brave enough to ask people questions, our cultural blinders and xenophobia don't have to get in the way of enjoying and partaking in our communities. This has been episode 42 of "How to Be a Big Boy." See you next week!
bravo!
Because every time we ask for
Because every time we ask for change or beg for ANOTHER dollar store, barber shop or "church" not to open--we, who have lived here are whole lives, get called out for using our "birth right" as a way to stop the "development" of Cleary Square. Yet we are the ones who remember when you could shop down there, eat there. Not get run down by kids with ear buds not paying a damn bit of attention or cars running lights. Not a cop to be seen--with a police station across the street.
We have enough dollar stores and salons now, no? How about a cafe? Book store? Bakery? Boutiques? I know that these are people trying to make a living but perhaps as a community, we could set some standards-keep your store fronts clean, tidy and printed signs. Let us know what you are actually selling? Not throw everything you have in one window? Its a disgrace. It looks uninviting. Its filthy. That's why no one wants to go eat at nice places like Fairmount grille. Besides no parking as well. What are the reps going to do about the state of the square? Main streets? The community?
We can keep planting all the flowers you want but you have got to tackle the what's really going on at some point.
Sounds like you have a lot of
Sounds like you have a lot of good ideas! Maybe either start a Main Streets program or join the one they may already have? Start bringing a garbage bag with you when you go down to the square and pick up some trash or start a community clean up day. Maybe you will spur others to do the same.
People have to shop and eat at the stores you would like. Will people in the community buy a book for $30 at a local bookstore when they can get it on Amazon for $15? Pay for a $5 coffee? Spend $10 on a bagel sandwich? Everyone has to make sacrifices when it comes to better business districts and some may hit your wallet....is the community willing to do that to help a store in their neighborhood survive? Is the community willing to work with landlords that can charge whatever they want for rent?
The no parking complaint is tired. Maybe people just have to get used to walking a bit further or not expecting free parking at every turn. The commuter line in that area is the cheapest around - people should start using it. Take the bus. If you are able walk to the square. There are plenty of business districts around the world that survive without parking right at the businesses front door. The more pedestrian friendly a business district is the better it will become.
I believe I stated I don’t go
I believe I stated I don’t go down the square like I used to so... there’s that. I mean, I would love to pick up people’s old chicken bones on my days off but see, I work full time and am involved in community, BPS and doing things with my son. Not dodging fools in the square or sitting in endless traffic. But since you asked, I DO pick up the trash around my sons school and my own home. What do YOU do?
As for the African Market, what exactly do you think they specialize in? Is it Gaelic goods? I’m guessing not. So no, I don’t shop there. I don’t braid my hair so there’s that... and yes. I pay $5 for a coffee at Coffee break because it is better and worth the money. So I would spend the extra money for a better product. Does that answer all your probing questions trying to make me look like a racist?
I didn't say one thing about
I didn't say one thing about you being a racist nor did I mention the braiding salon...doth thou protest too much? Jeez. I said you had some good ideas and suggested others way that maybe you could help the area that you said needs help.
But since you brought up the African market maybe they do have goods you would be interested in. How would you know if you've never gone in? Maybe they sell amazing lotions or oils that would interest you. Maybe you could speak to the owner about putting a small trash barrel out for people to use. Or you can continue to be angry on the interwebs accusing people of calling you a racist when in fact my post said nothing of the sort. Have a great day!
Oh Erin, you do you
I'll have to check out one of these stores that puts all their stuff in the window and also won't tell you what they sell. I'm intrigued. Looking on google, I'm going to go ahead and guess you don't like the Royal African Market because the other business around the Fairmont Grille are clearly salons, a church and a few clothing stores.
Hmm...
why would they kick you out?
why would they kick you out?
maybe you are part of the problem
Where did I say I got kicked
Where did I say I got kicked out?
Another Hyde Park ex-pat speaks
I lived in Hyde Park for 36 years before moving to West Roxbury...when I was a kid, the people of Hyde Park kept things clean and neat, there were plenty of stores and restaurants, and people cared.
The change in Hyde Park's came around the late '90s, when people began to move away to the suburbs, and stores closed left and right. The T was OK back then - you could get to Downtown Boston in less than 20 minutes or Providence in about an hour by commuter rail for about $10 round trip - but now I wouldn't ride anything to Hyde Park, not even the Route 50 bus that stopped directly in front of my house. (One correction on the commuter rail, though - Hyde Park has three stations with three different zones: Zone 1A (Fairmount), Zone 1 (Hyde Park), and Zone 2 (Readville)).
The time I knew it was time to go when I didn't feel safe walking down the street in my own neighborhood. One night, I was walking through the elderly housing and was accosted by two punk kids. I could hear cars racing down Summer Street to avoid Hyde Park Avenue at two in the morning.
Small things, but enough to get out of Dodge.
I agree - when no one cares about the neighborhood, you get the filthiness, the blase attitudes, and the stores opening and closing so fast you need a scorecard. I'm not surprised Hyde Park has declined that much, and the only real thing that would revive it is gentrification - but gentrification is often seen as a threat, and is resisted and fought against for fear that it would turn Hyde Park into another homogeneous, only-for-hipsters-and-the-wealthy neighborhood.
Three commuter rail zones, actually
Fairmount is Zone 1A, Hyde Park is Zone 1, and Readville (both the Fairmount and Franklin-side stations) are Zone 2.
money
The clientele in HP is obviously going way down hill. I see it everyday. I thought for a nano second that the area was gentrifying a bit which it really needs. Stories of goat heads, stabbings, shootings - that is what people here, what would draw them in to hyde park? With all the places to dine out in the area or even explore what is luring people to Hyde Park? nothing! I've been a homeowner here since 2014 and it hasn't been awful but I'm not putting down my roots here with 3 year old and 5 year old. We came home on sunday night to find a hypodermic needle in front of our house. Not normal and disgusting!
Hyde park has more in common with Lawrence, Lynn and lowell. It's really a just a craphole. This is why restaurants are closing and we can't find anything nice. That's basically all I'm going to say (or will be allowed to say here) but ya'll can figure out the rest.
Hyde Park is what it is
Am I really reading a bunch of people whining that Hyde Park isn't JP or the south end. The thing about that is once JP became JP, the people who used to live in JP were priced out. You guys are living in dreamland. Barber shops and salons aren't exciting to hipsters, ex hipsters, foodies and the like, but they reflect the needs of the neighborhood. Cra
ppy? When was HP ever a classy area (by your standards)? I live by the new coffee shop on Truman, and go there to get work done. People aren't exactly beating down the door. Yet when that closes everyone will whine about how crappy HP is. Somebody should open a family restaurant in HP. Or even a quality cafeteria style restaurant. That would be more in line with needs of the neighborhood.
Those cities are actually models to aspire to
Hyde Park would be lucky to have more in common with Lynn or Lowell at least in terms of its commercial district. Check out Lowell on a Friday night. The streets are buzzing with people heading to the arena, river walk, or the restaurants. And then there's the Mill on 5. A restored mill with boutiques, a coffee shop, and a movie theater. All on the fourth floor, not on street level. It's not even on the main drag, and visitors HAVE to take an old elevator to reach it. And they do.
Lynn is still a bit rough around the edges but I patronize more places there then when I lived in Hyde Park. I work in Lynn and head into the center after work to visit some of the new coffee shops (Land of 1000 Hills, Brew on the Grid). Their center has more than the obligatory Massachusetts Dunkins.
Plus Lynn has a burgeoning arts scene. The Beyond Walls event brings the city together and people from outside the city to enjoy the wall murals. The Lydia Pinkham Open Studios in November too.
Events designed to bring together diverse communities would definitely help Hyde Park residents share an experience. I know Hyde Park has an Open Studios event but it just doesn't spark the interest of other Open Studios in the metropolitan area.
Pink Wednesday
Pink Wednesday, a local LGBT gathering ( I don't add the Q,A,I,I, or +) hosted monthly parties here. In fact there was one scheduled for tonight. The invite now says sorry, the event has been cancelled.
That was the only event I'd travel out of my way to come to Hyde Park. I do hope they find another venue now that the Fairmount Grille closed. It may be a challenge. I wouldn't say the other restaurants in the area are homophobic, but would they embrace the gay community? Hmmm.