Eastern Standard, Island Oyster Bar in Kenmore Square have closed for good

what was it called? Phnom Penh maybe? A half a mile or so out from Kenmore Square on Beacon Street, current location of Bar 'cino.

Back story/supposed source of the curse was a busboy killed in the alley in a failed drug deal in the mid to late 80s. So many failed restaurants over the last 35 years (which may have had to do with outrageous rents as much as the supposed curse). NTM the Brown's Steakhouse fire at the same location earlier in the 80s, but that one doesn't fit the back story. I ran across the (now-deceased) Brown, Jr. (forgetting his first name in a senior moment) bartending a number of times up in North Conway.

Bar 'cino seemed to be booming pre-Covid. Very smart design with the huge bar very suitable for the neighborhood/assumed clientele (unlike in many ways the disastrous Waxy's that it replaced). NTM the deck in good weather (still see some wackos out there with the heaters these days). At this point, it's by far the nicest of the few places in the area (West Fens/Audubon Circle) I've been going to recently. Has been fairly busy when I go there, usually early Sunday evenings, but I have no idea how they're doing financially.

In the past, I was more of a regular (and, given the opportunity, will continue to be a regular) at the long-established, more intimate TdH on the other side of Beacon Street.

I wonder about the future of Tiffani Faison's empire over at the end of Boylston Street, where I was also something of a regular.

Biggest loss around about here, of course, was the permanent closing of O'Leary's, my home (not so far) away from home for a couple of decades. Completely understandable why Angus and Grainne decided to call it a day, but fingers crossed that somebody sees the potential in the location, which worked fairly well for them and doesn't seem well-suited for much of anything else.

--gpm