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Boston.com

Joe’s Pizza, an iconic New York City spot, opens in Harvard Square

The restaurant serves guests until 3 a.m.

Joe's Pizza
A classic cheese pie from Joe’s Pizza. Handout

Pizza fans have reason to celebrate — a famous New York City shop known for its street slices has debuted in Cambridge.

Joe’s Pizza opened on Brattle Street in Harvard Square on September 15, serving up classic flavors to the surrounding community. Located in the former Milk Bar and &Pizza space, the eatery originated in New York’s Greenwich Village in 1975, according to their website, and it has remained a popular late-night haunt. The Boston location will be bringing signature New York-style thin crust pizza, the kind that you fold in half, to the neighborhood.

Owner Joe Pozzuoli told the Boston Globe in February that the area is “a special corner.” He added that Joe’s Pizza serves a “classic New York slice: We’re tried and true, with an old-style, authentic recipe. We’re not trying to change the game. It will be identical to what we’ve been serving since 1975.”

Guests will enjoy trying classic cheese slices, but the menu features other standard offerings like pepperoni, white, caprese, Sicilian square, and Supreme — made with sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, and onions. A house salad also makes an appearance, as does a selection of sodas.

The restaurant has seven other locations in the country, including spots in New York, Miami, and Michigan, said manager Tony Cosentino. This pizzeria is their first in New England, according to NBC Boston, and it will be open until 2 a.m. Sundays through Wednesdays, and 3 a.m. Thursdays through Saturdays.

Joe’s Pizza, 3 Brattle St., Cambridge, is open Sunday through Wednesday (10 a.m. – 2 a.m.) and Thursday through Saturday (10 a.m. – 3 a.m.).

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Masslive

Joe’s Pizza debuts in New England with latest location in Cambridge’s Harvard Square

A legendary pizza shop that started in New York City 48 years ago has officially debuted in New England with its first Massachusetts location in the Boston area.

Joe’s Pizza opened in Cambridge’s Harvard Square on Friday, Sept. 15, staff told MassLive the following Thursday. The store, located at 3 Brattle St., is straight across from the Harvard Square T stop on the Red Line and nestled among Harvard University’s campus.

The Cambridge spot is the latest location where customers can order a slice or pie of Joe’s signature NYC-style, thin-crust pizza. The options include cheese, Sicilian, caprese, supreme and more.

Joe’s has other locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Ann Arbor, Michigan. Joe’s original location in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village was established in 1975, according to the restaurant’s website.

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Boston Herald

Raise a glass to Oktoberfest fun

If you love fun, festivals and maybe a little beer, you know what this time of year means: Oktoberfest.

Greater Boston and New England at large is at no shortage of Oktoberfest choices. From cityscape to mountainside to overlooking the sea, you can find the perfect Octoberfest for you.

While Oktoberfest is centered around great brews, it’s not just about the beer. Great Octoberfests marry brewing an …

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Boston Globe

Joe’s Pizza, a New York classic, is now open in Harvard Square until 3 a.m.

Who said local nightlife was dead?

A closeup of a Joe's Pizza slice.
A closeup of a Joe’s Pizza slice.

Greenwich Village classic Joe’s Pizza is now open at 3 Brattle St. in Harvard Square, says partner Pino Vitale.

Owner Joe Pozzuoli (who, coincidentally, was actually born in Boston) told the Globe in February that he hopes to stay in the neighborhood long term. “This is a special corner,” he says.

He describes Joe’s as a “classic New York slice: We’re tried and true, with an old-style, authentic recipe. We’re not trying to change the game. It will be identical to what we’ve been serving since 1975,” he says.

The shop will have about 30 seats, with al fresco seating in warm weather. And Pozzuoli says you can’t go wrong with the classic cheese slice.

Students should be satisfied: The place is open late. Visit Sunday through Wednesday from 10 a.m. until 2 a.m., and Thursday through Saturday until 3 a.m.

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Cambridge Day

Painted Burro and Jaho coffee and wine are near long-awaited openings in Harvard and Central

Repairs and renovations are complete at a Painted Burro location in Cambridge’s Harvard Square. (Photo: Tom Meek)

Two of Cambridge’s longest-awaited eateries showed signs of life Thursday, winning approvals from the city’s License Commission: The Painted Burro, an upscale Mexican restaurant that said in January 2022 it was coming to Harvard Square; and a Jaho Coffee Roaster & Wine Bar expected in Central Square since March 2020.

The Painted Burro replaces the Border Cafe at a 32 Church St. site empty since a fire on Dec. 1, 2019 – an incident prompting the main concern of the three-member commission board.

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Boston Globe

A memorable missive from the ‘legal department’ at ‘Car Talk’

A check for 2 cents to Robert Skole from the law firm of Dewey, Cheetham & Howe.
A check for 2 cents to Robert Skole from the law firm of Dewey, Cheetham & Howe.ROBERT SKOLE

It’s great that the “Car Talk” gang’s Dewey, Cheetham & Howe window is being preserved in Harvard Square (“Preserved: One window into a madcap past,” Page A1, Sept. 12). But the name is more than a gag, and to illustrate this, I have a check for 2 cents from “Car Talk” that bears the name of that fictional law firm.

When “Car Talk” could be heard on Swedish radio some years ago, I wrote a story in a Swedish technical weekly, Ny Teknik, in April 1999 under the headline “Car Talk drabbar Sverige” (Car Talk strikes Sweden). Without my permission, “Car Talk” ran my story on the show’s website. I wrote to them, saying that although my accountant insisted anything on the “Car Talk” website wasn’t worth 2 cents, I disagreed, and I enclosed an invoice for 2 cents.

A few days later, I received the attached BankBoston check for 2 cents, from Dewey, Cheetham & Howe, covering “Reprint Permission.”

As you can see, I never cashed the check, which probably threw Dewey, Cheetham & Howe’s financial statements into confusion for years.

Robert Skole

Boston

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Readers Digest

Why you should visit Boston this autumn

The autumn months bring with them a treasure trove of cultural events in the Greater Boston area. Though it’s not an exhaustive list, here are some that we think should be top of mind if you’re visiting in September, October, or November: Indigenous People’s Day celebrations; Harvard Square Oktoberfest; Cambridge Science Festival; Boston Ballet Fall Experience; and Boston Public Market Harvest Party. They’re a mix of free and ticketed events, some family friendly and some better for adults. But whatever the celebration, we’re confident your time in Boston will be well-spent.

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The Boston Sun

Five Back Bay Actors Star in the Tony Award-Winning Musical, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Back Bay actors, Joy Clark, Eva Colliou, Ana Viveros, Alan Cid, and Klara LaGuardia, star in Moonbox Productions’ upcoming production of the Tony-Award-winning musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler.  Directed and co-produced by Ryan Mardesich with musical direction by Dan Ryan and choreography by Joy Clark, Sweeney Todd opens October 13th and runs through November 5th at the new Arrow Street Arts performance venue located at 2 Arrow Street in Cambridge.  Tickets are $65 with Pay-What-You-Wish options available at www.arrowstarts.org. 

Moonbox Productions’ Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a Brechtian take on this Sondheim classic. After being wrongfully imprisoned by the corrupt justice system, Sweeney Todd returns home to London to seek his revenge and save his daughter, Johanna. Aided by his meat-pie baking neighbor Mrs. Lovett, Sweeney comes to a much darker conclusion – we all deserve to die. Together, they wreak havoc on Fleet Street and serve up the hottest – and most unsettling – pies in London.  Witness Moonbox’s new take on the modern myth, the parable of power, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street. 

The cast of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street includes Davron Monroe* (Sweeney Todd), Joy Clark* (Mrs. Lovett), Caitlin Zerra Rose (Beggar Woman), Todd Yard (Judge), Meagan Lewis-Michelson (Beadle), Ethan DePuy (Pirelli/Fogg), Eli Douglas (Toby), Dallas Austin Jimmar (Anthony), Eva Colliou (Johanna), Ana Viveros (Ensemble), Ciaran D’Hondt (Ensemble), Abigail Whitney Smith (Ensemble), Alexander Lyons (Ensemble), Tim Lawton (Ensemble), Todd McNeel Jr. (Ensemble), Alan Cid (Swing), Brandon Lee (Swing), and Klara La Guardia (Swing). (*Member of Actors’ Equity Association)

Sweeney Todd will be the first presentation at Arrow Street Arts’ renovated and expanded venue in Harvard Square.  The venue is in the midst of a major renovation, and Moonbox, a resident company at ASA, will produce the musical during a break in the construction schedule.  The facility’s full opening is planned for Spring 2024.

“What an exciting way to kick off our thirteenth season!” says Producer Sharman Altshuler.  “Sweeney Todd is such an exceptional piece of musical theater, and to be able to present it during the Halloween season is especially thrilling!  Deepest thanks to Arrow Street Arts for pausing their renovations to let us present this show in their fabulous black box space – a perfect spot for this production, and a great opportunity for the community to get a sneak peek into this renovated venue, which will be an incredible asset to the arts community in and around Cambridge,” said Altshuler.

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WGBH

Storied jazz club Regattabar is back in full swing with grand reopening

Regattabar, where giants such as Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie and Herbie Hancock have all played, has been closed for more than three years. That changes Friday, when the iconic jazz club reopens after a years-long hiatus due to COVID-19.

The venue, which is located in the Charles Hotel in Cambridge, first opened in 1985. Alex Attia, general manager of the Charles Hotel, said he is excited for the 220-seat capacity space to reopen its doors — and so are longtime patrons.

“We’ve gotten a minimum of a dozen emails a month from regulars, both artists and customers, that are looking forward to getting back to the Regattabar,” he said. “That’s what I’m really excited about.”

The Boston-area jazz scene has had a gap in recent years: Ryles Jazz Club shuttered in 2018, and Wally’s Cafe and Jazz Club in the South End didn’t reopen after the pandemic until late last year.

“Unfortunately we lost a lot of jazz venues,” Attia said. “It’s important for us to continue with the jazz concept. We were able to cultivate a really great list of artists and a great community of jazz lovers.”

The grand reopening event on Sept. 15 will feature a performance by saxophonist and Blue Note recording artist Walter Smith III.

Smith, who is also chair of woodwinds at Berklee College of Music, said Regattabar was his favorite place to attend shows when he was a student in Boston — and that Boston has been missing the club’s unique programming.