‘Keep it alive’: Outdoor dining begins in Boston, except for North End neighborhood

Litsa Pappas
·2 min read

Restaurant owners were busy getting their patios built Wednesday now that outdoor dining season has officially begun in Boston.

Even though it was too chilly to start eating outside Wednesday, a lot of people are excited to see restaurants taking advantage of the city’s program to block off parts of the street for outdoor patios from May through October.

“It’s so much nicer to be outside, it’s so great around here in the summer,” said Judith Jackson-Pomeroy.

The concept started during the pandemic, but many hope it’s here to stay.

“It does bring in a lot of business, people get excited,” said Cynthia Adar, who works at Dirty Water Dough Co. on Newbury Street. “It encourages people to sit, have a full meal, have a beer.”

The patios draw in more foot traffic on Newbury Street, and it allows restaurants to increase their seating capacity for the summer.

“We actually have really nice local people that they always wait and always ask for the patio, like when is the additional patio opening, so we’re really excited about it,” said Sebastin Herrera, General Manager at Serafina on Newbury Street.

One area where you won’t see outdoor dining this year is in the North End.

City leaders say the streets are too narrow, parking is tight and there’s been too much trash from the outdoor dining there over the last few years.

“I think they should try to work around that, keep it alive,” said Kim Hodson, dining in the North End.

In the North End, you’ll see banners protesting the city’s decision to not allow outdoor dining there this year, and a lot of diners agree, they’ll miss dining al fresco in Boston’s Italian neighborhood.

“I don’t think it’s fair, I think people enjoy that, it’s what the North End is all about,” said Hodson.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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