Cambridge Infill and Small Developments

Plough and Stars --not really in Harvard Square-- is one of the best bars in the world, but it brings into ultra-high relief not only the pleasures but also the considerable hazards of bar culture in general: it's full of criminals, and they will rob you or even kill you. As I was once a habitue, I can easily but reluctantly support this claim with anectodal evidence ... but a look at the police blotter for this place should be enough.

Enjoy, but be wary.
 
Off-topic, ablarc: I recall you've spent some time in Bristol, RI. Did you ever pay a visit to the incomparable Common Pub? There is a buzzing hive of skulduggery.
 
^ Drat! How could I have missed that place?

But here's one to test your powers of recall: do you remember when the waterfront of Newport was packed with low-life dives?
 
There were a few dodgy places there in my "formative years" ('88-'92). During my "second shift" ('96-'00) things had been shined up. I visit often. Downstairs at the Cook House is still a freakshow.
 
ablarc said:
Do you think Heidelberg, Oxford and Krakow are as poorly equipped with bars?
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I can't speak for Heidelberg or Krakow, but having gone to Oxford for undergrad, I can attest that contemporary Harvard Square does it better and with more variety. Yes, Oxford has some of the nicest and oldest pubs in the UK including the well-hidden Turf Tavern where for a few solid months I was lucky enough to tend bar and be fed by the kitchen staff... But underneath the veneer of beauty and uniqueness the sad truth is that the vast majority of the pubs are owned by about 4 different pub chains, each with a limited selection of rather blehhh ales and undesirables like me behind the bar. And they all closed at 11. The cocktail/lounge scene was (still is) tacky, and the club scene was (still is) chock full of vomitous townies and students by 9. Harvard Square - especially if we include out to Central and towards Porter (e.g. the Cambridge Common) is much more varied when you actually consider it. I'm thankful for what's there.
 
Well, that's an endorsement. Tell what to look for, and where to go.
 
You'd might also think there'd be better bars at Harvard, considering they run their own bartending course. It's similar to going to M.I.T. to be a household electrician.
 
i'll just give a very localized example crawling up along one stretch of Mass Ave a bit north of the Square...

Cambridge Common - best domestic beer joint, also throw in the Lizard Lounge...
Chez Henri - best mojto/caipirinha
Forest Cafe - great margarita
West End Lounge - sophisticated cocktails I've always enjoyed
Temple Bar - a clone of Grafton Street but great for variety, serves a niche when parents are in town...

... Grab some drunken grub at Boca, a fantastic pizza joint, an out-of-this-world Japanese mall... continue onwards...

... Tavern on the Square is a clone of its Central Square location but actually a good sports bar... Toad is unique and a good music scene... Christophers... alas things get clowdy.

And that's all north of the Square.
 
This is my neighborhood, and I have to add my $.02...Cambridge Common is wonderful. So is Chez Henri, but for dinner, not drinks. Forest Cafe has terrible service and uncomfortable booths, West End Lounge is a poor man's Temple Bar, and Temple Bar is, indeed, a clone of Grafton Street.
 
Chez Henri's bar deal - $12 for a cuban sandwich (veggie or traditional) with heaps of plantain chips and salad - beats anything I've ever had in the main dining room. And the main dining room is excellent.

Since we're on the topic of bevvies, I'll reveal my hangover secret: Sarah's Market (corner of Huron and Concord) - Sarah keeps her greasy diner hidden behind a traditional convenience store, but seek ye Sarah's and greasy shall ye be. (I think I've found my new Brookline equivalent at Martin's Coffee Shop)...

Ok Ok, I know that's enough... I'll see you all over at Yelp.
 
Shepard said:
Yes, Oxford has some of the nicest and oldest pubs in the UK including the well-hidden Turf Tavern where for a few solid months I was lucky enough to tend bar and be fed by the kitchen staff... But underneath the veneer of beauty and uniqueness the sad truth is that the vast majority of the pubs are owned by about 4 different pub chains, each with a limited selection of rather blehhh ales and undesirables like me behind the bar. And they all closed at 11. The cocktail/lounge scene was (still is) tacky, and the club scene was (still is) chock full of vomitous townies and students by 9.
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Sure, but for an undergrad, the Oxford pub scene is a blast. The closing times aren't really an obstacle, as people continue drinking in college bars/apartments/the King's Arms (till 12), etc. The fact that kebab vans are open till 4am is an indication.

I can't speak for the lounges or anything, but what's wrong with clubbing with hoards of fellow students? I never really noticed much of a townie influence at clubs...(just at the McDonalds on Cornmarket...heh)
 
Kings Arms and Ahmed's (Kebab truck) was a perfect evening indeed (the times when I didn't get mugged, at least). And townies vs gownies... well, when you're out on the pull, what's the difference anyway?
 
A discussion of Cambridge bars, and nobody has brought up the Cantab?
 
The pub closing times was a bit issue in the UK for a long time. Essentially in 1914 with the beginning of the First World War, the defence of the realm act was passed which meant that pub opening hours were restricted to 12noon?2.30pm and 6.30pm?9.30pm. Afterwards they were relaxed but the closing time when I was in my early teens was still 11pm, a ludicrous time for a nation of massive boozers. It led to a lot of binge drinking (something that is now engrained in the culture) and massive fights when everyone ended up on the streets at kicking out time.

There was a lot of resistance to getting them changed but they finally allowed late licensing for pubs about 5 years ago. The collapse of civilisation was predicted by all the newspapers but it never came.

The big problem now is that a lot of pubs are going out of business (4 a week apparently). The ones that survive are being gobbled up by the big chains (Wetherspoons, Yates and Youngs). There were five pubs in my village growing up (population about 2,000), now there's only 2.
 
Hi humphrey, thanks for your input.

You need to hang around more.
 
The tragedy is that we carry on these conversations in any format other than over a pint.
 
In other news, I was taking another look in the new Harvard Square photo history book today and noticed that there were plans in 1988 to tear down the hideous "motel on stilts"...but they were thwarted by the Harvard Square Defense Fund, who apparently couldn't deal conceptually with a building actually fronting on the street. They dragged their opposition into the early 90s recession, which finally killed the project.

Also, a 23 story hotel at Winthrop and Mount Auburn was a month away from construction in the mid-60s when it was killed. Probably dodged a bullet on that one.

And wow, if I.M. Pei had gotten his way and the JFK Library were located on the current Kennedy School site rather than Columbia Point, it would be Cambridge that was known for his glass pyramids rather than Paris.
 
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czsz said:
...a 23 story hotel at Winthrop and Mount Auburn was a month away from construction in the mid-60s when it was killed. Probably dodged a bullet on that one.
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I believe this was part of a Sert/Cambridge 7 masterplan for the Square that pre-dated the Red Line extension.

czsz said:
And wow, if I.M. Pei had gotten his way and the JFK Library were located on the current Kennedy School site rather than Columbia Point, it would be Cambridge that was known for his glass pyramids rather than Paris.
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I recall the design from a Pei monograph I looked at in high school. I think he recycled the design into the Louvre and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
 
I believe this was part of a Sert/Cambridge 7 masterplan for the Square that pre-dated the Red Line extension.
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No, I believe that plan was from 1968, and the hotel project predated it by several years. The masterplan was DOI, but the hotel was nearly a go.
 
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