Winter Hill, but hey: Replacement for Bickford's moving in

[georgy.livejournal.com]

Bread and Co., which has a location in Everett, will be taking the place of the recently departed (and not at all missed) Bickford's on Broadway in Winter Hill:

http://www.breadcompany.net/eng/index.html

From the menu on this site, it looks like mostly Brazilian pastries and sandwiches, but the signage on the building mentioned "Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner," so perhaps they are expanding their fare in this location. I would be psyched to have a real breakfast place within a stone's throw of my house (no offense to the Neighborhood and the Ball Sq., but they are a sliiiight hike).

Comments

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Cool! That makes me happy for the same reason.

Love your Mike Doughty reference, btw.

[georgy.livejournal.com]

Hey! A Winter Hill resident and Mike Doughty fan? Cool. Mind if I friend you?

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Please do! (But please don't be freaked out by my most recent post, which could make an odd first lj impression.)

Perhaps we will run into each other scouring the usually empty shelves of Paul Revere Liquors one night.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

Yeah, anyone know what's up with how emptier and emptier those shelves are getting? Are they about to go out of business?

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

I don't think so. The same thing happened back in the spring and then they were full again one day. It seems like they just don't order nearly often enough (though someone else might have an inside scoop). For a while in the spring I was convinced they were a drug front or something since being a liquor store almost entirely out of all liquor except cachaca didn't seem like the best business plan.

[pushupstairs.livejournal.com]

I used to be one of those, but then I moved to Savin Hill.

[balsamicdragon.livejournal.com]

Yep, they run a catering biz, but they will definitely be serving breakfast. I stopped in briefly to chat with them as they were dismantling the old fixtures. I also ran into Maria, one of the Bickford's waitstaff. She said that Bickford's gave them no notice that they were closing :( On the plus side, Maria's been hired at the new place. Hopefully they will take the good staff (like Maria) and leave the... not so good ones behind! (not naming any names here tho :)

[georgy.livejournal.com]

Aww... I have had previous bad experiences at Bickford's restaurants (hence my "not at all missed") but it's a shame the closing came with no notice. I know you were a fan. I am very very curious about this new place and look forward to trying it out (with you guys? :-))

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

If you live near that city line sign, we live really close to each other--I'm on Fremont, which is about 1 street from that sign, iirc.

[georgy.livejournal.com]

I live closer to the ex-Bickford's, actually, just off of Temple Street.

[rmd.livejournal.com]

oh, hey, excellent. i'd been wondering how long that space would remain vacant.

[oneagain.livejournal.com]

Yay! That is practically across the street from me.

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

The old people in the area are no doubt profoundly disappointed. I'm not, even though I'm never near Winter Hill anymore (I used to live at 379 Broadway).

[jamesnorton.livejournal.com]

i am excited to have somewhere within the neighborhood that isn't a sub shop to go and eat (bickford's sucked). thank God they kept Maria!

[myselftheliar.livejournal.com]

I liked bickfords :/

[irinarasp.livejournal.com]

Yay!
I just moved to Winter Hill. What else is there to do/eat/coffee around here?

[ron_newman]

It's always seemed to me that the answer was "go down the hill to Ball Square, or down the hill to East Somerville, or down the hill to South Medford"....

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Not very much, sadly. Walgreen's and laundry, whee! Monday-Friday, from 10-3, you can shop at the police supply store. If you are me, you can spend a lot of time trying to figure out if your next door neighbors' pet is a dog or a pig.

I don't know if you're familiar with Ball Square yet, but I'd recommend it for times you don't want to go far. The White Hen pantry there has a strange amount of "actual food" and one of my favorite liquor stores ever, Ball Square Fine Wines and Liquors is there. I haven't spent much time in True Grounds for coffee.

[georgy.livejournal.com]

Aside from walking 20 mins to Union/Ball/East Somerville, here are some of my local treats:
- You can walk up behind Mystic Ave to the Assembly Sq. shops for your Christmas Tree Shops/Bed Bath & Beyond/Staples etc. fix. There is also a 99 Pub there.
- The Winter Hill Bakery has excellent bread and very tasty chocolate croissants, turnovers, cookies, etc.
- There is an Indian grocery just down the way from the Winter Hill Bakery for some more interesting fare
- Maria's Cold Cuts is a nice Italian grocery where you can get a hot or iced coffee in the morning, tasty sandwiches, cold cuts, half-gallons of milk and also some affordable pre-made meals (ziti and meatballs, lasagna, etc.) The guy who owns it is really nice.
- Foss Park has some tennis and basketball courts, as well as baseball fields and a pool during the summer
- If you need a laundromat, the one on Temple Street is a decent one. Clean and the guys who works in the evenings is really nice.
- Mamma Lisa's has the best pizza in Winter Hill, for my money. Good subs and calzones, too.
- If you like a nice walk, you can walk up Temple St., across Mystic, under the I93 overpass, make a left on Bailey St. and it will take you straight to the Blessing of the Bay boathouse and the beginnings of a nice bike path along the Mystic River that leads right to the Meadow Glen Mall, where there is a Kohl's, a Friendly's and some other mall destinations, including Spencer's Gifts! (a 20 min walk).

[ron_newman]

There's a shorter way to walk from Winter Hill to Blessing of the Bay, but it involves either a stairway or a little-known poorly-paved pedestrian path, plus a stroll through the Mystic Project.

(The map and cue sheet for my upcoming Tour de Somerville show one way to do this walk.)

[georgy.livejournal.com]

Well, I live east of the Mystic projects, so for me it's pretty darned direct.

[ron_newman]

The stairway is so obscure that right now I can't actually remember where it is ... and even zooming the Google satellite map all the way in is no help.

[ron_newman]

When did Bickford's close? I wonder why they didn't turn it into an upscale "Bickford's Grille", like the one on Route 3 in Burlington.

Before Bickford's, this was a Boston Chicken. I don't remember what it was before that. Anyone else?

[spatch]

I wonder why they didn't turn it into an upscale "Bickford's Grille", like the one on Route 3 in Burlington.

Because the Bickford's Grille concept was an unnecessary rebranding concept gone horribly awry and makes me gnash my teeth just thinking about it?

[ron_newman]

Well sure, I'd rather they went the other way and made it into a Hayes-Bickford cafeteria, but I doubt that will happen.

[watchamacallit.livejournal.com]

I actually liked that Bickford's. Where else can you get delicious take-out pancakes on a Saturday afternoon??

[ron_newman]

How late do Kelly's and SoundBites and the other Ball Square place serve breakfast on Saturdays?

[watchamacallit.livejournal.com]

No clue. I lived in Winter Hill and really wasn't interested in walking to Ball Square for take out pancakes. They'd be cold long before I got back home. I think they both closed relatively early though.

Lived on Winter Hill 1998-2002

[obie119.livejournal.com]

Also in/near Winter Hill:
Little Vinny's at Magoun Square is tied with Vinny's at Night (East Somerville) for my all-time favorite Italian - beats the heck out of any North End stuff.
Pastelaria (sp?) Broadway on the East Som side of Broadway and McGrath. Their Cohxinha (again, sp?) are to die for! Other cool Brazilian stuff is there too but I love their cohxinha too much...
Old Magoun Saloon - I haven't been but I have friends who love it.
The police store is really bizarre, but I bought an awesome bright orange jacket with reflective stripes for bike commuting. Cash only though, at least when I went!