Photo by Nailya Maxyutova (COM’14)

Things-to-do

Getting to Know Your Neighborhood: Kendall Square

A guide to navigating through the Boston area’s smartest square

Few Boston-area neighborhoods have undergone as many transformations as Cambridge’s Kendall Square. Originally a Charles River salt marsh, by the middle of the 19th century it was a bustling industrial center that housed distilleries, factories, and the expansive Kendall Boiler and Tank Company, which gave the area its name. After World War II, most businesses had shut down or moved, leaving much of the area deserted, except for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which had moved to Cambridge in 1916.

During President John F. Kennedy’s race to space, the area was under consideration for NASA’s mission control center, but Vice President Lyndon Johnson successfully lobbied for Texas. At about the same time, the area became home to a US Department of Transportation hub, the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center—a 14-acre parcel of land that MIT is now set to redevelop into a mixed-use site that will include a combination of housing, retail, office, lab, and park space.

Kendall Square languished until Biogen arrived in the 1980s, beginning the area’s transformation to what it is today: a thriving center for life sciences, biotech, pharmaceutical, and information technology firms. It also has some of the highest commercial and residential rents in the Boston area.

The Cambridge Innovation Center, launched in 1999, supports innovators solving the world’s most pressing challenges. And industry giants like Amazon, Biogen Idec, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter, and Novartis also have a presence there. The Broad Institute, Draper Laboratory, Forsyth Institute, Koch Institute, and the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council have made the area a premier research hub.

Kendall Square has also seen the arrival of dozens of cafés and restaurants, many that use locally and sustainably grown ingredients.

BU Today has listed some of the square’s best places to visit, street by street.

Landmark Theatres Kendall Square Cinema
One Kendall Square, 355 Binney St.

True to its name, this movie theater is a Kendall Square landmark. The cinema sports nine screens and shows new releases, independent films, foreign language films, and documentaries. It has won numerous awards since its 1995 opening, and underwent a major renovation in 2017 that included all new seats, carpet, tile, and flooring, and the construction of a bar serving beer and wine. View showtimes and get tickets here. Be sure to check out the cinema’s $7 movie ticket special on Tuesdays, available through their free loyalty program.

Cambridge Brewing Company
One Kendall Square, Building 100

A staple since 1989, Cambridge Brewing Company is in a refurbished mill building. Brewers here have a passion for beer, and it shows. With wood-aged beers, experimental hybrids, special seasonal brews, and a commitment to creativity and sustainability, it offers one of the best selections of American craft beer in the Boston area. It also has a seasonally driven food menu for brunch, lunch, and dinner. Many of the ingredients are locally sourced. Enjoy a brew or a meal on the outdoor patio in warmer months.

State Park
One Kendall Square, Building 300

This relaxed, unpretentious eatery serves “food, drinks, and amusements” in a kitschy dive bar atmosphere, complete with retro pinball machines, shuffleboard, and a pool table. It’s open daily for dinner and drinks. On its eccentric menu, you’ll find small plates, like smoked chicken wings, roasted bone marrow, and fried brussels sprouts, and large plate entrees, like fried chicken served with collard greens and bread-and-butter pickles and a chicken katsu sandwich with pickled shiitake mushroom and shredded cabbage. It’s also known for its innovative cocktails you can order by the pitcher—including the Lake Havasu (Hayman’s Old Tom Gin, pineapple syrup, lemon, bitters, and soda) and the La Louisiane (Rittenhouse rye bonded whiskey, Bénédictine, sweet vermouth, Peychaud’s bitters, Herbsaint, and Luxardo cherries)—which is ideal for large groups.

Bon Me Test Kitchen
60 Binney St.

Known for their traveling Vietnamese cuisine truck, Bon Me has planted some of their roots in Kendall Square. A business born in 2010 out of a win at a food truck contest, Bon Me has been serving delicious Vietnamese food ever since. Try the chef-crafted J.P. sandwich, a toasted baguette stuffed with roasted paprika tofu, pickled carrots and daikon, cucumber, and red onion, topped with cilantro, miso spread, and spicy mayo. Or create your own bowl, choosing from noodle, salad, or rice, with a variety of toppings. Bon Me also offers seasonal dishes and has eight locations in Boston and Cambridge, including One Kendall Square on Hampshire Street.

Earnest Drinks at Gracie’s Ice Cream
399 Binney St.

Earnest Drinks at Gracie’s Ice Cream provides the best of both worlds: delicious, innovative cocktails and mouthwatering desserts. By day, Gracie’s serves handmade ice cream in unique flavors, including ube, oreo, and pandan. You can also order more savory bites, including their popular hot dogs, the Egg and Chee (two over medium fried eggs with American cheese on a toasted brioche roll), and Koolickles (pickles soaked in Kool-Aid). Not in the mood for ice cream? Try a latte or espresso drink. Gracie’s also offers ice cream making classes. At night, stop by Earnest Drinks, the cocktail bar inside Gracie’s, for a variety of canned wines, ciders, and beers—like Nomadica California chardonnay or Scarpetta Frico Lambrusco sparkling wine—as well as standout cocktails, such as the Getaway Car, served with bourbon, maple, allspice, cardamom, and Angostura bitters.

Gypsy Place Coffee and Juice Bar
90 Hampshire St.

Gypsy Place sources their coffee from local farms in Colombia and Ethiopia and crafts bites with only natural and organic ingredients. For a caffeine kick, try classics like the Hot Red Eye (coffee with an espresso shot) or Turkish coffee. They also offer refreshing smoothies and juices, such as the amber smoothie (banana, peanut butter, cocoa powder, and honey) and the Jasper Juice (carrot, orange, ginger, and pineapple). You can also design your own smoothies and juices. Gypsy Place’s menu is vegetarian, with a few pescetarian choices. Try their popular avocado toast (topped with tomato, red onion, cilantro, a hard-boiled egg, and togarashi spice) or their azurite bowl (blended frozen pineapple, avocado, banana, blue spirulina powder, granola, shredded coconut, organic chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, and goji berries). Among the desserts, you can’t beat the macaroons or the Rose Flower Bomb—vegan truffles with walnuts, cranberries, and rosewater, covered in rose petals.

Lord Hobo Taproom & Restaurant
92 Hampshire St.

With a draft selection that’s updated hourly, Lord Hobo is a favorite among MIT students. The restaurant offers an array of local beers, including some of its own brews (it has a brewery in Woburn, Mass.). There are dozens of beers on the menu—including lagers, wheats, stouts, and IPAs—and a long cocktail list offering drinks with attention-grabbing names like the Meads Knees (honey gin, lemon, and honey). New American cuisine predominates, with creative spins on comfort food like fish and chips, a double smash burger, and a fried chicken sandwich. Lord Hobo also serves a popular weekend brunch. Rotating exhibitions of work by local artists enliven the walls.

CAVA
82 Ames St.

At this fast-casual Mediterranean chain, diners can create a personalized meal from a list of fresh seasonal ingredients. Choose your base (including salad, grains, pita, or RightRice), dip or spread (tzatziki, hummus, eggplant and red pepper dip, feta, or harissa), protein (falafel, lamb, grilled steak, white sweet potato, harissa honey chicken, grilled chicken, or roasted vegetables), toppings (pita crisps, cabbage slaw, diced cucumber, and more), and a dressing (skhug, lemon herb tahini, yogurt dill, garlic, and more). The house-made juices and teas complement the food. Among the most popular items: a spicy greens bowl with falafel, feta, red pepper hummus, fiery broccoli, cucumber, lentil, greens, harissa vinaigrette, and skhug; and a harissa avocado bowl with harissa honey chicken, feta, hummus, corn, avocado, rice, and greens, dressed in a hot harissa vinaigrette.

Brothers Marketplace
One Broadway

Located on the ground floor of One Broadway in Kendall Square, Brothers Marketplace, owned and operated by Roche Bros. grocery chain, is a grocery store with a bakery, coffee bar, salad bar, deli, sandwich and sushi station, and more, in a 12,000-square-foot space. Brothers Marketplace (there are currently four locations in Massachusetts) launched in 2014, claiming to be a “gathering place for those who love to prepare, cook, and dine together.” Customers can be assured of the preservative-free, fresh ingredients provided by the marketplace’s private label. Customers can order groceries online or order catering through the store’s website.

The Garment District
200 Broadway

The Garment District is Cambridge’s go-to store for men’s and women’s vintage and gently used clothing. A magnet for budget-conscious and savvy shoppers, the store bills itself as an alternative department store housing “today’s clothes at yesterday’s prices,” and sells contemporary and designer casual and business attire and accessories, as well as apparel from every decade from the 1920s on. Since new items arrive daily, expect to see different merchandise every time you shop. If you’re willing to rummage through the disorganized piles, you can find some real deals. The 12,000-square-foot space offers an estimated 40,000 items for sale at any given time.

Boston Costume
200 Broadway

The Garment District’s sister store, Boston Costume, houses one of the largest selections of costumes in the Boston area. Whether you’re looking for the perfect Halloween outfit or a costume for a themed party, you’ll likely find it here. The shop also offers couple and group costumes, as well as accessories (crazy beards, colorful wigs, makeup, funky glasses, hats, masks, and capes). Costumes are available to rent or buy.

Squirrel Brand Park and Community Garden
260 Broadway

Behind the Squirrel Brand building, a former candy factory best known for its Squirrel Nut Zippers, lies a quaint park and community garden featuring nearly three dozen plots. A path winding through the pocket-size urban park commemorates some of Squirrel Brand’s best-known confectionaries, with engravings of fun facts—such as the swing band, Squirrel Nut Zippers, naming themselves after the Squirrel Brand candy in 1993.

Pepita Cafe and Lamplighter Taproom
284 Broadway

By day, this spacious 10,000-square-foot building is Pepita Cafe, a laid-back spot where customers can order a coffee, tea, or pastry while working on their laptops. In addition to a full espresso menu, you can order specialty breakfast drinks, like the house-made ginger soda, sandwiches, and soups. The second floor offers books for perusing and board games to play.

At night, the space (a former auto repair shop) becomes the Lamplighter Taproom and offers full pours and half pours, tasting flights, and chef and brewery collaborations. The bar serves beers made at the adjacent Lamplighter Brewing Co., known for producing funky, flavorful ales and lagers. Windows separate the bar from the brewery, so you can see your drink being brewed. The taproom frequently hosts pop-up food events, but guests are welcome to bring their own food. On Tuesdays, the taproom hosts trivia nights. Note: the taproom is 21-plus weekdays after 5 pm, and weekends after 2 pm. In 2022, Lamplighter opened a second taproom at Cambridge Crossing, near the MBTA Green Line Lechmere T stop.

Area Four
500 Technology Square

Area Four believes that great food comes from great ingredients, and it uses only products raised and harvested locally using sustainable methods. Best known for its gourmet pizza, the restaurant’s homemade dough is fermented for more than 30 hours. Pies are topped with hand-pulled mozzarella, and you can choose from a large selection of fresh toppings. Among lunch offerings are salads, sandwiches, and soups; dinner entrées focus on comfort food, like mac ’n’ cheese, baked meatballs, and wood-roasted chicken. You’ll also find coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and homemade pastry. The café, co-owned by former music video producer Michael Krupp (COM’01), is open daily from 11 am to 10 pm.

Catalyst
300 Technology Square

With a focus on local, organic produce, Catalyst serves modern American cuisine with a French influence in a beautiful setting with floor-to-ceiling windows. The constantly changing menu has included dishes like burrata truffle ravioli and a lamb kofta burger. The covered outdoor patio, which is heated when necessary, is a comfortable dining spot.

Entrepreneur Walk of Fame
Begins on Main Street, by the outbound side of the Kendall/MIT Red Line T stop

Kendall Square’s version of Hollywood’s Walk of Fame pays homage to some of the nation’s leading entrepreneurs. When it was established in 2011, stars went to seven honorees: Thomas Edison, Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Apple’s Steve Jobs, Genentech’s Robert Swanson, Lotus Development Corp. founder Mitchell Kapor, and Hewlett-Packard cofounders William Hewlett and David Packard. Names are added each year.

One bite of a meal here and you’ll feel as if you’ve been transported to France. The French restaurant serves Parisian classics like escargot, moules frites, and coq au vin, along with an elegantly curated list of wines and craft cocktails, like the Pompette (bourbon, ginger syrup, blackberry syrup, and lemon juice). Check out their Sunday unlimited steak frites special or daily $1 oysters happy hour.

Fuji
300 Third St.

Fuji brings flair to Kendall Square with its Asian fusion cuisine. It has an extensive selection of nigiri, sushi, sashimi, and makimonos, and its hot entrées include a variety of lo mein, fried rice, and chicken, beef, and shrimp dishes.

EVOO Restaurant
350 Third St.

EVOO (an acronym for extra virgin olive oil) is for diners who like to know where their food comes from. The restaurant, a six-time Zagat winner for Best Eclectic Restaurant in Boston, provides sourcing information for all ingredients on its menu, which changes daily—a reflection of just how fresh and local the ingredients are. (Some of the produce is even grown in the restaurant’s rooftop garden.) The applewood smoked Faroe Island salmon filet (with garlic roasted potatoes, corn purée, and cabbage salad) and the roasted chicken breast (with fried croquette, wilted greens, carrots, and a lemon chicken jus) offer a hint of the inventive cuisine you can expect to find.

Glass House
450 Kendall St.

This Kendall Square restaurant lives up to its name: it’s in a beautiful glass-encased building and pays tribute to East Cambridge’s history as the former center of the nation’s glass-making industry. It is open Tuesday through Friday, noon to 8 pm. With an emphasis on seafood, Glass House features an expansive raw bar, appetizers, and entrées, including fish tacos, grilled jumbo shrimp, and a poke bowl with salmon, miso soy dressing, avocado, mango, pickled ginger, seaweed salad, cucumber, and wonton crisps. Not a seafood fan? Fear not. Glass House also offers steak frites, roast chicken breast, and a very good house burger.

Aceituna Grill
605 W. Kendall St.

Aceituna is the square’s go-to restaurant for Mediterranean and Lebanese cuisine. You’ll find a variety of pita roll-ups, salads, falafel, shawarma, and kababs. You can mix and match to create your meal: start with a base (salad, roll-up, or rice), then add a protein and sides. Everything is made from fresh ingredients and extra virgin olive oil; Aceituna serves gourmet fast food that is both satisfying and healthy.

Flat Top Johnny’s
238 Main St.

Since 1993, Flat Top Johnny’s pool hall has attracted a devoted clientele. In addition to a dozen pool tables, there are also pinball machines and darts games, along with an extensive menu of locally crafted beer, cocktails, and a variety of pub bites. The grass-fed beef and fresh chicken are both sourced from the New England area. Try the Otis Burger (with Buffalo sauce, pepper jack cheese, bacon and jalapeños) or the chicken sandwich (with BBQ sauce, Swiss cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles, and served with fries).

Urban Park Roof Garden
325 Main St.

This rooftop garden, owned, managed, and maintained by Boston Properties, offers a green oasis in the middle of Kendall Square and a break from city life. Remodeled in June 2022, the garden provides picnic tables, pickleball courts (available on a first-come, first-served basis), and great views of Cambridge, as well as occasional yoga and exercise classes. The garden is accessible via elevators located in the Kendall Center Green Garage.

Mâe Asian Eatery
781 Main St.

Chef Yuri Asawasittikit draws inspiration from her mother’s recipes (mâe means “mother” in Thai) to create a menu featuring Thai, Vietnamese, and Chinese cuisine. Some of the most popular dishes include pad thai—rice noodles wok-fried in a tamarind fish sauce with egg, shallots, bean sprouts, diced bean curd, scallion, and ground peanut—and Chinese street noodles topped with pork belly and fish cake, slices of roast pork, bean sprouts, crisp wonton wrapper, cilantro, and ground peanuts. Stop by for lunch or dinner, but don’t leave without trying the desserts. The fried banana spring roll topped with caramel sauce and the fresh mango over sticky rice topped with coconut milk are delicious. Mâe Asian Eatery is between Central and Kendall Squares; it is closed between 2 and 4:30 pm, before serving dinner, and is closed on Sundays and Mondays.

MIT Museum
314 Main St.

The MIT Museum focuses on the institute’s impact on research, teaching, and scientific innovations for society. Founded in 1971 as the MIT Historical Collection, its original mandate was to collect and preserve MIT’s scientific and technological artifacts. It was renamed in 1980 and since has featured exhibitions on topics such as technology, nautical, architecture, and photography. The museum also hosts public school vacation activities, evening discussion series, and, in the fall, the Cambridge Science Festival.

Getting there: By subway, take a Green Line trolley inbound to Park Street, then a Red Line train outbound to the Kendall/MIT station. By foot, walk down Comm Ave to the Mass Ave Bridge, walk across, turn right onto Vassar Street, and walk past the MIT campus.

Click on the points in the map above for more information on the places listed in our guide to the Kendall Square area.

This article was updated on April 19, 2024.

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