🛍️😬 Black Friday? We don’t know her.

🌯 How’s this for a pre-Turkey Day treat: Chipotle is running a killer BOGO deal where you can get up to five entrees for FREE. The deal runs TODAY from 4 p.m. till closing — here are the deets. Gobble gobble! <3

📝 Programming note! Bad news: This is the last B-Side newsletter you’ll see till December — we’re off for Thanksgiving! Good news: Keep your eyes peeled on Friday for the best membership deal you’ve ever seen … and maybe a special surprise …

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

You might not technically be off till tomorrow … But we know your brain is already OOO. So before you slide into that Turkey Day coma, here’s a lil’ list of weekend plans to pad your social calendar:

🥾 Take some grass (literally). Take a breather from debating politics with distant relatives and head out on one of Mass.’ free Gratitude After Gravy hikes on Nov. 28. DCR is offering guided tours through state parks, complete with fun facts about the plants, animals, and history (self-guided options are on deck, too). This trek through Belle Isle Marsh in Eastie? Gorgina.

🎁 Retire from Black Friday frenzy. And say hello to the actually delightful magical SoWa Winter Festival, opening Nov. 28. Think: hundreds of local makers, artists, and enough treats to justify a second holiday meal.

👀 Quick flex: B-Side members get free entry to the SoWa Winter Festival on Dec. 2 (normally $10!), where you can grab a festive bevvie and enjoy peak cozy vibes. Start a free 30-day trial to unlock this discount. Members, RSVP here.

🍕 Break up with turkey with a cheap pizza pie. From Nov. 28 through the end of the year, Sal’s Pizza on Tremont Street is running a deal where all small pizzas — yes, even the speciality kind — will be just $5. Bonus: Guests can grab two large cheese pies for $15. #blessed.

🍿 Cue the Christmas flicks. It’s officially “Love, Actually” season, which means it’s time to peruse this list of 100 (yes, 100!) new 2025 Christmas movies to add to the queue. We’ll probably hate-watch “Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story” and this Jonas Brothers Christmas movie (but secretly love both).

🛍️ Shop (small) till you drop. Bow Market is putting its support-small powers on full display at its small business Saturday celebration on Nov. 29. Picture: This killer list of mini makers selling goodies, the usual Bow baddies, and a bingo game that could get you a tote full of fun.

📚 Support your local bookstores! All She Wrote Books in Somerville is hosting its own small biz Saturday soiree on Nov. 29 with exciting specials: Spend $20 and pick from their selection of activist posters; spend $40+ and pick from their curated advanced reading copy bundles. Plus, they’ll have a discounted books cart with $1 paperbacks and $3 hardcovers.

🤑 Find a small biz Black Friday deal. Who said they were just for big box stores? The Brighton Emporium’s annual holiday sale is on Nov. 28 through Dec. 1, where over half of their 60+ vendors are marking down their booths for your gift giving needs.

🫘 Shop the old school way … and by “old school,” we mean bartering. This alternative Black Friday market on Nov. 30 invites you to bring items you no longer need (slow cookers! dusty books! whatever’s lurking in the closet!) and trade with vendors or donate to a community table. 

🤩 Get psyched for a holiday thrifting extravaganza. OK, technically not this weekend, but … We’re teaming up with Select Markets to bring you the ultimate vintage and shop-local holiday market on Dec. 6 and 7. There will be shopping! Tooth gems! Temp tatts! Yummy food! What more could you want?!

☕ Come paint and sip cocoa with us. We’re getting together with our besties at Boston Public Market on Dec. 5 for a December edition of Community Art Night with Laurel Greenfield Art, featuring holiday prints and a choice of seasonal drinks from George Howell. B-Side members get $5 off and a B-Side tote! 

✍️📚 If your Notes app is 90% half-drafted ideas and 10% grocery lists, you belong at GrubStreet’s Under 35 Writers Panel on Dec. 8. Join local writers in learning how to balance creativity with, you know… having a job, a life, and some form of sleep schedule. Plus, after the panel, stick around for a reception with free food and drinks, mingle with other writers, explore GrubStreet’s creative writing center, and learn how ArtsCard Boston helps under-35 creatives score discounted arts events all season. RSVP to the panel and download the ArtsCard app today.

🗳️ Rep. Ayanna Pressley could do something really funny right now. Sen. Ed Markey might be enjoying an early cushion against challenger Rep. Seth Moulton in the 2026 Democratic primary. But a new poll suggests that cushion could feel a liiittle less comfy if Ayanna Pressley joins the chat. In a hypothetical three-way primary, voters gave Pressley a slight edge over Markey — 35% to 34% percent (with Moulton dropping to 16%). And Markey’s vibes are looking mixed: Just 42% of respondents think he deserves reelection.

🚌 The T’s slowest buses got … slower. Sighs Transit Matters recently dropped a study sharing the unfortunate news: The MBTA’s 10 slowest bus routes clocked an average speed of 6.52 mph in October 2024, down slightly from 6.83 mph in 2023 (yes, you can outrun both). And while that dip might seem small, the study says a 0.3 mph decrease adds 1.7 hours per mile (!) annually for a rider commuting five days a week. In other bad transit news: Bunching also got worse. See if you ride the slowest/bunching-est buses here.

🍽️ Incoming: The post-Michelin reservation wave. Several chefs and restaurant owners who earned a Michelin nod said reservations are ROLLING in, despite a slower holiday week coming up. Take Mahaniyom: After earning a Bib Gourmand and winning the Exceptional Cocktail Program award, their prime-time dinner spots are gone through the NEXT MONTH. And don’t bother trying for 311 till 2026. While a little chaotic, it’s a great problem for local restaurants to have. And P.S. Here are the best hacks to land a Michelin table.

There are rules to a proper Thanksgiving. At least if you ask 59-year-old Newton resident Kim Suga. He may not be a chef, a therapist, or really, any kind of expert, but for nearly 20 years, he’s posted a list of his holiday rules and “gentle” (read: cutting) suggestions for hosting a proper Turkey Day. 

The No. 1 and 2 slide comes in hot: “Don't serve dinner before 3:00 PM. It's pure savagery.” And “Regarding stuffing:  Zero nuts or fruit.” Amen.

No. 12 goes right for the jugular: “Vegans/vegetarians/special diet clowns: Bring your own, atrocious, wretched food.” Yikes!

But he’s not a complete Turkey Day Scrooge. His list is also chock full of wishbone wisdom. Take No. 30: “Practice the art of saying ‘I love you’ on your hugs goodbye. Just say it. Don’t think. Don’t worry if they say it back or not.” 

And let’s be clear: Suga is no dining room dictator. He just wants the holiday to be nice. “Nothing’s not worth not speaking to someone again,” he said.

— Written by Emily Schario and Claire Nicholas

🥜 Thanks for reading! If Thanksgiving teaches us anything, it’s that life is short, family is forever, and nuts in stuffing are unforgivable.

💜 Special shoutout to today's sponsor, GrubStreet, for supporting local journalism and keeping Boston’s creative scene thriving (and affordable).

🤑 The results are in: Over 70% (!) of B-Siders use credit cards for everyday expenses. One reader said they use their card for “literally everything. If they don't take [a] credit card, they don't get my money.” Cash? We don’t know her!

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