🚇🙌 The last Red Line shutdowns(?)

It’s Monday, Boston.

🤤 But tbh, we’re already thinking about Saturday brunch. This TikTok video of the scallion pancake burger from Mei Mei Dumplings currently has us in a chokehold. So we called and confirmed you can get it yourself on Saturdays. You’re welcome. <3

👀 What’s on tap today:

• Big Orange Line slay

• Newbury Street holiday stroll

• A mall food court glow up

Up first…

TRANSPORTATION

Pour one out for the Red Line

Our year-long shuttle bus saga appears to be coming to an end. Buuut not before the MBTA gets one last chance to wreak havoc on some innocent Red Line riders. 

November’s two-part Red Line shutdown kicks off Tuesday. Here’s what to know:

🚇 Part one is between Broadway and North Quincy. Service between the two stations will be replaced with shuttle buses Nov. 5 to 10. For the final two days (that’s Nov. 9 and 10), the shutdown will expand to include service between Broadway and Ashmont. The shuttle bus sitch will (thankfully) be pretty cut and dry, and riders should note that up until Nov. 9, there will be train service between Ashmont and JFK/UMass. Visual learner? Check out the map.

🚌 Part two is between Harvard and Broadway. This time, shuttle buses will replace service between the stations from Nov. 18 to 24. Buses will make most of the line’s usual stops, but it’ll be a little different for Park Street and Downtown Crossing riders. If you remember the August Red Line shutdown, you’ll know the drill:

• Shuttle buses won’t hit Park Street. Instead, they’ll make stops at Haymarket and State, where riders can transfer to the Green, Orange, and Blue lines.

• Downtown Crossing service will be indirect. Northbound buses will stop at Federal Street at Franklin Street, and southbound buses at Otis Street at Summer Street. Riders who want to navigate between Downtown Crossing and Park Street should use the Winter Street concourse.

🚂 Want to skip the shuttles? The commuter rail has your back. For part one, the commuter rail will be fare-free on the Middleborough, Kingston, and Greenbush lines between Braintree, Quincy Center, JFK/UMass, and South Station. For part two, commuter rail trains will be fare-free between Porter Square and North Station. But in both cases, if you want to go any further, it’ll cost ya.

🚲 Want to ditch trains altogether? There’s a bike for that. Bluebikes continues its T shutdown tradition by offering five free unlocks during the Red Line closure with the code MBTAREDNOV.

🥹 The good news: This might be Red Liners’ last rodeo. As of Sunday, there are only FOUR slow zones left on the Red Line (down from around 40 since August, NBD). And since they could very well all be taken care of by the end of month, we are quite literally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Is anyone else feeling like this is a little bittersweet? No? Not at all? Got it.

QUICK QUESTION

👀 Which T line do you take most often?

TOGETHER WITH ROW 34 AND DOORDASH

This local restaurant = heaven for seafood lovers

🦞 You know that meal that’s so good, you’re still thinking about it a week later? That’s Row 34. Think lobster rolls loaded with flavor, oysters so fresh they practically transport you to the coast, and clam chowder that’s comfort in a bowl. If this isn’t your go-to seafood spot yet, you’re missing out. Head to their Seaport, Cambridge, or Burlington locations for the full dining experience, host a private event, or get your next meal delivered with DoorDash. 

CITY

Quick & dirty headlines

🚇 The Orange Line is *quite literally* back on track. You may want to sit down for this: The Orange Line, infamously known for catching fire and moving at a glacial place, is officially slow zone free. It’s a massive W for the MBTA’s ambitious track improvement plan and a relief that your shuttle bus commutes over the last year haven’t been for nothing. And don’t forget where we started: There were 191 T slow zones just a year ago. As of Sunday, there were only seven. Brb, naming our first born Phillip, as in Phillip Eng. 

🛍️ Holiday shopping on Newbury Street is about to level up. Introducing Open Newbury: Holiday Stroll. The city’s iconic Open Newbury program, which turns Boston’s shopping avenue into a pedestrian paradise, is coming back this December to make Back Bay holiday shopping feel less like a game of Frogger. Newbury Street will be car-free from Berkeley Street to Mass. Avenue from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Dec. 1 and 8. And just like the summer/fall version, expect to see lots of activities, pop-ups, and brand activations. 

🥵 Boston started November off with a … sizzle? Mother Nature has been working overtime lately to make up for last year’s rainy deluge. But she may have gone a little too hard on Friday, as Boston hit a record-high 79 degrees, surpassing the previous record of 77 degrees set in 1974. And while temps dipped back to their regularly scheduled November programming in the 40s and 50s this weekend, Mother Nature clearly isn’t done: We could see a few more 70s bursts week, with highs for Wednesday nearing 75. Yay?

😋 Cambridge’s new food hall looks LIT. Put down that Panda Express. There’s a new mall food court in town. We’re not ones to get excited over mall food, but the line up at the CanalSide Food + Drink at the CambridgeSide Mall looks STACKED. The new food and bev concept is officially open for biz and replaces the mall’s national fast food tenants with local favorites. Think: Far Out Ice Cream, Fresh, and Chilacates, along with a 50-seat bar (Sbarro could never). You can check out the full food lineup here and the event page here.

THINGS TO DO

Election week distractions

😅 Laugh off your Election Day anxiety. The price of one beer gets you into Jokes for Justice at Long Live Roxbury tonight. This comedy show of belly laughs features Boston’s hottest LGBTQ+ and women comics, and will get you pumped for the polls.

🤘 Trade doom scrolling for head banging. After you hit the polls Tuesday, head to Warehouse XI in Somerville for an epic night of live emo and pop punk bands. Bonus: Proceeds from your ticket support a local reproductive health fund. 

🗳️ Don’t watch the election results roll in solo. Do it with a buddy (or 10!). The Haven in JP is hosting an election night watch party, where you can celebrate American democracy with Scottish fare.

🥟 Get your fill on dumplings and sake. This iconic duo is the star of the show at Time Out Market’s dumpling-making and sake-tasting class on Wednesday. And IMO, it’s a great deal.

🍕 Burn off some steam with beer, pizza, and … running. Step one: Head to Remnant Brewing on Wednesday for a chill run around the neighborhood with the Remnant Run Club. Step two: Meet up after for a cold one and ’za. 

🥧 Make the greatest love story ever: Pie and pasta. Start prepping for Turkey Day with Capo’s pie- and pasta-making class on Thursday. Your ticket includes supplies, one apple pie, one pasta dish, and cooking demos. 

😋 Taste the best of Boston restaurants. Visiting them all would take years, but you can knock a chunk of them out at Boston magazine’s Taste event on Thursday, featuring over two dozen local spots.

🕯️ Stop and smell the candle you just made. Need beach vacation after this week? Get a jump on it at this coastal candle-making class Thursday at Dorchester Brewing Co.

ONE LAST THING

Tyler, the Creator’s October surprise

Our FYPs were loaded with Halloween hijinx this year. See: Gov. Maura Healey’s golden retriever dressed as Nibi the Beaver. Or Bill Belichick disguised as a fisherman hooking his 24-year-old mermaid girlfriend (yeah, it was weird). 

But perhaps the biggest Halloween surprise this year: Tyler, the Creator hosting a rooftop concert at the Converse Flagship Store this past Thursday.

The concert was announced that day on his IG story, which read, “Don’t be late. Show will start on the dot.” And if you managed to snag a $5 ticket (or $50 resale one), you got to see him perform a set from his new album, “Chromakopia,” decked out in all green atop an all-green shipping container. And ngl, based on this video, our FOMO is real. 

But don’t fret if you missed this performance. Chromakopia: The World Tour will be stopping at TD Garden on July 8 and 9.

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🙏 Thanks for reading! Thoughts and prayers to everyone in the comments of that video saying they missed his IG story by 30 minutes.

💜 Special shoutout to today's sponsors, Row 34 and DoorDash, for supporting local journalism and serving up some of the best seafood in New England. 

👀 The results are in: 38% of readers guessed the T only had 28 slow zones left in Friday’s poll. At the time of publishing, there were 19 left. But after this weekend, there are only seven. Which in our opinion, makes us all winners.

💃 Keep up with us @BostonBSide on IG, TikTok, and Twitter. Send comments and suggestions to [email protected] or [email protected].