🍹🤯 This cocktail left us speechless ...

🍰 Here’s a VERY sweet weekend deal: If you can make the shlep to Newton, its annual bakery crawl is Sept. 26 and 27, where over 20 spots will be serving up amazing deals and specials. Think: BOGO cannolis at Antoine's Pastry Shop, and $4 mini doughnut packs at Blackbird Doughnuts.

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

It’s that time of the month again, B-Siders: B-Side Certified time! This month, you sent us to Darling, a Chinese-inspired cocktail bar and dim sum spot in Central Square.

Here’s what we thought:

🪩 The space feels like a sexy speakeasy. It might be on Mass. Ave., but thanks to a wall separating the entrance from the dining room, the street feels worlds away. Inside, the dark, windowless space with hints of wood and exposed brick add to the VIP vibe. It was bumping at 8 p.m. on a Wednesday, and we don’t just mean the bass. That said, once we settled in, we had no problem seeing the menu or hearing each other. 

🍓 The gorgeous & arrogant ($17) knocked our socks off. Their take on a strawberry margarita was spot-on: It hit all the right marg notes with no artificial sweetness to be found, and packed a surprisingly smoky kick. It’s no wonder we saw them on every other table.

🍹 And the five amaro julep ($17) was nothing to sniff at. It was a fun, refreshing riff on the mint julep, with a bittersweet syrupy note from the amaro that played well with the bright mint. We’re not in the habit of dropping $17 on a cocktail, but we thought both were worth the cash.

😭 Note: Rumor has it, Darling swaps out its cocktail menu often, so these options might not appear if you go. 

🍜 The soy sauce noodles ($13) were addictive. Between the large portion, the delightfully crunchy texture, and the complex umami flavor, we could’ve snacked on them all night.

🐟 McDonald’s wishes it could make this filet o fish bao ($14). Compared to the other dishes we tried, the flavors didn’t blow us away. But the bao bun was pillowy, the fish was fried to perfection, and the tartar sauce was bright and fresh. We wolfed it down.

🥒 Even the aptly-named “$8 cucumber?” was *almost* worth it. With a name like that, we had to try it. The verdict: If any cucumber were worth $8, this savory, nutty bowl of cucumber and tofu soaked in rice vinegar and chili oil is it. But ultimately, it tasted a little too similar to the “quick pickles” we’ve made in our kitchens to justify the price.

💸 We paid $76.25 for two drinks and three dishes (excluding tip). And it was worth every penny. From the drinks to the food, the high-quality ingredients and deep flavors won us over across the board. The drinks are pricey, but worth it. And the food, with its generous portions, is a fabulous bang for your buck. You could go for either (or both) and leave happy.

✅ The verdict? Absolutely B-Side Certified.

💬 It’s not just Jimmy Kimmel getting flak over Charlie Kirk comments. At least six Mass. teachers and school staff, plus one firefighter have been placed on leave over their social media comments about the right-wing influencer’s assassination. But even for folks who haven’t publicly commented about Kirk (like these local professors on Kirk’s Professor Watchlist), the fear of backlash for their politics is growing as more institutions fall in line with President Trump. While being put on leave doesn't necessarily = firing, some activists are concerned that the suspensions infringe on free speech rights.

🚌 Bus lane parkers, consider yourselves on notice. ‘Cause the MBTA is officially on its way to implementing an automated bus lane ticketing system. The system, which is expected to go live across the MTBA in 2026, was pitched by Gov. Healey earlier this year, and approved by the agency’s board on Wednesday. It’ll use cameras to identify and fine vehicles parked in bus lanes, and send a ticket directly to the driver’s address. Cars caught in the lanes will face fines from from $25 to $125, depending on prior offenses. 

🚇 Orange Liners are about to have some deja vu. It’s shutdown time, people! On Sept. 27 and 28, the line’s service will be suspended between North Station and Forest Hills … again. Shuttles will hit the usual stops between Forest Hills and Back Bay, plus add an extra stop at Copley (which will be handy, since there’s no shuttle service between Back Bay and North Station, and riders will have to use the Green Line). At least the commuter rail will be fare-free between Forest Hills, Ruggles, Back Bay, and South Station. Good luck!

💅 Winter Street is getting a MAJOR fall glow-up. Introducing: Color Flows on Winter Street, a new city initiative that’ll turn the Downtown Crossing street into a safer, more vibrant community gathering space from Oct. 11 to November 16. Details are still a little scarce, but it looks like we can expect a slate of public art programming, food trucks, a beer garden, games, seating, and, per this rendering, anyway, lots of string lights!

🧙 Head to a “Wicked” party on the Common. Tonight the city is putting on a FREE “Wicked”-themed bash and screening with popcorn, giveaways, trivia, and more. The movie starts at 7 p.m.

🥟 Punch your ticket to dumpling heaven. A $5 ticket to Rozzie’s Dumpling Festival on Sept. 27 gets you access to 15+ beloved dumpling spots like Moyzilla Food Truck, Street Food Lab, and Magic Empanadas (yes, per the fest, empanadas ARE dumplings).

☀️ Sweat it out in the fall sun. Boston Landing’s Community Fit Day is SO back on Sept. 27. Think: Fitness classes, cold plunges, food, and wellness vendors, all for free. Register here to lock in your spot.

🍺 Raise your stein for FREE. Time Out Market’s Oktoberfest on Sept. 27 includes a free tasting of local brews, plus a stein-holding contest, photo booth, live DJ, and bites.

🥃 Sip a cocktail made by a star. “It’s Always Sunny” star Charlie Day will be pouring his new Four Walls Whiskey for YOU Sept. 27 at Lansdowne. Snag a drink, take a photo, and meet the man himself.

🎪 Hit the (Allston) streets. On Sept. 28, Harvard Avenue will say sayonara to cars and hello to live music, street performers, food trucks, and a pop-up market with 60+ local vendors for the Allston Village Street Fair. 

👟 Hot girl walk with a “Bachelor” alum. Juliana and Grant didn’t work out. But you and Juliana can … at VOLO Women’s Walk Club on Sept. 28. The two to three mile walk will be bookended with Popup Bagels and Citrus & Salt mocktails.

☕ Party with your favorite South End coffee shop. Greystone is celebrating their fifth birthday with a block party on Sept. 28. There will be Picco pizza, Brick Street Bagels, music, games, cornhole, and more! 

Talk about a way to go: 60-year-old Mass. resident Linda Brossi Murphy passed away on Sept. 21 due to complications from Bulbar ALS. But before she went, she penned the sweetest, funniest, and most touching self-obituary … and people are absolutely losing it.

“Well, if you are reading this obituary, it looks like I’m dead. WOW, it actually happened,” it begins. And it only goes up from there.

Throughout the piece, Brossi Murphy writes about her life with humor and frankness, including her struggles with ALS (“living had gotten to be such an overwhelming burden”); and her love for her husband (“we both agreed, I was an ‘A’ wife and he was a ‘B+’ husband for a total ‘A-’ which is pretty decent for 42 years together!!!”).

But our favorite part was her two self-proclaimed superpowers: Drinking a lot and never getting hungover (“the real wonder is why I didn’t die of liver failure”); and always being “genuinely happy”. 

If you’re not already sobbing, you can read the whole thing here. 

— Written by Gia Orsino and Claire Nicholas

😭 Thanks for reading! Nothing like a beautiful obituary to make you cry at your laptop at 3:30 p.m. 

🗳️ The results are in: 53% of readers say age matters for politicians on a case-by-case basis, but only 6% of readers said it doesn’t matter at all. One reader said: “Better to have an old person with good politics than a young person with bad politics.”

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