🤤📲 This restaurant is better on TikTok

🎨 These local artists popped OFF: It’s time to vote for the Icons of Franklin Park poster competition’s People’s Choice award. Between these 10 incredible options, we can’t pick a favorite (though this vintage-y mural is pretty epic). The winner gets $2,000 and a display at City Hall. Cast your vote here!

🍗🇬🇷 Psssst … we’re taking you out to dinner! Well, some of you, anyway. We have 10 free meals at GRECO for the first B-Side Members to claim ‘em in tomorrow’s intro. Enjoy!

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

Spero abbiate fame, B-Siders! This month, B-Side Certified headed to Back Bay’s All’Antico Vinaio, the mega-viral Florentine sandwich chain known for its Tuscan flatbread, top-shelf meats, and unique spreads.

Here’s what we thought:

👍 The space gives more Sweetgreen than sub shop. It’s spacious, clean, and totally pleasant, but the modern style (save for a smattering of “rustic” decor) is a far cry from its cozy Florentine counterpart.

⏰ Pro tip: Get there early. We managed to avoid these WILD lines by arriving at 10:30 a.m. on a rainy Monday. But by 11, there was a line to the door.

🥪 La Favolosa ($19) started things on the right foot. As the internet’s apparent fave, we had high hopes. And to be fair, it was very solid: The famous bread was, as advertised, the perfect combo of pillowy soft and crunchy; and the salty, tangy salami was clearly a cut above. The only thing it missed? A “wow” factor. The spicy eggplant didn’t pack the zip we expected, and the artichoke and pecorino creams lacked sharpness.

🥜 L’Italiana ($19) showed us what all the hype is about. The sweet and nutty pistachio cream was the real star of the show, perfectly paired with the salty, tender prosciutto to produce a super unique bite. Were the sun-dried tomatoes and stracciatella in the room with us, flavor-wise? Not really, but we simply didn’t care.

🍅 The only flop? La Caprese ($13). TL;DR: It’s not worth saving six bucks. We felt compelled to give the cheapest sammy on the menu a shot. But it amounted to out-of-season tomatoes, two (yes, two) sad basil leaves, and unmemorable mozzarella on dry bread. 

🥤 The fancy Italian drinks were a fun touch. Were the orange soda ($4) and peach iced tea ($4) good? Yes. Did we forget about them as soon as the cans were empty? Also yes.

💸 We paid $71.89 for three sandwiches and two soft drinks (including tip). Which, even as seasoned Boston diners, definitely hurt a little. Despite the obviously high-quality ingredients and solid portions, we still felt like the $19/sandwich price tag is subject to a bit of TikTok-flation.

🤔 So is it worth the hype? Sure. If you can get over the sticker shock, these sammies certainly land somewhere near the top of our local list. That said, aside from the pistachio cream (and 950,000 followers), were they that different from, say, a $10 Salumeria Italiana sub? Debatable.

✅ The verdict? B-Side Certified. But maybe don’t buy three at a time.

🎨💫 Two museums. One artist. Lots of photo ops. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Boston Athenaeum are teaming up for the ultimate fall collab: a citywide celebration of Boston artist Allan Rohan Crite. Catch Allan Rohan Crite: Urban Glory, Visions of Black Madonnas, and Robert T. Freeman: Allan Crite – American Griot, 2025 at the Gardner, then keep the momentum going with Allan Rohan Crite: Griot of Boston at the Boston Athenaeum through Jan. 24. Admission is included with your Gardner ticket — so you can make a day (and an aesthetic) out of it. Plan your visit now. 

Heading to urgent care might cost you hundreds. The ER? Try thousands. Save yourself (and your wallet) by knowing your plan’s in-network options before you’re in panic mode. Spoiler: your PCP or virtual care is often the smartest first stop.

🧓 Sen. Ed Markey officially has some (younger) competition. After weeks of speculation, Rep. Seth Moulton finally launched his campaign to unseat Markey. In his POV-style launch video, Moulton made the case that given the Democrats’ recent flop era, the party needs to tap into fresher, newer ideas (read: politicians) to take on President Trump. To be fair, at 79, Markey’s age will likely be top of mind for voters. But if his last tussle with a younger opponent is any indication … it’ll be a tough race for Moulton.

⚽ President Trump’s latest local target: The World Cup. On Tuesday, Trump threatened to “take away” the seven 2026 World Cup games scheduled at Gillette — sorry, we mean Boston — Stadium, in response to a question about Mass.’ recent string of street takeovers. “If I feel there’s unsafe conditions, I would call Gianni [Infantino], the head of FIFA, who’s phenomenal, and I would say, ‘Let’s move it to another location,’” he said. But if the responses from FIFA officials and Mayor Wu are any indication about its plausibility … we wouldn’t worry too much.

🔌 Gov. Healey just told the DPU to pull it together. Well, kinda. On Tuesday, she sent a letter to the department telling them to rein in Mass.’ ballooning energy bills by performing a line-item review of infrastructure costs, blocking unnecessary rate hikes, and ramping up solar energy production. Her requests come on the heels of a proposed up-to-17% rate hike from Eversource that would further increase last year’s eye-popping prices. Whether this will work is TBD (Eversource reps say there’s not much they can do), but the hikes are scheduled for Nov. 1.

🤤 This week in new eats? Coffee, Chick-fil-A, and Caribbean food. You can find the coffee (and a whole lot more) at Reunion, a new sun-soaked Southie spot serving up lattes, matchas, smoothies, sammies, and even ice cream(!). As for Chick-fil-A, its latest outpost is now open in Logan’s Terminal A, the first of many new locations slated to open in Mass. by 2027. And the Caribbean food is at Caribbean Hut Takeout, a teeny tiny new Haitian spot in Medford offering oxtail, mac n’ cheese, and djon djon rice to-go.

Below are some of the hottest local things to do. This month, B-Side Members can save more than $150 across our events, in addition to over 60 other awesome perks. 

🎪 Big Apple Circus | Now - Nov. 2 | Suffolk Downs | $30 regular, $24 member | Watch jaw-dropping acrobats and plenty of thrills at Big Apple Circus. Members: Win one of 10 pairs of FREE tix by claiming a ticket tomorrow at 10 a.m. in your inbox!

🎨 Orkest at Tavern of Tales | Oct. 17 | Tavern of Tales | $10 regular, FREE member | Join Orkest as they team up with Tavern of Tales for a concert, beer and food, and post-concert trivia. B-Side members get in for free!

🤓 Globe Summit 2025 | Nov. 18-19 | House of Blues Boston | $250 regular, FREE member | At The Boston Globe’s annual Globe Summit, hear from speakers like Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s, Gov. Healey, and more. Use code BSIDE25 for 25% off — members, you get in for free!

Boston pumpkins aren’t fat, they’re just a little … thicc.

The “Official Pumpkins of Boston” (really, a pumpkin and a gigundo squash), rolled into Boston Public Market via forklift on Tuesday ahead of its 10th annual Harvest Party. Yes, it’s a process.

Unlike last year, this year’s pumpkin was the smaller of the two, clocking in around 638 pounds, while the colossal squash sibling clocked in at a whopping 1,573 pounds (roughly the size of a big cow). Both come from the fields of Art Kazenski, of Irving, Mass., and were donated by BPM vendor Red Apple Farm, of Phillipston, Mass.

They’re currently on display at the market, so if you’re around, make sure to swing by and snap a pic with Boston’s newest baddies.

— Written by Gia Orsino, Emily Schario, and Claire Nicholas

🎃 Thanks for reading! We will not tolerate any squash slander — they’re perfect. <3

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, for supporting local journalism and bringing culturally rich experiences to our city. 

💳 The results are in: 35% of B-Siders say they could explain what “copayment” means to a 5th grader. One reader said: “im convinced that deductible is a mystery i will never understand.” 

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