thePULSEThe Shrewsbury Street Spring Shuffle
With the melting of snow and hopefully rising temperatures, look for the restaurants of Shrewsbury Street to get out the umbrellas for outdoor dining. Several restaurants already offer diners the choice of eating al fresco, but a few more are hitting the pavement this year.
The big news is that quite a few of the eateries will not only be offering customers the choice of eating outdoors, but imbibing will be possible as well. Worcester’s License Commission has approved a plan to allow Worcester restaurants to serve both food and alcohol outdoors during the summer months.
Among those seeking approval from the Commission are the Flying Rhino, Zipango, Anthony’s and Amore Café. A couple of places already serve outdoors. These include Primo’s, Bread and Pasta, Bottom’s Up and Porto Bello. This should give the street an even more happening feel to it.
It’s good news that there is a good mix of eateries offering different types of food. It’s not all just Italian!
The Flying Rhino offers creative American Cuisine, with plenty of fish, steaks and on-the-lighter-side sandwiches. It also has a great bar scene later a night.
A few doors down from the Rhino is Zipango, a Japanese sushi bar. The sushi here is very good, and Zipango’s has developed a loyal following. They also have a good bar.
Bottom’s Up, across the street from the Rhino and Zipango, is strictly a bar, with a nice outdoor seating area. This is one of the few places on the street that features live music.
Anthony’s Restaurant, next to the park is a little more elegant and also offers very good Italian cuisine. It’s not just food here. With great views of the park, pleasing ambiance and excellent food, this is one of Shrewsbury Street’s destination restaurants.
Primo’s, across the street from Anthony’s and next to the Boulevard Diner, has been serving food al fresco for a year now. You can enjoy Italian food under the wide umbrellas that dot the sidewalk along the front of the restaurant.
On the opposite side of the street is Porto Bello, another Italian American eatery. They too have had outdoor dining since last summer. It’s only a few seats, but you get a good sense of the street from one of their tables.
One of the last places on Shrewsbury Street before you hit Union Station is Amore Café, a hip place whose menu leans toward Italian fare, but offers much more. Amore consistently gets rave reviews.
So once the remaining piles of frozen snow have finally melted, head outside for a good selection of dining choices on Shrewsbury Street. This new option is giving the big boulevard a little continental flair — and hopefully will shorten the wait for a table on Saturday nights!
