All work and no play? Hardly
Wondering where biotech's best unwind with a beer or a bite to eat after work? Chances are, it's somewhere around Kendall Square.
Many biotech giants have their headquarters in or around Cambridge's Kendall Square, just a short distance from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The square is still mostly a place to do business, but the high concentration of companies is also starting to spawn its own culture, with bars and lunch spots in the area catering to the biotech set. Here's a sampling:
LA LUNA CAFFE
403 Massachusetts Ave. 617-576-3400 Most popular drink: Anything with espresso
Favorite with: Novartis AG and Quest Diagnostics employees, MIT students
This corridor-shaped coffee shop has a European flair, starting with a cooler of Italian gelatos and French and Italian pastries. La Luna stays busy throughout the day, serving panini at lunch and showcasing live jazz Thursday through Saturday nights. It also offers free wireless Internet access, and management doesn't mind if patrons camp out with laptops. A good place to go if you like to drink espresso from a ceramic cup instead of paper container.
EMMA'S PIZZA
40 Hampshire St. 617-864-8534 Most popular drinks: Beer and wine. Here, it's really all about the pizza
Favorite with: Assorted biotech workers, MIT students, neighborhood residents
This pizza parlor serves pies until 10 p.m. and is known for two types, ordered by number. Number 16 is the most popular pizza for meat lovers with bacon, scallions, Gorgonzola, tomatoes, and mozzarella. Number 3 is the veggie favorite with baby spinach, roasted sweet potatoes, caramelized onions, and goat cheese.
MIRACLE OF SCIENCE BAR & GRILL
321 Massachusetts Ave. 617-868-2866 Most popular drinks: Dark and Stormy, margarita
Favorite with: Novartis AG, Millennium Pharmaceutical employees
This small restaurant pays homage to its scientific roots with a chalkboard menu that looks like a periodic table and vintage lab instrument décor. It's packed both during lunch and after work with patrons of all ages who come for the burgers, quesadillas, and roasted potatoes. Miracle of Science has a cool, laid-back vibe, personified by bartender Dennis Silva. He says he can spot biotech employees by the badges they wear around their necks. He wouldn't say whether biotech employees are good tippers.
MIDDLESEX
315 Massachusetts Ave. 617-868-6739 Most popular drink: Mojito
Favorite with: Novartis AG, MIT students, other young professionals.
Biotech employees tend to show up for happy hour, while more college students trickle in after 9 p.m. This is primarily a lounge, with minimalist décor and low-slung couches. At lunchtime, it's a quiet oasis with attentive service and people huddled in conversation. At night, it's a fancy-jeans-bring-me-a-cocktail dance spot. Taner Kaya, a research assistant at Boston University's Bioinformatics program, says he likes Middlesex because "you can dance, but it doesn't get out of control."
CAMBRIDGE BREWING CO.
1 Kendall Square, Building 100 617-494-1994 Most popular drink: Tall Tale Pale Ale, other seasonal beers that are brewed on-site
Favorite with: Genzyme Corp. employees
This bar and lunch spot hosts lots of biotech department events, lunches, and happy hours, particularly towards the end of the week. It's also known for its beer-infused cuisine, including a tuna steak cooked with amber ale.
THE ASGARD
350 Massachusetts Ave. 617-577-9100 Most popular drink: Guinness, pomegranate martinis
Favorite with: Novartis AG, Genzyme Corp., and Millennium Pharmaceutical employees
This cavernous pub is busiest during lunch and happy hour, when it serves beer, nachos, and buffalo wings. There's a trivia night on Tuesdays, karaoke on Wednesdays, live rock cover bands on Thursdays and Saturdays, and a rap and hip-hop DJ on Fridays.
TOMMY DOYLE'S BAR & GRILL
1 Kendall Square, Suite 100 617-225-0888 Most popular drink: Stella Artois, Guinness, scotch, other whiskeys
Favorite with: MIT students, Genzyme Corp., Novartis AG employees, as well as the post-movie crowd from the Kendall Square Cinema
Cristina Gavrilescu, a postdoctoral fellow at Tufts-New England Medical Center, says she and her friends are attracted to Tommy Doyle's because of its large patio, which can seat about 70 people. It also hosts Tuesday trivia nights, live music on Thursdays, and DJs on Friday nights. Food is standard Irish pub fare, including burgers and shepherd's pie.
