Pudge and Alpo team up for chow-hound bistro

Former Red Sox star Carlton Fisk has a new gig - waiter at a dog restaurant on Newbury Street.

The Alpo Chop House Originals Grill is what publicists call a "pop-up restaurant," pop-up being a PR term for temporary, and to promote one of its product lines, the dog-food brand Alpo is renting space for its pop-up restaurant for today and tomorrow at 167 Newbury St., where plans call for dog-lover Fisk to be a pooch garcon. (Fisk will be serving up dog food today only.)

Plans call for Fisk, who knows a thing or two about pitching, to pitch the Alpo line from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. today; the grill will be also open for those same hours tomorrow, though sans Fisk, Alpo said. After its two-day run, this temporary restaurant will close up shop.

Alpo added that the grill is "free to the dog-owning public on a first come, first served basis." (The AP file photo at left shows Fisk in his salad days, split seconds after he hit a famous home run in the 1975 World Series.)

Alpo added that it is making an $8,000 donation to Boston-area animal shelters on behalf of all the dinners served.

Alpo is manufactured by Nestle Purina Pet Care, a unit of Swiss food giant Nestle SA.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)