As the year draws to a close, many people in our area will remember 2018 as a good
year with a robust local economy. Sadly, for many others in our community, it was a year of rising housing costs, food insecurity, and addiction issues. At this time of annual reflection, please remember to reach out to those who struggle, with donations of your time or money. There are many worthy local charities that offer direct assistance and prevention services to those who need it, including the Somerville Homeless Coalition, Cambridge Housing Assistance Fund, Community Cooks, Shatterproof, and many more as well in environment, health care, early education, the arts...the needs are great. Your contributions will help.
We wish you a peaceful holiday season and a healthy new year. Best Real Estate Agency
Best Real Estate Agent
Current Listings
10 Banks St. Unit 3, Somerville $699,000
Bright, beautiful top floor in Porter Square with 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, private front and back porches, a garage space, shared yard. Steps to Porter Square T and a short walk to Davis Square T and nightlife.
5 Wesley Street, Somerville NEW PRICE $760,000
Winter Hill single family with 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, and parking, less than half a mile from Gillman Square. Owner has done some renovations and has architects plans to make it a high-performance, energy efficient home.
47 Fairmount Ave. Unit 1, Somerville $699,000
Renovated in 2013, this lovely Teele Square condo offers 2 bedrooms, study, 2.5 bathrooms, central air, private patio, and unobstructed parking— all in a great, walkable location.
4 Olive Square, Somerville $719,900
Attached 2-level single family with 2+ bedrooms, 2 full baths, and 2 parking spaces steps to Union Square. The house offers handicapped accessible baths updated in 2015. Ideal condo alternative.
Current Listings T
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Thalia Tringo
President, Realtor ® 617.513.1967 cell/text Thalia@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
15 Everett St. Unit 2 Arlington
Niké Damaskos
$749,000
Just off Mass. Ave., this East Arlington 3-bedroom, 1 1/2 bath condo occupies the upper two floors of a 2-unit building. Two private porches, private garage plus driveway space, and basement storage.
T
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Residential Sales and Commercial Sales and Leasing 617.875.5276 Nike@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Jennifer Rose
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.943.9581 cell/text Jennifer@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Lynn C. Graham
52 Madison Street, Somerville
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.216.5244 cell/text Lynn@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
$999,000
Spacious Central Hill single family with 4 beds, 2 baths, fenced yard, 2-car garage, beautiful light, and sweeping views.
Brendon Edwards
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.895.6267 cell/text Brendon@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Seth Kangley
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 315.382.2507 cell/text Seth@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Free Classes First Time Home Buyers:
an overview of the buying process Wednesday, January 23RD OR Tuesday, February 12TH 6:30 – 7:45 pm If you’re considering buying your first home and want to understand what’s in store, this is a quick and helpful overview. Led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, it includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
How to Buy and Sell at the Same Time: Wednesday, November 28 OR Wednesday, January 30 OR Thursday, February 21 6:30 – 7:45 pm If trying to figure out the logistics of selling your home and buying a new one makes your head spin, this workshop will help make the process & your choices understandable. This workshop, led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided. TH
ST
Basic Home Maintenance:
preparing your home for winter Tuesday, November 27TH OR Tuesday, January 15TH 6:30 – 7:45 pm Do you worry about pipes bursting? Ice dams? Clogged gutters? Broken downspouts? Heat loss? Damage from broken tree limbs? Heating system failure? Routine maintenance is the best way to prevent damage to your most important investment: your home. Come to this class to get a checklist and explanation of the things you need to do to maintain your home— and sanity. To reserve space in any class, please email Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com. Admission is free, but we appreciate donations of canned goods for the Somerville Homeless Coalition.
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.949.6942 cell/text Sarasvati@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Adaria Brooks
for homeowners contemplating a move TH
Sarasvati Lynn
Executive Assistant to the President, Realtor ® 617.308.0064 cell/text Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
About our company... We are dedicated to representing our buyer and seller clients with integrity and professionalism. We are also commi ed to giving back to our community. Our agents donate $250 to a non-profit in honor of each transaction and Thalia Tringo & Associates Real Estate Inc. also gives $250 to a pre-selected group of local charities for each transaction. Visit our office, 128 Willow Avenue, on the bike path in Davis Square, Somerville.
NOVEMBER 12, 2018 - JANUARY 13, 2019 ::: VOLUME 35 ::: SCOUTCAMBRIDGE.COM
18
contents 6 // EDITOR’S NOTE 8 // WINNERS & LOSERS Pressure from Harvard students may have helped end Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s law school appointment. 10 // WHAT’S NEW? Beat Brasserie is now Beat Brew Hall, more students are getting access to free food, and a series of murals is going up in Central Square. 14 // SPECIAL REPORT: A DEEP DIVE INTO CAMBRIDGE WATER Cambridge’s water may be safe to drink, but its near-limitpushing levels of chlorides and its pH pose real problems for the coffee shops that depend on large volumes of water every day.
CELEBRATING THE SEASON 20 // GIFT GUIDE Not sure what to get family, friends, and yourself this holiday season? We’ve got you covered. 30 // HIDDEN HARVESTS WITH THE LEAGUE OF URBAN CANNERS The league harvests the often-overlooked fruits growing in the city—whether in neighbors’ yards or in public parks—and makes them into delicious preserves.
30 The [produce] season is so short here. Canning is a way to make it last.”
Photo, top: Curio Spice Co. Photo by Chattman Photography. Photo, bottom: Afton Cyrus. Photo by Sasha Pedro. On the cover: Claire Cheney. Photo by Ashley O’Dell.
18 // THE SPICE SCOUT Curio Spice Co.’s owner travels the world in search of spices. 33 // DO-GOODERS, KEY PLAYERS, AND GAME CHANGERS: DR. AARONSON CHEW A professor of psychiatry, Chew has been recognized for his work advocating for multiculturalism and diversity in medicine. 34 // THE WORLD IS HER HIVE Follow the Honey’s owner wants her store to be a window into the honeys—and the beekeepers—of many nations. 36 // CALENDAR 38 // MEET THE SCOUT TEAM Meet our publisher and founder, Holli Banks Allien
Parent Cooperative Preschool celebrating 60 years in the heart of Harvard Square
Best Preschool or Daycare
UPCOMING OPEN HOUSES: November 17, 2018 and January 26th, 2019 10am-12pm
• Applications now being accepted for the 2019-2020 school year • 2, 3 and 5 day options for children 2.9-5 years old • Extended day options available www.gardennurseryschool.org • (617) 354-4229 • admissions@gardennurseryschool.org Garden Nursery School is a safe, vibrant, and nurturing first school experience. As a community, we strive to honor differences and provide a model of cooperation and respect for all children and families.
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018
5
EDITOR’S NOTE
W
hile putting together this issue, we had the chance to report on the League of Urban Canners (p.28). The group finds fruit, much of which is hidden in plain sight, throughout Somerville and Cambridge. Public parks, neighbors’ yards—they’re all fair game for the leaguers (after getting permission, of course), who can the fruity goodness and use it to get through our long winters. Much like the League of Urban Canners, this fall we went foraging for hidden gems. What we found was a world traveler who’s trying to put a sustainable spice market on the map (p.18). We explored the go-to shop for honey lovers (p.32). Plus we handpicked 40 gifts from Photo by Megan Souza. local shops, so you can find something for everyone on your list while supporting your neighborhood businesses (p.20). In non-holiday news, we took a dive into Cambridge’s water, and discovered the real problems it poses for local coffee shops that depend on large volumes of water every day (p.14). And we’re excited to honor Dr. Aaronson Chew in what will become a regular feature of the Do-Gooders, Key Players, and Game Changers who are making amazing contributions to our city (p.38). We hope these stories help you close 2018 on a high note. From all of us at Scout, have a happy holiday season!
Reena Karasin
PUBLISHER Holli Banks Allien hbanks@scoutmagazines.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Reena Karasin rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com ART DIRECTOR Nicolle Renick design@scoutmagazines.com renickdesign.com CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Jerry Allien jallien@scoutmagazines.com SCOUT FELLOW Alyssa Vaughn avaughn@scoutmagazines.com STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Sasha Pedro EDITORIAL INTERN Lilly Milman CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Eric Francis, Jillian Kravatz, Vijee Venkatraman CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR Stefan Mallette
Reena Karasin, Editor-in-Chief rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com
COPY EDITOR Joe Palandrani
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We always have been and always will be committed to producing honest, community-oriented journalism with integrity and passion. We operate on a very tight budget, and there are so many more stories we want to write. We want to continue growing and telling the stories that matter to you, and w’re determined to keep Scout available for free. So in order to do so, we’re asking for your help. If our work is important to you—and if you have the means to show your support financially—we ask you to consider supporting us through Patreon at patreon.com/scoutmagazines. Your monthly pledge will go a long, long way to making your Scout the best it can be.
CORRECTION: In the Scout’s Honored 2018 issue, Scout stated that Motivate was the owner of Bluebikes. In fact, it is its operator; Bluebikes is owned by Cambridge, Boston, Somerville, and Brookline. Scout apologizes for this error. 6 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
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MEMBER PROFILE:
CLAIRE MINEY
ELEVATE DESTINATIONS WHAT DO YOU DO FOR ELEVATE DESTINATIONS?
As a recent college grad, I am one of the newest members of the Elevate Destinations team. A leader in eco-luxury travel, the company was founded and operates as a social enterprise; philanthropy and positive social and environmental impact are key to our mission. Elevate Destinations has pioneered the field of donor travel and is able to provide responsible travel to any region of the globe. I currently work as an assistant program manager at Elevate where I help with trip planning, materials, and logistics for our Donor Trips.
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an awesome new closet... a tidy mudroom... a functional home office... a pretty pantry & more!
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE OUTSIDE-OF-WORK ACTIVITY? I recently relocated to Cambridge from Philadelphia, so I spend a lot of my free time exploring the city with friends. I love trying out new restaurants & breweries and trying my best at trivia night with my coworkers (we haven’t won just yet...).
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PART ABOUT WORKING AT IL?
I LOVE the people at IL. I have only been a member for two months but already I have been wholly welcomed into the community. Everyone is incredibly friendly and helpful which lends itself to a relaxed yet productive working environment. Plus, it is always easy to find a dog if you are in need of some puppy cuddles.
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7
W&L
WINNERS
LOSERS
THE INMAN SQUARE REDESIGN The City Council appropriated $5 million for the Inman Square Redesign, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. The redesign involves reconfiguring the intersection of Cambridge and Hampshire Streets into two smaller intersections with separate traffic lights. Some vehicle space will also be repurposed as bike and pedestrian lanes, and Vellucci Plaza, currently at the center of the square, will be split down the middle and redistributed to each side of the road. The plan is not without its dissenters, of course—residents interviewed by the Chronicle expressed hesitations about the project’s high cost ($7 million) and the effects long-term construction could have on neighborhood businesses.
CONFUSING SKATEPARK LAWS A video of state police arresting a 27-year-old man at the Lynch Family Skatepark went viral earlier this fall, depicting the trooper flipping the man, dropping him to the concrete, and cuffing him after the man asked why he was being arrested. The incident sparked confusion over the park’s curfew—the police cited the park’s dawn-to-dusk hours when they ordered all in the park to leave, but prior to the incident, timed flood lights were installed to allow skaters to remain in the park until 9 p.m. Charges have been dropped against both the man and another skateboarder who was arrested.
HARVARD STUDENTS Another semester, another round of Harvard controversies. First came the uproar upon the confirmation hearings of Brett Kavanaugh— Supreme Court justice nominee, accused perpetrator of sexual assault, and yearly Harvard Law School educator. After law students walked out of class as the hearings unfolded and national backlash broke out against the then-nominee, Harvard announced that Kavanaugh wouldn’t return for the January 2019 term as planned, according to the Cambridge Patch. Later in the fall, student protesters also put pressure on the Harvard Kennedy School, which ultimately adopted new guidelines for vetting fellows after several were met with backlash last year, the Harvard Crimson reports. LAWLESS SHELLFISH LOVERS A man who stole hundreds of dollars worth of shrimp from a Porter Square grocery store earlier this fall hasn’t been caught, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. This marks at least the third shrimp heist in Cambridge over the past year and a half, which makes authorities wonder if this is a serial crustacean crook. In March 2017, a shrimp perpetrator escaped via bicycle with the frozen bags stuffed down his pants, and months later a man was arrested for stealing nearly $300 worth of shrimp from a Memorial Drive grocery store. While the police can’t confirm the same suspect was involved each time, they told the Chronicle that the descriptions of the perpetrators are similar.
TREE HUGGERS The city has lost 18 percent of its tree canopy since 2009, and recovery doesn’t seem to be coming anytime soon, according to an architecture firm report cited by the Cambridge Day. Today, 25.3 percent of Cambridge is covered by tree canopy, but the report predicts that number could be down to 16.2 percent by 2030. Making up for the loss would require planting a whopping 4,300 trees per year, but it could be a worthy effort—trees will become increasingly vital as the effects of climate change take hold, as they clean and cool the air. The report comes after public outcry at numerous tree removals. THE RATS OF VAIL COURT The long-abandoned, asbestos-laden Vail Court properties at Central Square have finally been demolished—which is good news for its neighbors, but bad news for the rodents who called Vail Court home. However, Central Square dwellers might have some time to stock up on traps: The previous owners, from whom the property was seized, have sued over the demolition, which means the redevelopment of the property into affordable, senior, and transitional housing is stalled, Curbed Boston reports.
Someone rustle your jimmies or tickle your fancy?
Let us know at scoutcambridge.com/contact-us, and we just might crown them a winner or loser.
8 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
NEWS FROM THE NORTH Here’s just some of what you’ll find in the Celebrating the Season Issue of our sibling publication, Scout Somerville.
FRESH BITES FOR YOUR HOLIDAY FEAST If your traditional dishes are feeling stale, Somerville’s shops have you covered with gourmet, ready-to-serve treats.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM A HAPPINESS COACH Need more joy in your life? Try happiness coach Angela Reiner’s recommendations.
UNWIND AFTER A RUFF WEEK Many of the activities we enjoy most during the holiday season—decorating, cooking, and hosting family—can actually be upsetting for your pet. This animal massage therapist is here to help.
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QUALITY USED CARS BOUGHT AND SOLD FOR 45 YEARS
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018
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WHAT’S NEW
WARM WELCOMES EAST CAMBRIDGE
ELMENDORF BAKING SUPPLIES
COMING SOON
MOVED
W
hile East Cambridge residents are still mourning the loss of the Cambridge Street Petsi Pies, it’s hard not to be excited for the arrival of Elmendorf Baking Supplies just in time for the holiday baking season. Elmendorf, which is projected to open in November, is much more than a cookware shop—it will provide classes, sell unique baking ingredients and equipment, and most uniquely, mill hard-to-find grains onsite. Owners Teddy and Alyssa Applebaum, both veterans of Boston’s restaurant scene, tell Scout they hope to “build a community in the area for bakers” with Elmendorf.
PORTER SQUARE
TARGET
One-stop shopping is now much easier for Porter Square residents. A small-format COMING7,900 MOVED Target location, about SOON square feet larger than Central Square’s, opened in Porter in late October, the Cambridge Day reports. The construction of the store, which takes up much of the space in the Porter Square Galleria, also brought about a complete revamp of the mall’s entry and central atrium, according to the Day. HARVARD SQUARE
&PIZZA JOINS FORCES WITH MILK BAR
COMING SOON
Social media influencers, prepare your iPhones. It doesn’t get more 2018 than &pizza, a D.C.-born fast-casual chain where you can order and receive a truffle and fig pizza in two minutes flat and chase it down with champagne cotton candy. The “anti-establishment 10 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
establishment” (as &pizza deems itself on its stark, black-andwhite website) is due to finally open in Harvard Square late this fall, according to Boston Magazine, so it’s best to start studying up on the lingo now: Its employees are called “tribe MOVED members” and its menu is titled “Pizzas, Turnt.” Did we mention that its “American Honey” pie was voted one of Zagat NYC’s most Instagrammable dishes of 2017? Speaking of Instagrammable: the first New England location of Christina Tosi’s award-winning Milk Bar will be sharing &pizza’s
space in Harvard Square, Eater Boston reports. Much like its new roommate, Milk Bar is known for its picture-perfect dishes, from towering layer cakes to the signature “Crack Pie,” a gooey, oats-sugarbutter creation. CENTRAL SQUARE
NEW CITY MICROCREAMERY
From avocado to tarragon to roasted strawberries, New City COMING Microcreamery’s flavors MOVED SOON are a far cry from ice cream truck fare. The shop scoops a wide variety of funky flavors, including many vegan options, according to Eater Boston. New City
also serves pastries, coffee, and bagels—for those winter days when you’re too cold for ice cream. THE PORT
FORMAGGIO KITCHEN
COMING SOON
This year, beloved specialty food shop Formaggio Kitchen celebrated its 40th birthday with both a block party on Huron Avenue and a flashy birthday gift—a brand new storefront on Hampshire Street. Boston Magazine reports that the new locale, which was formerly an Edible Arrangements, includes ample kitchen space that will allow Formaggio to pump out even more charcuterie boards and large-format pastas for its catering gigs. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to cater your weeknight wine and cheese party for one at Formaggio, too—like the other locations, the new spot includes a small retail area at the front.
Photo, top left, courtesy of Elmendorf Baking Supplies. Photo, middle left, courtesy of &pizza. Photo, top right, by Brian Samuels Photography. Photo, bottom right, by Stephanie Mitchell.
MOVE
FRESH FACES Food for thought: Getting a mortgage may be the single most important financial decision any of us make. We listen to your ambitions, learn about your finances, understand your needs, and then use our expertise to design a loan specifically for your life.
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HARVARD SQUARE
BEAT BRASSERIE REBORN AS BEAT BREW HALL Beat Brasserie, the Cantabrigian sister of the South End’s funky, bohemian brunch spot The Beehive, temporarily closed in September for a renovation and rebranding, Eater Boston reports. The new concept? Beat Brew Hall, a 9,000-square-foot communal hall where patrons can claim a seat at a picnic table or belly up to the 30-seat bar to sample a wide variety of local and international brews. The spot is also serving cocktails, wine, boozy slushies, and (most importantly) food, from small bites to full-size entrees. HARVARD SQUARE
LARRY BACOW INAUGURATED AS HARVARD’S 29TH PRESIDENT Larry Bacow was inaugurated as Harvard’s 29th president in early October, the Harvard Gazette reports. Bacow holds degrees from Harvard Law School, the
Harvard Kennedy School, and the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and he was formerly the president of Tufts University. Harvard Magazine writes that Bacow “combines deep understanding of how diverse interests are expressed and aligned” with “more than two decades of experience in applying those insights to set agendas, mobilize support, and effect decisions in the unwieldy, multicentric, hothouse setting of elite universities.”
Member FDIC Member DIF NMLS ID: #441396
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
CENTRAL SQUARE
TRANSITION HOUSE GETS A NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Sarah Gyorog joined Transition House as executive director in September, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. Transition House has provided shelter and domestic violence resources for over 40 years. Gyorog brings eight years of experience at St. Louis’s Center for Women in Transition, a restorative justice program for women reentering the community from jail or prison.
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11
WHAT’S NEW
LIVING SPACES CAMBRIDGE HIGHLANDS
A SECOND CHANCE FOR SANCTA MARIA
Sancta Maria Nursing Facility will remain open despite previously announcing plans to close at the end of the year, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. Sancta Maria, a 70-year-old nursing facility offering short-term rehabilitation, long-term care, and other health services for the elderly, received an outpouring of support from the Cambridge community after announcing its financial difficulties, which made the board of directors second-guess its decision to close. The facility will now operate under Advocate Healthcare Management (a Haverhill organization that operates another facility in East Boston), a decision that allows most staff and residents to remain at Sancta Maria. PORTER SQUARE
GROUND BREAKING AT ST. JAMES PLACE
EAST CAMBRIDGE
ONE SEARS CLOSES, MANY DOORS OPEN
C
hange is afoot at CambridgeSide. With Sears closing in December, CambridgeSide owner New England Development is planning new mixed-use buildings, potentially up to 175 feet tall, for the area where Sears curently stands, according to the Boston Globe. While few details about the plans are available, a development like this would be in keeping with CambridgeSide’s plans for the future: “The Sears closing reinforces the need to reinvigorate and reinvent what CambridgeSide can be … and the future of retail is a mix of uses,” Deborah Black, a spokesperson for New England Development, told the Globe.
Nauset Construction broke ground on St. James Place earlier this fall, the Cambridge Patch reports. The development, which is on the site of an abandoned car wash, will be mixed-use, featuring 46 new condominiums (five of which will be affordable housing units) and a new parish hall for St. James Episcopal Church. The parish hall will include new children’s classrooms, a food pantry, a library, and music rooms.
ART BEAT CENTRAL SQUARE
even started), so it’s best to keep up with the project’s progress by checking #CSQinColor on social media.
Graffiti Alley has some competition. This fall, 10 local artists have been hard at work transforming some of Central Square’s blank walls into murals that celebrate the neighborhood’s history and hopes for the future. The Central Square Mural Project represents a unique partnership between the Central Square Business Association, business owners, the City of Cambridge, and other organizations, according to the Cambridge Community Foundation. Each artist is working on a different timeline (some murals, like a revamp of the old Blockbuster sign on Mass. Ave., were finished in early August, long before others
CENTRAL SQUARE
THE CENTRAL SQUARE MURAL PROJECT BEAUTIFIES BLANK WALLS
12 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
THE DANCE COMPLEX WINS $225,000 GRANT
Cue the curtain call—Central Square’s The Dance Complex, which offers dance instruction and workshops for movers of all ages, was selected to be part of the Barr-Klarman Massachusetts Arts Initiative, a $25-million, six-year investment in 29 arts and culture organizations. The Dance Complex received two grants totalling $225,000 over three years, according to a press release, and it is the only awardee solely dedicated to dance. Photo, top left, by Gustav Hoiland. Photo, bottom left, courtesy of The Dance Complex. Photo, top right, courtesy of Cambridge Public Schools.
CAMPUS LIFE
CAMBRIDGE RINDGE AND LATIN SCHOOL STUDENTS GET CONNECTED
In an effort to bridge the “digital divide,” Cambridge Rindge and Latin School is offering Google Chromebooks to each of its more than 2,000 students, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. Superintendent Ken Salim said in a statement that the initiative will “level the playing field for students, while allowing CPS educators to truly integrate technology into instructional design across the curriculum.” Students will have access to the computers both on and off campus, but certain websites and applications will be banned to enforce responsible use. The Chromebooks will also be the only devices allowed on the school’s WiFi in classrooms—so teens who want to sneak their phones in class will need to use their precious data plans. KENDALL SQUARE
MIT TO CONSTRUCT NEW ‘FRONT DOOR’
Kendall Square is about to get yet another super-futuristic high-rise. MIT has plans to construct a 343,000-square-foot office building that will serve as a “new front door” for the school, the Boston Globe reports. The building, which will be located at 314 Main St., is one of two largescale projects MIT is planning in Kendall Square, the other being a total revamp of the school’s Volpe Center. The two sites will house offices, living spaces, and
retail, including a Roche Bros.— Kendall’s first supermarket, according to the Globe. HARVARD SQUARE
HARVARD’S SMITH CAMPUS CENTER REOPENS
Harvard students now have a sleek new hangout on campus. Harvard’s “reimagined, redesigned” Smith Campus Center opened earlier this fall, according to the Harvard Gazette. The high-ceilinged, glass-façaded space includes ample room for meeting, studying, and performing. The center’s food vendors include Blackbird Doughnuts, Pavement Coffeehouse, Swissbäkers, Bon Me, Oggi Gourmet, Saloniki, and Whole Heart Provisions.
MORE CAMBRIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS WILL HAVE ACCESS TO FREE FOOD
Mayor Marc McGovern has big plans to address hunger in the Cambridge Public Schools. In a column he penned for the Cambridge Chronicle, McGovern revealed that his staff would move to expand free food programming for the city’s young people. With the increased funding, students who previously had to pay for reduced-price lunch will now be able to eat for free, and all students will eventually be able to have daily free breakfasts as well. “Consistent, healthy nutrition can and will have an impact on the wellbeing of children and families in our community,” McGovern writes.
FOR THE PERSON WHO HAS
everything, GIVE THE GIFT OF nothing “I ALWAYS THINK NOTHING IS HAPPENING. THEN I STEP OUT AND MY SHOULDERS AREN’T EARRINGS ANYMORE AND I WALK DOWN THE STREET LIKE THE CHILLEST HIPPIE TO GROOVE OUT AT WOODSTOCK”
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scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 13
SPECIAL REPORT
BY REENA KARASIN ILLUSTRATIONS BY STEFAN MALLETTE
14 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
S
hortly after Justin Pronovost launched Curio Coffee, he started having severe problems with his equipment. He soon found out that the city’s water was to blame. “We had a very basic water filtration system, and after our first two or three months it completely clogged, and we knew we had a water problem,” he says. “We consulted the company we
bought the filter from and then the guy said, ‘Oh yeah, I’m pretty knowledgeable about Cambridge water, and you guys have what we consider to be the worst water in the country for filtration purposes.’” Cambridge’s water may be safe to drink, but its near-limitpushing levels of chlorides and dissolved solids, its hardness, and its pH pose real problems
for the coffee shops that depend on large volumes of water every day. The complicated water is a well-known issue in industry circles, but largely unheard of outside of them. “It was a challenge, because starting a business is hard enough,” Pronovost says. “It was a hassle, we were fumbling through different systems and their capabilities, we ran out of
water some days. It was probably our biggest struggle the first couple of years.” After more than two years, “many thousands” of dollars, and about eight different filtration systems, earlier this year Curio Coffee settled on reverse osmosis, an intense water purification system that removes essentially everything from water and then requires re-mineralization. Cambridge’s filtered water contains 236 parts per million (ppm) of chloride, just below the highest level allowed—250 ppm—according to the 2017 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report. For comparison, as of August 2018 the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), which services the majority of Greater Boston including Somerville, Boston, and Arlington, reports 32.5 ppm of chloride in its tap water. “Chloride (Cl-), which is a negative ion of chlorine, is a very nasty element, since it speeds up and aggravates the natural phenomenon of corrosion in almost all metals and alloys,” Enrico Wurm, water expert for espresso and coffee machine company La Marzocco, tells Scout in an email. “When the water is very aggressive and corrosive (high in salinity) ... serious pitting
corrosion phenomena start,” he continues. “Corrosion then is further boosted by high turbulence, pressure (130 psi) and temperature (around 200 degrees F) present in espresso machines.” Cambridge owes its high chloride levels in large part to Route 128, which cuts through its water supply, according to Managing Director of the Cambridge Water Department Sam Corda. Despite framing the water as “pretty typical for Eastern Mass.,” Corda acknowledges the striking chloride levels. “We have higher chlorides than we’d like to have,” he says. “Salt is one of the chloride components, and since the highway is in the middle of our reservoir system and watershed, obviously that’s a contributor. In the wintertime, you salt the roads because you want to get rid of the ice. So road salt is one of the bigger contributors, even though we’ve worked with MassDOT and they do the best they can, but from a safety perspective, they do need to salt the roads.” “I don’t think it’s a health issue, I don’t think it creates any regulatory issues from a water quality perspective, but the fact that the chlorides have been increasing is a negative, obviously,” he adds.
The chlorides can leave coffee shop owners with ruined equipment that their warranties don’t cover, Pronovost and Broadsheet Coffee Roasters owner Aaron MacDougall explain. “There are coffee equipment manufacturers that will not honor their warranties in the City of Cambridge unless you have a reverse osmosis system in place,” MacDougall says. “At the equipment manufacturer level, it’s very well known that Cambridge water is problematic for things like hot water towers.” La Marzocco outlines acceptable ranges for water characteristics in its warranty. The maximum chloride level for the warranty is 30 ppm. Cimbali, another coffee machine manufacturer, also sets water quality limits within its warranty, according to Sales Director Laurel Bird. “It’s kind of like smoking … it’s all over bad for the machine,” she says of using inadequate water. At a pH of nine, Cambridge is also outside of La Marzocco’s warranty limits for basicity. The water department increases the pH level for safety reasons, in order to prevent remaining lead and copper pipes and faucets from leaching into the water. Corda explains that the water’s hardness, which
describes how high its levels of calcium and magnesium are, can also damage or clog some equipment. Hard water might leave a white residue on dishes and other items that come into regular contact with the water, according to the department’s website. Cambridge teeters between “slightly hard” and “moderately hard” at 50 to 70 ppm, with the line at 60 ppm, the website explains, adding that water doesn’t need to be softened unless it reaches more than 150 ppm. The city’s staggering total dissolved solids count of 472 ppm—just below the 500 ppm limit, compared to the MWRA’s tap water’s 135 ppm—also poses a taste issue for coffee shops. “What’s in the water really impacts how a steeped beverage like coffee tastes,” MacDougall says. “First is how effective the water is as a solvent. Coffee’s all about taking the delicious portion that is extractable out of the coffee and getting it into your cup, and the effectiveness of water as a solvent is a function of many things … It’s a function of how much other dissolved solids reside within the water … If you are trying to brew coffee with water from your tap, chances are you will come out with very under-extracted coffee, [which]
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 15
SPECIAL REPORT
tastes sour and astringent.” But MacDougall, who knew about Cambridge’s challenging water before opening Broadsheet Coffee Roasters, is careful to acknowledge the city’s work. “There’s no question that Cambridge’s water department is producing water that’s potable … Cambridge is a great city, and the water has its quirks, so I’ve adapted,” he says. “I spend a lot of money on water filtration, it’s an ongoing expense for me … I just said ‘OK, I’m going to spend some money.’ It is what it is, so this is how I deal with it.” Chlorides also represent a threat to taste, Wurm says. “Several studies also demonstrate that chlorides increase the solubility (thus boosting the extraction) of very bitter aromatic compounds present in the coffee, making espresso taste quite unpleasant,” he explains. Corda says he has not heard of any coffee shop or restaurant owners who have contacted the department with issues pertaining to chlorides. He is aware of some clogging issues related to the water’s hardness, however, he says. Pronovost says he didn’t reach out to the department during his many months of system trials because he “didn’t think they would take it very seriously.” Corda says that a coffee shop or restaurant having to install “a small-scale [reverse osmosis system] isn’t that big of a deal,” explaining that it would be impractical to burden all water users with the additional expense of implementing reverse osmosis as part of the city’s treatment process. “Obviously if it continues to rise and becomes a regulatory issue, we’ll have to figure it out,” he says of the chloride levels. Pronovost doesn’t go as far as to say he would’ve opened his business elsewhere if he’d known about the water’s challenges, but he explains it would’ve “made [him] think twice.” “We all think Cambridge is really ahead of the curve in a lot of ways … you’d think it would be better, for a city that’s really sophisticated and has a good tax base and a lot of award-winning restaurants and businesses,” he says. “You’d think people would demand more.” 16 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
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17
SCOUT OUT!
THE SPICE SCOUT CURIO SPICE CO. OWNER CLAIRE CHENEY TRAVELS THE WORLD IN SEARCH OF SPICES
18 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
W
hen you walk into Curio Spice Co., there’s the sensation that you’ve stepped inside a remarkably well-stocked kitchen cabinet. The delicate aroma of spices makes it clear off the bat that this is an olfactory heaven for cooks. The shop stocks pure spices, spice blends, and spice-related paraphernalia from all over the world—think tabasco chilies, turmeric latte milk, and a handy mortar and pestle. Once immersed in the bright hues and heady aromas of products with names like Kandy Spice, Aegean Salt, or Herbes de Romance, even a timid home cook could start dreaming up kitchen adventures. Owner Claire Cheney has traveled to close to a dozen countries to bring quality spices and herbs back to Curio Spice Co. A former barista, she saw that people believed in fair trade and were willing pay for good quality, single-origin coffee. She wants to see spices celebrated in a similar fashion—to be moved out of the commodity market and into the specialty market.
“I want to change the conversation around spices,” she says. By directly sourcing sustainably produced spices from around the world, her goal is to help reverse exploitative practices that have driven the commodity spice market. In Madagascar, where she went looking for a supplier of vanilla beans, she learned that, typically, managers of vanillaprocessing facilities frisk female workers to make sure they aren’t stealing pods, which are as precious as silver. She searched for, and found, the exception: a supplier who pays his workers a fair wage and doesn’t frisk them. “There is a culture of trust at the facility that is different from other companies,” says Cheney. Purchases at Curio Spice Co. help support the organic farmers Cheney works with from all over the world. While erratic changes in weather patterns around the globe have skewed the harvest cycles of many crops, supplementary income from premium spices
BY VIJEE VENKATRAMAN provides these farmers some much-needed respite. Cheney also helps spice growers get organic certification or certification to sell in the United States.
THE ART AND SCIENCE OF SPICE
W
hen she isn’t off traveling, Cheney educates her clientele on how to use her high-quality ingredients to enhance their cooking. In the Spice 101 class that she holds at the store, she offers lessons on the science of aromas. As part of their olfactory training, beginners are encouraged to sniff spices. They savor spices in food and drink. They learn to toast, grind, and store spices. Once they understand the basics, they can try their hand at creating spice blends. Making signature blends involves three key elements, Cheney says: flavor, visual appeal, and storytelling. Because the history of the world was, in part, shaped by the western quest
Photo, top left, by Ashley O’Dell. Photo, top right and bottom, by Chattman Photography.
“
I want to change the conversation around spices.” for eastern spices, some blends tend to be heavily redolent of the past. Take Vadouvan, her signature curry blend. The blend harks back to colonial times, originating from Pondicherry, a tiny French stronghold in British India, which served as a haven for revolutionary thinkers. Spice blends are not always this steeped in history, but each has its own story. Consider the signature blend Herbes de Romance, which Cheney, a New Englander, created as a favor for her brother’s wedding. It features Massachusetts-grown rosemary and wild oregano from Maine. There’s also the spice blend Supeq, which means “ocean” in the language of the Passamaquoddy, a Native American people from Maine. This blend, which incorporates locally sourced seaweed, mushroom, and ginger, conjures beach vacations on the Cape and endless days of summer.
Blending spices can be an exercise in creativity. Just as an artistic person returns home from a stimulating trip and tries to capture that experience through writing, painting, or music, Cheney uses spices as her medium, she explains. A recent trip to Japan resulted in the Edo Spice, a blend featuring sansho pepper, which packs a tongue-numbing tingle along with subtle heat. Cherry blossoms, a quintessential part of Japanese culture, are also an element of this blend. For this holiday season, Cheney is working on a curry blend featuring saffron, an old favorite of hers. Back in 2006, while an undergraduate at Oberlin College, she came upon the photograph of a Bronze Age Greek fresco featuring female saffron gatherers. As a child, she had picked the stamen of saffron flowers when her family vacationed in Greece. “I felt an instant connection with these women,” she says. Intrigued, she dove into the literature. She learned that modern Greeks cultivate this valuable vermillion spice, “vegetable gold,” mainly for export. In 2010, Cheney, who worked in a gourmet coffee shop in Boston, visited a Greek village which grew saffron. This unplanned detour, while she was on a holiday, was her first foray into spice-seeking in faraway places. Cheney launched Curio Spice Co. in 2015 after years of blending spices under the tutelage of experts at Oleana and Sofra. In addition to serving retailers and the individuals who wander into her shop, Cheney has formed relationships with local businesses—Juliet in Somerville uses and retails two of her custom blends, “La Pluie” and “Cinnamon Bird,” and Honeycomb Creamery flavors some ice creams with her fresh spices. As the company grows, Cheney looks forward to making a bigger impact on the way that spices are produced, traded, and used in home cooking. “I love hearing about a delicious dish that someone made using our spices, because it means that the product has been celebrated every step of the way,” she says. scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 19
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
Holiday Gift Guide ALL PHOTOS BY SASHA PEDRO UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED.
D
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU SHOP LOCAL?
id you know that when you shop locally, three times as much money stays in your home city compared to when you shop at a chain? That’s because local business owners are more likely to utilize other local services, like a lawyer or an accountant, according to Cambridge Local First Executive Director Adriane Musgrave. They also give a larger portion of their revenue to local nonprofits, she says. “It’s our local businesses that are donating food, or raffle items, or giving monetary donations, because they know the individuals, they know the need,” Musgrave explains. 20 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
The difference is even more stark compared to shopping online: spending your money locally keeps close to 50 times as much money at home versus when you buy “from an online megaretailer,” according to the American Independent Business Alliance. “You really are contributing to your community when you shop locally,” Musgrave says. “You’re having the chance to keep that business in operation, providing a value to yourself as a neighbor who wants to frequent a business like that. It keeps the street vibrant, it brings people into town.” If you’re already buying into shopping locally,
there are still things you can do to further support your city’s businesses. First, consider carrying cash when you’re doing your holiday shopping— credit and debit card fees can pose a real issue to small businesses, especially on low-priced items. Second, help spread the word in person and online, Musgrave suggests. “If there’s a local business that you really like, talk to your friends about it,” she says. “If you can share these positive moments online, either by writing a positive Yelp review or Google Maps review, sharing it to your friends or followers, that goes a long way to helping our businesses reach more people.”
ACTIVIST
THE
R E T T O R T THE GLOBE
Ruth Bader Ginsburg action figure $16, Joie De Vivre You down with RGB?
Travel Wallet
$65, Fjallraven A cool and convenient way to store passports, unfolded boarding passes, pens, currency, and credit cards all in one slim location.
Language Classes
$50-240+, RoLa Languages Help the travelers in your life prepare for their next big trips. Classes and tutoring offered in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, French, Mandarin, and English as a Second Language. Gift cards available.
The National Parks Poster Coloring Book
$21.99, Black Ink Know someone who’s daydreaming of crosscountry nature? Each of the 20 colorable posters in this book can be torn out and hung. National Parks,Vintage Maps, and “Vote!” photos by Reena Karasin.
Vintage Maps Pocket Notebook & Sticky Notes $5.75 for the notebook / $15 for the sticky notes, Black Ink For when your favorite traveler needs to jot down a memory on the go.
“Vote!”
$9.99, Porter Square Books Need to explain to a kid why voting matters? This picture book tackles why people don’t vote, various groups’ fights for suffrage, and why your vote counts.
“A Pocket Guide to the Constitution” $9.95, Harvard Book Store A non-partisan, concise guide to understanding the U.S. Constitution.
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 21
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
THE
Dog Treats
$5-8, Camberville Dog Treats Goodbye kibble, hello healthy handmade treats. Vegan, GMO-free, soy-free, wheat-free, and corn-free.
ANIMAL-LOVER
Seasonal Dog Toys
$7.50-$8, Laundromutt Help get Fido in the holiday spirit. Available in Christmas and Hanukkah styles.
Cow Yoga Calendar
$14.99, Porter Square Books A sure-fire laugh for lovers of animals and yoga alike.
FOODIE
THE
Foodie Fight
$24.95, Porter Square Books “A trivia game for serious food lovers.” Hopefully it doesn’t turn into a food fight.
22 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
Off the Beaten Path Food Tour
$35-$60, offthebeanpathfoodtours.com Cambridge is full of hidden gems and little-known history. Eat your way through Harvard, Kendall, or Central while learning about the chocolate, innovation, and art embedded in these squares.
Local Tastes Sampler
$29.95, Salt & Olive For those craving a taste of New England. Includes two local salts, a bottle of olive oil, and a bottle of balsamic vinegar.
Foodie Fight, Cow Yoga Calendar, and Bards Dispense Profanity photos by Holli Banks. Food tour photo courtesy of Off the Beaten Path Food Tours.
SCHOLAR
THE
“Blood & Ivy: The 1849 Murder that Scandalized Harvard”
$26.95, Harvard Book Store A page-turning, true-crime account of scandal, murder, and one of the country’s most infamous trials.
Infinity Puzzle by Nervous System
$40, Albertine Press. Challenge the brainiac of the family with this perpetual jigsaw puzzle. It has no beginning, no end, no certain shape, and no edges. Made in Somerville.
Vintage Boston Almanacs
$20, WardMaps A unique gift for the historian in your life—a detailed look into Boston’s past including a business directory, a fold-out map, and information on weather, local events, city regulations, public schools, and more.
Bards Dispense Profanity $24.95, Porter Square Books Cards Against Humanity + Shakespeare quotes out of context. Jokes literature lovers dream of.
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 23
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
PERSON RUNNING ON EMPTY
THE
Peppermint Foot Butter
MAKER
THE
$9, Abodeon Keeps tired feet moisturized and soft.
The Cold Survival Kit
ENTERTAINER
THE
Buddha Board
Henry Bear’s Park, $34.99 Practice living in the moment: Paint with water on this board and say goodbye to your design when it dries.
$28, DAVIDsTEA A variety of teas to treat a variety of symptoms. Sore throat? Try a ginger tea. Upset stomach? North African mint. With five teas and infusions, 10 filters, and 10 honey sticks, the Cold Survival Kit has you covered.
100-Day Happiness Planner $26, The Little Details Organization store The Little Details believes that an organized life starts from within, and this planner’s the way to get there. Chart what makes you happy, what makes you unhappy, and where you want to go.
THE
Bartending Gift Basket Special Scout Edition
$100, Cardullo’s Gourmet Shoppe Made specially for Scout readers, this basket has everything the home bartender needs to make standout drinks: five of Cardullo’s top-selling bitters (angostura, black walnut, aztec chocolate, orange, and whiskey), two delicious preserves (cranberry and cointreau, apricot and armagnac), and Luxardo cherries. 24 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
Spalted Maple Bowls
$75-$145, Abodeon Great for the living room or kitchen. These beautiful serving bowls are made in Turners Falls by artisan Spencer Peterman with wood sourced from central New England trees. Matching serving utensils sold separately.
R E V O L C MUSI
Music-Themed Playing Cards
$5.99, Guitar Stop Now you can play poker with Elvis and go fish with the Grateful Dead.
THE
Maker’s Keep
$20, gather here A magnetic bracelet to keep the maker’s pins and needles in place while crafting, learning, and creating—great to use at gather here’s stitch lounge.
LOYAL LOCAL
$19.99, TAGS Hardware Provide loyal locals with a place to chop their farmers market finds. Porter, Harvard, and Davis variations available.
Cambridge Market Bag
Creative Versa-Tool
$34.99, Artist & Craftsman Supply This burning tool kit can be used on wood, leather, wax, and cork.
Cambridge Cutting Boards
$68, Syd & Sam Created by female artisans in Bangladesh who receive fair trade wages, annual profit dividends, and a retirement fund, this reusable waterresistant bag holds up to 135 lbs. and saves you 10 percent on future sales when you bring it to shop at Syd + Sam.
Local Screen Prints
$24 for Inman square print / $16 for Lobster print / $18 for Cape Cod print / $6 for Cambridge pennant, all available at Albertine Press Celebrate local artists and local pride with a new piece of wall art, like the detailed “How To Eat A Lobster” (lobster roll recipe included) from Big Wheel Press in Easthampton.
Scout magazines subscription
$24 for Scout Somerville or Scout Cambridge / $42 for both, scoutmagazines. storenvy.com What’s more local than your hyperlocal magazine? Give someone journalism straight to their mailbox. Buddha Board photo by Reena Karasin. Happiness Planner photo by Bryan Steele. Cardullo’s photo by Holli Banks.
scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 25
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
CYCLIST
THE
Bicycle Oven Mitt and Pot Holder $7.99 for the oven mitt / $4.99 for the pot holder, TAGS Hardware Take these on a *sweet* ride.
THE
EXPERIENCE JUNKIE
Spurcycle Bell
$49-$59, Broadway Bicycle School Designed to ring three times longer than the standard bicycle bell, this Spurcycle creation is the perfect accessory to help keep cyclists safe on the road. Broadway Bicycle School also offers classes on basic bicycle maintenance, wheel building, and more.
Guitar Player Starter Kit
$19.99-$25.00, Guitar Stop Send the future musician off to lessons with an all-in-one starter kit. Includes a pack of strings, peg winder, cleaning cloth, strap, and carrying bag (guitar cable included for “electric guitar” kits). Guitar Stop offers lessons for all playing levels.
A Love for Chocolate Cooking Class
$80, Cambridge School of Culinary Arts Know someone with a sweet tooth? This is their time to shine. They’ll learn how to temper chocolate, craft molded candies, and infuse flavors in this four-hour class. Plus, they’ll go home with their creatons.
26 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
Ages 1+: Tegu Pocket Pouch
$24.99, Magic Beans Travel-size magnetic wooden blocks, perfect for building and developing fine motor skills on-the-go.
KIDS
TWEENS & TEENS Ages 6+: “Stories for Boys Who Dare to be Different” $16.99, Magic Beans Instead of far-fetched tales of dragon-slaying, treat a child to the completely true stories of 75 men (both famous and not-so-famous) and their tales of trailblazing and heroism. With fullcolor illustrations.
Ages 10+: Concept
Ages 8+: Farm Yarn Babies
$39.99, Henry Bear’s Park A new take on the classic “charades” with over 100 possible roles.
$22.49, The Curious George Store First, assemble cardboard forms. Next, wrap yarn. Then, make barnyard accessories. Finally, play, play, play!
Ages 6+: Make Me A Sweater Cross Stitch
$15, gather here Available in cat, rabbit, and bear forms, creative children can develop fine motor and cross-stitching skills while crafting fun sweaters for these beechwood animals.
Oven mitt photo by Holli Banks. CSCA photo by Ellen Callaway.
Ages 12+: Exit: The Game
$14.99, Henry Bear’s Park “Escape the Room” without ever leaving the house. An exciting take on the popular adventure experience with challenging puzzles, decoder rings, and clues that you may have to mark, fold, or quickly tear up before time runs out. scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 27
Get the Goods Abodeon
1731 Massachusetts Ave. 617-497-0137, abodeon.com
Albertine Press
1309 Cambridge St. 617-945-5519, Albertinepress.com
Henry Bear’s Park
17 White St. 617-547-8424, Henrybear.com
Joie De Vivre
1792 Massachusetts Ave. 617-864-8188, Joiedevivre.net
Artist & Craftsman Supply
Laundromutt
Black Ink
Magic Beans
Broadway Bicycle School
Off the Beaten Path Food Tours
580 Massachusetts Ave. 617-354-3636, Artistcraftsman.com 5 Brattle St. 617-497-1221, Blackinkboston.com 351 Broadway 617-868-3392 Broadwaybicycleschool.com
Cardullo’s Gourmet Shoppe 6 Brattle St. 617-491-8888, Cardullos.com
Camberville Dog Treats Cambervilledogtreats.com
Cambridge School of Culinary Arts (CSCA) 2020 Massachusetts Ave. 617-354-2020 Cambridgeculinary.com
DAVIDsTEA
35 JFK St. 617-547-0483, Davidstea.com
Fjallraven
63 Church St. 617-715-9977, Fjallraven.us
gather here
1343 Cambridge St. 617-714-4880 Gatherhereonline.com
Guitar Stop
1760 Massachusetts Ave. 617-876-0687, Guitarstop.com
Harvard Book Store
1256 Massachusetts Ave. 617-661-1515, Harvard.com
28 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
THIS
HOLIDAY SEASON, BRIN
GY OUR
Featuring Holiday Favorites: • Smoked Fish Platter • Oysters: Live or Shucked • Cocktail Shrimp • Vineyard Bay Scallops
489 Concord Ave. 617-864-9274, Laundromutt.com
We also have a wide variety of amazing fresh fish by the pound, Smoked Fish Patés, Salmon Bacon and more.
361 Huron Ave. 617-300-0171, Mbeans.com
FAMI LY THE BEST!
FRE
DELIVEREY AVAILABL E!
Offthebeatenpathfoodtours.com hello@offthebeatenpathfoodtours. com
Visit eathooked.com/holidays for more details.
Porter Square Books 25 White St. 617-491-2220 Portersquarebooks.com
RoLa Languages
1798 Massachusetts Ave. 617-297-7789, Rolalang.com
Salt & Olive
1160 Massachusetts Ave. 857-242-4118, Saltandolive.com
Syd & Sam
290 Concord Ave. 857-259-6172, Syd-and-sam.com
TAGS Hardware
29 White St. 617-868-7711, Tagshardware.com
The Curious George Store 1 JFK St. 617-547-4500 Thecuriousgeorgestore.com
The Little Details
2255 Massachusetts Ave. 617-714-4273, Thelittledetails.me
WardMaps
1735 Massachusetts Ave. 617-497-0737, Wardmaps.com
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scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 29
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
HIDDEN HARVESTS WITH THE
LEAGUE OF URBAN CANNERS BY JILLIAN KRAVATZ | PHOTOS BY SASHA PEDRO
S
ome things are hard to miss: the leaves changing to vibrant shades of red, yellow, and orange, the impossibly long line at that one ramen restaurant in Porter Square, the traffic on Mass. Ave. at 4:15 p.m. Other things—like the hundreds of fruit trees tucked away throughout Cambridge and Somerville—are not so easy to notice. Many people walking the cities’ streets aren’t aware of the food growing around them, according to Sam Katz-Christy, the founder of the League of Urban Canners. He knows because he was once one of them. “Initially, you are just blind to it,” Katz-Christy says, recalling how once he began to notice the plethora of fruit trees growing in the area, he was shocked that he hadn’t seen them before. After watching so much fruit go to waste, he decided to gather a group of friends and do something about it. “We have these ideas about food, about what it should look like or where it should come from; I think we need to break down the barriers of what we think of as food,” he says. The League of Urban Canners (affectionately known as LURC among participants), aims to do just that. They find and harvest the often-overlooked fruits growing in the city— 30 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
whether in a neighbor’s yard or a public park—and make them into delicious local jams, preserves, dried foods, and fermented snacks to enjoy throughout the whole year. Since its start in 2012, the group has managed to find and record nearly 300 fruit trees in Somerville and Cambridge, at least 100 of which are harvested annually. The two cities, it turns out, offer a wide range of fruits for curious LURCers—including peaches, pears, crabapples, mulberries, sour cherries, Concord grapes, and a few lesserknown fruits such as juneberries, cornelion cherries, and quince. You can often find LURCers gathered together with a ladder, a tarp, a few boxes, and sometimes bike helmets to protect their heads from falling fruit. Once they harvest, they share 10 percent of the resulting canned goods with the tree owners as a courtesy. LURC is a laid-back, decentralized group, operating from an email listserv where tree owners and experienced members announce harvesting opportunities and organize harvesting gatherings throughout the cities. Harvests depend on when fruit is ready to pick and are announced sporadically, sometimes with just a few days, or a few hours, of notice.
AFTERNOON UNDER THE ARBOR
O
ne LURC harvest happened on a crisp September afternoon. The bittersweet, musty smell of fresh grape juice filled the air as the group gathered at the end of a driveway on (the aptly named) Concord Avenue in Somerville. The driveway was splattered with crushed grapes as Danny, 3, and Alex, 5, of Somerville shuttled bunches of grapes from box to box beneath a tall grape arbor strung with twinkle lights. Their father, Andy Whynot, stood on a ladder, reaching up to snip clusters of grapes from the vine. Meanwhile their mother, Jeanne, stacked some white cardboard boxes in a corner, readying them to be filled with the bounty. Jeanne, who has been participating in LURC harvests for three years, says she wants her children to understand where food comes from. Since joining LURC, she’s managed to keep two energetic young boys fueled with
enough PB&J sandwiches for the year without buying any jelly at the grocery store. Sitting on lawn chairs by their back door, Maria and Humberto Rego watched as the grapes they planted in 1962 were harvested by the LURC members. They learned about LURC through their daughter, and are grateful to have extra hands helping them harvest their grapes. “Me and him used to pick all the grapes,” Maria said, gesturing toward her husband, “but we’re getting old,” she added with a laugh. The Regos, like many tree owners, find that they cannot use all of the fruit their trees produce each year. “We have so many grapes, and I already made my jam,” Maria said. On another ladder at the Rego property, Bethany Ericson, a local jewelry artist, reached up to pluck a few clusters of her own while her daughter, Lyra, emptied the grapes into a bigger box. “This is the first time I’ve done this,” she said. When Maria asked if she’d had scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 31
CELEBRATING THE SEASON
the jam to the jars. However intimidating canning might seem, Hallman and Cyrus both mention the satisfaction and security in hearing the lids of the cans pop as they cool down, meaning that the air has escaped and the food inside is sealed and protected. “It’s very easy to tell if everything is sealed properly,” Hallman says. “You just listen for the pop.” Cyrus loves canning
SEASON’S GREETINGS
enough, Ericson reassured her. “I have way more than I need.”
W
YES YOU CAN
C
anning and preserving has always been at the heart of what the League of Urban Canners does in the community. One apple or pear tree has the potential to produce well over 200 pounds of fruit per year, more than even a few families could consume, according to Jascha Smilack, who manages a few harvesting sites for LURC. Ericson is an experienced jam and jelly canner, though the grape harvest in September was the first time she gathered her fruit through LURC. She planned to make some jelly with the grapes and then pass along the rest to friends and family. “It can be a little nervewracking at first,” Ericson says of canning, “but it’s really simple if you follow the instructions.” Many people fear home canning because of possible threats of botulism, a rare but serious food poisoning from bacteria that can develop in improperly canned goods. Afton Cyrus, who founded her own small-batch jam and jelly company, Jam Sessions, and now sells her jams at farmers markets throughout Somerville and Cambridge, understands the hesitancy of first-time canners. “It’s scary stuff, when you don’t know what you’re doing,” she says. “But once you read a little bit and find a trusted, reliable source for your recipe, it’s really quite simple and very safe.” “Acidity is key,” she adds, noting that the surest way to
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explains. For first-time canners overwhelmed by the prospect of being buried in jam, Cyrus recommends thinking about what you will really eat and trying a small batch first. The same goes with recipes— start simple with a trusted recipe before getting too creative. Though Smilack and his family like making sour cherry and mulberry jam, they started out using simple recipes from wellknown canning cookbooks.
AFTON CYRUS
“You open up a jar in the middle of winter and have a taste of summer.” prevent any bacteria from forming in your canned goods is to make sure you are canning high-acid foods. Julia Hallman, an avid homecanner and the lead buyer at Formaggio Kitchen Cambridge, agrees. She often ensures her canned goods will be safe by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice to the mix. There are also FDAapproved boiling times based on what, and how much, you are canning. The times can be found easily online, Hallman says, as well as on most Ball jar packages and in canning books. Hallman adds that working in a clean space with clean equipment is very important. While some canners like Cyrus choose to sterilize their cans in a hot water bath before adding the jam, others, including Hallman, use the bottom rack of a dishwasher right before adding
because it gives her an outlet for creativity. When canning, she says, you know exactly what is going into your food. She opts for a low-sugar pectin—a substance that gives jam its gelatinous consistency—called Pomona’s Pectin, which requires less sugar and lets the natural flavor of the fruit come through. Though not a member of LURC, Cyrus only includes locally grown produce in her jams and doesn’t want to mask the flavors. Smilack also mentioned Pomona’s Pectin as his family’s choice of pectin. Other canners, like Hallman, prefer not to use pectin at all, resulting in a looser, more French-style jam. Schreiner often cans his fruit plain without any sweetening or pectin, he says, joking, “I could just eat fruit with a spoon.” Canning also doesn’t have to be a huge event, Cyrus
inter is coming, and after the joys of the holidays, frost and ice will bring bitter cold days when luxuries like strawberries and apples will be but a faint memory. “I think that now that people are realizing the benefits of eating locally, they are also realizing the dearth of things available in the wintertime,” Hallman says. Katz-Christy doesn’t think this dearth is a bad thing. “Being in tune with the seasons is really important,” he says. “Learning to eat with the seasons gives you a greater appreciation of food.” As the holidays approach, Cyrus suggests canning as a way to make thoughtful gifts for family and friends. “People like consumable gifts,” she says, adding that giving canned goods is a way to offer someone something they can enjoy later, after the glut of holiday eating is over, when winter comes in full force. Smilack has used LURC as a way to stock up on gifts for the holidays. “A jar of homemade jam is special and economical,” he says, adding that with two children in two different schools and after school programs, his family’s list of holiday gift recipients has gotten quite long. It’s not too late to get started on some holiday canning. While local apples are still in season, Cyrus suggests making apple butter or applesauce. Hallman also advises making butter or jam out of pears. “The season is so short here,” Cyrus says. “Canning is a way to make it last. You open up a jar in the middle of winter and have a taste of summer.”
DO-GOODERS, KEY PLAYERS & GAME CHANGERS
AARONSON CHEW
DO-GOODERS, KEY PLAYERS, AND GAME CHANGERS
AARONSON CHEW BY LILLY MILMAN
D
r. Aaronson Chew learned to hold himself to a higher standard of inclusivity when he was an undergraduate at University of California, Irvine. There, he became a resident advisor in a living-learning community known for its commitment to fostering diversity through various programs and extra in-hall classes. Chew has channeled that standard throughout the 10 years since he graduated from UC Irvine. He has since joined the faculty of Harvard Medical School as a psychiatry professor, where he teaches students about the role of diversity in medical practice. While teaching, Chew draws connections between Photo courtesy of Harvard Medical School.
mental health and diversity factors and guides his students toward understanding the importance of multiculturalism in the medical field. Earlier this year, his work was recognized by the Harold Amos Faculty Diversity Award by Harvard Medical School. The award is named after the late professor Harold Amos, who was the first African-American man to be named a department chair at Harvard University. Each year, it is presented to faculty members who encourage inclusion and diversity of thought, education, and research. One of his colleagues wrote in a nomination letter that Chew “has championed multiple efforts
to enhance the multicultural expertise of his trainees through an understanding of cultural identity and how cultural factors influence the psychological understanding of emotions,” according to the announcement of Chew’s award. “I was very surprised,” Chew says about receiving the award. “I’m not one big for awards, to apply for them or to even get them. So, this was a big honor for me. It shows more the work that I’ve been able to do with the people around me, the people that have forged around me, the people that are doing the work that I’m doing here. I think in some ways, I’m just a representative and conduit for some of that work and the importance in identifying diversity factors in mental health, as well as physical health.” Chew grew up in East Los Angeles and attended a small, liberal-arts-focused grade school in South Pasadena, where there were only about 10 students per grade. He completed his undergraduate career with a degree in comparative literature and received his Ph.D. in counseling psychology from University of Wisconsin, Madison in 2015.
“I really learned about what it was like to grow up in a different culture that’s not your own,” he says. “Oftentimes, we had to travel a lot to go to see my grandparents who lived in predominantly Chinese-speaking neighborhoods, and then when we would come back home kind of do this codeswitching type of thing of how to reintegrate into our neighborhood, which was [a] mostly Spanishspeaking Latino neighborhood.” He discovered “a passion for leadership” early on in his life, which led him to his work in counseling—which he now does at Cambridge Health Alliance—and in teaching. In addition to resident advising in college, Chew gained mentoring experience from a program where he provided tutoring and in-class assistance to schools with limited resources. The skills he’s acquired from these two professions often overlap, according to Chew, as both teaching and counseling are primarily about listening. “Teaching has been at the core of everything I do,” he says. “A lot of the work that I do in teaching as well as in psychotherapy is not necessarily confined to one silo. It’s moreso meeting the person where they’re at and then help adjusting what I can provide to them based upon that.” Although supporting diversity has been a lifelong pursuit for Chew, he acknowledges that he is continuously learning about how to improve. “Diversity for me has been a very elusive concept, and it’s morphed over the time of my own development, and it still is morphing in my understanding,” he says. “It’s easy to teach multiculturalism or diversity in a very, very wrong way. There’s many ways to do it wrong. There’s very few ways to do it right, which makes it so difficult. And even if you do do it, who knows how effective it is? It’s a very tricky, slippery topic that is so politically charged. This is just a testament to other people that I work with that are doing this work. It shows me that the work that we are all doing is valued and we should continue to do it, because it’s making meaningful differences in the lives of our students, patients, and our colleagues.” scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 33
SCOUT OUT!
THE WORLD IS HER HIVE Follow the Honey offers a window into the beekeepers of many nations BY ERIC J. FRANCIS
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oneybees are “a gateway bug,” according to Follow the Honey founder Mary Canning, and the “liquid sunshine” they produce is the key to a greater sense of excitement in the world around us. “I’ve seen people walk in laden with the heaviness of the world and say, ‘Oh my God, you have honey sticks? I haven’t seen those since I was a kid!’” says Canning. “And it’s like they’re skipping around the shop.” The shelves and displays of her shop, tucked away in a Mass. Ave. undercroft at Harvard Square, are laden with honeys both homey and exotic. Canning works with beekeepers not just from 34 Scout’s Honored 2018 | scoutcambridge.com
Massachusetts and New England, but nations in Africa, Eastern Europe, South America, the Indian subcontinent—basically, anywhere she can find people with honey they want to sell. Each variety comes from its own terroir, and some, such as the earthy and smoky miombo blossom honey from Tanzania, will be utterly alien to most American palates. But Canning is there to guide them. “I say I’m a ‘beecilitator,’ not an expert,” she says. And once someone is in the store and gets a taste of honey or a whiff of propolis, she says, it stimulates their senses and opens them to hearing more about bees and beekeepers. “I’m trying my best, as a nobody-somebody pioneer, to awaken the spirit of inquiry as to bees and honey and all of the natural world,” Canning says. According to George O’Neil, one of Canning’s beekeeping mentors, she certainly isn’t a nobody and is way more than just a pioneer. “I call her the honey ambassador, because she’s there to spread the word about the plight of the pollinators, particularly the honeybee,” says O’Neil, who keeps several hundred hives at his Autumn Morning Farm in Barre. “She’s there to help people understand the product of honey, where it comes from, how it’s produced, and how it goes from being out
in the hive to inside her store.” O’Neil and Canning met through her first beekeeping mentor, Frank Lagrant. After he passed away, O’Neil stepped into the role. When Canning first thought about opening Follow the Honey, she turned to him for support, and he supplied her with a lot of her initial honey supply. These days, of course, Follow the Honey carries honeys sourced from beekeepers all over the world. And that, says O’Neil, is another reason Canning and the store are important. “She has helped beekeepers in [developing] countries use honey as a way to provide income for their families,” he says. “So she’s trying to help not only bring their stories back to the United States, but also help beekeepers throughout the world.” With people from so many countries coming here for graduate school and the tech industry, Canning says people often come in looking for a specific variety of honey. The famed sidr honey of Yemen, for instance, is renowned for its health benefits; as is, in small measures, the hallucinogenic rhododendron honey of the Himalayas. Importing some of these is made difficult by red tape or conflict zones (she once had honey brought out of Gaza through a connection at the United Nations Development Program), but Canning does her best to fulfill such requests because she, too, believes in the healing power of honey—even when it’s just a teaspoon of Massachusetts blueberry honey to lift the spirits. “Cambridge is sort of a brain trust, built around institutions like Harvard and MIT, and people can become very energetically bogged down,” she says. “But they come in the
Photo, top, by Brian Doben. Photo, middle and bottom, courtesy of Follow the Honey.
store and have a tasting, and then learn it takes 1,125 bees to make a pound of honey, and they are amazed in the way they were amazed by new things when they were children.” For O’Neil, Canning elicits that amazement through an approach that is utterly simple: She lets people taste the honeys she carries, whether they’re from Cape Cod or Tanzania. And more than that: She can tell the stories behind every variety in every jar on every shelf— which, O’Neil says, helps people understand these honeys and actually use them, rather than leave them to languish in the pantry. And that drives demand. “That’s what Mary has done for the beekeeper” both here and abroad, he says. “She does a lot for the industry. A lot of it is red tape and politics, when you’re trying to get honey out of a country and bring it back to the United States, to share the story. It helps a lot of the beekeepers in these other
countries to have a place for their product to go.” Canning’s travels have done more than introduce her to things like honey from rubber plants in India, or from tapioca plants. After establishing contacts with beekeepers in Tanzania, she started an apitourism program there (“apis” is from the Latin name for the honeybee, apis mellifera) called Nyuki Safari
Company (“Nyuki” is the Swahili word for “bee”). “Nyuki will allow people to see the animals, but also the honeybees in the forests,” Canning says. “In Tanzania, it’s a huge forest country, and that’s where the bees live.” Nyuki Safari Company represents the root of why Follow the Honey exists, she says: to be a window through which people can examine and explore the curious foodstuff made by her beloved gateway bugs. “We were all little innocents once, and we still have innocence and sensitivity inside us,” says Canning. “Through Follow the Honey, I feel like I can contribute to keeping that alive.” So when someone walks into Follow the Honey—whether for the first or the hundredth time—what exactly is it Canning wants them to walk out with? “A spring in their step, walking on liquid sunshine,” she says. “A heightened sense of delight in the world in which we live.” scoutcambridge.com | Scout’s Honored 2018 35
CALENDAR
NOV. 17 & 18 | ARTS
Photo courtesy of Joy Street Studios
JOY STREET OPEN STUDIOS 12 p.m.-6 p.m., Free Joy Street Studios—86 Joy St., Somerville Missing open studios season? Don’t worry: Joy Street Studios will open up over 35 artists’ studios this fall. “Celebrate the arts, find out about new workshops, and even find a special gift for a loved one ... like yourself,” the event offers.
DEC. 2 & JAN. 6 | CRAFTS
Photo courtesy of Somerville Public Library
NOV. 18 | BOOKS & FILM
Photo courtesy of the Harvard Museums and Science & Culture
FANTASTIC BEASTS SCAVENGER HUNT 1 p.m.-4 p.m., Regular museum admission rates Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology— 11 Divinity Ave., Cambridge This event is perfect for people who are pumped about the “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” release. Don your robes, the event suggests: “Come touch ‘unicorn horns’ and consider which species of snake Nagini might have been. Examine the ingredients for Polyjuice Potion. Meet Harvard’s Quidditch team, the Harvard Horntails, and try scoring with a Quaffle.”
DEC. 8-9, 14-16, 20-23 | SHOPPING
HARVARD SQUARE HOLIDAY FAIR Times vary, Free 29 Mt. Auburn St., Cambridge The Harvard Square Holiday Fair can be a great way to knock some items off your gift list. From jewelry to pottery to clothes, this market—which turns 33 this year—is one you’ll want to catch.
DEC. 8 & 9 | ARTS
NOV. 22 | FITNESS
Photo by Jim Rhoades
GOBBLE GOBBLE GOBBLE RUN 9 a.m., $30 registration Davis Square and throughout Somerville Every year, 3,100 people run through Davis Square on Thanksgiving Day as part of the four-mile Gobble Gobble Gobble Run. Proceeds go to Project Soup and Somerville Track PAC. It sells out every year, but if you don’t get a bib (or running on Thanksgiving seems totally unappealing to you), the race always needs volunteers and spectators. Strollers are allowed in the run, but not pets.
Photo by Katrina Hill
NOV. 24 | SHOPPING
ETSY MAKERS AT BOW MARKET 9 a.m.-8 p.m., Free Bow Market—1 Bow Market Way, Somerville Bow Market’s celebrating Small Business Saturday by bringing Etsy makers to offer their wares alongside the market, which is also filled with retailers and restaurants. Etsy vendors will pop-up until 3 p.m., and the market shops will stay open for the full day.
NOV. 25 | HOLIDAYS
Photos by Irina M. / IM Creative Photography
HOLIDAY GIFT MAKING WORKSHOP AT 4GOODVIBES 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m., $22 4GoodVibes—483 Somerville Ave., Somerville Who doesn’t love receiving a homemade gift? Learn to make soap and candles at this 4GoodVibes workshop, plus materials will be available for card making. This event is BYOB for those over 21.
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12 DANCERS DANCING Times vary, $23 general admission, $16 for children and seniors The Dance Complex—536 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge 12 Dancers Dancing is the Dance Complex’s ode to the holidays, and offers “diversity, originality, quirky style, and offbeat fun.” A host of dance companies including Rainbow Tribe, Disco Brats, and North Shore Civic Ballet, will perform.
DEC. 15 | COMMUNITY
NOV. 23 | STEM
FRIDAY AFTER THANKSGIVING (F.A.T.) CHAIN REACTION 1 p.m.-4 p.m., $12.50 for adults, $5 for kids, seniors, and military 106 Vassar St., Cambridge Hosted by the MIT Museum, this event promises “a giant, Rube Goldberg-esque chain reaction” sure to entertain onlookers.
GETTING COZY AT THE LIBRARY 2 p.m.-4 p.m., Free Somerville Public Library—79 Highland Ave., Somerville Hot chocolate, a fake fire, and the library—what more can you need? The Somerville Public Library’s monthly events offer free, cozy winter activities. The December event’s craft project will be hand-stitched felt ornaments, and the January date’s will be herbal sachets.
Photo by Bill Manley
ILLUMINATIONS TOUR 4:30 p.m.-9:45 p.m., $15 for adults, $8 for children and seniors Throughout Somerville The Illuminations Tour is a highlight of the season for Somerville. You can out the most decked-out houses in the ’Ville on this trolley ride, but tickets (available in person only at Blue Cloud Gallery on Dec. 2 at 10 a.m.) go quickly. If you miss out on the trolley, starting on Dec. 17 you can get a map of the tour for $3 and walk it. The tour’s snow date is Dec. 16.
DEC. 15 | PARTY
SILENT DISCO AT THE ROCKWELL 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m., $10 before Dec. 8, $20 after The Rockwell—255 Elm St., Somerville A Silent Disco is coming to Davis! Three DJs will take turns feeding music into partygoers’ headphones. “Don’t like what’s playing? Change the station! Volume too loud? Turn it down! Want to chat with someone? Take off your headsets and it will be nice and quiet, and chuckle while you watch everyone dance and sing in virtual silence,” the event, run by Dreamland, promises.
HEALTH & WELLNESS DIRECTORY
Please consider shopping with these and other Scout sponsors.
REAL ESTATE DIRECTORY
RESTAURANT DIRECTORY
SHOPPING DIRECTORY
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MEET THE SCOUT TEAM
MEET THE SCOUT TEAM
HOLLI BANKS ALLIEN PUBLISHER & FOUNDER OF SCOUT
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olli’s journey to Somerville and to the brazen task of launching a print magazine in 2009 was a complicated one. She grew up in East Tennessee, studied acting in New York, and ultimately followed a friend up to the Somerville and Cambridge area. Scout was a longshot, to say the least. Holli went from business to business around Somerville, pitching her crazy idea. “I’ve got nothing to show you, but it’s going to be all Somerville, and it’s going to be awesome,” she remembers telling restaurant and shop owners as she tried to pull together money to publish the first edition. Sheila Borges from Neighborhood was the first
Holli with her husband, Jerry Allien
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Left to right: Leroy, Cletus and Savannah
person to take a chance on Holli, and that’s when she felt her idea could actually work. Ken Kelly of The Independent, who passed away in 2015 and was mourned by many Somerville friends and neighbors, gave the final ad sale for that first issue. Holli cleared budget by just $40. Holli says the city was enthusiastic about the first issue of Scout, despite its scrappiness, and she appreciated how much people cared about their community. “Everyone was so pumped about having something that was so dedicated to Somerville,” she says. Holli kept clawing her way up, somehow always managing to pull together the resources to make each edition possible. For the first three years of Scout, she lived in the back of her office on Highland Avenue and cooked on a hot plate.
Scout Editor in Chief, Reena Karson with Holli
A few years after starting the Somerville edition, Holli responded to requests for Cambridge coverage, and Scout Cambridge was born. As our publisher, Holli is in charge of the business side of Scout, which means her days include everything from ad meetings with local businesses to making sure our magazines get on stands to checking out new restaurants in the cities. Holli married a Somerville man and has two stepsons and three basset hounds. In the few hours a week that she’s not thinking about Scout, she plays in a flag football league with our art director, Nicolle Renick. Want to chat with Holli? Reach out! You can contact her at (617) 996-2283 or hbanks@ scoutmagazines.com.
Holli (center, with ball)