A Destination Downtown Dining District in 2014?

Is downtown Framingham poised to become a destination dining district of its own in 2014? Some might debate that it already is. To add to the existing diversity of eateries, the owners of Pho Dakao, a Vietnamese restaurant in Worcester, will be opening a Framingham location at the location of the former Limey's pub and Sampan restaurant at 101 Concord Street this month. And the splendid, historical train station on Waverly Street also has a new future as a restaurant. The Deluxe Station Diner, with existing locations in Newton and Watertown, plans to renovate and open the building as its third location this year.

 

While some may say that the downtown Framingham dining scene is a sea of Brazilian establishments, on closer inspection it is much more. Pupusas Y Tacos Dona Sophia at 40 Concord Street offers authentic Central American/Salvadoran cuisine and has over forty reviews on Yelp, one of the premier restaurant review sites, from diners not only from Framingham and Metrowest but from Boston and beyond, including one visitor from Chicago. And a few minutes walk away at 66 Hollis Street, Pueblito Paisa Colombia gets high marks as well for its take on traditional Colombian cuisine.

 

And while the profusion of Brazilian food may seem like no big deal to those of us who live locally, it's an interesting and exotic alternative to people from outside of eastern Massachusetts. My wife and I took her parents, who live in Pennsylvania, to The Tropical Café at 85 Hollis Street for dinner and they loved both the food and the atmosphere, which really makes you feel like you're in a faraway locale, with Brazilian music playing in the background and the chatter of people speaking in Portuguese.  And unlike some of the other more spartan Brazilian storefront eateries, The Tropical Café has a full liquor license.

 

For more traditional American food, downtown stalwarts like The Chicken Bone at 358 Waverly Street and Eagles All-American Grill at 55 Park Street have a loyal and steady clientele, and newcomer Frescafe at 82 Concord Street is earning fans for its eclectic take on typical breakfast and lunch offerings.  

 

Framingham has, arguably, with the exception of Waltham's fabulous Moody and Main Street restaurant district - another area that has made ethnic variety its selling point, which we should also aspire to do - the most diverse downtown dining scene between Worcester and Boston. Here's hoping with the new additions to downtown's restaurant offerings we'll move a bit closer to that goal in 2014.

 

A Boost for Framingham's Business Reputation

Framingham got some nice press recently from Area Development Magazine, which is focused on covering the business topics of company site selection and relocation. The article noted that "Framingham is a thriving, diverse community that is frequently recognized for its high quality of life and well educated work force," and is home to the corporate headquarters of well-known firms such as TJX, Staples, Cumberland Farms/Gulf, and Bose Corporation.

The town was ranked ninth overall nationwide for economic and job growth, and eleventh in the category of small cities. You can read the entire article here.

And today's Metro West Daily News published an op-ed piece by MetroWest Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Bonnie Biocchi, praising the efforts of the Board of Selectmen, the Planning Board, and Town Manager Bob Halpin to make Framingham "business-ready". Key steps that were cited include the town's use of the Economic Development Self-Assessment Tool developed by Northeastern University's Center for Urban Policy and Planning, the recent BOS vote to decrease the commercial tax rate, and the article approved by Town Meeting and sponsored by the BOS and Planning Board to adopt the state's Chapter 43D, which streamlines the permitting process and guarantees decisions on priority development sites within 180 days.

While Framingham already leads the region in jobs and payroll, the recognition from a leading business publication and the recent actions by town officials point to an even brighter future for our town as a business hub.

A Marathon Week

It's been a week with so many highs and lows. Being a town on the Boston Marathon route has always given Framingham a special bond to this famed race, and when the tragic bombings occurred at the finish line, it felt to me in some way very personal. I wondered if any of the people I had watched and cheered for as they ran through downtown Framingham were among the injured.

It began as a beautiful spring day. Framingham Downtown Renaissance, with its irrepressible executive director Holli Andrews, teamed up with Framingham State University to produce Marathon Fest 2013, an event that made what's normally one of the most festive days downtown all year even more special, with music, food, and other activities like sign-making to help cheer on the runners. I spent the morning walking up and down the race route on Waverly Street, taking photos, greeting friends, cheering for the runners, and smiling at how this day brought together so many of the distinctive groups of people that make up Framingham.  And it was fitting, I thought, that this diverse town was heartily welcoming the thousands of runners that streamed past, who represented so many different parts of the world, and so many walks of life.

The bombings at the finish line shocked and saddened us all, but Framingham wiped away its tears quickly and responded with compassion. Our local microbrewery, Jack's Abby Brewing, with little more than their Facebook page and sheer determination, held an amazing beer tasting fundraiser just two days after the marathon for victims of the bombing, at The Tavern on Irving Street. The line to get in stretched out the door, as people from Framingham, all over Metrowest, and beyond, packed the pub to sample beers donated by 25 different breweries from all over New England. When the last pint had been tapped, over $8,000 had been raised for One Fund Boston, the principal charity that was established to raise money for the victims in the wake of the tragedy.

And the next evening, Thursday, hundreds of town residents showed up outside the Memorial Building, a short walk from the marathon route, for a candlelight vigil, one of the many held in the Boston area and in other cities and towns across the country.

On Friday, the tension ran high as one of the suspected bombers was killed in a firefight with law enforcement, and a manhunt and lockdown at an unprecedented level in the Boston area ensued until the second suspect was apprehended in the early evening.

So while this has been a roller coaster of a week emotionally, it is ending with healing already underway because of the selflessness and compassion of so many people, and a sense of justice because the perpetrators were tracked down and captured so quickly.

And next Patriots' Day, you'll find me downtown again, clapping and yelling even louder as the runners pass through Framingham.

Rousing Music For a Good Cause

Is it possible to go to see an Irish band and not find yourself singing along after a few songs? Is it the rousing lyrics, the up tempo beat of the reels, the soul-stirring sounds of the instruments?

No doubt it's a bit of each. The Belfast Cowboys, led by Jerry Robinson of Framingham, has developed quite the local following in its twenty-plus years of existence, with frequent performances at popular pubs in area towns including Nobscot's Cafe` in Framingham.

For me, one of my favorite harbingers of spring is drinking a Guinness and listening to the Cowboys belt out my favorite Irish songs at Nobscot's Cafe` on Saint Patrick's Day, a gig they have had for years. Jerry handles lead vocals, guitar, and tin whistle, with Peter Larson on vocals, electric guitar, fiddle, and mandolin, Patrick Robinson, also on electric guitar, while Tom Brady holds down the bottom on bass and vocals. While the Cowboys have an overwhelmingly classic Irish set list, with old songs like The Troubles and Galway Girl, they also throw in some newer songs like Fisherman's Blues by the Waterboys, and Brown-Eyed Girl by Van Morrison, the original Belfast Cowboy, from whom the band gets their name.

While the Cowboys are consummate entertainers, their purpose goes beyond a good time. Jerry Robinson is the Massachusetts coordinator for Project Children, a non-profit organization that helps both Catholic and Protestant children from Northern Ireland spend a summer in the United States. All proceeds from the band's CD sales (available on their web site or at their performances) goes to Project Children.

The Cowboys will be playing early at Nobscot's Cafe` this Saint Patrick's Day - Sunday, March 17, from 4-8 p.m., so don't use the excuse that you need to get up early for work the next day to keep you home. See you there, for a good time, and a good cause!

Framingham's Modern Jazz Legacy

Did you know that Framingham was home to a world-famous jazz musician and composer, who is considered one of the pioneers of microtonal theory and composition? And that he had a son who grew up in town who has become a renowned jazz musician and composer as well? And finally, that a current Framingham resident is one of the leading percussionists in Latin jazz?

Joe Maneri, who died in 2009, was a working musician on saxophone and clarinet since his teen years. In 1970 he began teaching at the New England Conservatory of Music, where he led one of the few microtonal composition courses offered in the United States. Over his long career he released nineteen albums, and was considered one of the jazz avant-garde, an improviser sometimes compared to Sun Ra and Ornette Coleman.

Most of his recordings were issued in the 1990s, when he began performing in public more often, after decades of focus on teaching and composition. His music received mainstream exposure when it was featured on the soundtrack of the 2003 film American Splendor.

Joe's son Mat Maneri began studying violin at age five and was playing with his father by the age of seven. He received scholarships to the Walnut Hill School in Natick and the New England Conservatory of Music, and then went on to become a professional jazz musician, specializing in violin and viola. He began releasing records as a leader in 1996 and has taught, performed, and recorded world-wide with many of the leading names in jazz, particularly in avant-garde/free jazz circles. Here's a video of him playing a stunning solo as part of quintet Audible Geometry. Mat currently lives in Brooklyn.

The third member of Framingham's modern jazz legacy is Eguie Castrillo. A master percussionist in the Latin jazz tradition, Castrillo teaches at Berkelee School of Music in Boston and leads a 17-piece big band. He tours with Arturo Sandoval's band, and has also performed with Latin legends like Tito Puente, Ruben Blades, and Paquito D'Rivera. Castrillo began playing the timbales, a type of drum with a metal casing that originated in Cuba, as a child in Puerto Rico, and later mastered other drum types, including congas, bongos, and the bata. I met Castrillo years ago when he was playing timbales with a small Latin band at a house party of a musician friend, and while his playing knocked me out, I had no idea of his fame. Check out this rousing performance in one of his tributes to the Mambo Kings, and see if you can keep yourself from moving to this deep, grooving, beat.

So the next time you want to tell a friend or family member something about Framingham they probably don't know, mention these jazz legends.

A Great Year for Downtown Renaissance

Have you noticed how much the positive profile of downtown Framingham has increased during 2012? That, I believe is largely due to the efforts of the Framingham Downtown Renaissance (FDR) organization. The group, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, has been around since 2003, and itself underwent a revitalization last year with its board of directors. But the big change in 2012 was the hiring of a full-time director, the irrepressible Holli Andrews.  She holds a master's degree in community planning and development, and came to the job in Framingham after a successful two-year stint with a similar organization in Biddeford, Maine.

Andrews is a person who gets it. She sees downtown Framingham's strengths and also its challenges and has not only a vision but the energy and skills to implement it. She knows how to use both traditional and social media to further her organization's aims and get the word out. And she walks the walk - you may run into her after work hours socializing in a downtown establishment, as I did a few weeks ago, or at a community event.

And speaking of events, FDR's Winter Wonderland Festival on December 10 transformed downtown, with dozens of storefront windows painted with holiday scenes, and strolling groups of carolers to entertain shoppers. And that was just on the heels of another successful downtown event, the Farm Pond Fall Festival.

Naysayers who mutter that downtown will never be improved may scoff at the idea of these events. But the enthusiasm for, and the attendance and participation in them points toward a desire in the town for just these type of community gatherings. And the model for revitalization of traditional downtown areas is firmly established in the national Main Street program, which is strongly informing the FDR effort. And let's not also forget the great downtown funding and development news from October, which will be a critical part of the engine that pushes the downtown renaissance forward.

I look forward with anticipation to what FDR will accomplish in 2013 after such a successful 2012.

Amazing Things Are His Trademark

Many people would consider being the creator of a respected local arts center to be perhaps the crowning achievement in their career. For Michael Moran, it wasn't enough, so he created another one.

The irrepressable Moran, with his signature black fedora and colorful ties, recently announced his retirement as executive director of Amazing Things Arts Center, one of Framingham's most vital arts institutions. After founding the organization in a small storefront in Saxonville's Pinefield shopping center in 2004, Moran then moved the burgeoning venue to the former fire station downtown on Hollis Street.

There, he presided over a vast array of events each week, up to three hundred a year, ranging from musical performances in every imaginable genre, to plays, to art exhibits. Instead of having to travel to other towns or cities like Boston, Cambridge, or Worcester for top-notch live entertainment, we instead can experience it right in our own town. Amazing Things in fact now attracts many people from other cities and towns, and has been a huge boost to the efforts to revitalize downtown.

I met Michael about twelve years ago when he was running The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), out of a downtown storefront at first, and later in another former fire house a block or so away. I was performing in TCAN's spoken word open mike, and after I discovered all the other events the center offered I became a frequent patron.

Soon after securing the fire house as the organization's new home, Moran was fired by the board of directors. Rather than receding from the local arts scene after this painful experience, he brought his energy and a small army of loyal volunteers with him to Framingham to start Amazing Things. He put in brutally long work weeks for years, built the organization up, both people and program-wise, and at 65, he's decided it's time to step down.

Moran will be finishing out the year and assisting with the transition to a new executive director, and, thankfully, will still play a role, working on bookings.

Framingham owes a debt of gratitude to a guy who has selflessly done amazing things for our town.