Kowloon Owners Prepare To Close Route 1 Restaurant | Eat Mass

MASSACHUSETTS — Welcome to the latest edition of Eat Mass, Patch's weekly round up of food and restaurant news in Massachusetts. Scroll down for more, including:

• Hostess and Little Debbie sweeten Milkshake Month at the Rosebud in Somerville.
• Permit for Popeyes on Mishawum Road in Woburn approved.
• SWAMPtoberfest comes back to Swampscott in September.
• New Haven staple Sally's Apizza considers possible location in Woburn.

Restaurant Openings, Closings

• Bedford: Eva's Little Kitchen opened earlier this month, according to Wicked Local Bedford. Along with sweet and savory pastries, cookies, brownies and muffins, grab-and-go meals are also offered. Open Wednesday through Sunday, Eva's plans to release a meal delivery menu in the near future.
• Boston (East Boston): Jeffries Point’s Italian Express Pizzeria has permanently closed. According to a report by Boston.com, the pizzeria made the announcement on social media last week that it has shut its doors due to the pandemic. The restaurant appeared in a 15th season episode of the popular Food Network program “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives”.
• Boston (East Boston): Citing a move from owner Sam Jackson to Tasmania, a restaurant specializing in Australian-style meat pies will be closing, reports Boston.com. K.O. Catering and Pies' East Boston locale opened in 2012, two years after the flagship South Boston eatery, which closed in 2018. K.O. will be briefly shut down from Aug. 23 to Aug. 27, with its final day of operation on Aug. 28.
• Brookline (Washington Square): Mamaleh's has opened its second delicatessen in Brookline, says BostonChefs.com. Serving all-day breakfast and lunch, Mamaleh's offers classic Jewish fare including bagels, lox and Reuben and Rachel sandwiches (stuffed with a choice of pastrami, corned beef or turkey). Joining its location in Cambridge's Kendall Square, take and bake dishes, frozen, and refrigerated items are also available.
• Cambridge (Fresh Pond): After more than 20 years, Jose's Mexican Restaurant on Sherman Street is closing at the end of this month, according to Boston Restaurant Talk. Its sister restaurant, Arlington's Jose's Torta Mexicana will remain open.
• Everett: Encore Boston Harbor Casino is adding another bar and restaurant to its roster. WynnBET Sports Bar will serve up libations to pair with the burgers and fries courtesy of Shake Shack, as well as pizza, panini, and Italian fare thanks to Frank and Nick's. It is set to open on Sept. 4.
• Framingham: Featuring a wide variety of panini, a new location of Springfield-based chain Hot Table opened at the Shoppers World plaza last week. Other locations of the casual sandwich restaurant are in Hadley, Marlborough, Springfield, and Worcester. A restaurant is scheduled to open in Westfield in the winter of 2022.
• Melrose: A third location of a local chain of Mexican restaurants has officially opened in downtown Melrose. Serving burritos, bowls, tacos and nachos, Santa Fe Burrito Grill stepped into the former Papa Gino's space at the corner of Main and Grove Streets. Additional locales are open in Franklin and Weymouth.

Prepare to Bid Kowloon Farewell

For those that have traveled up and down Route 1 in Saugus, landmarks of longstanding, yet defunct businesses have always conjured up feelings of nostalgia. It seems that another touchstone will be getting a revamp, and this one also tugs at the heartstrings.

Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported on reactions to the eventual closure of Kowloon Restaurant and a redevelopment of the property as a subdivision. Initially, the restaurant's intention to close down and restructure was presented to the Saugus Planning Board in early January.

With glittery Polynesian decor and a wide variety of Asian cuisine on its menu, Kowloon has been a staple in Saugus since it opened in the 1950s. Rumors of its closing have circled around, with the eatery's proprietors, the Wong family, posting on its Facebook page back in January that after being in business for 70 years, " there will be an end at some point...just not right now."

While Kowloon states that the closure and redevelopment are years away from occurring, the breaking up of this property into a subdivision seems to signify a move similar to that of the other notable landmarks on that strip of highway. Retaining its gargantuan light-up cactus, the property which held the Hilltop Steakhouse now houses a residential complex, restaurants, and several businesses. Seafood standard The Ship was reborn as a prominent retail park which contains a Christmas Tree Shop and a Starbucks. A miniature golf course on the southbound side of Route 1 sported a large orange dinosaur for many years, which was kept when the course closed and development was made on that tract of land.

Rest assured, Kowloon is not going anywhere yet, but it will live on. Possibly as a smaller restaurant, according to the Wall Street Journal, and hopefully with its tiki statue and mural of an erupting volcano intact.

More Massachusetts Food News

Little Debbie and Hostess treats featured for Milkshake Month at Somerville's Rosebud: According to BostonChefs.com, the Davis Square eatery is making dairy dreams come true for the young and young-at-heart; jazzing up milkshakes by blending them with Hostess and Little Debbie favorites. Each week through mid-September, a different dessert will be showcased: Zebra Cakes from Aug. 15 to Aug. 21, Twinkies from Aug. 22 to Aug. 28, Cosmic Brownies from Aug. 29 to Sept. 4, HoHos from Sept. 5 to Sept. 11, and Nutty Buddies from Sept.12 to Sept. 18. Ding Dongs were highlighted the week of Aug. 8.

Popeyes gets permit for new location in Woburn. The chicken and biscuits chain received its permit for a restaurant at 305 Mishawum Road, more than two months after they came to the city. Last week, the Woburn City Council unanimously approved a special permit, which outlined various conditions and set its operational hours in place. Popeyes currently has 21 locations throughout the Bay State.

SWAMPtoberfest returns to Swampscott in September: While the last event took place back in 2019 due to COVID-19, SWAMPtoberfest is geared to come back this fall with a bang. This year, the festivities will include beer from Harpoon Brewery, live music, food trucks, a children's play area, and fireworks in the evening. The event will take place at the Swampscott Town Hall Lawn on Sept. 4th from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., with fireworks at 8 p.m.

Connecticut apizza staple Sally's may be heading to Woburn. Eater Boston reported on Tuesday that Sally's Apizza, one of New Haven's most beloved pizzerias, is looking to bring their distinctive coal-fired pies across the state line; with Woburn as a possible location. Sally's Director of Marketing, Krystina Nataloni, told Eater that the chain has been in talks with developers in the Boston area, while proceeding with plans for continued expansion in Connecticut.

Upcoming Food Events

Thursday, Aug. 19:

• Dine Out Boston (formerly known as Restaurant Week Boston)
• August 19th Farm to Table Dinner at Chatham Bars Inn Farm (Brewster)
• Le Syc'Amour French Farm & Wine Dinner (Newton)
• Farmers Markets: Falmouth, Foxborough, Harwich, Melrose, Milton, Stoneham, Tewksbury, Worcester, Yarmouth

Friday, Aug. 20:

• Dine Out Boston (formerly known as Restaurant Week Boston)
• Food Truck: Bistro Bus at Fort Hill Brewery (Easthampton)
• The Vintner's Experience: An Intimate Winery Tour + Tasting (Plymouth)
• Farmers Markets: Osterville, Quincy, Worcester

Saturday, Aug. 21:

• Dine Out Boston (formerly known as Restaurant Week Boston)
• 40th Annual Gloucester Waterfront Festival (Gloucester)
• 1st Annual Craft Beer & Food Truck Festa (New Bedford)
• Verrill Farm Corn & Tomato Festival (Concord)
• Farmers Markets: Andover, Braintree, Marblehead, Newton, Orleans, Provincetown, Wakefield, Waltham, Worcester

Sunday, Aug. 22:

• Harpoon Brewery Food Pop-Up with WildPops (Boston)
• 40th Annual Gloucester Waterfront Festival(Gloucester)
• Farmers Markets: Acton-Boxborough, Canton, Needham, North Andover, Swampscott, Weymouth, Wilmington

Monday, Aug. 23:

• Farmers Markets: Beverly, Billerica, Truro, Worcester

Tuesday, Aug. 24:

• Mastro's & PlumpJack Wine Dinner (Boston)
• Farmers Markets: Chatham, Lexington, Newton, Sandwich, Worcester

Wednesday, Aug. 25:

• Easy, Cheesy Appetizers and Wine Pairings (Cambridge)
• Farmers Markets: Arlington, Brewster, Dedham, Scituate, Wayland, Wellfleet, Worcester

Thursday, Aug. 26:

• The Tasty Awards Party (Haverhill)
• Farmers Markets: Falmouth, Foxborough, Harwich, Melrose, Milton, Stoneham, Tewksbury, Worcester, Yarmouth

Katy Kostakis is a freelance writer specializing in Arts and Entertainment, Lifestyle, Health and Wellness, and Food and Beverage. She has written for Gannett's Wicked Local, YourTango, and Film Inquiry.

Have a tip, question or suggestion? Connect with her on Twitter @KatyKostakis, on Instagram @katykostakis, as well as on her website, katykostakis.com.