Back Bay Mexican Restaurant Lolita Reopens After Two-Year Slumber With a $2.75 Million Makeover | Eater Boston

"After a two-year, $2.75 million renovation, I found Lolita Back Bay back in action as a louder, more decadent, design-forward party spot that still keeps the taco-laden menu and overall layout fans remember. Stepping inside still feels like descending into a party-ready underground lair, but COJE poured money into raising and rebuilding the ceilings into curving barrel shapes dotted with ornate chandeliers across the 112-seat main dining room. A cascade of skulls—echoing the Fort Point location—now blankets the walls and ceiling of a new private dining room, and the group expanded into the former haberdashery next door to add another 60-to-85-seat dining room with a swanky mezcal bar overseen by beverage director Ray Tremblay. The redesign was handled in-house by owner Chris Jamison with architect Jef Leon, chief-of-staff Anastasia Mattes, and designer Mandy Waryasz; Jamison says the overhaul was prompted by a 2020 pipe break that flooded the restaurant and accelerated a needed facelift, with the lease extended and the landlord contributing to the project. Opened in 2010 as Jamison’s first restaurant that set the tone for the group’s emphasis on design and experience, it now positions itself to keep pace with Boston’s elevated dining scene while serving playful, Mexican-inspired food and drink." - Erika Adams