"I learned that Tawakal Halal Cafe in East Boston—whose chef and owner Yahya Noor was a 2023 James Beard semifinalist for Best Chef: Northeast—announced it will close on Friday, January 5 after five years in its current location. The restaurant began in 2018 to share its mothers’ cooking and the flavors of Somali heritage, and the team says they hope to relocate; meanwhile they’ll continue selling their sought-after sambusas and flaky chapati with hummus during weekday lunch hours at a satellite location in MIT’s student center, and will host a farewell gathering at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 6 to celebrate the ties and stories formed over the years." - Erika Adams