After an Early Misstep, Eastern Standard’s Team Tries Italian in Next-Door Restaurant | Eater Boston

"A new Italian-focused restaurant occupies the former seafood spot, trading a raw bar for a charcuterie station and adding white half-curtains to give the high‑ceilinged space a more homey, intimate vibe; the 85‑seat room aims for a slower, more laid‑back feel than its cavernous 160‑seat sibling. Spearheaded by culinary director Brian Rae, the menu centers on pasta (both gluten and gluten‑free) and stuzzichini during aperitivo hour, with examples like grilled mortadella skewers with pistachio and black olives, a handful of hot and cold antipasti, and a few larger entrees. Rae says the rye campanelle with roasted Brussels sprouts, brown butter breadcrumbs, and crème fraiche “has been an early hit,” and the menu is printed daily as he experiments with specials. “I grew up in a half‑Italian household, my mother is Italian,” says Rae, who joined the team in August after stints at Rialto, Les Sablons, Coppa, and Faccia a Faccia. “Saturday mornings, I would make pancakes with my father and then my mom used to let me mix the meatballs. Those are some of my first cooking memories.” Pasta and bread are made in‑house at the bakery across the plaza at the base of the Bower luxury residential building on Beacon Street, and a separate bakery is expected to open in Spring or Summer 2025, Harker says. Behind the bar, Jackson Cannon is overseeing a classic martini program that ranges from a dirty option with blue cheese olives to the Standard Oil (olive oil‑washed gin, vermouth, basil tincture, and orange bitters); Cannon notes that the larger martini format “has opened up the ability to play with proportions without being so tied to a strict liquor‑acid‑sweetness ratio” compared with his approach at his tucked‑away cocktail bar. Harker jokes that the only thing they don’t make in‑house are spirits. Open 5–9 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday; 5–10 p.m. Friday and Saturday." - Celina Colby