The Weekender: September 15 to 18

Courtesy Boston Local Food Festival

Eat, shop, go

You have a full week of classes under your belt and are now a pro at getting from West Campus to your class at COM in under 15 minutes (wishful thinking?). Take this weekend to unwind and have fun—we found some new food spots, a gourmet bakery, and a BU music festival worth checking out.

Gopchang Story Boston

A Korean restaurant chain based in Seoul, South Korea, Gopchang Story has just arrived in Boston, specializing in grilled beef intestines (offal) dusted in “magic powder” made of yams. This location has been in the works for the past two years and finally opened its doors in July, nestled in the same block as Goodwill and the Paradise Rock Club. Beef intestines, or “gopchang,” were historically a health supplement and are now a delicacy. The restaurant also offers spicy stir-fried chicken, brisket stews, and a cream cheese pudding dessert, along with an extensive list of alcoholic beverages.

Gopchang Story Boston, 973 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, is open daily from 5 pm to midnight.

Bab Al-Yemen

Bab Al-Yemen, the first Yemeni restaurant in Boston, is sure to be a beacon of Arab cuisine in the city. Located in Fenway, the interior is beautifully decorated with photographs of Yemen and custom windows, with cozy, traditional seating and a warm ambience. The restaurant’s signature dishes include lamb mendi (an aromatic rice and meat dish), rice with haneeth (slow-roasted lamb), and fahsa (shredded lamb stew cooked with onions and tomatoes), all served with freshly baked bread.

Bab Al-Yemen, 468 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, is open Monday to Thursday, from 11:30 am to 10 pm, Friday, from 11:30 am to 10:30 pm, Saturday, from noon to 11 pm, and Sunday, from noon to 10 pm.

Caked

Caked features desserts like cupcakes and toaster tarts made fresh daily, are preservative-free, and use no artificial colors. Caked, a member of this season’s The Current, a revolving collective of pop-ups in the Seaport, is one of the Black-owned businesses being featured. Founded by Lauren King, Caked was a “dream-turned-business” that now delivers and caters weddings, birthday parties, and baby showers. Try their adventurous flavor combinations, including the Chicken and Waffles cupcake, the Basic Chick, with espresso vanilla bean, and Pepper Jelly Toaster Tart, with cream cheese. The menu rotates daily for the cupcakes and weekly for the tarts.

Caked, 85 Northern Ave., #85I, Boston, is open Monday to Saturday, from 11 am to 7 pm, and Sunday, from noon to 6 pm.

2022 BU Global Music Festival

The annual BU Global Music Festival will feature exceptional international music, educational events, and a global bazaar. It is produced by the BU Arts Initiative and the College of Fine Arts School of Music musicology and ethnomusicology department, through the Karbank Fund for Global Music. The festival aims to promote cultural exploration through music and education. Musical acts include Bazurto All Stars, a champeta band from Colombia, and Qwanqwa, an experimental Ethiopian ensemble. Vendors at the bazaar include HandMadeByAlliyah, a Boston-based company that sells traditional waist beads and anklets, and Weekend Whims, a handmade polymer clay earring business created and run by Rosa Jang, a queer Korean artist and BU student.

The 2022 BU Global Music Festival is Saturday, September 17, from noon to 9:30 pm at the Warren Alpert Mall (BU Beach), 270 Bay State Rd., Boston. Check-in tables are accessible on the Marsh Chapel Plaza or on the lawn near the stage. The festival is free and open to the public.

2022 Boston Local Food Festival

This annual food event, presented by the Sustainable Business Network of Massachusetts, includes freshly harvested produce and seafood, cooking competitions by chefs, and hand-crafted wines and locally crafted beer tastings. There will also be over 75 local food vendors attending. The festival, being held on Boston’s Rose Kennedy Greenway, attracts around 40,000 guests every year.

The 2022 Boston Local Food Festival is Sunday, September 18, from 11 am to 5 pm, at the Rose Kennedy Greenway, Atlantic Avenue, Boston. The festival is free and open to the public.