At 782 Adams Street, the room that was Scobie's is being redesigned with help from artist Vincent Crotty. Musicians from around Adams Village have already asked to play there. At 1448 Dorchester Avenue in Fields Corner, demolition is underway inside the room that was home.stead for ten years. Near Ashmont station, a 30-seat Japanese counter has an owner, a menu concept and an address at 1970 Dorchester Avenue.
Every Dorchester restaurant on deck this season is moving into a storefront the neighborhood already knows. Each one is at a different step with the city, and that step is the best guide to which papered windows come down first.
| Project | Address | Replaces | Last documented step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session House | 782 Adams St., Adams Village | Scobie's | Licensing Board approval, Sept. 2026. Entertainment license still pending |
| Bottega Cannuccia | 1448 Dorchester Ave., Fields Corner | home.stead bakery & cafe | Abutters meeting Sept. 16, 2026. January 2027 target |
| Tori Japan | 1970 Dorchester Ave., Ashmont | New use at the address | Needed zoning relief as of Aug. 2026 |
| Mia Map | 16 Bowdoin Ave. | New use at the address | Food-service application on the city's Sept. 23, 2026 agenda |
Adams Village's Pub Got Its License Before Its Music
Session House is the furthest along, and its last hurdle covers the main reason it exists. Owners Frank Delaney and Teresa Murphy won Boston Licensing Board approval in September with a 1 a.m. closing time. The plan is Irish pub food alongside Irish seisiún music, much of it played by local musicians. The city's Sept. 23 licensing agenda listed the transfer of Scobie's alcohol license to Esteemed Hospitality LLC, doing business as Session House, with Murphy as manager.
The music needs its own approval. The Dorchester Reporter reported that Session House still has to clear the city's entertainment licensing division, which board chair Kathleen Joyce also leads. In September, Eater Boston put Session House on its list of fall openings. Without the entertainment license, a pub built around live sessions can open its doors but can't host the sessions it was built for.
Delaney told the Dorchester Reporter what he has in mind for the room:
"It's basically what the Burren does in Somerville. Where there could be one to five, ten musicians, but one general microphone in the middle to pick up. … But it's very civilized."
He also told the Reporter that his first apartment was on Adams Street and that his grandchildren now go to St. Brendan's. Murphy described a family-friendly room where kids can come hear live music.
According to Boston Restaurant Talk, Scobie's opened in summer 2024, closed for renovations in February 2026 and did not reopen, so the space has been dark since late winter. Session House will sit just up the block from Landmark Public House at 772 Adams Street. Landmark hosted the live music at Adams Village's second annual Fall Fest this month, when Minot Street closed for vendors and games, according to the Dorchester Reporter. Once both are running, that stretch of Adams Street will have two music rooms within a few doors of each other.
Fields Corner's Bakery Space Gets a Baker, With a Moving Date
Bottega Cannuccia is the next furthest along, and its timeline has already moved once. In August, the Boston Globe reported an opening as soon as December. By September, What Now Boston reported January 2027, with demolition underway at 1448 Dorchester Avenue. On Oct. 13, the Dorchester Reporter still put the target at January.
The space has a history that matters to the neighborhood. home.stead bakery and cafe closed on June 20, 2026, after ten years in Fields Corner, as Caught in Dot reported. The new tenant is another bread-focused business. Chef-owner Stefano Quaresima, who also runs Via Cannuccia, plans a 30-seat spot that serves as a bakery-café by day and a wine bar at night. The Reporter describes a menu of Italian breakfast, French tea and pastries, and evening wine service.
Quaresima told What Now Boston that he learned laminated dough after a private-chef client asked for croissants. "They asked me to do croissants and I was not prepared," he said. "I hate when I am not prepared." He then trained at the San Francisco Baking Institute.
The paperwork is a step behind Session House. The city posted a Sept. 16 abutters meeting for Bottega Cannuccia Inc., which plans to apply for an all-alcohol Common Victualler license with hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. An abutters meeting is where neighbors give input before a license application goes to the board. A Licensing Board hearing is the next public step to watch for.
Ashmont's Counter Needs a Zoning Decision First
Tori Japan is a step earlier still. Owner Tony Wu has proposed a 30-seat quick-service Japanese restaurant at 1970 Dorchester Avenue, next to Ashmont station. He met with abutters on Aug. 24. According to the Dorchester Reporter, Wu said he hoped to open as soon as possible and did not plan to seek a liquor license at that point.
The project needs zoning relief from the Zoning Board of Appeal before it can open. It was not on the board's Oct. 6 hearing agenda. Because it isn't seeking a liquor license, Tori Japan has a shorter path after zoning than the two projects above. Zoning has to come first, though, and Wu has not announced a date.
A Coffee and Boba Shop on Bowdoin Avenue
The earliest-stage project is the smallest. The city's Sept. 23 licensing agenda included a Common Victualler application from Ha Bui Family Inc. for Mia Map at 16 Bowdoin Avenue. It is planned as a coffee, boba, juice and light-food shop open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with Van Duc Ha listed as manager. No opening date has been announced.
What You Can Actually Order This Week
The newest thing open in Dorchester this Thursday is a familiar business bringing something back. Boston Magazine reported in October that Comfort Kitchen at 611 Columbia Road in Uphams Corner has restarted its casual café service on Thursdays and Fridays. The short menu includes egg sandwiches, mo:mo, a few snacks, coffee and tea. The magazine recommends the chiya, a Nepali milk tea. If you read this on publication day, the café is open today.
Halloween weekend also leans on rooms people already know. These are the Dorchester events on the Caught in Dot roundup that are still ahead as of Thursday, Oct. 29. The roundup says it will keep updating, so confirm details before you go.
- Tonight, Oct. 29, 5:30 to 7 p.m.: The annual Pumpkin Parade at Pope John Paul II Park, with music, games and candy. Bring a carved or decorated pumpkin for a chance at a prize. Free.
- Tonight, Oct. 29, 5 to 8 p.m.: BCYF Spooky Skate at Chez Vous Roller Skating Rink, for ages 17 and under. Registration required.
- Saturday, Oct. 31, noon to 3 p.m.: BCYF Spooky Swim at Draper Pool, for girls 14 and under. A parent or guardian must attend, and registration is required.
- Saturday, Oct. 31, 9 p.m. to 2 a.m.: Halloween Bash at Landmark Public House, 772 Adams St., with a costume contest, pizza bar and DJ. The host is Katie Nolan, the 2026 "Mayor of Dorchester."
- Oct. 31, from 10 p.m.: McGonagle's Halloween party with live music, no cover, and prizes for the best costumes.
Landmark's Saturday party runs at 772 Adams Street, a few doors from the former Scobie's at 782, where Session House is still waiting on its entertainment license.
Jackie has been tracking these Dorchester storefronts as they change hands, and she follows what each change means for the blocks around it. If you own on Adams Street, Dorchester Avenue or anywhere else in the neighborhood and want to know how new openings fit into your building's value, Rooney Real Estate is glad to talk. Contact Jackie for a consultation.
