If John P. DiGiovanni gets his way, five restaurants in the Garage will be open through 2 a.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights by next semester.
DiGiovanni, the president of Trinity Property Management, which owns the Garage, will go to the Cambridge License Commission on May 11 along with the owners of Ben & Jerry’s, Boston Chowda and Formaggio Delicatessen to request “extensions of hours” for the establishments to stay open late.
“We’re trying to respond to the marketplace,” DiGiovanni said. “We’d have a number of places where you can get food until 2 a.m.”
Two restaurants in the Garage, Felipe’s Taqueria and Crazy Dough’s Pizza, already have licenses to stay open until 2 a.m. Only Felipe’s, however, is open past midnight on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
“It’s been great,” Felipe’s co-owner Tom Brush said yesterday. “Really solid, steady business. It’s been hard to close.”
Felipe’s inherited its 2 a.m. license from Real Taco, the taqueria it replaced earlier this month.
But Luciante Ferrante, a co-owner of Formaggio Delicatessen, was uncertain whether the deli would have enough business to support the later hours.
“To be sincere, I don’t [think the later hours will be sustainable]. But we’re going to try,” she said.
Ferrante said that the extension of hours had been DiGiovanni’s initiative.
Formaggio currently closes at 9 p.m.
Ferrante said that no matter what the Commission decides, Formaggio will close in June for renovations.
“We’re going to change the menu and add a grill,” she said. “We’re going to change and then try for late hours.”
Boston Chowda District Manager Robert Webb said that Boston Chowda will also close in late May for an expansion.
“Boston Chowda will only have a quick remodel,” he said. “We’re going to add a [new concept called] The Dog House, which will be shaped like a dog house and will serve hot dogs, corn dogs, french fries, lemonade.”
Webb said that only The Dog House, which will have its own employees and cash register, would stay open until 2 a.m. if the Commission grants the request. Boston Chowda will still close at 8 p.m.
Read more in News
BSA To Hold New Elections