With Thanksgiving break right around the corner, Boston University students are returning home to celebrate with family and friends. However, some students will remain in Boston for the holiday. For those students, finding restaurants and activities can be tough, especially on Thanksgiving, but Boston has many restaurants open and other activities planned for the holiday.
“Last year, approximately 350 students were accommodated in vacation housing hotel spaces [in the Hyatt Regency Cambridge and the Holiday Inn Boston-Brookline],” said Colin Riley, BU spokesman, in an email.
Outside of BU, restaurants in the Greater Boston area are open and offering a variety of options, including three or four course meals with a fixed price, regular menu options and vegetarian and gluten-free meals.
Stephanie’s on Newbury is open on Thanksgiving for the first time in 20 years, said Leo Fonseca, the CEO of Stephanie’s Restaurant Group. Fonseca said students should be able to enjoy a traditional, home-cooked meal regardless of whether or not they are able to return home for the holiday.
“If you’re not going to have it [a home-cooked meal], I would say the second best thing is a home-cooked meal in a restaurant like ours, where comfort food is what we do everyday,” Fonseca said. “We’re as close to a home-cooked meal as you are going to get, so if going home for your mother’s turkey dinner and pumpkin pie is not an option, then Stephanie’s is the second best thing.”
Stephanie’s serves adult entrees, which include an appetizer and dessert, starting at $48. Other Stephanie’s locations will open at 5 p.m. for drinks and smaller appetizers at the bar. For a cheaper turkey option, Legal Sea Foods locations will be serving a $21.95 turkey special. For those looking for a traditional family-style Thanksgiving, Precinct Kitchen + Bar is showing football games while serving a classic adult meal for $59.
Those with dietary restrictions can go to Red Lentil Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurant , where multi-course vegan meals are being served, or The Fireplace, which are offering gluten-free options. True Bistro will offer both vegan and gluten-free meals on Thanksgiving Day.
The Fairmont Copley Plaza is serving brunch from noon to 4 p.m. in the Oval Room for $80 per person, which includes live entertainment and a historical tour of the hotel.
Other venues with live entertainment include The Beehive in the South End, with live jazz throughout the day, and in Cambridge, which features country, Americana and bluegrass music from 11 a.m. until midnight.
DJ Chromatix will perform at the King St. Tavern from 7 to 11 p.m., but the restaurant is open from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. and is serving snacks and drinks during that time, in addition to the regular dinner menu from 5 to 10 p.m.
Top of the Hub at The Shops at Prudential Center will highlight live jazz from 4 to 8 p.m., and a complimentary visit to the Skywalk Observatory is included with any $65 four-course meal.
Students can get out of the city for Thanksgiving Day, and take a trip to Plimoth Plantation, where they experience a recreation of the Pilgrim’s first Thanksgiving in 1621. For $10, students can visit The Comedy Studio’s Thanksgiving show in Cambridge, which is open to all ages.
Rick Jenkins, founder, owner and manager of The Comedy Studio, said the Thanksgiving show would be one of their regular Tuesday-through-Sunday shows, which showcases 10 comics, two of whom have been featured on television and two of who are new to the industry.
“Our club is selling out all the time, so there was enough demand, and comedians notoriously want to get away from their families on holiday nights,” Jenkins said about opening the club on Thanksgiving.
There are also opportunities to volunteer throughout Boston on Thanksgiving. Gabrielle Farrell, a spokeswoman for Boston Mayor Martin Walsh’s office, recommended that college students staying in Boston support the community by volunteering their time.
Tavern in the Square is once again open on Thanksgiving, but hopes to serve food to the less fortunate. The Central Square, Allston and Salem locations are all serving meals throughout the day to the homeless. Patrick Dillon, the Allston location manager, more than 800 people were helped between all three locations last year.
People have signed up to volunteer in large numbers, giving Tavern in the Square plenty of support on Thanksgiving, Dillon sai
“Fortunately, this year, we’ve had a great outpouring from the public, so we’re full for volunteers as of about two weeks ago,” he said. “There are a lot of people in the area who don’t have family to enjoy the holiday with, so whether they be less fortunate or be alone for the holiday season looking for a place to go and enjoy the dinner and get in that holiday spirit. That’s why we try to do it.”
