Boston, MA
Boston Chef Valentine Howell Jr. to Compete on ‘Top Chef’ This Year
The contestant lineup for the latest season of Top Chef is here, and there’s a familiar face among the crowd: Valentine Howell Jr., the former executive chef at Greek hot spot Krasi, the owner of taco pop-up Black Cat, and a finalist for the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Northeast in 2023, will be competing on Top Chef: Wisconsin. He joins a pool of 14 other candidates vying for a $250,000 grand prize this year. There’s another Boston name on the other side of the judges’ table, too. Kristen Kish, who formerly worked within Barbara Lynch’s restaurant empire and competed and won Top Chef in 2012, joined the cast after longtime host Padma Lakshmi left the show last year. The newest season premieres on Wednesday, March 20 at 9 p.m. on Bravo, with next-day streaming on Peacock.
The North End’s first Black female bartender reflects on her career
Marsha Lindsey, a hospitality veteran who is currently the principal bartender at Italian restaurant SRV in the South End, reflected in an interview with the Boston Globe about her years spent building her bartending career in Boston — including being the first Black woman to bartend in the North End — and what Boston’s restaurant industry could do better. “I think Boston’s really good at opening up spaces for people to eat, to come to convene, to enjoy each other, to catch a vibe. I think that Boston’s not so good at inclusivity,” Lindsey tells the Globe. “I think that there’s way more room to grow when it comes to having people of color in the front of the house.”
Seafood mainstay Saltie Girl reopens with a new look
After a month-long partial closure, chic seafood restaurant Saltie Girl in Back Bay has reopened with some dining room updates — and new menu items — to show off. The restaurant, which is housed in a townhouse at the corner of Newbury Street and Dartmouth Street, now boasts a swanky, yacht-themed captain’s room to dine in, among other interior upgrades. The menu, helmed by chef Kyle McClelland, now includes new dishes like a yellowtail crudo with citrus fruits, pickled ramps, and trout roe, a tuna carpaccio with pistachios and fried capers, and a dover sole, plus one old favorite from the vault: torched salmon belly with a miso glaze served over rice.
…and over in the Seaport, Committee debuts some changes, too
Greek bar and restaurant Committee has welcomed back Luis Figueroa, a chef on the restaurant’s opening team back in 2015, as the spot’s new executive chef. Figueroa has already been at work revamping the menu, which now includes new dinner plates like lamb frites and shrimp saganaki, with shrimp bathed in tomato sauce, garlic, lemon, and feta, as well as a weekday lunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with build-your-own salads on the menu.
Boston, MA
Red Sox at Reds preview: Sonny Gray makes his first start for Boston – The Boston Globe
Gray, acquired in a November trade from the St. Louis Cardinals, was one of Boston’s key rotation additions, along with Ranger Suarez, in the offseason. He was 14-8 with a 4.28 ERA in 2025.
“He’s very specific about his work. Every day has a purpose,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Gray. “Two hundred strikeouts, that’s something that we were looking for. The competitor. Every five days, this guy is going to give you everything.”
In his five career appearances against the Reds, Gray is 1-3 with a 4.18 ERA.
“It’s pretty much one of the only things that is continuing to push me, is to get to a World Series, to win a World Series, to pitch in big games,” said Gray. “I love the moment, and I am chasing that moment.”
Here’s the preview:
RED SOX (1-0): TBA
Pitching: RHP Sonny Gray
REDS (0-1): TBA
Pitching: RHP Brady Singer
Time: 4:10 p.m.
TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7
Red Sox vs. Singer: Wilyer Abreu 2-5, Roman Anthony 1-2, Willson Contreras 2-7, Jarren Duran 3-10, Caleb Durbin 0-1, Isiah Kiner-Falefa 6-16, Marcelo Mayer 0-1, Andruw Monasterio 1-4, Carlos Narváez 1-1, Ceddanne Rafaela 1-5, Trevor Story 0-4, Connor Wong 2-8, Masataka Yoshida 2-7
Reds vs. Gray: Will Benson 0-5, Elly De La Cruz 5-11, TJ Friedl 1-8, Ke’Bryan Hayes 4-17, Nathaniel Lowe 2-10, Noelvi Marte 0-5, Matt McLain 2-2, Spencer Steer 4-9, Tyler Stephenson 0-8, Eugenio Suárez 7-13, Jose Trevino 0-2
Stat of the day: Sal Stewart become the first Cincinnati rookie since 1958 to record three hits on Opening Day.
Notes: Cincinnati sends righthander Brady Singer (14-12, 4.03 in 2025) to the mound … With Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo already on the injured list to start the season, Singer is considered one of Cincinnati’s most durable pitchers, leading the Reds with 32 starts last season … Singer has made five career starts against Boston, posting a 2-2 record with a 4.88 ERA over 24 innings … His last appearance against the Red Sox, on July 1 in Boston, ended after just three innings when he allowed two earned runs on three hits.
Cam Kerry can be reached at cam.kerry@globe.com.
Boston, MA
Mayor Robert Van Campen talks about priorities in Everett
Nearly three months since assuming office as mayor of Everett, Massachusetts, Mayor Robert Van Campen isn’t wasting any time.
The former city councilor ousted 18-year incumbent Carlo DeMaria in decisive fashion last November, but even so, issues surrounding his predecessor still linger at City Hall.
A state-led salary audit of DeMaria found $180,000 in overpayment, a finding the former mayor disputes. Van Campen says the city is monitoring ongoing investigations.
“What I’ve conveyed to my partners in government here, locally, is to allow that state process to play itself out, and then we, as a community, will make a decision,” the mayor said. “In addition to that, I recently met with Inspector General Jeff Shapiro, who visited me at City Hall. We had a great conversation about transparency in government, best practices, putting in the right systems to ensure that that type of financial oversight doesn’t happen in the future.”
Beyond the audit, Van Campen is placing emphasis on school overcrowding.
“My objective is to try to implement solutions as quickly as I can,” he said. “Our high school today, which was built for I think 1,650 students, now houses around 2,200.”
The World Cup is creating buzz across Massachusetts, including in Everett, where the Kraft Group is looking to build a soccer stadium.
To alleviate that problem, the mayor is using federal ARPA funds to repair the old Everett High School and seeking out other spaces that could be used in the future.
“Would I like to build out new classroom space for the students of Everett in the next one to two years? Yes, that’s my ideal,” Van Campen said. “But I want to make sure that if we do it on a quick timeline, it’s done in a correct and proper fashion.”
Also in focus for the mayor is a new soccer stadium for the New England Revolution on the shores of the Mystic River.
The Kraft Group, Boston, Everett and the state Legislature have all taken steps to make the project a reality, but Van Campen says there’s still more work to do.
“It’s a transformative project, it’s a breathtaking project,” said Van Campen. “But I’ve been clear with all the stakeholders around that project, and the other larger developments going on down there, that we have to make sure that transit issues are comprehensively addressed, that pedestrian access issues are comprehensively addressed, that all those issues have to be addressed to perfection in order for these projects to succeed.”
Tune in on Sunday, March 29 at 9:30 a.m. for our extended @Issue Sit Down with Van Campen.
Boston, MA
Boston ‘No Kings’ rally expected to draw 100,000; others planned across Mass.
“No Kings” rallies are scheduled in Boston and across Massachusetts on Saturday and are expected to draw large crowds, organizers said.
Organized by the ACLU of Massachusetts, Indivisible Mass Coalition, and Mass 50501, the event is a mass mobilization in protest of the Trump administration.
The No Kings theme was created by the 50501 Movement, a national movement made up of Americans who stand for democracy and against what they call the authoritarian actions of the Trump administration. The name 50501 stands for 50 states, 50 protests, one movement.
“The Trump administration is trying to shred the Constitution; the No Kings movement is an unequivocal statement that we, the people, will not let that happen. This will be the third global No Kings Day, and it’s not just about protesting what’s wrong—it’s about building something better. We intend to show our power, build our power, and power a democracy that advances freedom, equality, justice, and dignity for all,” organizers wrote.
The rally, one of thousands scheduled across the country this weekend, is planned for the Boston Common from 2 to 4 p.m. More than 100,000 people are expected to attend Boston’s rally. Other events are scheduled in Pittsfield, Northampton, Lancaster, Worcester, Framingham, Methuen, Lexington, and towns in southeastern Massachusetts and the Cape. For a map of No Kings events near you, click here.
Speakers include elected officials Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Gov. Maura Healey, Sen. Ed Markey and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, and civic leaders Hessann Farooqi Marcelo Gomes Da Silva, Darlene Lombos, president of the Greater Boston Labor Council, Carol Rose, executive director of ACLU of Massachusetts, Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers of Massachusetts, and others. It will be moderated by Rahsaan Hall, president and CEO of Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts.
There will also be performances by the Dropkick Murphys, Boston Area Brigade of Activist Musicians, BVOCAL Chorus, and Jimmy Tingle.
A previous No Kings rally in October drew massive crowds estimated in the tens of thousands.
NBC10 Boston NBC10 Boston An aerial view of the crowd at Boston’s “No Kings” rally on the Common on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
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