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Pop-up bar dedicated to women’s sports now open in Boston
261 at Para Maria is named for the bib number worn by the first woman to officially run the Boston Marathon.
Women in sports are having a much-deserved moment in Boston, from new professional teams to a spike in fan interest. While fans wait for more permanent bars dedicated to women’s sports, viewers can get by with a pop-up, 261 at Para Maria.
Located at The Envoy Hotel’s ground-floor restaurant in the Seaport, 261 at Para Maria opened to the public on March 19 and runs through April 30.
“The concept honors the legacy of trailblazing athletes; from the women who broke barriers to the LGBTQ+ community whose courage and visibility transformed women’s sports and celebrates the historic momentum defining Boston’s women’s athletics today,” a press release said.
The pop-up also has a connection to the Boston Marathon with its name, 261. It’s the bib number worn by Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to officially run the Boston Marathon in 1967.
Guests will see Switzer and Boston Marathon moments in a couple of ways. First, the menu: Switzer gets a shoutout in menu items like the Switzer’s Sliders (mini Nashville hot honey chicken sandwiches) and the Kathrine Spritzer cocktail.
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Lining the pop-up bar’s walls is a photo exhibit featuring moments in women’s sports history from The Boston Globe photographers. There’s Switzer, of course, alongside Boston Marathon runners and other athletes with deep ties to Boston and New England — from Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman practicing in Burlington to Connecticut College’s women’s elite rowing team competing in the Head of the Charles.
Those moments aren’t confined to the past. They’re still unfolding — now embodied by teams like Boston’s professional women’s hockey team, Boston Fleet, and the National Women’s Soccer League expansion club Boston Legacy FC. The Fleet played their first game in 2024, while the Legacy debuted at Gillette this month.
Hockey fans may grab a bite of the Fleet Flatbread with hot honey pepperoni, while soccer enthusiasts can say cheers to Boston’s newest professional sports team with the vodka-based Green Legacy cocktail with muddled cucumber. Para Maria’s executive chef Tatiana Rosana, a two-time Chopped winner, is behind the pop-up menu.
261 at Para Maria is working with Dream Big!, a nonprofit organization that helps supply girls and young women from low-income households with sports equipment, college showcase fees, and leadership training. A dollar from each of the two specialty cocktails sold will be donated to the organization, the press release said.
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And because it’s a sports bar, there will obviously be sports to watch and games to play. The pop-up will host sporting event watch parties and programming around the NCAA Women’s March Madness.
Other evenings will offer fan nights and themed discussions around women’s sports teams and athletes, and the space also features foosball and table games.
Para Maria is located at 70 Sleeper St., Boston and is open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
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