Dating

The love stories we leave behind at restaurants

Plus: A B-Side and Love Letters dating event is happening next month.

Dugout Cafe, a historic dive bar open on Commonwealth Avenue since 1934, is closing and has sold its liquor license to Earl's Kitchen and Bar, a chain of upscale restaurants. Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff

By Meredith Goldstein

January 23, 2026

5 minutes to read

You’re reading Meredith Goldstein’s Love Letters newsletter. Each week, Meredith shares tales of human connection, thoughts on public policy and relationships, and behind-the-scenes stories about the Love Letters column and podcast. Sign up to get the dispatch.

More than a decade ago, two 20-somethings met at a party in Boston. I’ll call them Lisa and Bob.

Lisa was my friend; she and I had gone to the party together. I did not know Bob (yet).

From my memory, Lisa spotted Bob at this soiree and liked what she saw. She thought Bob was handsome and talented. He was catering the event, so she got to see him in action, preparing and serving delicious food.

She wrote her number down and left it for him. Lisa was shooting her shot, as they say.

Later, when Bob put Lisa’s number into his phone so he could follow up, he realized something strange: she was already in his contacts as someone named “LISA DUGOUT.”

What clicked for him at that moment was that years before this party, he had met Lisa at the Dugout Cafe, a dive bar on Commonwealth Ave near Boston University.

The Dugout Cafe, which has been open since 1934. *Suzanne Kreiter/Globe staff*

They’d exchanged numbers back then, and even had a date. After that, they lost touch.

When they met again at this party, Lisa didn’t recognize Bob as the same man, probably because he’d grown up so much.

After reconnecting this second time around, they made plans, had a great time, and realized they were better matched as friends – which turned out to be a great thing.

I got to know Bob, too, and we all spent time together. We became people in a much larger social scene.

To this day, whenever I pass the Dugout Cafe on Comm. Ave, I laugh, thinking about how Bob and Lisa first met – and how they would meet again. I think about how serendipitous it felt – how Boston it felt – to hit on a guy you’ve already gone out with. I think about the friendships that came out of that origin story.

That’s why I found myself strangely grief-stricken to learn, while reading the Globe, that after 90 years, the Dugout on Comm. Ave. would be closing.

Imagine all of the connections made at that dive bar over time.

The Mendoza Line hosted a comedy series at the Dugout Cafe. *(Photo courtesy of The Mendoza Line)*

Days after the news broke about the Dugout, I learned that the Spaghetti Warehouse was closing in Syracuse, N.Y.

The restaurant, which is exactly what it sounds like (a factory building where you can get a heaping pile of spaghetti) is where I nursed my emotional wounds in college. I remember having a crush on a guy, eating with him at the Spaghetti Warehouse, and wondering, while I inhaled drippy fettuccine, probably stuck between my teeth, “Why doesn’t he like me back?”

In an early episode of the Love Letters podcast, I mention my shortest date ever. That awkward outing was at the Brookline restaurant Orinoco, which is also, reportedly, set to close.

One of the biggest headlines in Boston right now is the closure of Time Out Market, which has been a gathering spot for seven years. Time Out Market is a food hall, but it has also hosted drag shows, talent showcases, classes, and dating events hosted by extrovert influencer, @narcolepsybetsy.

I’m sure many people have tales of first dates and hookups that started at Time Out. It’s where I had fantastic dinners with friends, including one with Monica, who loves reality TV (she wrote this). Years ago, I had a deep talk with her on the Time Out patio and thought, “I am so lucky to have met such a wonderful friend as an adult. I am so glad to be bonding with her over this excellent Lebanese chicken wrap.”

I mention all of this because as restaurants close, we examine what it means for a community.

This is important. We need to think about who owns what property, who has access to liquor licenses, and how a restaurant can survive, financially, in 2026.

From my Love Letters corner, I think about what’s to come for connection. Part of the circle of life for most restaurants is opening and closing, and making space for something new.

But I want these new spots to be designed for gathering. I hope for new venues where humans can swap numbers, make a new friend, and cry over spaghetti.

This is a long way of saying: I hope these businesses don’t become banks.

No offense to banks.

Mostly.

Events worth leaving the house for:

On January 28th at Wellesley Books, hilarious Globe lifestyle reporter Beth Teitell, who just examined whether the Boston accent is disappearing, will join me for a book launch event featuring my former editor Janice Page. Janice just released a multi-generational memoir – “Year of the Water Horse” – about hervery Massachusetts upbringing, and how her entire life changed when, many years ago, she began working at a Chinese restaurant in Braintree. The book is about a lot more than that; it’s both devastating and wildly funny. You can learn more by showing up.

MEN. Young men. People who KNOW men: we need more men for an upcoming singles event for 24 to 35-year-old straight people, hosted by our friends at B-Side. I’ll be there to host, and to help these people bond with each other. That’s exactly what 24 to 35-year-old single people need, right? A 48-year-old woman standing over them and coaching their interactions? Everyone’s going to love that! I know the demographics of the people who read this newsletter (it is not 30-year-old men). But if you know a man in this age bracket (maybe he’s your son), get him to sign up. At the very least, WBUR’s City Space is a fantastic venue, and this is a great way to see it.

Do you live in New England? Do you love talking/complaining about the weather? “The Reshaping of New England Seasons” is an event unrelated to me/Love Letters, but very much related to how people connect in New England. If you’re someone who thinks about weather a lot, go and find other weather people. You know who you are.

Asking for a friend …

This question, in the Love Letters column, was about a relationship with an age gap.
This question was about dating, caregiving, and expectations.
This question included my opinion about how many exclamation points are TOO many to use in a message on a dating app.

Remember, when you send a letter, you help others with the same question. Send your own anonymous question about relationships by clicking the button below or emailing [email protected].

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