What to Eat (and Drink) This Weekend

Pizza bagels at Mamaleh’s.

Jewish-ish Pizza Bagels

It’s National Pizza Month, so decreed back in 1984 by the magazine Pizza Today. Sure! We’ll allow it, so long as that means cheesy fun all month long. And oh, it does. Wood-fired favorites Area Four are celebrating with guest chef-created weekly specials, beginning with Whole Heart Provisions’ Becca Arnold’s pie on the menu through Sunday, October 7. Arnold’s vegan pizza is topped with roasted delicata squash, Swiss chard, cashew ricotta, and pickled chilies. Even Mamaleh’s is having a pizza party: This Friday, October 5, the Cambridge delicatessen transforms into Mamaleh’s House of Pizza Bagels, with riffs on the classics like a meat lover’s bagel pizza topped with pastrami, corned beef, and salami; and a Caesar salad made with smoked fish dressing. Order from the MHOPB menu at the counter from 5-8 p.m. It’s part of a new series of after-hours events at the deli, and could become a regular happening, says co-owner Alon Munzer. Check out the full Mamaleh’s House of Pizza Bagels menu at the bottom of this post.

Photo by Tyler Machado

A Very Masshole Porter

With the Yankees coming to town to start the American League Division Series at Fenway Park on Friday, your beer fridge needs to be stocked. Consider a couple four-packs of Idle Hands’ 34, a robust porter named for the hero whose playoff heroics played such an important part of past matchups. 34 is on draft at the Malden taproom, available in cans to-go, and also in the cooler at local packies. Another perfect porter for the playoffs: Harpoon Dunkin’ Coffee Porter. The two iconic Massachusetts brands teamed up on this smooth sipper, using Dunkin’s espresso blend to add notes of dark roast and chocolate to the Seaport brewery’s classic craft porter. It’s worth buying for the packaging alone—the label is complete with a Dunkin’-style checklist of the flavor profile—but the 6 percent brew is a solid choice to crush during this weekend’s exciting matchups. Go Red Sox!

Scenes from the 2016 Allandale Farm Chili Cook-off. / Photo by Jessica Coughlin

Chili!

Not only is it playoffs and porter season—it’s also chili season. When the temperatures dip, we crave hearty stews of spicy beans, robust beef, and farm-fresh peppers and tomatoes. And we are not alone. This Saturday is Allandale Farm’s fourth annual chili cook-off, where home cooks and chefs alike fire up their crockpots full of their best chili, hoping to win bragging rights and a $100 gift card to the farm. Try them all for $10, paired with Barrel House Z beers for purchase, with proceeds benefitting Lovin’ Spoonfuls. Another showdown is brewing at Bone Up Brewing Co.—literally. The Everett brewery is releasing Showdown Chili Milk Stout this Saturday, to pair with its first-ever “Settle the Beef” Chili Cook-off. Brewery food pop-up regulars Brato Brewhouse + Kitchen and Daddy’s Bonetown Burgers will each make a meat and veggie entry, and $20 gets you a flight of all four stews plus a pint of Showdown. Beer and bowls of chili will also be sold a la carte.

Fourth Annual Chili Cook-Off, Saturday, October 6, noon-3 p.m., Allandale Farm, 259 Allandale Rd., Brookline, 617-524-1531, allandalefarm.com, Facebook.

Settle the Beef! Chili Cook-off, Saturday, October 6, noon-6 p.m., Bone Up Brewing Company, 38 Norman St., Everett, Facebook.

Pull up a stool at the 23-seat bar for pints of freshly brewed beer at Democracy Brewing. / Photos by Toan Trinh

Helles Lager and Oktoberfest Fare

The jolly Oktoberfest season continues with German-style beers and festivities happening at pubs and breweries all throughout the land. On our radar this weekend? The inaugural Oktoberfest at Downtown Crossing’s new Democracy Brewing. Chef Ben Waxler has authentic specials on the menu, to pair with the new Training Field Helles Lager. The 5.5-percent brew uses Weyermann Pilsner and Vienna malts, and German Tettnanger hops for balanced sweetness and breadiness and a soft, clean finish. There’s a weekend of performances lined up, from the TubaFrau Hofbräu Band to Opera on Tap performing German works, but fans missing Jacob Wirth this Oktoberfest season will want to make sure to post up on Friday night. Pianist Mel Stiller, who’s manned the keys at the currently closed, iconic beer hall for nearly 30 years, has moved his Friday night residency  to the new beer hall, and is kicking off Democracy’s Oktoberfest weekend with a good old-fashioned sing-along. Prost!

Oktoberfest Celebration, Friday, October 5-Sunday, October 7, various times, Democracy Brewing, 35 Temple Place, Downtown Crossing, Boston, 857-263-8604, democracybrewing.com, Facebook.

Photo provided by Thirst Boston

Oysters and Cocktails

Every spring for the past five years, Offsite founders Maureen Hautaniemi and Nick Korn have brought a weekend of craft alcohol education and celebration to the Seaport with Thirst Boston. Now the spirited duo is diving deeper into creative culinary events with the first-ever Boston Oyster Bash. With cocktails by some of the region’s best mixologists, paired with composed oysters by chefs like Louis DiBicarri (Humaari, Create Boston) and Colin Lynch (Bar Mezzana) and more, Offsite promises “a killer party with the intersection of the cocktail and food industries.” A portion of proceeds from the inaugural event will go to the Massachusetts Oyster Project’s goal to restore our coastal environment through shell recycling and oyster cultivation.

Starting at $100 per person or $180 per couple, Sunday, Oct. 7, 2-6 p.m., Innovation & Design Building, 19 Dry Dock Ave., 1st Floor, Seaport, Boston, bostonoysterbash.com.

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