Check Out the Menu at B3, Then Eat There Tonight

Back Bay Beats is a musically inclined Southern restaurant located at Berklee College of Music.

By Jacqueline Cain· 3/15/2017, 11:22 a.m.

Lamb tagine at B3. / Photos by Moses Mitchell Photography

From the snowstorm rises Boston’s newest Southern-inspired restaurant. Back Bay Beats, or simply, B3, opens tonight for dinner and drinks.

Executive chef Nicholas Swogger is originally from the South, and in Boston, he previously cooked at the much lamented Hungry Mother. He also worked with James Beard Award-winning chef John Currence at Bouré in Oxford, Mississippi.

Check out his menu below—with ham biscuits, pork cheek hoppin’ john, and shrimp and peas, there are noticeable nods to contemporary Southern, Creole, and Cajun cooking, but the chef also reaches for spices from Middle Eastern, East Asian, and other international pantries. Note that “Larger plates” are available during dinner only, and “Sandwiches” will debut with lunch service tomorrow. Charcuterie, small bites, and vegetables will always be available.

On Sunday, B3 will debut brunch. During that service and every night, the restaurant doubles as a live music venue. Taking advantage of its location on Massachusetts Ave., the team is working with Berklee College of Music to have current students, alumni, faculty, and visitors perform at B3.

Eater Boston has a look inside the new restaurant—design firm Analogue Studio was certainly inspired by this collaboration, with the interior featuring well-worn musical instrument cases and repurposed alloyed cymbals from Norwell-based Zildjian as light fixtures.

B3 will serve lunch Monday-Saturday from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., bar bites from 2:30 p.m. on, and dinner from 5-10 p.m. (10:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays). Sunday features brunch from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., then bar bites before two seatings for family-style supper at 5 and 6:30 p.m. There will be two sets of live music every night: at 7 and 9 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and at 5:30 and 7 p.m. on Sundays. The Sunday brunch sets hit at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.

160 Massachusetts Ave., Boston, 617-997-0211, b3restaurant.com.

B3 Menus on Scribd