#AllstonMadness Round 1 Match Ups
We’re going keep all of Round 1’s match ups listed on this page, so come back here for updates!
STILL ONGOING:
Garlic n’ Lemons vs. La Mamma
I would have to check the data (I actually have no data) but I think La Mamma mounted the biggest comeback in the tournament so far. They looked poised to lose to Inbound Pizza but had a second day surge and ended up besting them by 1 vote. It’s going to be hard to repeat that against Garlic N’ Lemons, but hey, ya never know, right?
Korean Garden vs. Buk Kyung
I was really terrified when I found out Buk Kyung II was on fire last week. It’s a great place that I didn’t want to see go away. Right now it looks to me like they’re going to be okay, which makes me happy. I’ll be there as soon as they re-open.
Taqueria El Carrizal vs. Amelia’s Taqueria
This match up could create some controversy. One place serves authentic meals from Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador and one seems to mostly cater to college kids looking for Ameri-Mexican. It’s not a criticism to call something Ameri-Mexican, it’s just an acknowledgement. Having a general understanding of the demographics who vote in these polls, it could heavily favor Amelia’s. I guess what I’m sayings is: Go to Taqueria El Carrizal it’s very good.
White Horse Tavern vs. Common Ground
Shout out to Common Ground, who have been telling people on social media about a lot of the ongoing matches, and now finally have their own to compete in. It’s not gonna be easy up against White Horse, but if they can bring the hype, they could do this.
FINISHED:
La Befana vs. Alfredo’s
Today’s match up previews are going to be less inspired than usual. I got too drunk rooting for the Boston Pride (Allston’s own!) to win the Isobel Cup last night. They didn’t. Oh well, they’re still awesome and I recommend getting season tickets next year.
Dumpling Kingdom vs. Shanghai Gate
Shanghai Gate’s lunch special used to be a thing of legend among Allston’s poor college students. I haven’t heard people talk about them recently, so either it is less popular than it is was or I’m becoming on old piece of shit who nobody young or cool wants to talk to. I wonder why the lunch special is less popular.
Punjab Palace vs. Thai Place
If the current polls hold, the first two winners of play-in games will have made the second round, which means we really didn’t know what we were doing with this seeding. If it happens again, we will admit we are know-nothings.
Great Scott vs. O’Briens
We included these two venues because they are more bar-like than, say, Brighton Music Hall. I think they fit into the bar category because you would not go to Brighton Music Hall on a whimsical Tuesday just to see who’s playing, but you might just show up at one of these places and see what’s up.
Spike’s vs. Loui Loui
When we reviewed Loui Loui on this website, it was very early in on its run. Anecdotally since then, it looks like they get good crowds most nights. We might have to do a re-review in the summertime and see what it’s like in full swing.
Totto Ramen vs. Shabu Zen
Shabu Zen really killed it in the play-in match. Made us look stupid for ranking it so low. It’s going to be interesting to see how it play against Totto, and we might look extra stupid if it continues to make a run.
A@Time vs. S&I To Go
I’ve never found a satisfying answer as to why A@Time is named the way it is. I suppose I could ask someone who works there, but Google hasn’t helped me figure out if there’s something I’m missing. If anyone can figure out the reason, I would love to know.
Carlo’s Cucina vs. The Hopewell Bar and Kitchen
Carlo’s is kind of an outlier in it’s division. Originally we were trying to make a division of places that were date spots (Deep Ellum, Lulu’s, Glenville Stops, etc.) and that included Carlo’s, but we gave up on that. But Carlo’s still remained in that division. Bracket science: Not very scientific stuff!
Allston Diner vs. Whole Heart Provisions
Since we’ve had 4 successful days of round 1, we’re now gonna switch the order we go through the bracket in, now posting the bottom right quadrant first. I have no idea if this will make a difference, but we’re trying to keep it switched up to avoid any biases. I know we’re kind of dumb.
Kaju Tofu House vs. Bibim
Bibim becomes the first place to appear twice in the competition, having bested Hanmaru in the play-in games. They got a very nice size of the vote in that round, let’s see how much of that transfers over.
OliToki vs. Coreanos
I’m a big fan of both of these places. As far as I can tell the difference is OliToki is more of Korean-themed Mexican food, while Coreanos is Mexican-themed Korean food. The winner of this match will probably the be the concept that does best with Allstonians, even though they are both kind of similar.
Tavern in the Square vs. The Draft
Low key, I think The Draft is probably the place most affected by the season we are doing the tournament in. My opinion of The Draft varies depending on whether their back patio is open. Most of the year The Draft is just a regular-ass bar to me, but when the whether gets nice, it becomes a top destination.
Silhouette Lounge vs. The Model
I’m willing to bet that this match will have the most votes of any match in this whole bracket and that’s sort of a source of pride.
Lone Star Taco Bar vs. Patron’s
The change of Big City to Patron’s is one of the more underrated restaurant changes in the past 5 years of Allston. What the hell was Big City anyway? Just upstairs Sunset? Did it do anything special? I can’t even remember, so Patron’s was definitely an upgrade.
Oppa Sushi vs. Fish Market Sushi Bar
For a very long time I would’ve given Fish Market the edge here, but recently I went to Oppa after ignoring it for a long time, and now I feel so bad about how I wasn’t going to Oppa that I now give Oppa the edge. Recency bias plays across all types of brackets!
Regina Pizzeria vs. Ecco Pizzeria
Here’s a good fact: So the building that Regina is in used to be a train station. It was one of the major train stations for people coming into Boston, but being in the residential neighborhood of Brighton, there was nothing interesting to do when you got off the train, you had to get downtown for that. Out of the desire to have bars and shit to do when you get off the train, the Allston portion of Brighton was born. So without that Regina building there would be none of this fun.
Lulu’s vs. Sunset
I sure hope Sunset is starting to realize that having all of the beers can only get you so far, and this match up is a perfect example. Sure, you have more than 100 beers on tap, but Lulu’s has over 50. In either case, there’s no way for me to drink them all so the difference in variety is negligible, and we’re going to give Lulu’s the edge on food.
Street Food Revolution vs. Grasshopper
We got some feedback from vegetarians and vegans about how we were pitting Whole Heart and Allston Diner in the bottom corner of the bracket, which makes it a hard choice for them. I hope the non-meat eaters of Allston aren’t ignoring a spot like Grasshopper, because it’s stellar. Did you know they have a vegan buffet once a month? If you haven’t tried that, you can’t truly represent the veg voice.
Myung Dong 1st Ave vs. Seoul Soulongtang
Here’s all I have to say: Myung Dong’s soju watermelons will creep up on you. Beware. If you partake in drinking more than one, you might go from “these don’t seem that alcoholic” to “why is everything spinning” before you know it.
Roxy’s Grilled Cheese vs. Chicken and Rice Guys
This is two big food-truck-got-so-popular-it-opened-a-brick-and-mortar places and the match speaks for itself.
The Avenue vs. Wonder Bar
Someone on Twitter said that Wonder Bar is going to get crushed in this match up… and the The Ave retweeted them. Savage! I love that competitive spirit. I’m not going to try to predict whether or not Wonder Bar has a chance, but I will say that Thunderbar Comedy puts together some quality shows in Wonder Bar’s basement, including the monthly Bad Bad Show.
Habanero Mexican Grill vs. Sabor Do Brasil
About 2 years ago Sabor Do Brasil specialized in Brazilian street foods, and I used to go there all the time for X-tudos, a Brazilian style of cheeseburgers. One day about a year ago I went there and they had changed their menu to what seemed like more of Brazilian dinner plates. Goddamn did it look delicious but I REALLY wanted a cheeseburger that day so I walked out. I haven’t been back since, but I’m thinking that I really ought to go, just not on a day I want a burger.
Bon Chon vs. K-Town Chicken
I kind of love that K-Town Chicken still has the sign from “Bethlehem To Go”, the previous tenant of their space, hanging on the street. Old signs are almost universally an indicator that this place is too focused on making good food to notice their presentation. That place that’s going where Soul Fire was? Tons of signage already, but not even open. I’d bet money K-Town will have better chicken than them.
Azama vs. Tarboosh
I’m genuinely interested to see which of these wins, because they’re both good and I think it’s going to come down to foot traffic. I would think more people are walking by Azama in a given day, but then again Tarboosh is our closest competitor to Packard’s Corner which means they may represent an otherwise scorned area that may rally around their only competitor.
Deep Ellum vs. The Glenville Stops
Fun fact: The Glenville Stops is the only competitor in the bracket that is not located on a major street in Allston. That’s probably why I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t know about it until this bracket was being put together. I blame this on everyone but myself. By this point, someone should have said to me “Hey there are happy hour oysters down the street from you, let’s go.” We’re already almost out of “R” months!
Le’s Vietnamese vs. YoMa
Le’s is probably going to win this one thanks to it’s rightly deserved reputation, but I’d like to note that YoMa is underrated as a keystone establishment. I’d venture a guess that Burmese food is the most obscure cuisine in Allston, but YoMa seems to do well. I think it’s an important statement that our neighborhood is inclusive in our hearts and palates, and if you’re looking to open a restaurant that represents your culture’s food, Allston is going to be into that.
JoJo Taipei vs. Dolphin Bay
When it comes to Taiwanese food, for me it’s almost always JoJo for takeout by Dolphin Bay for dine-in. Because Jojo’s food is stellar, but the Dolphin Bay decor really does it for me. I’m sucker for a good theme, especially one that makes me feel like I’m in the restaurant attached to a high-end aquarium.
Steve’s Kitchen vs. Wing-It
So far, this is the match up between the two most different competitors. This could be a good litmus for what our voting public likes. Do they prefer places that are take-out or dine-in? Do they prefer places with strong breakfast options or places that would be weird to eat for breakfast? Let’s find out!
The play-in matches were written about here:
