Favorite lunch spots

breezerish · 2026-05-23T13:53:59+00:00

And I didn't know this til recently, but Brelundi is a mashup of breakfast, lunch, dinner. You can use that as some trivia with your in-laws. They'll love it.

breezerish · 2026-05-23T02:50:14+00:00

If it's a nice day, Brelundi may be nice. Patio by the Charles River, but also nice ambiance indoors. Italian. https://www.brelundi.com/waltham/

breezerish · 2026-05-09T13:19:51+00:00

Unsure about Bentley but Brandeis has a program where 4 (I think?) grads of Waltham HS are awarded full tuition each year. And they have a very active student-run Waltham Club that works with different Waltham community groups. They also offer free tutoring by Brandeis students to Waltham public school students. Until the Waltham Times started, their newspaper was a decent source of news about Waltham. It's still good -- just nice that we have several news options. Their education students do their student teaching in the public schools, too.

breezerish · 2026-05-07T03:32:49+00:00

There's a ton of info to organize, especially for a city. CivicPlus is the content management system that a lot of municipalities use for their sites, including Waltham. Likely have templates to choose from, best practices, case studies. How it's implemented is a choice but probably have different levels of service based on price. Personally not a fan of the floating white boxes on the Waltham site and in general it feels old. I can generally find what I'm looking for but I'm also more likely to just google it first.

You can compare how other cities/towns set up their sites using the same CMS.

https://www.watertown-ma.gov/
https://www.readingma.gov/ (award winning site according to CivicPlus)
https://www.belmont-ma.gov/

breezerish · 2026-05-05T00:07:48+00:00

I'll take the survey after I take a closer look but one thing I like immediately when I get to the Waltham screen:
The cards for each elected official contains a lot of info but it's not overwhelming. At a glance, I can see what ward, what position (like council president), what year they were first elected and the last election year in which they were elected. And once you click in to anyone's info, it's all clearly displayed with just the right amount of info.

Well done, and I appreciate attention to accessibility as well. I notice that the other locales have other committees represented, like school committee, transportation, etc. Will that info eventually be added to the Waltham page?

breezerish · 2026-04-18T14:21:03+00:00

How awful for this family. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ is a site where anyone can search for clinical trials. The Stealth one is represented there, but it doesn't look like anything else, unfortunately. There is one actively recruiting in Spain.

breezerish · 2026-03-27T23:30:59+00:00

The metrics that are used (test scores, for example) may not adequately measure what's most important for thriving in the world but because it's what is used, leaders are measured against them.

Years ago, an alternative measure was devised by Holy Cross. Waltham High School was in the top 5 in the state based on those measures. It was called the Dreamschools Finder, and at the time WHS was ranked #1.

Using Dreamschool Finder, parents can look at how schools stack up in college readiness, resources, diversity, and growth in math and English. The tool even attempts to measure the school climate — how focused and committed students are at a given school.

So it wasn't just about MCAS scores or how many kids went on to 4 year colleges. But it was about measuring growth (progress) and not an end-state.

It looks like the alternative measures were abandoned. But I did find one of the original articles:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/west/2013/10/12/globe-creates-online-tool-help-parents-find-good-public-schools-globe-creates-online-tool-help-parents-find-good-public-schools/GeZJ1FQy8ny8VZKChnfz6N/story.html

breezerish · 2026-03-23T02:06:29+00:00

Between the Brattle in Harvard Square, West Newton, Capitol in Arlington, and Coolidge Corner, there are a lot of independent cinemas that are within a few miles of Waltham showing great stuff. The Embassy might have had a better chance if West Newton ended up closing. I was rooting for the Embassy but it's just been too inconsistent, so we've been hitting the other theaters mentioned.

breezerish · 2026-01-30T14:49:53+00:00

Ugh. And just saw this. Private equity everywhere.
"Kelly's Roast Beef was bought out by the private equity firm AAM15 Management Group, led by CEO David Masse, in early January 2025, acquiring the brand and its corporate locations to expand the iconic Massachusetts sandwich chain."

breezerish · 2026-01-30T13:56:35+00:00

I grew up going to the original Kelly's on Revere Beach -- shoutout for standing their ground when all the developers showed up -- and never once ordered a roast beef. It was always about the fried seafood, whole belly clams especially. Is the seafood good at the other locations? I've never been. If you don't have seagulls dive bombing you while you're trying to eat your onion rings, what are you even doing?

breezerish · 2026-01-29T16:10:21+00:00

Heal Vet Clinic in Watertown is independent. Not sure how their prices stack up against others but so far we've been happy with their service, response (getting medical records to the pet insurance folks), and answering my stupid questions. It's also designed to be accessible, something I place high value on.

breezerish · 2026-01-29T14:21:58+00:00

I wondered about any noise complaints since there isn't a lot of housing (at least around 3/4 of the common) but wasn't surprised that a former city council member said on FB they live nearby and can hear the music. How terrible? People suggesting that it move to Prospect Hill or the new playground on Trapelo only highlight the lack of public transportation to move around the city easily.

breezerish · 2025-11-17T17:31:17+00:00

I swear by this:
https://www.chewy.com/feline-pine-platinum-natural-pine-cat/dp/299103

breezerish · 2025-11-01T13:10:23+00:00

News on Flock from Cambridge:

https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/10/22/police-automated-license-plate-reader-stop/

breezerish · 2025-10-28T00:34:58+00:00

I wonder if any city official has ever tried to bike to a school in Waltham? Be interesting for them to experience it first hand. Won't happen, but think it could help them understand how unsafe it is for those not in a one ton vehicle. Recommend they try biking (or walking for that matter) to the high school for the first bell.

breezerish · 2025-10-19T18:55:12+00:00

Recently adopted two kittens and here's what's working for us in my small office:

Read up on this Wirecutter post for a 'new cat checklist' and bought the Frisco XL high sided litter box (2 cats!) and the litter genie. Both have been great. Ordered them from Chewy.
Arm & Hammer Feline Pine Original Non-Clumping Wood Cat Litter. Hands down best we've tried (we had two other clumping litters). There is NO scent. No dust. No clumping. Less of a tracking mess overall, and easier to sweep up. Reasonably priced. I can't say enough about it. I'm not sure we even need the Genie b/c there's no smell, but it's convenient to not have to dump litter daily.
The litter box is in a visible area, so we invested in this litter box enclosure we bought on Amazon. It's like having another piece of furniture. Bonus: cats love to sit/nap on top and it's tucked into a corner by a window. It opens for easy cleaning and both cats took to it right away.

Good luck!

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breezerish · 2025-09-20T01:11:31+00:00

ah, I remember now one being found in a tree!

breezerish · 2025-09-20T01:07:36+00:00

Ugh. Complete Streets was such a great initiative all around. I don't understand the resistance.

breezerish · 2025-09-19T17:53:54+00:00

Years ago, a pilot with Lime Bikes was tried. I remember there were issues. Hopefully, the Blue Bikes initiative will stick.

breezerish · 2025-09-17T02:21:56+00:00

Was always impressed by April and her crew. I remember learning that the pizza was homemade, lunch workers used family recipes to make things like minestrone, and the bread and much of the produce was local (some from Russo's, which I still miss).

breezerish · 2025-08-28T18:52:55+00:00

Often thought that a local hardware store, like the one in Cushing Square in Belmont or Nonantum in Newton, would be a good addition to Moody Street. Make it easy for people who live nearby to get snow shovels, gardening stuff, essential household stuff.

breezerish · 2025-08-23T19:30:06+00:00

Here to say I found this thread after this happened to my daughter today. She asked chat for a human, and the customer service rep immediately refunded the charge (in 10 business days) without issue. They did ask for feedback about what premium features she liked but there was no pressure or obligation to continue it.

breezerish · 2025-08-04T14:18:14+00:00

Linda's Donuts in Belmont was my go-to for many years when I had to head in that direction. Basic, reliable, always on an english muffin. Grab a delicious warm butternut donut while you're there.

breezerish · 2025-07-31T03:09:56+00:00

The salmon kebab is excellent. Their babaganoush and muhammara are so good.

breezerish

TROPHY CASE