Closings: Not long ago, chef Jody Adams announced that she would leave the Charles Hotel’s flagship Italian restaurant, Rialto (1 Bennett St. at Eliot Street), to open Mediterranean restaurant Porto in the Back Bay with partners Eric Papachristos and Sean Griffing. Rialto chef de cuisine David Ladner had been slated to take over as executive chef. Now it seems that Rialto will close for good. Adams says that both she and the Harvard Square hotel have offered to hire Rialto’s employees elsewhere, but she couldn’t comment on what would replace the landmark restaurant. “Something else is going to happen in the space, and I don’t know exactly what that is, but I support the hotel’s decision,’’ Adams says. However, she does note that Rialto’s closing date — June 22 — is poignant, since it has been open for 22 years. Meanwhile, look for Porto to open in the next several weeks.
Arlington mainstay Flora (190 Mass. Ave. at Lake Street) will close after 20 years in business. A French-inspired spot, Financier, will replace it (the restaurant is housed in a former bank, hence the name). There’s a Kickstarter campaign underway to, ahem, finance the new venture. Flora opened in 1996 and made a cameo in a Robert B. Parker Spenser novel as one of his favorite places to wine and dine.
Openings: Anthony Caturano from the North End’s Prezza launches a new oceanfront venture, Tonno, in Gloucester this month (2 Main St. at Washington Street). The restaurant — Italian for “tuna’’ — specializes in coastal Italian seafood like shrimp fra diavolo and stewed clams. It opens for dinner on June 17.
Mint Indian Eatery has opened near Somerville’s Powderhouse Circle (868 Broadway at Walker Street). Mint serves Indian and Nepalese street food like momos, kati rolls, and samosas. It’s affordable, too — most items are under $10.
Sapóre Ristorante + Bar has softly opened at the Seaport’s Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel (606 Congress St. at D Street), replacing Italian restaurant M.C. Spiedo. It specializes in Neapolitan pizza, handmade pasta, and local seafood. KARA BASKIN
Kara Baskin can be reached at kcbaskin@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @kcbaskin.
