When the sign at Lagrange and Centre finally says Kappy's, who will be running the store? Michael Pignone, the same manager who has worked there since 1999. The Boston Licensing Board approved the sale of Blanchard's on September 24, and according to Universal Hub's report on the hearing, the new owner's attorney said the store would be run basically as it has been for decades. The name is the only change he described.
Several of West Roxbury's longtime businesses had a close call this fall. The places that stayed are tied to a family or to someone who has been at the counter for decades. The new restaurant coming in is selling itself on a family name. The one that closed was a branch of a chain, and on its way out it pointed customers to another location across the city.
A packie that changes owners and keeps its manager
Blanchard's has a longer history than most of Centre Street. The first Blanchard's opened in Scollay Square in 1838. John Corey, a barber, bought the business after Prohibition, around 1934. His son Don Corey owned the Jamaica Plain store by 1958, and the West Roxbury store opened two years later, according to a Wicked Local profile from the business's 175th anniversary. Universal Hub reported that the Elder and Corey families had owned the West Roxbury store since the 1960s.
The Licensing Board's September 24 voting agenda lists the license for 418 Lagrange St. moving to WR Kappy's Inc., doing business as Kappy's Fine Wine & Spirits, at the same address. The buyer is Bhavin Patel. Universal Hub also noted that nobody at the hearing said whether the large white letters spelling BLANCHARD'S on the Lagrange side of the building would be replaced.
So the deed and the name are changing hands, and the manager is staying. For anyone who buys a bottle there every week, the person at the counter matters more than either one.
Tony's Place, three days after the notice
On October 6, Universal Hub reported that a Holbrook auctioneer had scheduled an October 29 sale of the land and building at Spring and Baker streets. The notice described the site this way:
A 17,093+/-sf double-corner lot improved by a 3,387+/-sf, one-story commercial building currently operating as a restaurant.
Three days later, on October 9, Universal Hub followed up to report the auction had been canceled. That means the restaurant keeps ownership of its building and land and can stay open.
The family behind it has been there for more than five decades. Elio Imbornone emigrated from Sicily and grew up in the North End. He bought Tony's Place from his boss in 1969, and the Imbornone family has been making pizza and other Italian dishes on that corner ever since. The restaurant's own site lists its address as 188 Baker St., at the corner of Baker and Spring.
Two businesses, two kinds of close call, and the same result. In both, the people customers know are still there.
The bagel gap on VFW Parkway
The closure fits the pattern too, from the other direction. The Bruegger's at 667 VFW Parkway closed in early September after at least a couple of decades in business, according to Universal Hub. Boston Restaurant Talk reported the next day that the chain was sending customers to its Longwood location. Longwood is a trip into the Medical Area. It isn't a walk down Centre Street.
The real gap is closer to home. Universal Hub's headline said West Roxbury had become "bagelless" and listed the nearest options now:
- Exodus Bagels, off Belgrade Avenue in Roslindale
- Cafe Fresh Bagel, in Dedham Center
- Rosenfeld's, in Newton Centre
Of the three, Exodus is the only one reached by heading toward the city on Belgrade. The other two mean driving out past the neighborhood line. As of late October, no local report has named a replacement tenant for 667 VFW Parkway or a new bagel shop for West Roxbury.
A family recipe book headed for a much-changed address
The next big opening on VFW Parkway is also selling continuity, in this case the continuity of a family's cooking. Leonardo Testa, son of restaurateur Vinny Testa, is planning Leonardo's Bar Ristorante. Boston Restaurant Talk quoted a job posting saying he "has all his father's recipe's and has updated all of them to today in 2026." Boston.com recalled that Vinny T's once had 11 locations, known for giant meatballs and Rhode Island-style calamari. It describes the new place as family-style Southern Italian with large portions to share, and gives an opening date of 2027.
The space has had a lot of turnover. Boston Restaurant Talk lists its earlier tenants as:
- Fontaine's
- Vintage
- Sofia's
- Mission on Fire
That's four concepts at the same VFW Parkway address. The new one is the first in that run to open with a familiar family name attached before the doors open. The two published reports put it at slightly different street numbers on the Parkway, so the clearest way to find it is the former Mission on Fire space.
The next few weeks around these addresses
This post goes up on a Thursday, and the first item on the calendar starts the next night. MassDOT's bridge replacement, which runs right through the middle of the neighborhood, also affects the train.
| Date | What's happening | Where it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Fri., Nov. 6, about 11 p.m., through Sun., Nov. 8 | No Needham Line service between Needham Heights and South Station, and no shuttle buses | Bus Routes 35, 36 and 37 connect West Roxbury to Forest Hills for the Orange Line |
| Nov. 6, 9 and 13 | No Needham Line service between Forest Hills and South Station | The MBTA directs riders to the Orange Line |
| Through December 2026 | West Roxbury Parkway bridge over the Needham Line closed to cars and pedestrians | Detour via Belgrade Avenue |
| Sat., Dec. 5, 4 to 7 p.m. | West Roxbury Main Streets Holiday Market | Rockland Trust, 1920 Centre St., and B & M Auto next door |
The rail dates come from the MBTA's October 16 service notice. It suggests anyone going from West Roxbury to South Station by bus that weekend allow at least 35 extra minutes. MassDOT's project page says contractors are working 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., seven days a week, on the roadway and under the bridge. Check the live alerts before any trip, because the schedule has already changed once.
The Holiday Market is where the neighborhood's own businesses show up in one place. West Roxbury Main Streets says the raffles are donated by local businesses. B & M Auto is hosting Hive Mobile Bar, an Airstream serving beer, wine and cider, and its Christmas tree lot will be open that evening for trees, wreaths and greenery. Santa will be there, and organizers say the Grinch may make an appearance. The setting is a bank parking lot and an auto shop's lot next door. A local garage hosting the bar and selling trees on the same night is a lot like Blanchard's keeping its manager or the Imbornones keeping their corner.
At M|E Collective, we follow corners like Baker and Spring and Lagrange and Centre closely, because the businesses on them shape what a West Roxbury block feels like day to day. If you'd like to talk about the streets around them, Book an Appointment and we'll walk through what we're seeing.
