Eventide Fenway

A Boston Expansion for James Beard Award-Winning Eventide Oyster Company

The Challenge

The James Beard Award-winning chefs behind Portland’s wildly popular Eventide Oyster Company wanted to expand into Boston’s urban Boylston Street with a “fast casual” concept. The design needed to feel sleek, cool, and bright—fitting the urban vibe while maintaining the brand identity that made the Portland location so successful. 

The Design Solution

The space centers around two dramatic elements: massive boulders displaying the freshest oysters on ice, and a sinuous ceiling that evokes the ocean and echoes Eventide’s brand identity. The ceiling is the showpiece, an undulating form that changes elevation to define customer versus chef zones while taking inspiration from the “E” in Eventide’s logo to create a repeated module shaped like an oar. 

The ceiling performs multiple functions simultaneously. It defines space, references maritime imagery (fish skeletons, ship’s hull struts, oars), and serves as an HVAC plenum for air supply while hiding all ductwork. The easily repeatable aluminum modules, finished to look like wood, are arrayed along a three-dimensional curve. The smaller individual components relate to human scale while together creating a larger sculptural element. 

Materials like cast concrete, zinc, and solid wood balance the sleek glass and metal facade, grounding the bright, modern space with tactile, substantial finishes that reference coastal building traditions while exemplifying their brand identity. 

Details

Seats: 80
Materials: Concrete counters, stone display, natural wood, blackened steel

Architect: Kaplan Thompson Architects
Project Architect: Jamie Broadbent - contributed to project while an employee at Kaplan Thompson Architects
Contractor: Building Restoration Services
Photographer: Irvin Serrano