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New restaurant going in where Whiskey Priest used to be until it was torn down and replaced by luxury condos

David Doyle in front of rendering of new restaurant

David Doyle's Zoom background shows his new restaurant.

The Boston Licensing Board yesterday approved plans for a new Seaport restaurant that will sit on the water where Whiskey Priest used to be back when the area consisted mainly of parking lots.

The new Savr (yep), a "spirited American bistro," will have room for 289 patrons on two levels, as well as a seasonal patio with 69 seats, at 150 Seaport Blvd.

The board approved David Doyle as manager. Doyle - not to be confused with the David Doyle familiar to Jamaica Plain restaurant goers - has experience at the Rebel Restaurants Group and Smith and Wollensky.

Doyle owns the restaurant along with John Cronin - who also owned Whiskey Priest and who was the developer of the the 22-story St. Regis Residences that replaced both Whiskey Priest and the Atlantic Beer Garden. Savr will use Whiskey Priest's old liquor license under the board's approval, which now goes to the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission for a final OK.

The board voted in favor after receiving assurances that Savr has 500 square feet set aside on the first floor as a waiting area for ferries, along with public restrooms, and outdoor signs on the Harborwalk pointing to the facilities. The state required them for its approval of the waterside project.

Whiskey Priest and the Atlantic Beer Garden - two literal dives from which customers sometimes jumped into the harbor - closed in 2018.

Savr was one of two food-serving establishments approved yesterday without a full complement of vowels. The licensing board also approved a cookie place at the new extension to the South Bay Mall called Crumbl.

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Comments

"Savr closing, to be replaced by luxury condos"

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life sciences building.

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swipe through Flickr, Tumblr, and Scribd.

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That namng conventn f thrs s rlly stupd.

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will they continue to allow patrons to jump off the patio. Into the harbor? Was the Coast Guard invited to this hearing?

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Got to sit on a liquor license for nearly 5 years? This city’s licensing system is a complete joke.

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with the pandemic pause, but your point still stands.

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Yet another argument that liquor licenses ought to be like drivers' licenses: pass the qualifications and you get one. Whether it's taxi medallions or liquor licenses, government-created artificial scarcity leads to all sorts of ridiculousness.

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Something about his facial expression, white shirt, and apparent position relative to the background makes me think of a seagull looking into one of those outdoor web cams. Is it just me? Maybe it's just me.

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Maybe he's Magoo?

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Calling Whiskey Priest and ABG dives is an insult to the beer-soaked, marine-carpeted memory of the Seaport Bar & Grill (RIP 1940-2010) and the chinese restaurant who's name I can't remember.

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Eastern Pier Seafood.

That was a lone dining bright spot in a vast Seaport wasteland back in the day. I had room in my heart for Anthony's Pier 4 and the No Name, but mainly went to bring visiting friends who'd heard about them as essential Boston tourist stops.

Anthony's was very solid, a true and worthy 70s-vintage seafood-and-steak hotspot before the old man died and his hapless idiot kids ran it into the ground. The No Name's seafood chowder lived up to the hype: the last time I went was with a visiting friend whom I'd tried to talk out of it, but we went, and it was still surprisingly good in its humble way. I ordered a second bowl of that chowder.

My dad was a salesman: Anthony's and The Hilltop were his favorite spots to entertain clients. On my own, Eastern Pier was my only reason to visit that neighborhood.

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sadly the mega restaurants with mega sized menu's are dying. Chains and niche bistro type places like "Savr" are all we're left with. Most of which don't last more than 3-5 years, let alone the decades the hilltops and pier 4's lasted.

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Shouldn’t the Licensing Board have done a little more looking into compliance than just taking the petitioner’s lawyer at her word?

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