It was 10 years ago this week that we posted these three shots of the demolition of this space. It was soon to undergo a full build-out for a new, full service restaurant.

What restaurant, or restaurants (hint, hint) is it?

We’ll provide an answer later in the day.

Answer: Bambolina and Kokeshi

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Bambolina

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Where are you celebrating Festivus this year? Bambolina has their aluminum pole looking festive.

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A colorful Pie at Bambolina.

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Bambolina has a couple of new Specials to tempt your taste buds.

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This photo, taken a few years ago at Bambolina just may be the greatest non-food photo that we’ve ever posted.

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We must admit to more than a little confusion here. This beautiful deck at Bambolina was shut down by the Salem building inspector last week for not being within code. This after a review process by the city.

We will be looking into this.

UPDATE: It appears that the roof, or pergola is the issue. This feature was in the application submitted to the city during the application/slash review process.

UPDATE 2: We will be checking on the documentation submitted this year.

UPDATE 3: The plan approved by the Design Review Board (DRB) did not include the pergola (roof). Last week an amended design was submitted to the Salem Redevelopment Authority (SRA) that included the pergola. The SRA denied the amended application.

Salem, Massachusetts – City Government

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Bambolina has set a date of 12 March for this year’s Tuscan Pig Roast. Tickets can be purchased using the Eventbrite link below.

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Every day is a day to make the dough at Bambolina.

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Four pies ready to eat at Bambolina.

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This Bambolina Sausage Pie was dinner for #BlueEyes the other night.

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Fresh house-made Focaccia is on the weekend Brunch menu at Bambolina.

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#WeddingPlanner continues her dynamic, non-stop exploration of the Salem restaurant scene. Last week it was the Around The Adriatic Sea Wine Dinner at Bambolina.

Chef Haigh and his team were on their game and prepared some lovely, and surely delicious plates for the guests.

Scroll the photos and then plan your Monday night meal whether it be at home, or at a local spot.

https://www.bambolinarestaurant.com/

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We hear a few tickets for this event at Bambolina may still be available.

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Bambolina has a special ticketed event coming upon 13 April.

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Weekend Brunch is a thing nowadays at Bambolina. It features a small, but very nice menu with the expected flair of Bambolina small twists and unexpected turns.

The first twist was seeing Chef Todd come out of the kitchen to say hello. It’s always good to know that the kitchen is properly led. Another pleasant surprise was the modest selection of Harney & Sons Fine Teas included a Japanese Sencha Tea.

Chef Todd knows that #TheBaldOne is crazy for breakfast hash, so he recommended the house Pastrami Hash with poached eggs. The eggs were poached perfectly, and yes you do see a third egg in the mix as was requested. The Pastrami Hash? Oh my. It’s a generous portion with potatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and chili oil served with a proper surface char. There lots of very flavorful shredded pastrami. There is no spicy heat per say, but there is a nice savory touch to every bite.

The #BaconTwins sat nearby. A very fancy Latte, Pastrami Benedict, and a Shakshuka were served. The Hollandaise presented with a nice balance of lemon and butter. As for the Shakshuka, a Maghrebi dish of eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, olive oil, peppers, onion and garlic, commonly spiced with cumin, paprika and cayenne pepper, this is only the second time we’ve ever seen a version of this dish served in Salem. This one was made with fried eggs, roasted pork belly, marinated farmers cheese and fresh Focaccia. Everything was enjoyed across the board.

Check out the Bambolina Weekend Brunch this coming weekend. You can see menu from this past weekend in the last photo.

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Sunday Brunch at Bambolina?

Yes you can brunch at Bambolina on Saturdays and Sundays. We’ll let you know what we think a little later.

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We’ve been hearing rumors of a Fresh Caught Sea Bass Ceviche being served at Bambolina. This would fit well with another rumor that Bambolina is home to one of Salem’s legendary piscators.

“Try the Caesar Salad. It’s the best in the City” we were told by #VirgilSollozzo, also known as the “Turk” and rumored to be very good with a fork and knife.

https://www.bambolinarestaurant.com/

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#WalksWithFritz dropped into Bambolina the other day with his daughter for a little lunch.

We could go into great detail on this meal, but what we were told is quite succinct. “Still the best pizza in town.”

https://www.bambolinarestaurant.com/

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A pie on the front patio at Bambolina. Goat cheese, globe artichokes, pickled cauliflower, Calabrian Chili, roquette, and lemon are the toppings.

EDITORS COMMENT: A confession. We had to take a short trip in the google machine to find out what in the heck is roquette . How embarrassing. Roquette (Eruca vesicaria), also known as eruca, garden rocket, colewart, and rucoli, is more commonly known as arugula.

That #FishingBrit got us good.

https://www.bambolinarestaurant.com/

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