You just never know what you might do with that MIT degree.
Of course, most of us are boring and end up doing conservative, sensible things with our expensive educations. Bryan and I met at MIT - him a computer science major and me a chemistry major. And, predictably, we are utilizing the skills we learned in college in our day jobs.
However, Ayr Muir, material science major ("Course 3" as MITers like to say) class of 2000 (SM '01), has decided to do something a little different.
After about a decade working a desk job, he decided to take the leap and follow his dreams. He opened up a vegetarian food truck in Kendall Square (right next to MIT). It was a hit.
About a year later, he finally opened up his first brick-and-mortar restaurant. Clover set foot in the ground in Harvard Square just this past year.
Of course, you wouldn't expect any less from an MIT grad than a place that tries to take advantage of the latest technology. Here, orders are taken on iPads right at the door.
The vibe is definitely very organic, natural, and granola. There are herb boxes throughout and even a large herb garden on the second level!
It took a little bit of time to get our food. One of the workers was nice enough to offer Bryan some free fries while he waited.
Many have raved about the rosemary fries ever since the truck opened in Kendall. I thought the fries were reasonably tasty, though not super crunchy. They did have a nice, natural potato flavor which I liked.
We tried two different sandwiches. Bryan got the chickpea fritter (sort of like their interpretation of a falafel), which is accompanied with pickled onions. I got the soy "BLT". Overall, the sandwiches were fresh, healthy, and pretty good. Of course, the soy BLT has nothing on a real BLT, but it's not horrible. The big, fat slice of heirloom tomato was very nice, and in general all the ingredients were fresh.
Bryan thought the chickpea fritter was only OK. Not being a huge fan of pickled onions, I would probably agree. I personally much prefer a really good traditional falafel.
Nevertheless, I really like the concept of Clover. It's got this funky, modern, cool vibe with an emphasis on organic, local, and sustainable foods. I think it's cool that a vegetarian restaurant can do so well - we need more places that serve healthy food at affordable prices!
Clover
7 Holyoke St
Cambridge, MA
02138
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