How to Get to Coolidge Corner

Coolidge Corner is in Brookline and is easy to get to via T. Just hop on any green line C-train and get off at the Coolidge Corner stop (duh).

If you’re walking or driving you can head straight down Beacon Street; Coolidge Corner is about 1 mile from Kenmore.

My main obsession in Coolidge Corner is the independent bookstore, Brookline Booksmith.

In the days of Barnes and Noble (one of which is practically right next door to the Booksmith) and Amazon.com, it can be hard for any independent bookstore to survive. But the Booksmith has it down by creating a warm, friendly environment, complete with tons of bargain books and a great gift selection too.

The downstairs of the store is filled with super cheap used books and video rentals.

As if the books weren’t enough, the store has amazing guests ALL THE TIME. In May alone, I’m looking forward to seeing Barbara Walters, Alice Hoffman, Chris Bohjalian, and Franz Wright. I’ll probably pass on James Frey…people still buy his books?? 

I’m in Trader Joe’s so much, I’m kind of surprised they don’t know my name. Then again, judging by the amount of people always in the store, I think lots of people are pretty obsessed.

They have 3 buck chuck here, what else do you need?

Party Favors

Party Favors has everything you could possibly need to throw a party. BUT none of that will matter when you walk inside. Because the second you enter the door, you’ll smell the baked goods and all you’ll want to do is eat cupcakes. And rightfully so. They are the best cupcakes I’ve had anywhere. Ever. And trust me, I’ve eaten a lot of cupcakes!

The staff never seems to be happy and I can’t figure out why. How can you not be happy to be surrounded by cakes, pastries, fudge, and cupcakes? Unless you’re on a diet. Yup, that must be it.

This place is literally the size of a closet and only about 2 customers can fit in the shop at once. The menu is huge and has almost any type of sub or sandwich you could imagine.

Cause to Paws

For all your doggy and kitty needs, whether your pet needs a new outfit or some fun toys.

I love this place for it’s gourmet bakery. And my aunt and uncle’s dogs love the brownies and peanut butter cookies…all safe for pets, of course.

I go to Vintage whenever I want to buy a nice, but not too expensive piece of jewelry for someone.

I’ve lived in Coolidge Corner for 3 years and just now discovered this place. And I’m obsessed! It’s literally 4 doors down from my apt. and is packed full of groceries including fresh and cheap produce and tons of wine and liquor.

This Russian grocery store also has a huge deli and prepared food, including grape leaves! I’ve never seen so much candy in my life, though I don’t know what half of it is.

I think this might be my new go-to grocery.

Paris Creperie

I joke that I could spend the whole day here eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert, but it’s really not a joke. Because I would LOVE to.

Breakfast would be an egg, bacon, and cheese crepe. Lunch would be a Greek crepe. Dinner would be a chicken parmigiana crepe. And dessert would be a lemon and sugar crepe. Or maybe a crepe with Nutella. OK, maybe I’d get two desserts.

Paris Creperie also has fabulous flavored coffees and smoothies, including a frozen hot chocolate made with Nutella.

Other GuideSpot Boston Neighborhood Guides

I’m pretty much working to pay the rent in my Coolidge Corner apartment, but if I had any money to spare, you better believe I would be shopping at Mint Julep all the time.

This shop is adorable and has some of my favorite designers, including Nanette Lepore, Shoshanna, Splendid, Ella Moss, and Kensie.

I try not to look in the window as I walk by because I know I’ll want to go in and buy everything. Some day. Some day.

This restaurant is so huge you might get lost. The menu’s also large and the sushi is amazing. I’ve only been here a couple times since if you don’t have a reservation, chances are you won’t get in.

The Coolidge Corner Theatre is New England’s most successful independent, not-for-profit movie theater, and it’s one of my favorite parts about living in Coolidge Corner.

You’re not going to find your mainstream best-selling movies here, but you will have the opportunity to see independent and foreign films. I recently saw The Counterfeiters, which won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film in 2008 and it was one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. Where else would I get the opportunity to see this movie?

Oh, and I’m still trying to convince my friends to go to one of the R Kelly or Michael Jackson singalongs the theater holds from time to time. Come on, you can’t tell me that wouldn’t be a blast!

Zaftigs’ motto is “Let us be your Jewish mother.” I’m not Jewish and therefore don’t have a Jewish mother, so I’m all about letting Zaftigs be mine, especially because she’s an amazingly good cook.

The menu here is huge with everything from grilled cheese (the best around, made with challa bread!) to gefilte fish (which I haven’t yet tried). The pastrami sandwich is huge and delicious and the turkey pot pie is one of my favorites. And Zaftigs serves breakfast all day!

A really cute gift shop that I only really go into when my mom is visiting. Or when I need to get my mom a present. But every time I do go in, I end up spending an hour just wandering around. They have lots of beautiful plates, glasswear, jewelry, and more.

They also have tons of Webkinz if you’re interested. I had no idea what a Webkinz was until my mom explained it to me, which made me feel really old.

One of the only downsides to Coolidge Corner is that there aren’t a whole lot of bars in the area. But Coolidge Corner Clubhouse (known as CCC) works just fine for me.

The bar has lots of beers on tap and a crowd can be found here any night of the week, especially when there’s some sort of game here.

The food is pretty good too. You MUST get the nachos. A half order is the biggest plate of nachos I’ve ever seen, so beware. The boys who lived upstairs in my apartment building once challenged me and 3 of my friends to eat an entire full order of CCC nachos. We did it. But that was all I ate for dinner and I don’t think I’ve ever been so full in my life. Not to mention, I didn’t eat nachos for a long, long time after that!

For all my crafting and pretty paper needs.

But my favorite thing about Paper Source is their slogan- “Do something creative everyday!”

If you haven’t heard of Upper Crust pizza, you probably will soon. It started here in Coolidge Corner, but now locations are opening up all over Massachusetts and beyond.

If you get delivery, they’ll bring it over to you on a bike!