entering natick sign

entering natick sign

Natick Report

More than you really want to know about Natick, Mass.

  • Subscribe to daily email
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Eat
  • Schools
  • Summer Camp
  • Letters to the editor
  • Guidelines for letters to the editor
  • Redhawks sports schedule & results
  • Embracing diversity
  • Charities/Community
  • Arts
  • Events
  • Kids
  • Business
  • Environment
  • Top 10 things to do
  • The Swellesley Report
  • Beyond Natick
  • History
  • Government
  • Seniors
  • Support independent journalism
  • Natick Nest articles
  • Fire & police scanner
  • Town Election 2023


Save the date: Maple Magic pancake breakfast at Natick Organic Farm, March 4

February 2, 2023 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

Don’t miss the Natick Community Organic Farm‘s Maple Magic Pancake Breakfast on Saturday, March 4, 8am-10am, at the Memorial Elementary School cafeteria, 107 Eliot St., Natick.

Load up on all you can eat pancakes with all the fixins, and plenty of real, local maple syrup made from sap collected from area maple trees and boiled down in the farm’s sugar shack. Vegan and gluten free options will be available.

There will be live music, a raffle, and more.

Members $10/adults, $5 child under 12. Non-members $12/adult, $6 child under 12.

Natick Community Organic Farm, sap buckets

 

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

Take a sweet tour

Freezing nights in the 20s and warm days in the 40s trigger the sugar maple sap run, which starts the farm’s sugaring season. Learn the science and history of “sugaring” during tours at the NCOF that start Feb. 11 and run through March 11.

Visitors will learn Indigenous people and Colonist historical techniques for making maple sugar. Learn about tree identification, qualities of sap and syrup, how to tap, and more at the farm’s outdoor displays and tapped trees. If the weather’s just right, tour groups will watch sap dripping into buckets and boiling in the sugar shack.

Even though Mother Nature can’t guarantee the sap run (and boiling) on any given day, tours are still interesting and fun, and offer visitors a fascinating view of this enduring New England tradition.

Tours are one hour long and are open to the public for a $10 fee per person. Babes in carriers are free.


  • Never miss a story. Subscribe to our Natick Report daily email
  • Please send tips, photos, ideas to natickreport@gmail.com
  • Support our independent journalism venture

Filed Under: Education, Environment, Food, Outdoors, Weather



Business buzz: Natick native boosts Leonard Nimoy statue fund; Cupcakes galore; PuroClean opens shop

January 20, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The latest Natick, Mass., business news:

Natick native boosts Leonard Nimoy statue fund

Rich Miner, who grew up in Natick and went on to co-found the firm that created Android software, has reportedly put a six figure donation into the fund to built a Vulcan salute statue at the Museum of Science in Boston in honor of actor Leonard Nimoy.

According to Axios, “Miner told Axios that he has fond memories of growing up a young geek in Natick, Massachusetts, watching reruns of every episode of the original TV show.”

The sculpture is being crafted by local artist David Phillips.

vulcan salute

 

Cupcakes galore

We visited Maine Girl Cupcakes across from Natick Common to see what all the fuss is about. The cute interior has two display cases of cupcakes and just enough room behind the counter for owner Kristen Littlefield and an assistant to move in concert as they serve customers. I joined the line of five cupcake connoisseurs who had beaten me to the 13 S. Main St. storefront. (Fans are aware that Littlefield’s cupcakes often sell out early).

Maine Girl Cupcakes

High-end ingredients in every one of the made-from-scratch goodies are what drive the business’ success.  “People keep telling me this is just what Natick needed,” Littlefield said.

We brought home a half dozen, and they disappeared, fast. High marks for The Camper (chocolate cupcake with marshmallow buttercream and graham cracker crumbs, and The Cheesecake (vanilla cupcake with strawberry filling, cream cheese buttercream, and graham cracker crumbs).

Maine Girl Cupcakes
13 S. Main St., Natick, MA
Hours: closed Sunday, Monday & Tuesday; Wednesday, noon-6pm; Thursday, noon-6pm; Friday, noon-6pm; Saturday, 10am-4pm


PuroClean opens shop

nigel

PuroClean, a property restoration and remediation business, has opened a location in Natick at 841 Worcester St., suite 334.

The franchise is owned by Nigel Belgrave, who also owns PuroClean of Auburn, which has been open since 2015.

Belgrave is a US Air Force veteran, where he served as a medic. He also has a management background in banking, call centers, and small business.

Belgrave and his team actually have been serving the Natick area for a while and wanted to be able to provide faster service by locating here.

PuroClean has a network of more than 400 offices.


Reach our growing Natick Report audience by sponsoring our site.

Filed Under: Business, Food



Natick Community Organic Farm looks to break ground on barn in spring, shares annual update

January 19, 2023 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

Natick Community Organic Farm this week held its annual meeting online and shared a summary of the past year and a look ahead, which if all goes well will include a barn raising. The farm had planned to break ground in the fall, but you know how construction projects go these days…now plans are to prep the site this month and raise the timber this spring.

Other goals for this year include boosting organic produce production to satisfy Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) demand. More fresh meat (chicken) offerings is also in the works.

Education programs account for the farm’s biggest chunk of income, so look for more adult education workshops in 2023, plus a pilot of weekend family programs.

Farm employees and volunteers are especially enthusiastic about bringing back a full slate of in-person events this year. Maple Magic, which includes a pancake breakfast and maple sugaring tours, is slated for March 4.

 

 

Filed Under: Animals, Community, Food, Gardens

A winter walk around the Natick Community Organic Farm

December 29, 2022 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

After a sedentary holiday season marked by multiple multi-course meals, we needed to get outside and spend some time in the bracing cold. During a contemplative walk at the Natick Community Organic Farm, we counted up the number of cookies we ate over the past few weeks and multiplied that by the number of Hallmark movies we’d watched. That equation added up to a wake-up call. Time to get back on the righteous path of healthy living. We’re now ready to step away from the wassail.

Here are some pics of our visit.

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

 

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

 

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

 

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

Natick Community Organic Farm, Natick

An update on the barn rebuild

Early in the morning of March 17, 2021 the Natick Community Organic Farm’s 200+ year-old barn burned to the ground. (You can see our story on the fire here.)

Since the event, the farm has been working to raise $1.1 million for a new barn with a state-of-the-art attached greenhouse.

According the the NCOF website, “Our architects have submitted designs, and as of September 2022, we have the permits in hand to begin building.”

Filed Under: Animals, Construction, Food, Outdoors

Natick business buzz: Fair & Yeager quietly exits prime downtown space for Needham; Maine Girl Cupcakes coming to town; Agostino’s for lunch; Shopper’s Find closing

November 30, 2022 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The latest Natick, Mass., business news:

Natick mainstay Fair & Yeager exits prime downtown space for Needham

Sure, Fair & Yeager is an insurance agency, not a flashy business. But for a multigenerational family operation whose long history has been so intertwined with Natick and whose location on Main Street is so prominent, the agency’s departure for Needham in recent weeks has seemed far too quiet.

Customers have begun receiving letters in the mail from Fair & Yeager leader Arthur Fair announcing the firm’s departure from its Natick base and reassuring with the usual benefits touted by firms involved in mergers. In its case, Fair & Yeager has melded with the oh-so-generic-sounding Provider Group. In the murky world of insurance, Fair & Yeager is also listed as a Cross Insurance subsidiary.

Other than that letter, there’s just a simple sign on the door at 10 Main St., letting customers know their account managers haven’t changed and that they’ll need to go 7 miles away to visit the new office. You’d never know a thing had changed inside 10 Main St., based on the fresh, festive holiday greens accentuating the white-and-brick office building exterior, nor by looking at the agency’s website or social media as of this posting.

That simple sign on the door pales, of course, below the distinctive gold-embossed lettering of “Fair & Yeager Insurance” that conveys the sort of class and tradition that gives downtown Natick its feel. The agency has been in that building since 1968 and has roots going all the way back to 1898.

A rich local history

A timeline on the Fair & Yeager website tells of a company that began near the end of the 19th century as F.E. Yeager. The Fair & Yeager partnership was established in the 1940s, with the Fairs getting their start at the original firm in 1914 in the person of Natick High senior Arthur Fair.

The agency, which resided at 32 Main St. before moving to 10 Main St., grew via acquisitions over the years. Fair after Fair family member joined the business and contributed to its growth.

Fair & Yeager celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1998. It was honored at Family Day on Natick Common and at the July 4th parade. The agency issued $500 grants to each school in Natick, according to its timeline.

The firm has been known as a strong community supporter throughout its run, with Arthur Fair III leading the way in recent years through his role with Natick Center Associates and the Natick Center Cultural District, which will now carry on without Fair & Yeager in the middle of it.

Fair & Yeager


Maine Girl Cupcakes coming to town

Maine-Girl-Cupcakes-logo-alt

The Marlborough-based business, which offers more than 100 flavors, says its cupcakes are made from scratch and baked to order. Concoctions include Pretty Pistachio, Two Lights Tiramisu, and Monkey Doodle.

A dozen cupcakes through the home-based business go for $36, though we’ll have to see what the pricing is at the storefront, located at 13 South Main St. between Sweetwaters and the Bagel Table.

maine girl cupcakes

 


Agostino’s for lunch

This isn’t so much news, as just a quick recap of our recent visit to Agostino’s Italian Restaurant in Natick Center for lunch on a Thursday afternoon, pre-holidays.


Interested in sponsoring our high ranking Natick Restaurants page? Learn more here about Advertising on Natick Report.


Before entering the restaurant, which neighbors the hole-in-the-ground that will soon become a residential and retail development dubbed The Flats which took note of a festive display out front as well as a “Help Wanted” sign on the door. Indeed, our server was busy, even with a moderate number of customers (the bar area was more crowded than the main restaurant section).

agostino's

We introduced the restaurant to our friend Alice, who runs the Lincoln Squirrel, an independent local news site like ours in Lincoln, Mass. She was surprised at the generous size of the $8 bruchetta ordered as an appetizer, and we wound up taking a good chunk of it home.

We all enjoyed our meals. I went with the seafood cannelloni, which translates into rolls of pasta stuffed with scallops, shrimp, lobster and ricotta. A sweet dish, kind of wanted more, but it was rich, so probably best off with the portion served.

agostino's

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Natick Report (@natickreport)

Shopper’s Find closing

Shopper’s Find, the hodgepodge store that temporarily replaced Lord & Taylor at the Mall before that space presumably goes the bio lab route, has announced it is closing all 3 of its locations.


Natick Report ad

Filed Under: Business, Food, Restaurants

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 11
  • Next Page »

Tip us off!

Please send tips, photos, ideas to natickreport@gmail.com

Advertisements

Categories

  • Animals
  • Art
  • Bacon Free Library
  • Beyond Natick
  • Books
  • Boston Marathon
  • Business
  • Camps
  • Charity/Fundraising
  • Charles River dam
  • Community
  • Construction
  • COVID-19
  • Education
  • Election
  • Embracing diversity
  • Entertainment
  • Environment
  • Fashion
  • Firefighters
  • Food
  • Gardens
  • Government
  • Health
  • History
  • Holidays
  • Kids
  • Letters to the editor
  • Media
  • Military
  • Morse Institute Library
  • Music
  • Natick Election 2022
  • Natick Historical Society
  • Natick History Museum
  • Natick Nest
  • Natick track
  • Neighbors
  • Obituaries & remembrances
  • Opinion
  • Outdoors
  • Parents
  • Police & crime
  • Real estate
  • Recycling Center
  • Religion
  • Restaurants
  • Schools
  • Seniors
  • Shopping
  • Sports
  • Technology
  • Theater
  • Town election 2021
  • Town Election 2023
  • Transportation
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Vacation
  • Veterans
  • Volunteering
  • Voting
  • Weather
lion publishers
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Get our email newsletter

* indicates required

Most Read Posts

  • Natick Public Schools Supt. Anna Nolin a finalist for Newton's top school job
  • Sign up now for summer camp in Natick (and beyond)
  • Natick presents its 'rebalancing year' budget
  • A Natick cycling story, of sorts
  • Natick Fire Dept. offering free CPR classes

Click image to read The Swellesley Report

The Swellesley Report

Upcoming Events

Feb 26
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Natick Historical Society annual meeting (online)

Feb 27
1:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Knock on Wood, acoustic folk-rock duo

Mar 3
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Mini Golf After Dark at Morse Institute Library

Mar 4
9:00 am - 4:30 pm

Mini golf at Morse Institute Library (free family fun day)

View Calendar

Pages

  • Bacon Free Library in Natick, hours for winter 2023
  • Comment Policy
  • Guidelines for Natick Report letters to the editor
  • Letters to the editor on Natick Report
  • Morse Institute Library in Natick—hours for winter 2023
  • Natick election 2023—guidelines for promoting candidates and ballot questions
  • Natick, Massachusetts libraries
  • Resources for seniors in Natick, Mass.
  • Natick Report corrections policy
  • Scenic Roads in Natick
  • Where to stay in Natick, Mass. (hotels, inns)
  • Private Schools in Natick (and beyond)
  • Natick Summer Camps (and beyond)
  • Where to eat in Natick, Mass: more that 70 dining options
  • Natick, Mass., history
  • Natick government
  • Natick No-Nos
  • Embracing diversity in Natick
  • Where to worship in Natick
  • Kid stuff (sports, clubs, activities in Natick, Mass.)
  • Contribute to Natick Report
  • Natick Little Free Libraries
  • Natick public schools
  • Where to sled in Natick, Mass.
  • Natick COVID-19 & vaccine news
  • Natick’s zip code & post offices
  • Natick charitable and community action groups
  • Top 10 things to do in Natick, Mass.
  • Natick Arts/Entertainment
  • About Natick Report
  • Advertise on Natick Report
  • Natick rules: Chickens yes, roosters no
  • Natick Election 2022, political candidates advertising
  • Natick election 2022—candidate interviews

© 2023 Natick Report
Site by Tech-Tamer · Login