There’s several good reasons to visit Grendel’s Den, a Harvard Square institution celebrating its 50th year. One is that the boho eatery won a Supreme Court case in 1982 that could become the precedent to flip the recent Texas abortion ban.

Porter Square is looking suddenly like a bubble tea hot spot. After years with the only options being inside Lesley University’s building or as part of a sit-down meal, a former kids art studio has been cleared out to make room for what could be the area’s third storefront boba tea seller.

With the high-tech firms and pharmaceutical companies that now dominate the landscape in Kendall Square and other parts of Cambridge, it’s hard to image that 50 years ago candy was king here.

Folks, you really need to hear this: Things are not good. The restaurant industry is in shambles, severely understaffed and doing a fraction of its typical sales. That’s why the federal government’s Restaurant Relief Fund needs to be refunded – and go to more than 30 percent of eligible businesses.

Public meetings this week look at a cannabis head start extension, forming a racial justice committee, security deposit reform, tree infrastructure; using school district relief funds and hiring a School Committee executive secretary; and recreational pot near Fresh Pond.

The team behind Highland Fried, the Inman Square purveyor of barbecue, fried chicken and tiki drinks, said Wednesday that it was “pressing the pause button” with an eye on the Covid-19 delta variant and closing to figure out its next move.

Labor Day has passed, but there’s still an end-of-summer vibe in the air that can be savored with the spicy lobster salad at Hooked Fish Shop; grilling with meatless burgers from Whole Foods; and discovering the fine wines of Bonde in Harvard Square.

Dumpling House, the sister outpost to the wildly popular Gourmet Dumpling House in Chinatown, also has a lunch menu with solid offerings that are good deals for the dollar. But why bother? The only real question for a visit is: plain pork soup dumplings, or the crab and pork version?

Spicies closed this week without notice after serving Thai food in Harvard Square since December 1999.

Anna’s Taqueria has closed its Massachusetts Institute of Technology location permanently, and not by choice, the owner said.