Clover Food Lab Launches Yet Another Truck, New Brick-and-Mortar Locale in the Works

Clover's chickpea fritter pita sandwiches are taking over the Boston area. (Photo by Leah Mennies)

It’s a tough economic climate to open a single restaurant right now, let alone several. Impressively, the Clover Food Lab formula appears to be recession-proof: offer meat-free fare, smartly source ingredients and keep everything under five bucks. It’s a business plan that’s allowed them to launch yet another truck two weeks ago, in the Longwood Medical Area.

The Longwood truck marks the fifth (!!) to debut in the Boston/Cambridge area, with a BU location also recently joining ones in Government Center, Dewey Square and MIT. Clover is expanding on the brick-and-mortar front as well, owner Ayr Muir tells Chowder, with a second location in Inman Square that will accompany the one in Harvard Square. Called “Clover HUB,” the new spot will serve as the headquarters of the operation, featuring a small restaurant and a massive kitchen that will service the trucks as well. Muir sees the large location functioning as an event space as well, and he’s working with several local farms to make the location a pick-up spot for CSA produce.

While he’s mum on a specific opening date, Muir says that Clover HUB is “weeks away” from an opening. And he’s not slowing down: “we have a whole bunch of stuff in the works for next year,” he says. Sounds promising.

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