Table Talk

Just Launched: Chef Michael Leviton and partner Michael Krupp (the team behind the now-closed Persephone) unveiled their new Kendall Square restaurant, Area Four, late last month. The “oven-to-table” restaurant features two custom-built wood-burning ovens that fuel the dining room menu of rustic, family-style dishes (roasted mussels, Neapolitan-style pizzas). The adjoining coffee bar and bakery, meanwhile, offers pastries and breads (pictured at right) from pastry chef Katie Kimble, along with drip brews from experts like Barrington Coffee Roasters. “As I get older,” Leviton says, “I like things to be done in a simpler, more casual way. This will be a reflection of that.”

Next Up: Keep an eye on Kendall: Catalyst, the work of chef William Kovel and general manager Vincent Putiri (both formerly of Aujourd’hui), will open there later this summer as a home to French-influenced modern American cuisine. “It’s a natural evolution of the fine-dining experience, which is happening all over Boston,” Kovel tells us. That means specialties such as rotisserie roast lamb, homemade pastas, and — when the place starts serving lunch later this year — sandwiches.

Debut: Vito’s Tavern arrives in the North End, bringing a much-needed sports bar/lounge to the ’hood. Owner Damien DiPaola (Ristorante Damiano) says he’s combining old North End with new, blending Italian-American fare with pub grub such as burgers, wings, and draft beers for the game-day crowd.

Coming Soon: Since Ginger Park shuttered earlier this year, chef Patricia Yeo has been tinkering away at Om in Harvard Square and working on dishes for Moksa, an Asian-street-food concept opening in Central Square later this summer. The massive eatery will house a bar, a dining room, private event space, and a patio.