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Kendall Square is getting a splashy new dining destination with the debut of Alice & Monarch, a two-in-one restaurant concept from the team behind Source.
Opening tomorrow, May 8, at 238 Main Street in Cambridge, the ambitious new project combines two dramatically different experiences under one roof: Alice, a modern Italian-Mediterranean taverna upstairs, and Monarch, a hidden dessert speakeasy and cocktail lounge below street level.
Located next to the recently opened Eastern Edge Food Hall, the venue aims to bring a more theatrical style of dining to one of Boston’s fastest-growing food neighborhoods.
The upstairs restaurant, Alice, is designed as a warm, bustling taverna centered around handmade pastas, seasonal vegetables, salumi and Mediterranean-inspired small plates. The 110-seat dining room takes its name from owner Daniel Roughan’s great-grandmother, and Roughan says the restaurant is meant to channel the feeling of an inviting family gathering rather than a formal fine-dining experience.
“Alice is deeply personal to me,” Roughan said in a statement. “Everything about it — from the warmth of the space to the menu — is meant to feel like coming home."
That's not quite the vibe downstairs at Monarch, where, as Roughan said, "we let our creativity stretch a bit further. It’s more playful, more intimate, and gives us a chance to surprise people.”
And what could be more surprising than a hidden dessert speakeasy accessed through a tucked-away corridor? Monarch seats 85 guests across a lounge, cocktail bar and private dining room. While the drinks program leans playful and experimental, the dessert menu may be the biggest draw. Executive chef and partner Brian Kevorkian—whose résumé includes stints at Eleven Madison Park, The Modern and Gary Danko—pushes the space into more conceptual territory.
Among the standout dishes: a bread ice cream affogato, a baked Alaska made with English pea ice cream and kaffir lime, and “The Atom,” a science-inspired dessert nod to Monarch's MIT neighbor.
Kevorkian says the dual concepts reflect two sides of the same philosophy: comfort and creativity. “Alice is about honoring classic flavors and executing them at the highest level,” he said in a statement, “while Monarch allows us to push boundaries—especially with desserts.”
Roughan, who previously worked with The Varano Group and helped oversee the opening of Fratelli at Encore Boston Harbor before launching Source in 2020, described Alice & Monarch as the team’s most ambitious project yet.
And in a neighborhood ever-expanding with tech workers and luxury apartment buildings, the concept seems designed to offer a full-night destination: dinner upstairs, cocktails and desserts downstairs, and maybe the feeling that Kendall Square is finally getting a nightlife scene to match its daytime energy.
Alice is open Monday–Thursday, 11am–10pm; Friday, 11am–11pm; Saturday, 10am–11pm; and Sunday, 10am–9pm. Monarch is open Tuesday–Saturday, 5pm–2am. For more information, visit aliceandmonarch.com