10 New Venues in Boston for Summer 2022 Meetings and Events

Boasting rustic Mediterranean design and filled with Portuguese art, Blue Iris is a new 12-key hotel on Nantucket. Filled with lush greenery and Mediterranean design, it features a 550-square-foot patio that accommodates 18 seated guests in several formations, including a large built-in bench, a small sectional, and a four-person fire pit. Blue Iris opened in June.

Located on the ground floor of the Hyatt Centric Faneuil Hall Boston in downtown Boston, Bar Cicchetti is an Italian restaurant that opened in May. Featuring seasonally inspired dishes that include elevated takes on comfort food classics, Bar Cicchetti is just steps to both Faneuil Hall and the Financial District. The 1,800-square-foot space can accommodate 60 seated guests or 120 for a cocktail-style event. There is a TV mounted behind the bar that can be used during private events.

Since opening in April, The Mercantile has become a popular spot for private events in Worcester. The two-floor restaurant and bar, which measures 13,000 square feet, has two spaces that can be used for private events. They include the 4,000-square-foot first floor and a 1,000-square-foot space upstairs. The first floor features a 66-seat dining room, a 50-seat lounge, and 55 bar seats. On the second floor, there is a 66-seat main dining room/event space and a combination lounge and patio with 104 seats. The patio can also be used alone, accommodating 78 seated guests. The Mercantile has full AV capabilities and is located next to the DCU Center and minutes from Polar Park.

Tucked away in Back Bay, Hecate opened in April. The 24-seat cocktail bar, which measures 400 square feet, is a subterranean space that celebrates the underworld. Encapsulated in stone, it’s adorned with a single source of light alongside the flickering elements of fire. The beverage offerings play off the same theme, with a menu that includes Rites + Rituals (10 signature cocktails), Dry Spells (three nonalcoholic beverages), and Fermented Grains (three beers, three Greek wines). They also serve bar snacks. Hecate has full AV capabilities and can accommodate as many as 30 for a private event.

Located just around the corner from the Faraway Hotel, Federal Suite, previously known as Bosun's Locker, is a three-bedroom private home that provides the same luxury accommodations as the nearby hotel. A beautifully crafted Nantucket retreat, it has its own private entrance and two well-appointed living spaces for the perfect island getaway. There are two living rooms that measure 300 and 400 square feet, respectively. While the property sleeps six, it can accommodate as many as 20 for a cocktail party. The property features an 800-square-foot back patio. Federal Suite opened in June 2022.

Serving up elegant Greek cuisine, TRADE welcomed its new outdoor patio in June. The patio is tucked along bustling Atlantic Avenue behind table-height plants and large umbrellas overlooking the Rose Kennedy Greenway. Measuring 780 square feet, the space accommodates 55 seated guests with four-top and two-top seating options. TRADE is available for full or partial buyouts.

Located in a picturesque 19th-century mill building in Franklin, Proof at GlenPharmer Distillery is a 7,000-square-foot private event space above their award-winning distillery. Accommodating events for as many as 175 seated guests or more for a cocktail-style event, Proof is an industrial-chic event space equipped with a 34-foot, copper-topped bar serving the distillery’s array of spirits including vodka, gin, rum, “GlenQuila®,” and whiskeys. Full catering services can be provided from the on-site Tasting Room and Restaurant helmed by Chef Eric Zediker. An outdoor patio and covered bridge are also available for in-season use. Proof has full AV capabilities.

Featuring 22,000 square feet of workspace, Workbar Woburn is set to open in July. The suburban space, which has free parking, can accommodate events of all types just nine miles outside of Boston. Options range from smaller 150-square-foot spaces that accommodate five people to 5,000-square-foot spaces with a capacity of 150. Workbar Woburn will have a variety of AV capabilities, including Airtames, Owls, drop-down screens, projectors, and microphones.

The recently renovated Bully Boy Distillers Cocktail Garden, which reopened in late May, is a unique space highlighting the local spirits company. The garden can accommodate small groups of as many as 30 guests for a semi-private section, while larger groups of as many as 70 can do a full buyout that combines seated and standing space. The approximately 1,700-square-foot Garden’s summer 2022 menu features a frozen cocktail machine, Grapefruit Spritz, Italian Iced Tea buckets, and pitchers of rotating draft cocktails. Guests can bring their own food or visit one of the occasional food trucks that stop by. A Bluetooth speaker can be provided.

Located in the bustling western Massachusetts city of Northampton, The Source+ offers more than 39 strains of cannabis and a wide selection of brands. Their items include a variety of edibles, concentrates, tinctures, and other cannabis products. The 5,280-square-foot venue can host private tasting events on their 500-square-foot patio and are awaiting exact event capacities from the city. The Source+ opened in April.