On the corner of Union Street and Langley Road you’ll find Baramor, a lively bar with more to offer than just cocktails and dinner.
“This opportunity kind of presented itself,” said Arpit Patel, Baramor’s owner. He was able to purchase the space for the restaurant and bar just as the previous business was ending its lease and opened the restaurant in 2019.
Patel came into the business from outside the service industry. After working in asset management out of college, he wanted to find a way he could work for himself while serving his community. During a brainstorming session, he came up with the idea of opening a bar and community space.
“The inspiration for the name was actually a bar and more,” said Patel, “and the more aspect kind of came from, what more are we doing? Which is all the community involvement and the charitable contributions and events we do.”
Outside of offering a wide range of cocktails, appetizers and entrees Baramor also has a “The Pull for Charity” draught line. Each pour of a rotation of draft beers donates three dollars to various local charities including the Newton Food Pantry, the New England Hemophilia Association and Mind Matters Boston.
His other business, Oak N’ Barrel, donates 10 percent of proceeds from a rotating selection of spirits, wine and beer displayed in the front of the store.
Starting a business without direct hospitality experience was not without its challenges for Patel.
Shortly after opening COVID hit, and the restaurant industry was in flux. Many establishments adopted a takeout only model, but still struggled to keep their doors open due to already razor thin profit margins in the industry. Baramor opted to close its doors temporarily during the pandemic.
After the state lifted zoning restrictions to allow towns to create outdoor dining areas for restaurants, Patel and other local restaurants advocated for outdoor dining while serving as the chair of the Charles River Chamber of Commerce’s Dining Collaborative. The city approved the ordinance, and it has since been made permanent.
The challenges that he experienced with COVID showed him the importance of giving back to your community when running a local business.
“Having each other’s backs and raising awareness for each other is very critical because the pandemic proved that in tough times it’s your local community that has your back.”
Keeping with this effort to give back, Baramor has created “Barkamor,” a dog-friendly pop-up on the restaurant’s patio supporting the local non-profit Jr Paws for a Cause.
For Patel, this focus on charitable acts and community events has a clear goal: Raising awareness. By creating vibrant and civic-minded community spaces like Baramor and Oak N’ Barrel, he hopes they can use their reach to bring light to essential causes that affect their community.