Harvard Square

Jolie place, parfait pour faire ses emplettes souvenir lorsque l’on va visiter Harvard ou juste pour flâner/​prendre un café,…

The highlights of the Harvard square are the great offering of museums, Santouka, Shake Shack, Panera Bread, Starbucks…
The parking situation has been truly challenging. I may take the commuter MBTA rail next time…

Harvard t station:
With sturdy poles, red walls, a pleasant marijuana fragrance, and a nice selection of traffic cones, one would think this t stop was the cream of the crop. However, questionable customer service brought this down a few stars, along with loud train noises. One saving grace was the nice man with whom we had a conversation. He seemed like a great individual: an up-​and-​coming chef and pre-​law major with credentials including attending bc, northwestern, Isaiah davis, and le courdon blue. To top it all off, he was asking us for money and even pointed that he had a gun to gain our trust before he got up and followed a police officer who was walking by.

If you’re a teen of any age it seems this is the place to hangout. There is so much going on in this area, a few touristy street vendors, and lots of shops to check out. During high volume times of the day it can definitely get overcrowed and slightly claustrophobic going to and from the train. It would appear that during these times of the day it is a necessity to stand, sit or lie down in the most trafficked areas as to cause the highest disruption to the flow as possible. Navigating people aside the shops and restaurants in this area are a lot of fun. And if you’d rather not deal with getting back on the train, walking to the next stop is so much more enjoyable. The scenery is lovely, the walk is calming and you’ll arrive at your destination less stressed.

OMG… Star = –1000 the manager is just RUDE, ALOOF, and does not care. I bought a pair of shoes and it went bad after a month!!! It clicks when I walk. The manager said it was defected but she shrug her shoulder and walked away… I call the corporate office, and they are worse… he have the Teflon effect… did not take any ownership of anything. I will NEVER buy Puma again, and I don’t recommend their brand at ALL!!! Here is a copy of the response!
Dear Sir,
Thank you for contacting PUMA!
We are sorry to hear that you are dissatisfied with your product. After further review we have determined that the issue you are seeing with your product is not a result of any defect in the material or workmanship.
Unfortunately we will not be able to provide you with a coupon code for the product in question. We apologize for any inconvenience that this has caused.

Sincerely,
Michael
PUMA Customer Service
1−888−565-PUMA

Plenty of eating choices.

This was so cool! the small town feel was great and they have many small shops and restaurants and lots of metered parking (good luck finding an empty one though). A lot of places have outdoor seating which was also great.

Chill, slightly hipster, cool shops, expensive stores, eateries, ice cream, bookstores, Chameleon Tattoo shop, Newbury Comics, Tasty Burger, countless coffee shops, outdoor benches, Urban Outfitters, snobby people, down to earth people, trust fund kids, grateful students, black, white, yellow, purple, green, Insomnia Cookies, bars, hotel, people crossing the street without looking both ways, live music, Pinkberry, CVS, Hahhvard yard, Chipotle, public transportation, idiots, tourists, panhandlers, dogs, eyebrow threading, The Garage, vegetarian food, spas, fast-​ass kids that should be in the library, culture, lively, men that should be at home with their wives, cafes, art, souvenirs… in the heart of Cambridge.
That pretty much sums it up.
Great place.

Harvard Square is a cool spot just to kick back and chill. There are often some sort of street performers playing music or doing magic shows which is cool… There are a bunch of cools restaurants, bars and novelty stores for you to get your shop on. It is also very centrally located near Harvard University and the coveted John Harvard Statue. Do be warned there is often a lot of panhandling and homeless people on the area, so that may make some people feel a bit uncomfortable.
Pros–
Restaurants
Shopping
Pinkberry
Near Harvard
Street performers
Cons–
Ghetto
Dirty
Lots of homeless
Crowded

CAN I PAHK DA CAH IN HAHVArD YAHD?
I met up with some locals when I was in Cambridge and I asked them how I could obtain this badass accent, and they kept repeating that phrase to me. HAHAHA.
Anyways, this place is beautiful even when it’s covered in snow. The roads are basically frozen, and slippage occurs pretty frequently. There are a lot of great shops around the area, and it always seems hustling and bustling. Great setting to an obviously wonderful institute!

I’m a grad student at Harvard and, despite living in Central, spend almost every day of my damn life in Harvard Square. It’s sort of a case of not wanting to bite the hand that feeds me, and there are some cool places here (Charlie’s, the Harvard Book Store, Schoenhof’s, Tealuxe, Café Algiers), but in truth there’s not a whole lot about the Square that enthuses me. Obviously Central has now become the center of the Cambridge leftist universe (not to brag on my own hood or anything!) and Harvard Square has mostly been left to the tourists. It just feels… soulless. A little bit corporate. Most of the bars/​restaurants aren’t really affordable on a student budget. It’s nice to walk around in, especially if you’re a moneyed tourist with cash to burn at Urban Outfitters, but I wouldn’t spend a ton of time here if you’re visiting the area when there are many cooler places in Cambridge/​Somerville to check out.

Wenn man mal in Boston ist und Harvard besichtigt stößt man unweigerlich auf den Harvard Square, ein großes dreieckiges Gebiet im Zentrum von Cambridge. Selten habe ich ein so mit Straßenverkehr verstopften Platz erlebt. Es ist eher angebracht mit der Underground anzureisen, die direkt auf dem Platz hält.
Wir hatten uns leider aus Unerfahrenheit mit dem Auto auf den Weg nach Cambridge gemacht. Um 11.00 Uhr waren alle Parkhäuser besetzt, die auch noch astronomische Parkgebühren verlangt haben. Man konnte an der Straße für eine Stunde parken, wenn man genügend Quarters in der Tasche hat und das Glück hat ein freies Plätzchen zu finden.
In der Mitte des Platzes befindet sich der alte U-​Bahn-​Kiosk Harvard Square. Von da aus kann man bequem nur von einer Straße getrennt zu der Harvard University gehen. Rundherum gibt es mehrere kleine Läden und einen Harvard-​Shop, wo man sich mit Bekleidung und Andenken versorgen kann.
In der Nähe kann man auch eine kostenlose Harvard-​Führung buchen, die von Studenten abgehalten wird. Aufgrund der Wartezeit und unserem Parkproblem haben wir darauf verzichtet. Wir hatten uns dann immer bei den Sehenswürdigkeiten einfach unter die Gruppen geschmuggelt und uns die Infos angehört.
Rund um den Harvard Square gibt es unzählige Bars und Restaurants zur Auswahl. Wir hatten uns letztendlich für Shake Shack entschieden. Diese Burgerkette haben wir in New York zu schätzen gelernt.
Gut informieren und seinen Besuch planen, kann man auf
. Diesen Platz hatte ich mir irgendwie beschaulicher vorgestellt. Nur für den Harvard Square würde ich hier nicht hinfahren.

Being a Californian, the old charm of Massachusetts has a strange pull on me. I always love coming here and visiting Harvard when I’m in town. I have never been here during summer and it was nice walking around with my husband dressed in casual, one layered clothing instead of being bundled up. The last time we were here we were tried to stay warm by camping out at Starbucks a little. This time it was 80+ degrees and I loved it!
We didn’t dare drive here since I’m always concerned about parking. We took the T into Harvard Square. It’s important to note that parking is FREE on the streets of Boston on Sundays. We visited on a Sunday and simply left our car parked on the street near Boston Common. Totally saved $ 30!

Ah how this place has changed. Once upon a time, hackey sacking, cigarette smoking, book reading and low key, Harvard Square is a tourist haven. Although many good restaurants have come to the area, the cool, sweet spots have mostly been forced out.
The garage houses a few remnants.

I love wandering around Harvard Sq in the summer.
Street performers, great stores, great food and not quite as touristy as Faneuil Hall.
Ok, I did notice it is not exactly summer right now and walking across the Square this evening was freezing, but it is still a fun place. Assuming of course that you have your down jacket, woollen hat, furry gloves and Base 2.0 or higher Under Armor Thermal Underwear.

I grew up in MA and have visited Harvard Square countless times. It’s such a fun area to explore-​there are a variety of shops (chain and boutique) and tons of great places to grab a bite. And walking around Harvard’s campus is always fun too. The history of the streets is so interesting and beautiful. In fact, my husband and I now live in TX but we got married right outside of Harvard Square, in a beautiful little chapel, Swedenborg, and then we took our pictures around Harvard Square. Such a great experience and awesome setting!
If you’re looking for a fun afternoon of sightseeing, shopping and eating, look no further!

Amazing stores to explore, coffee shops, bookstores, and the country’s smartest folks within this vicinity. Definitely a hangout place for geniuses. It definitely reminds me of Westwood. Definitely a place to check out if youre in the area!

I absolutely LOVE LOVE HArvard Sq. It’s not exactly close to me but the 66 bus takes me straight there from the front of my house. There is so much going on between street performers, street merchants and artists to all the shops, local and chained. i always enjoy going into the smaller local shops and see what they have, new and old. i always pick up something, no matter what it is. There’s something for everyone.
I also end the day by getting froyo from one of the few places or tea from Peet’s or Starbucks. Yea, i frequent here often!

I wish there were heat lamps for all the times I’ve stood outside waiting here! Great area to go eat and shopping! Some places are quite cheap too!

There’s some pretty cool stuff to see/​do for an afternoon. I probably wouldn’t go here if I wasn’t a student, but at least the restaurants are really good. Parking can be difficult, but it’s very walkable.

Harvard Square is always buzzling all year round. The confusing intersection of many streets also means a multiplicative number of shops and restaurants. During warmer weathers, you can always find street artists at the square showing off their skills. My favorite part of the square is that many of the shops are local, unique and cannot be found elsewhere. It’s a great place to discover fun little artistic and food items that can’t be found at a mall. There are also plenty of eateries, from Asian to French, from casual walk-​in to fine dining. Most are geared towards students, so lounges and hip atmospheres are expected but may have to be little choosey to get truly great cuisine experience.
Definitely a can’t miss spot in Cambridge.

My favorite place in the world to people-​watch. Harvard Square pretty much has everything you need.
Need a cup of coffee? There are several top notch coffee houses.
Want a bite to eat? Restaurants galore.
Adult beverages: Top notch bars and pubs are right here
Shopping? funky shops at every turn.
Need a law degree: Harvard is just steps away.
Go here, you’ll have a great time.

Harvard Square provides a lot of options for tourists all in one location: entertainment, food, Harvard, sightseeing, etc. Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage (a must-​visit) is nearby, there is ample street entertainment (some acts are actually really good), there are a plethora of shops and it’s definitely a nice place to walk around in when the weather warms up.
The COOP store is a fun spot to visit because it has a ton of Harvard University gear and merchandise you can purchase. Public transportation makes Harvard very convenient and accesible as Harvard is one of the stops on the Red Line.

A pedestrian friendly square at its finest. Though it can get a bit crowded when school is in session, I find this square to be a great place to check out during the course of year, but particularly in the summer.
The square is easily accessible by a variety of bus routes in addition to the MBTA Red Line. The Harvard Square T stop is a rather massive expanse underground that provides the myriad of transit options that exist. Once you’ve exited street level, you are in the mix in the square itself.
I’ve long enjoyed the careful balance between small local business owners with the larger corporate names that dot the landscape. For quirky, albeit pricey gifts and cards, I will check out Black Ink. If I want to drink outside on a nice summer day, Charlie’s Kitchen and its beer garden are a good stop. Another possible outdoor drinking opportunity lies at Daedalus and its roof deck. If I am in the mood for honey and all its possible uses, I will stop into Follow the Honey. I’ve had success at the Anthropologie store and its multiple floors of eclectic clothing.
I’ve also enjoyed checking out other dining establishments, with a high degree of success. Russell House Tavern has been great to me at all hours of the day, whether it be a weekend brunch or evening hangout with friends to sample their beverages. Tory Row has been an unexpected surprise, particularly on a summer evening when the floor-​to-​ceiling windows are open and people watching opportunities are endless. In Garage, I’ve enjoyed trying Chutney’s and its Chipotle take on Indian food.
In the winter, the Cambridge 5K group runs a great race out of Harvard Square called Yulefest, which culminates with a wonderful outdoor party and the beers from local brewers are flowing.
Boston and Cambridge have countless squares, but this one is indeed a wonderful destination year-​round.