Brooklyn Leighton, Journal Contributor| October 11, 2022

Beacon Hill Bookstore and Café has opened it’s doors to the public, providing a new cozy spot to grab your next read.

If you are a book lover in Boston, then you’re in luck. Beacon Hill Books & Cafe, which opened on Sept. 30, is the perfect spot to grab that one book you’ve been dying to read while sitting down for a sweet bite.

The lead bookseller, Horatio Greenough, shared that when owner Melissa moved to Beacon Hill, she was looking around and “noticed the neighborhood [didn’t] have a bookshop, and it’s been a very common complaint from lots of the locals.” 

Luckily, she was able to fix that. 

Inside the lovely brownstone located at 71 Charles St. sits hundreds of books, beautifully stacked within soft blue bookshelves by a pleasant staff, eager to invite you into their new shop. 

Each floor of the shop has something for everyone. The first floor has a stunning fireplace, surrounded by shelves of non-fiction books, staff picks and a miniature house set up for the store mascot, Paige the squirrel. 

The second floor is perfectly curated for fiction fanatics. From mystery lovers to hopeless romantics, you can even find a beautiful “Aesthetics” room, painted a stark red and filled with some of the best design books one can hope for. 

And up top on the third floor, children can enter through a small red door to find classic children’s books and adorable stuffed toys available for purchase. Along with the picture books, an entire corner room upstairs is dedicated to young-adult novels, giving everyone a chance to find their next read. 

While the bookstore itself is open for business, the cafe is not quite ready. Greenough said “we are hoping within two weeks,” they’ll be able to open up the cafe to the public. 

“We are waiting on sort of permitting things. So, we say two weeks in the full knowledge that that could be over or under. It is very much fingers crossed,” he continued.

However, despite its delayed opening, the staff will let customers take a peek downstairs at their lovely cafe setup, along with checking out the menus for what’s to come. 

They have an intimate dining area, complete with decorative placemats and tablecloths, which have an embroidered “BHB&C” on the corners. Around the dining area, you can find cookbooks filled with recipes from all around the world. Along with their indoor seating, you can also find a stunning outdoor seating area that feels more like a rooftop garden space. 

They are set to be offering a variety of cafe options, such as tea, pastries, sandwiches and a range of soups. Guests may also choose to pop open a bottle of champagne or wine with their meal, as they also sell drinks. 

The bookshop feels very homey: the interior of the shop provides a comforting feel to those who enter. There are small benches and seats on each floor for patrons to take a seat and skim through their book selection. 

Along with books, they also sell decorative paperweights, reading glasses, sunglasses, tote bags and little stuffed Paige the squirrel mascots. 

With a shop like this opening up in our area, it’s an amazing opportunity for book lovers to learn the importance of supporting local bookstores as opposed to chain booksellers. 

“Ideally what we want to be doing is supporting our community. To provide a space for them to gather, convene and meet. And so to support that is absolutely vital,” said Greenough.

“Otherwise, I’m afraid the reality is, we’re just going to be left with Amazon [to buy from]. Which, you know, will get you a book, but it doesn’t offer the same sort of space to find something new.” 

With its beautiful ambiance, kind staff and an amazing selection of books, Beacon Hill Books & Cafe is one to add to your weekend itinerary. 

Beacon Hill Books & Cafe, located at 71 Charles St., is now open. 

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