Restaurateur Kara Tondorf to Open New Restaurant in Scituate
Restaurant entrepreneur Kara Tondorf is set to open Casa Verde, her newest restaurant venture – a Latin American-inspired kitchen – in mid-February 2025, at 108 Front Street, Scituate Harbor. The former Dunkin’ Donuts location is currently mid- renovation towards a complete transformation as an intimately cozy, vibrant space featuring bold Latin American flavors and live Latin jazz music entertainment.
Casa Verde (the Green House) will feature fresh lunch and dinner menus, celebrating the flavors of Latin America, spanning the flavors of Peru, Argentina, and Mexico. Open seven days a week, the kitchen focuses on fresh, locally-sourced ingredients and innovative dishes, including paella, tapas, tacos, and other unique light bites and entrées. Regional flavors span ingredients from the fiery spices of Mexico to the tropical notes of the Caribbean. A custom beverage program features innovative cocktails, an expansive specialty selection of non-alcoholic libations, and a sommelier-curated wine list featuring Spanish wines. A brunch menu, offered on Saturdays and Sundays, treats guests to indulgent dishes including patatas bravas topped with a fried egg, churros-flavored French toast, and Latin-style breakfast tacos. A mimosa bar, bloody mary bar, and mojito flights, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, round out the unique offerings, rare options in the South Shore region.
Casa Verde’s menu selections are bolstered by bold dishes like a bone-in tomahawk steak, vibrant ceviche, colloquial empanadas, and complex sips featuring custom crafted shrubs and gourmet ingredients, adorning its lengthy cocktail list.
A successful singer/songwriter in tandem, Tondorf brings her distinctive touch a step further to the restaurant’s music vision, planning carefully curated music playlists, and booking live Latin Jazz musician entertainment. She later plans to offer salsa dance classes and other creative programming. “Scituate is already a destination for live music and great dining. I’m expanding those opportunities to other cultures, and welcome everyone from the South Shore to indulge in something new and remarkably enjoyable.”
Casa Verde’s culinary team steps off under the wing of Salt Society’s applauded chef, in addition to a new sous chef and highly trained staff. The team is comprised of experienced restaurant professionals, ensuring a high-level culinary excellence. The broad mélange of experiential facets ensure Casa Verde will become a destination for food lovers, music, and culture enthusiasts alike.
Tondorf is also currently the owner of Scituate’s popular Salt Society restaurant, and the Harbor’s former Riva Restaurant, previously a few doors down from Casa Verde, along with live music and pub fare destination The Rivershed, now permanently closed in Scituate and Braintree, still sustained at its Killington, VT location. She continues her music career, currently planning Wintersong, a three-day concert series celebration of female performing artists in January, and aspires to organize an all-women songwriter music festival in the spring of 2025.