NBA Finals Bring Chowder-Barbecue Showdown To MA, Dallas: Cheap Eats

MASSACHUSETTS — The Boston Celtics have a lot on the line in the coming days as the team tries to go from young and promising upstarts to bonafide champions, but the city's mayor also has skin in the game.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson have wagered some local fare on the outcome of the series.

Should the Celtics win there will be a cornucopia of Texas barbecue making the long trip north to the Bay State. If the Mavericks win, however, Legal Sea Foods and Sweet Teez bakery will be sending pastries, lobster rolls and 18 pounds of clam chowder to DFW.

Perhaps feeling generous with a bet already lined up, the folks at Legal Sea Foods are also running a promotion for locals during the finals.

Restaurant officials said anyone who dines at one of their restaurants on gameday while sporting their Celtics gear gets free clam chowder with the purchase of an entree.

Games are scheduled for June 9, June 12 and June 14, as well as June 17, June 20 and June 23, if necessary.

Free Burritos, Too?

Legal Sea Foods isn't the only restaurant group to offer deals for the NBA Finals. Chipotle announced that free throws can lead to free burritos during the series.

In short, if a player makes all their free throws during the series, the restaurant will drop a code on the @CHIPOTLETWEETS X account, with the first 500 people who text the designated code to 888222 receiving a separate code for a free entree.

"This season, players have intentionally missed free throws to score freebies for their fans," said Chris Brandt, Chief Brand Officer.

"Hitting free throws on basketball's biggest stage deserves to be celebrated, so we are flipping the script by offering free food for perfect trips to the line during the final series of the season."

For more on the deal, click here.

Forget Free Drinks, What About A Free Bar?

When Bar 25 in Ayer closed its doors for the final time on May 31 it was done amid a whirlwind of anticipation about what the spot will look like when it soon reopens.

That's because Reza Rahmani was not simply shuttering the Main Street location the way so many other bars and restaurants have faded from neighborhood haunts to empty storefronts in the central Massachusetts town over the past decades, he was pressing the pause button amid an unusual and exciting idea to give the bar, its stock and even much of its staff, away to a new owner as part of a contest that he said could be a "chance of a lifetime" for the lucky winner.

Owners announced two weeks ago a contest concept, in collaboration with Phantom Gourmet, to identify "a deserving individual who dreams of owning their own restaurant but may lack the necessary resources."

Read more: 'Chance Of A Lifetime': MA Bar Owner Holds Contest To Give Away Spot