By Chloe Trendy Vegan Restaurant Opened In Fenway

BOSTON, MA — The hours before a By Chloe opens, owner Sam Wasser is just as nervous and excited as when the first vegan comfort food restaurant opened in New York City in 2015. At that time she remembers looking out the window before it was even time to open the doors and seeing a line wrapped around the building in the West Village. "They're here for us!" she remembers thinking at the time.

Today at 11 a.m. the seventh By Chloe opens in the US, complete with samples of dairy free ice cream in a Boston Red Sox cup. This is Boston's second, and Wasser says this is her favorite part, "all opening days are amazing," she says over the phone. "I’ve been picturing it for so long it's taken a year and a half, but to see it come to life is amazing."

Wasser is also the creative-director at ESquared Hospitality and says the goal of By Chloe - which she started with vegan Chef Chloe Coscarelli, though the two have since split - is to make vegan food more accessible and Instagram-friendly.

"We never had any plans to deviate from that goal of bringing vegan food to the masses," she said. And she's working on it, the first Boston location opened in the Seaport in February and they're eyeing the Back Bay as a potential spot for a third, though nothing is signed yet, she said. In the mean time, Providence is set to open shortly and there are a couple more ready to open in New York. Only a small percentage of the folks who dine at By Chloe are actually vegan, she says.

She said they try to source their food locally as much as possible and even though the food is considered comfort food, it's somewhat healthy. "We make everything from whole ingredients so you feel like you're indulging but still putting good ingredients into your body," she says, adding they're kosher certified, too.

The Fenway By Chloe will have the same menus as all the other restaurants including the best-selling Gauc burger, mushroom "bacon"-topped macaroni and cheese, Quinoa taco salad and dairy-free ice cream (they're giving out free samples of a new strawberry shortcake flavor today until they run out) but there will be one off-menu item at this spot, she says: Fenway nachos.

Wasser says she and her staff pay attention to the small details that matter most as they grow. "Something that’s super important to us is to not cut corners," she said, adding that goes with the food as well as the design and feel of all the locations.

But this spot, she says was a special pick. Customers were constantly asking them to open in Boston, so she said she make a trip up and took a look around. "This spot was so close to BU's campus and construction and it just seems like a vibrant neighborhood. And then with the Red Sox it just felt so natural to be here, and even though we’re vegan we’re comfort food we’re burger and fries which just fits with that atmosphere," she said.

Then they saw the space and knew it would be perfect. She said she immediately had dreams to make it look similar to their West Village flagship location - even though the Fenway spot is about double the size making it the largest location to date - complete with swing chairs (the better for instagraming).

"We have our swing chairs all locations (except 22nd street) but we change fabric from location to location, seaport is nautical themed, LA has palm trees the swings here are red and white stripes," she says.

And yes, the Fenway spot is modeled after the flagship complete with black stripes on the umbrellas outside. But there's definitely a subtle Fenway twist. The colors? Red and white? The sign leading to the bathroom? "Batter Up" The sign over the stalls in the men's room? "Step up to the plate."

"We maybe took it a little too far but it's all in good fun," says Wasser, "We just try to tie each location into the neighborhood."

The new location near the corner of Van Ness and Kilmarnock streets right near the new Target and across the street from Wahlburgers has a beer and wine license. It will also serve weekend brunch.

By Chloe will be open from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday,

11 a.m.-midnight on Friday,

10 a.m.-midnight on Saturday,

and 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Sunday. Brunch!

100 Van Ness St., Fenway, Boston, eatbychloe.com.

Photos of By Chloe By Jenna Fisher/ Patch