The Kendall Square section of Cambridge used to be home to underused warehouses and MIT buildings with numbers instead of names. The biotech companies moved in in the 1990s, but it’s taken a good decade for a street life to emerge. Now, with a burst of new restaurants, the neighborhood is, as they say, a destination.(That gravel pit outside Genzyme will one day be a theater.)

Last night, the bar at classy Abigail’s was full, so was the patio across the street at Za. Here are a few scenes from an early evening in late summer. Note the arrival of a large Mormon church and a couple of old favorites: Au Bon Pain for the French roast coffee and Legal Seafood for the chowder. Looks LIke Rebecca’s has a good lobster roll deal.

And if you get down there around mid-day today, Thursday, you can hit the farmer’s market and a free concert by up and coming bluegrass mandolin player Sierra Hull.