Pagu

The story

Pagu: Chef Tracy Chang's Asian-Spanish Restaurant in Cambridge, MA

The Bib Gourmand Arrives

In Central Square, Pagu has earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand for its good quality, good value cooking. Chef-owner Tracy Chang describes it as a "values driven yet playful neighborhood restaurant."

A Cambridge Story

Chang’s inspiration runs deep. Her grandmother, Chin-Fun Shiue, immigrated from Taiwan and opened Tokyo Restaurant, a premier Japanese spot in 1990s Boston where sushi masters trained and regulars included Julia Child. Tracy grew up watching her grandmother create opportunity for immigrants through food.

After earning a finance degree from Boston College, Chang worked at O Ya, studied pastry at Le Cordon Bleu Paris, then won a scholarship to cook with Martín Berasategui at his three-Michelin-star restaurant in San Sebastian. She became his "mano derecha," traveling and working with him across Spain and New York.

Opening Pagu

An unexpected family emergency brought her back to Boston. After co-founding Guchi's Midnight Ramen, she found the perfect spot for her own place at 310 Massachusetts Avenue, between Central Square and MIT. The space reflects her training: a menu that draws from Japanese, Spanish, and Taiwanese cooking, all while being entirely nut-free and easily modified for gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan diets. She is "constantly iterating to make the menu more friendly to all diets while never sacrificing quality and flavor."

Community Over Competition

Chang's ethos extends beyond the kitchen. During the pandemic she co-founded two nonprofits: Off Their Plate, which delivered meals to frontline workers, and Project Restore Us, which connected restaurants with underserved communities to assemble culturally specific food boxes. She also launched Roundtable, an event series that gathers chefs and activists for social good.

Pagu is open seven days a week, serving dinner from 5pm. It's a place where the Asian and Spanish influences meet—not as fusion, but as a natural outcome of a chef who has lived and cooked across continents.