West Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, seen in the mid 1980s. | GBH Archives

For decades, a Columbus Avenue restaurant space on the South End-Roxbury border has been a destination for soul food, live music, and warm hospitality. Some knew it best as Bob the Chef’s; others came to it later as Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen. Now under a new name, Uptown Social, it will reopen early this year as a gathering space full of music, community, and comfort food, building on its legacy of “glorifried” chicken and joyful jazz brunches. Owner Nia Grace—who was also behind the most re