fix(cli): render frontmatter and observations in Rich TTY output

- `_display_read_note`: render frontmatter key/value panel when present so
  `--include-frontmatter` is not silently dropped in the Rich path
- `_display_build_context`: render ContextResult.observations under each
  primary node (category + truncated content) so interactive users see the
  same core facts as `--json` output; update subtitle to include count
- Update BUILD_CONTEXT_RESULT fixture with real ObservationSummary shape
  (type/category/content/permalink/file_path/created_at)
- Add test_read_note_rich_include_frontmatter asserting frontmatter keys appear
- Add test_build_context_rich_renders_observations asserting category/content visible

Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
Signed-off-by: Drew Cain <groksrc@gmail.com>

src/basic_memory/cli/commands/tool.py

@@ -113,10 +113,11 @@ def _display_search_results(result: dict[str, Any], query: str = "") -> None:
 
 
 def _display_read_note(result: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
-    """Render read-note result: header panel + rendered Markdown content."""
+    """Render read-note result: header panel + optional frontmatter + rendered Markdown content."""
     title = result.get("title", "")
     permalink = result.get("permalink", "")
     content = result.get("content", "")
+    frontmatter: dict[str, Any] = result.get("frontmatter") or {}
 
     header = Text()
     header.append(title, style="bold cyan")
@@ -125,6 +126,18 @@ def _display_read_note(result: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
 
     console.print(Panel(header, expand=False))
 
+    # Trigger: --include-frontmatter was passed; the MCP tool populates "frontmatter".
+    # Why: without rendering it here, the explicitly requested metadata is silently
+    #      dropped in the Rich path — users must also know to add --json to see it.
+    # Outcome: print a dim key/value block above the content when frontmatter is present.
+    if frontmatter:
+        fm_table = Table(show_header=False, box=None, padding=(0, 1), expand=False)
+        fm_table.add_column("key", style="dim")
+        fm_table.add_column("value", style="dim")
+        for key, value in frontmatter.items():
+            fm_table.add_row(str(key), str(value))
+        console.print(Panel(fm_table, title="[dim]frontmatter[/dim]", expand=False))
+
     if content:
         console.print(Markdown(content))
     else:
@@ -165,6 +178,24 @@ def _display_build_context(result: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
                 primary_label = f"[dim]{p_type}[/dim]  {primary_label}"
             primary_node = tree.add(primary_label)
 
+            # --- Observations as children (category + truncated content) ---
+            # Trigger: ContextResult.observations exists in the JSON output but was
+            #          never rendered in the Rich path.
+            # Why: users running interactively lost core entity facts (observations)
+            #      that the --json path exposes; the TTY view must be at least as
+            #      informative as the JSON view for the primary entity.
+            # Outcome: each observation appears as a dim "[category] content" leaf
+            #          under its primary node, truncated at 120 chars.
+            observations: list[dict[str, Any]] = list(context_result.get("observations", []))
+            for obs in observations:
+                category = obs.get("category", "")
+                obs_content = obs.get("content", "")
+                # Truncate long observations so the tree stays readable.
+                if len(obs_content) > 120:
+                    obs_content = obs_content[:117] + "..."
+                obs_label = f"[dim][{category}] {obs_content}[/dim]"
+                primary_node.add(obs_label)
+
             # --- Related items as children ---
             related: list[dict[str, Any]] = list(context_result.get("related_results", []))
             for rel_item in related:
@@ -182,7 +213,8 @@ def _display_build_context(result: dict[str, Any]) -> None:
 
     # Count total related items across all primary results.
     total_related = sum(len(cr.get("related_results", [])) for cr in context_items)
-    subtitle = f"{len(context_items)} primary  •  {total_related} related"
+    total_observations = sum(len(cr.get("observations", [])) for cr in context_items)
+    subtitle = f"{len(context_items)} primary  •  {total_observations} observations  •  {total_related} related"
     console.print(Panel(tree, subtitle=subtitle, expand=False))
 
 

tests/cli/test_cli_tool_rich_output.py

@@ -66,6 +66,7 @@ SEARCH_RESULT_EMPTY = {
 BUILD_CONTEXT_RESULT = {
     # Real GraphContext.model_dump() shape: results is a list of ContextResult dicts.
     # Each ContextResult has primary_result + observations + related_results.
+    # ObservationSummary fields: type, category, content, permalink, file_path, created_at.
     "results": [
         {
             "primary_result": {
@@ -76,7 +77,16 @@ BUILD_CONTEXT_RESULT = {
                 "file_path": "notes/Test Note.md",
                 "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00",
             },
-            "observations": [],
+            "observations": [
+                {
+                    "type": "observation",
+                    "category": "fact",
+                    "content": "This is a key fact about the test note",
+                    "permalink": "notes/test-note",
+                    "file_path": "notes/Test Note.md",
+                    "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00",
+                }
+            ],
             "related_results": [
                 {
                     "type": "relation",
@@ -398,3 +408,58 @@ def test_recent_activity_non_tty_gives_json(mock_mcp):
     data = json.loads(result.output)
     assert isinstance(data, list)
     assert len(data) == 2
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# read-note – frontmatter rendering (issue #678)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+@patch(
+    "basic_memory.cli.commands.tool.mcp_read_note",
+    new_callable=AsyncMock,
+    return_value=READ_NOTE_RESULT,
+)
+def test_read_note_rich_include_frontmatter(mock_mcp):
+    """read-note --include-frontmatter renders frontmatter keys in Rich path.
+
+    Regression: previously the Rich renderer silently dropped frontmatter even
+    when --include-frontmatter was passed, requiring --json to see the data.
+    """
+    result = _tty_runner(["tool", "read-note", "test-note", "--include-frontmatter"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0, f"CLI failed: {result.output}"
+    # Frontmatter section header should appear
+    assert "frontmatter" in result.output
+    # The frontmatter key and value from READ_NOTE_RESULT should be visible
+    assert "tags" in result.output
+    assert "test" in result.output
+    # The note content should still appear
+    assert "hello world" in result.output
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# build-context – observations rendering (issue #678)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+@patch(
+    "basic_memory.cli.commands.tool.mcp_build_context",
+    new_callable=AsyncMock,
+    return_value=BUILD_CONTEXT_RESULT,
+)
+def test_build_context_rich_renders_observations(mock_mcp):
+    """build-context Rich tree includes observations under each primary node.
+
+    Regression: ContextResult.observations was exposed in JSON output but never
+    rendered in the Rich path, so interactive users lost core entity facts.
+    """
+    result = _tty_runner(["tool", "build-context", "memory://notes/test-note"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0, f"CLI failed: {result.output}"
+    # The observation category should appear in the tree
+    assert "fact" in result.output
+    # The observation content should appear (possibly truncated)
+    assert "key fact" in result.output
+    # The subtitle should include an observations count
+    assert "observations" in result.output