The Other Critics

Regal Beagle ‘Inconsistent"; East Coast Grill Is Still Great

• Mat Schaffer gives The Regal Beagle a B-. It’s cozy and friendly, “so what if the idiosyncratic layout of the room means that two tables are literally in the front windows? And other tables (a row of two-tops across from the bordello banquette) are wedged so tightly together one night we literally couldn’t sit down? And that the food - from chef Laura Henry-Zoubir (Hamersley’s Bistro, Prezza, Taranta) - is inconsistent?” [Herald]

• Devra First bestows two and a half stars on East Coast Grill on the occasion of its 25th anniversary: “Unselfconscious, cheerfully kitschy, East Coast Grill is the jolly uncle of local restaurants — back-slapping, fun-loving, perhaps slightly embarrassing in certain company. It exists to make people happy, and it clearly does its job.” [Globe]

• Robert Nadeau three-stars Barlow’s in a review that’s mostly a point-by-point refutation of Devra First’s: “I thought [the walnut-stuffed chicken] was gooey, good eating, with soft pillows of gnocchi. The Globe said the ‘Chicken lacks flavor… . It comes with walnut stuffing and house-made gnocchi, gummy carbo-bombs.’ Well, bomb me some more.” [Phoenix]

• The Dig gives Cask ‘n Flagon three stars, just in time for Opening Day. The taco salad is particularly good, “a man-salad worthy of any pre-game ritual.” [Weekly Dig]

• Also on the Opening Day tip, Cheap Eats checks out Fenway Cantina and finds solid pre-game fare. [Globe]

• MC Slim JB drops by Restaurante Montecristo, which “bolsters the burgeoning argument that Eastie is among Boston’s top two or three cheap-eats destinations.” [Phoenix]

Regal Beagle ‘Inconsistent"; East Coast Grill Is Still Great