• MC Slim JB’s deliciously wicked Devil’s Dining Awards have arrived. Our favorite category? “Mariah Carey in ‘Glitter’ Award for Most Hilarious Vanity Project,” which features our favorite line of the piece: “Along for the ride is gushing sidekick Christina DelGallo, a crossed-eyed, cantilevered, Real Housewives of Revere styled blond with a smoker’s rasp and a thick Chicago accent.” Yeow! (The coveted nod went to “reality” show The Strega Life With Nick Varano.) [MC Slim JB]
• The Herald’s Kerry Byrne really loves Tiffani Faison’s Sweet Cheeks: “The brisket might be the best I’ve ever had: It’s amazingly tender and intoxicatingly smoky, rubbed with a simple (and deliciously crispy) mix of salt and pepper. The country biscuits are decadent (tons of butter, Faison admits). The cocktails are creative (try the bourbon-laced Damn Yankee) and the beer selection is extensive.” [Herald]
• On a less sinister note, MC Slim applauds the “daft assemblage of rotisserie meat platters,” burgers, and hot ‘n cold plates at Kendall Square’s Firebrand Saints. Of particular note is the spit-roasted lemon-sage chicken, “half of a big bird redolent of fresh herbs, boasting crisped skin and the rotisserie miracle of equally moist breast and leg meat.” [Stuff]
• Robert Nadeau of the Phoenix also has good things to say about Sweet Cheeks, especially the sides. In a four-star review, he hails “amazing” collard greens and “epochal” hush puppies. [Phoenix]
• Harvard Square’s Zinneken’s is “warm and welcoming.” Enjoy 10 varieties of “decadent” Liège-style Belgian waffles and coffee brewed European-style. [Phoenix]
• The Improper has high hopes for the Financial District’s Julep, in the old Revolution Rock Bar space. Blue Inc’s “mad scientist” Trish LaCount whips up unusual cocktails in a comfortable room festooned with “tufted ostrich-embossed banquettes” and “expansive windows.” [Improper]
