Globe, Improper Both Rave Over Kirkland Tap & Trotter

With a menu that "stretches far beyond bar fare," The Kirkland Tap & Trotter is "a delight," according to the Improper's Donna Garlough. "Oh so many hipsters" fill the restaurant, consuming drinks "that pack serious flavor and punch" (like the "pleasantly herbaceous" Green + Grain) and choosing from a food menu that "eschews fussiness" (a "superb" bar burger made from ground chuck). Service is "ace from start to finish," giving the impression of "a place that's been around for years." [Improper]

The Globe's Devra First has also visited The Kirkland Tap & Trotter, where "illuminating" meals draw three of four possible stars. Food at Tony Maws's second restaurant is "elemental and deeply satisfying," with the pumpkin and chicken liver pasta being a dish she "could eat every week." Maws may be known for his work with meat at Craigie on Main, but at Kirkland, "vegetables are costars of the show." First finds service to be too familiar at times, but still finds it to be "great fun." Late Monday-night negronis by the bottle make it "a party." [BG]

For Boston Magazine, Richard Chudy visits Cutty's in Brookline to try their once-a-month special, the "Super Cluckin' Fried Chicken Sandwich," and despite a long line that "doesn't exactly move at a lightning speed," he declares it "worth the wait." The sandwich, which sells out whenever it is offered, "hits all the right spots that it needs to." The chicken is "impossibly moist and tender," but the other components to the sandwich are "almost too simple." [BM]

The Globe's Glenn Yoder says coffee "gets the most attention" at Tamper — the coffee shop now open at a former Medford Boloco — but food is not neglected, either. The weekend brunch items are "ridiculously good," though lunch is "a work in progress." On that brunch, salami and eggs "surprise" as "perhaps the most flavorful dish on the menu." The lunch turkey club "works" but suffers from turkey that is too thickly-cut. [BG]

This time, for Boston Magazine's Night Owl column, Richard Chudy weighs in on the late-night menu at Brookline's "very cheffy" Ribelle, and the atmosphere makes him feel like he showed up "late to a party." A mise pizza with sardines, mashed potato, and lardo brought "the term 'fishy' to a whole new level" and was "mostly a mixed bag" that is still "impossible to complain about." [BM]