Two Stars for Blue Dragon in B.N Lee's Farewell Column

It's a mere two out of five stars for Ming Tsai's Blue Dragon from The Improper Bostonian's B.N. Lee. In their final review for the magazine, Lee is puzzled by Tsai's assertion that it is the "first Asian gastropub in the U.S." given Chinatown's Shojo is "quietly serving some of the best bar food and drinks in the city." Overall, Lee finds flavors to be "bold" but "one-note," and takes particular issue with the noodle dishes, calling a plate of dan dan noodles "an oily mess." House made dumplings such as beef potstickers and shrimp shumai were "generally better," as were lunch items like the black pepper shrimp banh mi. While service and drinks from Eastern Standard and Brick & Mortar alum John Drew were a "high point," "the unbalanced dishes don't yet warrant the demand" the Fort Point hotspot has generated. [TIB]

Brookline's Lineage had to wait seven years for a formal Globe review, and the wait brings three out of four stars from Devra First. New chef de cuisine Alex Sáenz (most recently of Ten Tables Provincetown) "grew up in Lima and South Carolina, and one can taste whispers of both in his food." Service is "gracious," cocktails are "excellent," and "seafood dishes are as strong as Island Creek's [where Lineage owner Jeremy Sewall is also an owner and executive chef], sometimes stronger." The room, recently redesigned by the team behind The Hawthorne, "is modern without being trendy, like Lineage itself." With a $38 tasting menu and a prime steak burger with pimento cheese and bacon, First finds Lineage works both as a "special night out and [as] a neighborhood restaurant. " [BG]

Brewer's Coalition in Newtonville is the mostly-favorably reviewed subject of the Globe's Cheap Eats column this week. Sheryl Julian doesn't find any surprises on the menu, but finds it to be of "surprisingly high quality." Nachos "are neither too cheesy nor too rich," and calamari with red peppers "give the added surprise of not knowing if that morsel is hot or sea-briny sweet." She has one main concern with the menu though: not enough seasoning. "A little salt here, a few grinds of pepper there, spices when promised, would really enhance this food." Julian, the Globe food editor, whose photo appears next to her byline, was pleasantly surprised when offered free appetizers after a wait that was ten minutes longer than she was quoted by the owner. "Gotta love a guy paying such close attention." [BG]

Australian coffee and meat pie shop Cuppacoffee has opened downtown and the Dig digs it. Andrea Greenberg sat with "self-identified retailer" owner Todd Moore, whose specialties are coffee from Boston's Red Barn Coffee Roasters  and Australian meat pies from Down Under Bakery in New York. Greenberg's iced latte was "flavorful and rich" but the meat pie was an "experience within itself: buttery, puff pastry enveloping a portion of rich minced meat filling in a syrupy, tasty gravy." [Dig]