2.5 Globe Stars out of 4 in Sam's at Louis Re-review

Devra First re-reviews Sam's at Louis for the Globe, and it is no longer a "one-star restaurant with a four-star view;" in fact, it garners 2.5 stars. Chef Asia Mei's food is "clean, tasty, and satisfying" and "complements [Sam's] idyllic location." The vegetable heavy menu can result in a "meatless meal without realizing it," but meat dishes are still good: "when Sam's serves meat, it really means it." [BG]

51 Lincoln has a new bartender in Ginny Edwards, and that drew Luke O'Neil out to Newton to check it out for his column in the Metro. He enjoys her "creative concoctions" such as the Peat Monster's Reveal, a smoked corn and watermelon scotch-based drink that "highlights the interplay between the bar and kitchen here." Edwards, a veteran of Island Creek Oyster Bar and Russell House Tavern, makes 51 Lincoln a "cocktail destination as much as a dining one." [Metro]

J & J Restaurant & Takeout, a Portuguese restaurant outside of Somerville's Union Square, is the favorably-reviewed subject of this week's Cheap Eats column in the Globe. "Fresh and briny" littlenecks in white wine are occasionally "gritty," but writer Catherine Smart still suggests saving "bread to soak up the bracing juices in the bottom of the cooking pot." Showing just how interested the Globe is in Somerville's hipster problem, Smart recommends skipping "long lines and steep prices" in Union Square proper for dinner at J & J, and "return to the hipster scene with ... room in your budget for a craft cocktail or two."[BG]