1.5 Globe Stars for Davio's Cucina in Newton

"It looks like a Davio's. It just doesn't taste like a Davio's," says Devra First in her 1.5 (out of 4) star Globe review of Davio's Cucina. The food at the Chestnut Hill restaurant "has its moments" (an "unobjectionable" Bolognese, for one), but dishes like kobe meatballs and angel hair pasta with San Marzano tomatoes "taste like cafeteria food." Pizza is flawed with a "tough" crust that still has a "soggy center." While "convenient and pleasant" for movie-goers at the attached Showcase SuperLux theater, "it's just not particularly inspired." [BG]

Vegans represent only 2% of the American dining public, so it doesn't surprise MC Slim JB that Allston's Root doesn't advertise its complete lack of animal-derived ingredients. With dishes like the Root burger — made with a black bean and quinoa patty that is "easily among the city's best veggie burgers" — "omnivores won't notice or care" about the absence of meat. Fries, served with a "fine" house-made ketchup are "gorgeous." "A beauty" of a sweet potato quesadilla makes the Improper critic "swear there's melted cheese in there." [Improper]

The owners of Shanti recently opened an outpost of their Bangladeshi restaurant in Roslindale, and Ellen Bhang likes it. Filing this week's Globe Cheap Eats column, Bhang says Shanti "excels at vegetable-centric fare," recommending a "silky-savory" eggplant dish called begun bharta. She also enjoyed the items on the $8.95 lunch buffet, in particular the tandoori chicken and "flavorful" curried beef. One disappointment: leftovers from the lunch buffet are not available for takeout, just like almost every other buffet ever. [BG]