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This week, The Boston Globe’s Mat Schaffer swings by two new dining spots in Dorchester: Lower Mills Tavern and Lucy’s American Tavern. At the former, he finds tasty fried pork belly tostadas, buttery Hakurei turnips, and a vegetarian-friendly roast squash. He writes that the chicken pot pie in a cast iron skillet is “marvelous” with a flaky crust and gloppy gravy. The portions are generous, he writes, and he praises the LMT burger and the roasted salmon as well.
Over at Lucy’s American Tavern, Schaffer finds a wonderfully satisfying bolognese dish, hickory-smoked wings, and a crisp iceberg salad. He writes that the Cantonese-style steamed pork buns are slightly over-fried but a “decent interpretation.” For dessert, he has a funnel cake served with maple buttercream.
The Globe’s Catherine Smart visits Ciao! Pizza & Pasta in Chelsea for a taste of what she calls the “best Neapolitan pie in the Boston area.” The restaurant has eight seats where customers can chomp down on the charred and chewy crust, Smart writes. The Margherita has a “simple beauty,” and the soppressata is topped with plenty of meat, whole the salsiccia comes with cherry peppers, fennel sausage, and Pecorino. Smart also recommends the bucatini pasta and writes that the porcini fettuccine is “made for cold-weather dining.” She also hails the finger-size cannoli that are “small enough to enjoy with a belly full of pizza and pasta.”
For The Improper Bostonian, MC Slim JB checks out the new spot for Mediterranean-inspired small plates in Harvard Square, En Boca. Small plates can be a divisive concept, he writes, so you’ve got to “execute consistently,” which En Boca does — while also offering “occasional flashes of unexpected French refinement.” Top picks include the wood-grilled octopus, which “boasts both char and elusive tenderness” throughout; the poached farm egg, “a dish of gentle comfort”; and the lamb neck, “a gorgeous hunk of tender and fatty lamb.”
