The Critics Ate Tapas, Ice Cream, Ramen, and Tartine This Week

The Boston Globe’s Ted Weesner dined at the 27-year-old Dali tapas restaurant in Somerville, finding a "different kind of party" than at other tapas places in the area. In the midst of a spirited evening, Weesner sampled some "well executed" patatas bravas, a decent tortilla espanola, and a lovable Catalan spinach that he noted disappeared in seconds, along with the woodsy mushrooms. Weesner wrote that the restaurant’s grilled bread was "delicious," and the chipirones (stuffed squid) "pack dense satisfaction." He added that some vegetarian tapas were duds, but the pork tenderloin was happily smothered in blue cheese, and the paella was flavorful. The desserts, including churros, flan, and crema Catalana, were "all excellent."

For Dig Boston, Marc Hurwitz went to Forge Ice Cream Bar, where he found "dense and smooth" scratch-made ice cream. He wrote that the mint cookies and cream flavor was "absolutely tremendous" and "perhaps the best of the lot." There was also a "marvelous" flavor that contained Reese's peanut butter cups. Hurwitz wrote that "the signature dish at Forge Ice Cream Bar may be the banana split," and the matcha milkshake was a winner.

The Globe’s Ellen Bhang went to Little Big Diner in Newton Centre and called the rice bowls "gorgeous." They are customizable and admirable, Bhang wrote, praising a platter of Vietnamese pork noodles and an accompanying fish sauce that was "tart, pungent, and not too sweet." She wrote that the shio chicken ramen was "here to stay," and the miso ramen was "another anchor on the menu," while the vegetarian options rotate often. Bhang had an "excellent" forest mushroom ramen and shrimp salad buns that "are perfect for the dog days of summer."

For The Improper Bostonian, MC Slim JB visited Commune Kitchen, "an unprepossessing storefront on a quiet street near Arlington Center" that serves tartines made on "astonishing" bread and pizzas with "a fantastically bubbly, lightly charred crust." Try the meatball pizza (a "stunner"), the "dauntingly generous plate of poutine," or the charcuterie tartine, which features "a beautiful, fat-wrapped slice of pâté de campagne."

• At Dali, the Tapas Party Never Ends [BG]
• Forge Ice Cream Bar [Dig Boston]
• Little Space, Big Flavors at Little Big Diner [BG]
• Stealth Bomber [IB]