Lê Madeline

The mesob — that woven basket that gives this South End newcomer its name — is the whole point: food meant to be pulled apart by hand, over injera, with everyone leaning in.

Sixteen seats, a 90-minute window, and a chef who won "Chopped" then poured the prize into a food truck before landing here on Sanborn Court — Kush is the kind of intimate, chef-driven room Somerville does better than anyone.

The Zebra Room announces itself as a secret and mostly keeps the promise: ten tables, a small bar, and a concealed entrance through Yvonne's lower level at 4 Winter Place.

Let me be honest about what this is: a walk-the-line bowl shop on Boylston, not a room you linger in.

In the North End, where Italian-American dining has been performed for tourists at markup for decades, O'Cheese operates on a different frequency entirely.