Rosebud American Kitchen & Bar

Rosebud American Kitchen & Bar Restaurant Review:

Davis Square's 1930s-era Rosebud Diner was transformed into Rosebud American Kitchen & Bar by restaurateur Joe Cassinelli. Chef/partner John Delpha updated the former diner menu and now highlights Southern barbecue with Korean, Thai and Italian influences. Try smoked chicken wings with a competition rub; a Texas-style beef brisket sandwich smothered in barbecue onions, spicy horseradish sauce and creamy slaw; juicy burgers; and, for the daring, a sharable half a pig’s head surrounded by shredded pork with gochujang barbecue sauce for sliders, with kimchi, ginger scallion relish and biscuits. A house favorite is the ’Gansette-fried Acadian whitefish and chips, and chicken-fried catfish with bacon and sweet Pete sauce, a sort of Green Goddess dressing with tarragon. Fun sides include fried Brussels sprouts tossed in Tabasco and blue cheese. Request a roomy red booth and peruse the whiskey choices, including a high rye Kentucky bourbon. Expect a rotating array of craft beers --- local, on tap and barrel-aged --- but to the dismay of old-schoolers, there are no light beers. Do not leave without a slice of the famous pie: pumpkin, Dutch apple crumble or Key lime.