Restaurant review extravaganza 27 page 2

Garden Brunch Cafe

If you’re a glass-is-half-full kind of person looking for an upside to the economic downturn, look no further than The Garden Brunch Café. The coffee cup–or the mimosa–is brimming at Karl and Jennifer Carpenter’s charming eatery, where the repertoire of breakfast foods, local art and inviting ambiance could prove to be more of a stimulus to the neighborhood than any funds coming out of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act. More >>

New York

Cowgirl Sea-Horse

When Cowgirl Hall of Fame opened in the early ’80s, it was part of a flock of popular downtown restaurants that playfully flaunted their ethnic culinary themes. The group included Cottonwood Café, which tendered Texas favorites like chicken-fried steak; Sugar Reef, which vouchsafed a taste of the Caribbean without traveling to Flatbush; Tortilla Flats, which dabbled in Mexican; Gulf Coast, specializing in Cajun/Creole, in a lonely location that made the Hudson River feel like the Gulf of Mexico; and Miracle Grill, which slung chile-laden Southwestern fare and turned Bobby Flay into a star. More >>

Jared Gruenwald

“Seafood gumbo, but no Patsy Cline”

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Orange County

England Fish & Chips

It was around 2 in the afternoon when I saw a man with a backpack saunter into England Fish & Chips. He stared at the menu board of deep-fried foods for moment, and when he decided he wanted none of it, he turned around to leave. That was when a woman standing near him asked, “You’re not going to try it?” More >>

Phoenix

The Parlor

How would you define the quintessential Phoenix restaurant?

For me, the old cliché about the mythological firebird rising from the ashes rings strangely true when it comes to some of the more distinctive neighborhood spots. We preserve our old buildings — and with them, our history — by repurposing them while still paying tribute to their original character. More >>

San Francisco

Trademark

August is the best eating month of the year. Now is when the blackberries ripen along trails and roadsides; the tomatoes and peaches burst with warm, sun-kissed fecundity; the farmers’ markets are as corny as Rodgers and Hammerstein; and the (finally!) warm weather inspires outdoor grilling of smoky delicacies. This is also the month of sidewalk cafes, late-night ice cream cones, hot dogs at the beach, beer on the front stoop, and two-hour lunches at Belden Alley hangouts on company time. More >>

Seattle

Shoofly Pie Company / Seattle Pie / Art of the Pie

For much of Seattle, late summer is the season of too much. The season of overburdened branches, yards strewn with rotting fruit, and empty shelves in the canning sections of supermarkets. The season when mysterious bowls appear in office lunchrooms with a desperate “Free!!!!” sign. The season when neighbors who think they’re going to receive a handful of plums are handed a swollen shopping bag, soaked in the corners with juice. More >>

Kevin P. Casey

“Alyssa Lewis at work: seasonal fillings, classic crust.”

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St. Louis

Racanelli’s Cucina

When I reviewed the new Syrian restaurant Ranoush a few weeks ago, I suggested that its unique charms — typified by a belly dancer twirling among its diners — fit right in with the funky, manic Delmar Loop. More >>