Good Eats 
Where to Eat Now 2010
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4. Perla’s, Austin
One of the best things about Perla’s Seafood and Oyster Bar is that you can show up any old time and order a platterful of raw oysters and clams, from strident, briny Lady Chatterleys (from Nova Scotia) to sweet, mild Malpeques (from Prince Edward Island). Don’t even bother with the vinegary mignonette; you won’t want to compromise the flavor of these satiny bivalves. The daily changing “Market” section of co-owners and chefs Larry McGuire and Tommy Moorman’s menu avoids fancy preps in favor of mix-and-match fish and sauce. One of the best choices is wreckfish, an Atlantic native that likes to hang around rocks and shipwrecks and tastes similar to grouper; order it roasted, accompanied by the feisty verde (green herbs, garlic, and jalapeño). Although the tall plate-glass windows at Perla’s look out on live oaks and grackles instead of palms and seagulls, the effect is strangely coastal. From the big, breezy deck, you can almost imagine that the sea of cars on South Congress is waiting for the ferry back to the mainland.
1400 S. Congress Ave., 512-291-7300. Lunch Mon–Fri 11:30–3, Sat & Sun 11–3. Dinner 7 days 5:30–11. www.perlasaustin.com
5. La Condesa, Austin
The controversy over this style-conscious, cutting-edge Mexican restaurant is so hot you could dip a chip in it. One contingent bellows, “Too exotic, too pricey!” The other side roars, “Delicious and worth every centavo!” Inspired by both street food and fine dining, Texas-born, New York–seasoned chef Rene Ortiz has gone way out on a limb. Of his four ceviches, for instance, only one resembles the familiar chunky, lime-cooked seafood. His hamachi version, recalling a Peruvian tiradito, is abstract art: slices of raw fish are lightly spritzed with lime juice that’s been infused with cilantro and grilled habanero, then crowned with fresh fried chicharrones. In his tostadas de cangrejo, gorgeous, pearly lump crab gets edgy with sharp green mango and a silky chipotle mayo. A duo of lamb chops and shoulder comes with a sassy mint-and-jalapeño garnish, a sly nod to the mint jelly of yore. Get with it, people. Mexican food isn’t just for hangovers anymore.
400 W. Second, 512-499-0300. Dinner Sun–Wed 5–10, Thur–Sat 5–11. Brunch Sat & Sun 11–3. lacondesaaustin.com
6. Five Sixty, Dallas
In the evening, a twinklefest of city lights unfurls before your wondering eyes as your table does a 360 from 560 feet in the air. Last year, the Wolfgang Puck empire took over and remodeled venerable Antares restaurant on the rotating top floor of Dallas’s Reunion Tower. And once 33-year-old chef Sara Johannes stepped into the executive chef’s clogs, the venue sprang back to life. The menu trends Asian, like Puck’s Chinois concept, with robust appetizers such as seductive nuggets of suckling pig in a sweet reduced-plum purée. A crispy wok-fried whole sea bass arrives dramatically posed in two sauces: a light citrus-soy ponzu and a hearty gingery Thai chile. Wisely, desserts exit the Orient express: An individual baked Alaska features ginger ice cream and cake sheathed in toasted meringue, an American classic if ever there was one.
300 Reunion Blvd. East, 214-741-5560. Dinner Mon–Thur 5:30–9:30, Fri & Sat 5:30–10. Closed Sun. wolfgangpuck.com
7. Ellerbe Fine Foods, Fort Worth
Ellerbe does the aw-shucks thing with consummate skill. The restaurant is located in a recycled service station decorated with colorful aprons hanging on one wall and tabletop milk bottles filled with fresh herbs. Its menu is dotted with homey ingredients and dishes like spoon bread, mustard greens, and Dad’s Dirty Rice. But read the descriptions more closely and—wait a minute. You’ve been had! Ellerbe is anything but country. Chef Molly McCook’s delicately crusted sautéed grouper is topped with perfect lump crabmeat and a stuffed mirliton—a.k.a. chayote. A seasonal salad combines sweet Mexia peaches with tart chèvre and nutty toasted pecans. Evidence of her Louisiana origins appears in an appetizer of spicy New Orleans–style barbecued shrimp, the sweet flesh of the whole crustaceans complemented by crusty, biscuitlike spoon bread. Her mixed grill is a smart version of the popular two-meat entrée, neatly playing off the differences between a wild-boar chop (loose-grained and mild) and a noisette of axis venison (tight-textured, almost beefy). Seldom has deception made so many people so happy.
1501 W. Magnolia Ave., 817-926-3663. Lunch Tue–Fri 11–2. Dinner Tue–Thur 5:30–9, Fri & Sat 5:30–10. Closed Sun & Mon. ellerbefinefoods.com
8. Pavil, San Antonio
Towering Pavil could easily be mistaken for a museum blockbuster exhibit titled “French Brasserie!” so anatomically correct are its eighteen-foot-tall ceilings, its polished booth dividers topped by brass and glass, and its servers scurrying about in long aprons. Chef Scott Cohen, who made his mark at Las Canarias, is betting that he can lure San Antonians from their tacos and tostadas by tempting them with classics like garlicky, butter-soused escargots under puff pastry; moist hunks of duck confit; and generous pepper steak in a fragrant cognac-peppercorn sauce. All the obligatory dishes are in place, from petite frisée salads with lardons to golden pommes frites in paper cones, but the most memorable dish on the menu may well be the vegetable cassoulet, a miraculously flavorful, long-simmered stew of white beans, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, and wild mushrooms.
1818 N. Loop 1604, at Huebner, southeast corner, 210-479-5000. Open Mon–Wed 11–10, Thur–Sat 11–11, Sun 10:30–10. brasseriepavil.com
9. Valentino, Houston
When a restaurant’s color scheme is red and black and shiny all over, your heart sinks a little. But at Valentino, a smart, sophisticated menu will counter those doubts. The latest eating place to inhabit the Hotel Derek is the first Texas outpost from well-known restaurateur Piero Selvaggio, who created the concept in Santa Monica in 1972 and expanded it to Las Vegas in 1999. He’s banking on Houston’s being hungry for something besides polenta and pasta—crudo, for instance, Italy’s answer to sashimi. Laser-precise cuts of meaty red ahi tuna are balanced superbly by vincotto, a pungent grape-must reduction. (Vincotto also appears in the dressing on a salad of warm asparagus and medallions of quail.) Chef Cunninghame West has undeniably brilliant moments, for instance his smashing creamy goat-cheese flan accessorized with sweet, earthy roasted beets. The occasional flub (tired roast duck with fig demi) is surprising, given his deft hand with dishes like the startlingly tender and flavorful buffalo tenderloin with, but of course, vincotto.
Hotel Derek, 2525 West Loop South (Loop 610), 713-850-9200. Dinner Mon–Sat 5–10. Closed Sun. pieroselvaggio.com
10. Vinoteca Poscol, Houston
The scrungy east end of Westheimer is rife with tattoo parlors, tarot readers, and spy gadget stores. Yet fans of chef-restaurateur Marco Wiles happily gather in two low-ceilinged, candlelit rooms to talk and laugh at Poscol, the newest and most downscale of the maestro’s three Italian restaurants. Wine is the first order of business, chosen from a concise list that offers three-ounce pours for those who want to explore. That should be followed by a salad, perhaps the celery root and apple, its skinny matchsticks topped with a sharp vinaigrette. Next, consider a cured meat and salumi board; the house bresaola—air-dried salted beef—must be one of your choices. You could supplement it with an unconventional red-wine risotto covered in drifts of snowy Parmesan. Or you could finish up with the two specialties of the house: wine and good cheer.
1609 Westheimer Rd., 713-529-2797. Dinner Tue–Sat 5–midnight, Sun 5–10. Closed Mon.
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