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(From December 2010) This cozy neighborhood pizzeria and wine bar has terra-cotta tile floors warmed by brick and wood-paneled walls, and it offers a variety of sandwiches, salads, and gourmet pizzas. The house-made crusts are yeasty, doughy-good, and just the right thickness, while the choice of toppings is all over the map. Diners with hearty appetites should try the delectable sausage, pepperoni, and ham pizza with jalapeños. Excellent by-the-glass wine list. Beer & wine.

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(From February 2011) It proved a little too breezy for alfresco dining on a recent outing to this bustling Second Street wine bar, but we slipped into a comfortable corner table with a street view and watched the passersby as we sipped a divine and not-too-pricey pinot from Oregon and noshed on lamb lollipops (jazzed with goat cheese, mint, balsamic reduction, crispy prosciutto, and a fig demi). The Cru house salad—wild arugula, cherry tomatoes, candied walnuts, and ricotta—came dressed with a nice apple cider vinaigrette and provided the just-what-we-needed light dish. Our companion’s grilled salmon in a basil-citrus sauce was as close to perfection as it gets. Beer & wine.

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(From January 2012)

Feldman’s is known for its wide selection of beer, wine, and specialty foods, but make your way to the back of the store and you’ll find chefs dishing out delicious sandwiches and home-style cuisine in the market cafe. We really enjoyed the blackened chicken salad, with large chunks of meat mixed in with red pepper and spicy mayonnaise. Another favorite is the egg salad. Selections change according to the day of the week and season. Beer & wine.

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(From January 2011) A recent clear night called for a patio table on the expansive deck shaded by oak trees adorned with glowing white lights. We love the menu’s playful selection of bruschetta toppings—particularly the Brie, fig, and apple. Keeping the carb thing going, we also tried the Popeye and Olive Oil pizza, a flavorful combination of fresh spinach, roasted peppers, and crisp bacon (although it was a little heavy on the gar-lic). Perhaps our favorite dish was a comforting bowl of plump, spicy meatballs bathed in a rich marinara and served on a bed of tender spaghetti—mamma mia! Beer & wine.

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(From July 2011)

Chef Jean-Pierre Lacoste has added panache to lunch with a playful new menu of blue-plate specials. Choose one main and two sides from a list of gourmet Southern comfort classics such as kobe beef meat loaf, crunchy shrimp cakes, and gooey mac and cheese. We greedily finished every crumb of crisp, spicy fried chicken with chile-spiked honey and accompaniments of wilted collard greens and grandma-style butter beans spiked with house-made bacon. How better to finish than with rich red velvet cheesecake? 

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(From July 2011)

It was one of those magical nights. A free sparking spot about half a block away. Sweet. A pour of a red wine we'd never heard of that proved to be light and delicious. Even sweeter. And so it went the whole evening. We enjoyed a perfectly executed spinach salad with feta and olives dressed with balsamic vinaigrette. Then an entree of coffee-rubbed lamb T-bone (could have eaten about a pound of that) with crispy polenta cake (wow!), saffron yogurt, and celery salad. An interesting conversation with out-of-town visitors next to us (turns out we have mutual friends) finished with a glass of prosecco and a dessert of panna cotta, red-wine betties, and granola tuile. Then we walked back to our carriage to make it home by midnight.

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(From December 2010) Part of Riven Rock Ranch, a picturesque lodging made up of ranch dwellings, this hilltop establishment aims to show off the best of the Hill Country and the Gulf Coast, such as tender beef from Brady, a flaky Gulf snapper topped with pecan and lump crab chutney, and crisp Parmesan-and-herb-crusted fried green tomatoes from a nearby farm. With stunning views from an idyllic open-air dining room accented with limestone and timber, the setting makes you want to linger over decadent chocolate-hazelnut crème brûlée and a strong cup of coffee. Beer & wine.

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(From January 2011) The Bonarrigo family artfully blends a fine-dining experience with an informal room that overlooks their breathtaking Messina Hof vineyard. And the wines make an appearance (sometimes with a shout, sometimes a whisper) in every dish on the menu, from tempura calamari with a riesling vinaigrette to a roasted rack of lamb with a cabernet demi-glace. One of our favorites is grilled redfish served with crisp tortilla strips, corn salsa, and a gewürztraminer-chile-cilantro butter. Wine.

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(From May 2012)

This little neighborhood favorite is nothing if not versatile. The indoor rooms have sofas or tables, window views or cozy nooks, while the outdoor spaces let you congregate around a fire pit or under an umbrella, as conditions warrant. Bottles of wine or flights of varietals await your choosing. And the menu has a little something for everyone too. Starters include cheese boards, hummus plates, and crab cakes, while entrées range from pizzas and enchiladas to steaks and seafood. Bar.

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