You’d be hard-pressed to find a more lovely setting for a restaurant than the Lost Pines Resort & Spa, out near Bastrop. Acres of tall trees, a chlorinated lazy river, and an actual lazy river (the Colorado) are the backdrop for the reopening of Stories, a chophouse now under the direction of chef Chris Cummer. The dining room, with an open kitchen on one side and French doors leading to a balcony on the other, is a bit staid, with its various shades of brown and wall-to-wall carpet. But the food is lively, from an ethereal heirloom tomato bisque topped with a mound of flaky crab and a swirl of basil crème fraîche to a robust bone-in beef filet pan-roasted and basted in brown butter. If you feel like lingering, the bar makes a mean espresso martini.