The Other Critics

Unterman Wants Lulu to Come Back in Fashion; Bauer Gives High Praise to Calistoga’s Solbar

• Patricia Unterman stumbled back upon the 17-year-old Lulu this week, writing that “the heart of the robust original restaurant still beat[s],” and she’s still orgasming over the wood-fired mussels: “Their liquor practically caramelizes, leaving astoundingly tender, sweet morsels in very hot shells. Cooked this way, they need no butter or lemon. The chemistry of fire and shellfish produces a multidimensional dish.” [SF Examiner]

• Michael Bauer’s been on the move lately, first trekking out to Tahoe to review Manzanita, and now way up the Silverado Trail to Calistoga, where he gushes about the food at Solbar in the Solage Resort. “It may be in the country,” he writes, “but [Executive Chef Brandon] Sharp embraces big-city techniques.” All-in-all, Sharp wins the coveted three-star prize from the Bauer, just months after earning a Michelin star. [Chron]

Unterman Wants Lulu to Come Back in Fashion; Bauer Gives High Praise to