Michael Bauer swings back for an update at Tres, the South Beach restaurant formerly known as Tres Agaves. And he finds things notably improved since the last time he was there. He calls chef Juan Martinez’s menu “nicely done” and he especially loves the green pozole and the chile rellenos. He says to skip dessert and, curiously, he doesn’t really have any comment about the drinks, except to say they have them. The updated verdict: two stars. [Chron]
At the Guardian, Virginia Miller rounds up some more lunch spots, including Wise Sons (she recommends the smoked trout salad and bialys, and hopes they bring out a pastrami bread pudding they had at the opening); Seoul Patch at Rocketfish (she recommends the fried chicken sandwich); and she says you can skip New England Lobster in South San Francisco. [SFBG]
Over on the East Bay beat for the Chron, Nicholas Boer is blown away by the decibels at the very clubby Mua (2442 Webster Street), where there’s often a live DJ during the dinner hour. He can recommend the lightly fried calamari and hot peppers, as well as the soft-shell crab po’boy, the kabocha squash tempura, and the grilled Romaine Caesar. But many of the other dishes he says are “ponderous,” and given the noise, he kind of recommends getting drunk. Also, they have a bronze bust on one of the bars with “female mannequin’s leg coming out of its head” which occasionally gets changed out with other legs. All told: two stars. [Chron]
And Annali Rufus at the East Bay Express files the first review of Brasa, which is actually half profile of the owners and half review, with a bunch of background about Peruvian street food thrown in. The place, as you may recall, is the new takeout spot that replaces eVe, while the owners of eVe are planning something bigger. She loves the hanger steak sandwich and calls the rotisserie chicken “melt-in-your-mouth tender, if a little salty.” [EBX]
