Veal tenderloin at D'Amico Cucina: The D'Amico empire's flagship proved that, even at the ripe old age of 20, it still has the right stuff. Chef John Occhiato slow-cooked veal, sous-vide style, coaxing the already tender meat into divine new levels of suppleness.
Trout pasta at Broders' Pasta Bar: Chef Michael Rostance knows his stuff, gently tossing perfectly al dente spaghetti with an unusually complementary blend of lemon, basil and Wisconsin-raised trout.
º Tuna sandwich at Be'wiched: Albacore never tasted so good, especially when co-owners Matthew Bickford and Michael Ryan layered on preserved lemons, cucumbers and husky olives, sandwiching it all between rosemary-flecked focaccia. Their pastrami is similarly revelatory.
Espresso-rubbed lamb at Pazzaluna: New chef Calogero Rino Baglio sounded his arrival with a beaut': fragrant lamb, its espresso-crusted exterior a dazzling foil to its swooningly melting interior.
Ribs at 128 Cafe: The restaurant's legendary baby backs, skillfully revived by chef Ian Pierce, demonstrated why the reopened restaurant could have a second career as a top-rated ribs joint.
Ribs at Heartland Wine Bar: A butcher's perfect finger food was also the star of the show at Lenny Russo's wine bar, where long-boned, meaty things were cured in brown sugar, slow-roasted and then glazed with sultry tomatillo-poblano sauce.
º Butterscotch pudding at Nick and Eddie: Talk about love at first bite: Pastry chef/co-owner Jessica Anderson's luscious blast from the past was a deliriously delicious exercise in retro fulfillment.
Creamed corn at Harry's Food & Cocktails: It's called comfort food for a reason. Chef Steven Brown distilled the joys of summer into a bowl, combining sun-kissed, flavor-peaked kernels with a blissful -- or is that sinful? -- amount of butter and cream.
