While the remake of Cue, the Guthrie Theater's vast ground-floor restaurant and bar, has been grabbing all the attention, its Level 5 Cafe has quietly spent the past few weeks undergoing a low-key metamorphosis. Its focus on moderate prices (starters $5 to $10, entrees in the mid- to upper-teens), sane portions and get-em'-in-get-em'-out service also remains.

What's new? The chef. He's Matthew Holmes, formerly of restaurant Max, and he's instantly perked up the place, finding culinary inspiration in the theater's current Tony Kushner festival: Creole for "Caroline, or Change" (which takes place in Lake Charles, La.) and Italian for "The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism With a Key to the Scriptures," which centers on a dysfunctional Italian-American family.

I loved an earlier and imaginative all-"Caroline" menu, with its crawfish bisque, duck-andouille sausage gumbo, succulent catfish over red beans and rice, and picture-perfect pecan pie. When "Guide" opened, Holmes revamped again, holding over a shrimp/crawfish cocktail, baked eggplant topped with a sweet corn relish and an elegant bread pudding finished with a silky bourbon sauce.

I barely recognized Laredo's Tex-West Grill & Cantina during a recent visit, an improvement that can be credited to new chef Alex Weidt's galvanizing efforts. He's remade old dishes to good effect, and added nearly two dozen new ones, notable for their lively flavors and good looks. I loved the bibb lettuce leaves filled with barely seared tuna, avocado and hot-hot pickled jalapeño. Thin slices of beef brisket, brushed with a smoky barbecue sauce and stacked high on little buns, make for a don't-miss slider. A turkey club goes Tex-Mex with tasty results, and a chile rub does great things to mahi mahi tacos cooled by a sharp pineapple salsa. Weidt even grills up a memorable burger. Kudos to owner WKC Restaurants (which also manages the neighboring McCoy's Public House) for hiring Weidt; he's made all the difference.