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PATRICK BERTOLINO Restaurant Buzz The Tesla Model S sedan, now at Tesla Houston Galleria TESLA HOUSTON GALLERIA IV, LEVEL 1 713.622.3393: teslamotors.com Keys to the Door: Manager Kirthi Narasimhan. Electric Avenues: Oh, if Botticelli were with us today, designing automobiles — and thinking green — this would be his Venus. But Tesla's sinuous Model S sedan comes with something no Venus ever did: an electric cord. Indeed, the newest Tesla has changed the way eco-minded aesthetes feel about electric sedans: no ugly stepsisters here. The about-to-launch beauty (first deliveries will happen mid2012) gleams at Tesla Houston Galleria (the showroom is actually inside Galleria IV) the first Texas outpost for the California-based company, founded in 2003 by rogue Silicon Valley types who couldn't tolerate unattractive green machines. Problem solved. Their Tesla Roadster (just a few are left to buy) was a hand-built, battery-powered racecar for the road, rocketing from zero to 60 miles per hour in less than four seconds, with a carbon-fiber body wrapped around a cabin meant for two. The impending four-door sedan more than doubles the fun, seating up to five underneath an optional full-glass roof and speeding them to 60 miles an hour in less than six ticks of the second hand. The largely aluminum sedan is fitted with a powerful Lithium-ion battery pack: Just plug your Tesla in anywhere, then, on a single charge, zoom around for up to 300 mellifluous miles. But don't think it's all highspeed hijinks in this stunner: The ultra-quiet interior — no engine noise — comes with a 17-inch touchscreen and all the necessaries. A limitedrun Model S Signature edition adds premium leather, special badging and many perks. (A real Botticelli Venus not being one of them.) From $49,900; waiting-list reservation $5,000 (Model S) and $40,000 (Model S Signature); full details at teslamotors.com. Rob Brinkley UN DEUX TROIS 2800 KIRBY DR. IN WEST AVE 713.942.9949; udtfashion.com Keys to the Door: Owners Colin and Bev Shorkend; manager Kim Hernandez. Stocked Goods: With the opening of Un Deux Trois, stylish young tweens have a new one-stop hot spot for ontrend shoes, dresses, jackets, suiting and accessories. The 3,000-square-foot space is the second Texas location for this California-based boutique, which draws in the hip offspring of famous names such as Johnny Depp, Heidi Klum and Reese Witherspoon to its four Los Angeles–area locations. The store isn't all about Hollywood, though. Owners Colin and Bev Shorkend tapped local designer Lisa PopeWesterman of the firm Gensler to design their West Ave space. "As a Mom of pre-teen girls and a designer, I felt like a perfect fit to design this shop. We are Un Deux Trois' target demographic," Pope-Westerman says. "We used matte white for the casual area, glossy white for the separates and glossy black for the formal wear, all with splashes of the brand's signature pink." In addition to Un Deux Trois' private-label clothing, the mix includes well-edited selections of Betsey Johnson, BCBG and Sue Wong, plus shoes by Steve Madden, Nina and Stuart Weitzman, as well as a vast array of accessories. Kate Allen Stukenberg News just hit that Austin chef Tyson Cole's Houston outpost of Uchi opens February 2 in the former Felix Mexican spot on Westheimer near Montrose. The James Beard Award winner's Japanese concept melds the taste sensibilities found in his famed Austin eateries, Uchi and Uchiko, in a menu of hot and cool tastings, makimono, yakimono, tempura, sushi and sashimi. Kaz Edwards serves as chef and Monica Glenn as pastry chef … Rosemary's Catering, the famed event company headquartered in San Antonio, has just branched out to the Houston market, where it's already catering everything from debutante parties to weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs and corporate events. Exec chef Andres Rumis customizes each event menu … Healthy take-away-food spot Snap Kitchen was a success the moment it opened. Now there's a new locale, designed by Michael Hsu, in the Memorial Park area. Dine in or out, with snacks to entrees priced $3 to $13 each … If you've driven down Kirby near the 59 intersection, you may have noticed a former Asian dive is being revamped into Elevation Burger. A franchise founded in 2002 in Virginia by Hans Hess, Elevation's claim to fame is organic, sustainable, local (when practical) 100 percent grassfed beef burgers, ground fresh on premises. Laurann Claridge NewDOORS KIMBERLY PARK FROM CUTTING-EDGE AUTOS TO VINTAGE FASHION, PLUS SAVORY BITES AND A HAVEN FOR TWEENS, THESE HOT SPOTS WILL KEEP THE CHILL OFF THIS MONTH. TRINITI RESTAURANT + BAR 2815 S. SHEPHERD 713.527.9090; trinitirestaurant.com Keys to the Door: Chef/owner Ryan Hildebrand; director of operations/ sommelier Fred Zennati; designer Chung Nguyen, MC2 Architects What's Cooking: At Triniti, Houston rising star Ryan Hildebrand has brought together a triad of sweet and savory tastes, spiked with well-made spirits. Diners can watch Hildebrand and his colleagues — chef de cuisine Jose Hernandez and chefs Greg Lowry and Matt Lovelace — at work in their copper-tiled open kitchen while tasting inspired California-French concoctions. In a space that formerly hosted a plethora of unremarkable bars, designer Chung Nguyen has created a clean, contemporary environment with customized Tom Dixon lighting, antiqued old-school mirrors above the mod bar and a glorious wine library with rolling ladder — handy to fetch those uncommon niche wines culled by sommelier Fred Zennati to share by the bottle or the glass. Look for dishes with inventive flavor combinations, such as the deconstructed Caesar salad with farm eggs, pancetta, lemon, olive, white anchovy, pecorino romano cheese and kale leaves in lieu of romaine ($11). One soup starter features a clear veal consommé bobbing with leeks, trumpet mushrooms and shaved wagyu beef, and topped by an unctuous foie gras dumpling ($11). Evidently Hildebrand is a fan of the fattened duck liver, as he's also created a novel assemblage called foie gras breakfast ($19) — a yummy play on the traditional morning meal of French toast, bacon and egg. His entrees, while not as playful as his starters, feature a protein (some picks: salmon, striped bass, pork, rib-eye, pheasant and sirloin) and seasonal gowiths, such as pumpkin, parsley and yam purée smeared atop the pork plate, or adzuki beans boiled then fried crisp with saffron rutabaga, shallots, bok choy and red wine beneath the striped bass. Entrees range from $18 to $39, with sweet endings $8 each. Laurann Claridge THE LITTLE BIRD 1735 POST OAK BLVD. 832.767.4483; thelittlebirdinc.com Keys to the Door: Owner Keele Loyd. Feathering this Nest: If you're an Aspen habitué, you'll recognize the name of this luxury consignment shop on Post Oak Boulevard near the Galleria. Owner Keele Loyd's 3,200-square-foot space is designed in a vintage motif, with retro bookshelves to display product and mod chairs in the sitting area. Prepare to preen with covetable, collectible fashions and accessories by such high-end designers as Chanel, Gucci, Alexander McQueen, Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior and more. We hear a fabulous navy-blue Hermès Birkin was recently in the window. Who told us? Oh, just a little bird. Kate Allen Stukenberg FEBRUARY | PAGE 8 | 2012 Retail Rap Bevello, a women's contemporary fashion boutique from North Carolina, opens its first Texas boutique at River Oaks Shopping Center this spring … J.Crew is opening a second Houston location, this one at CityCentre, at Beltway 8 and I-10. The preppy 5,127-square-foot boutique debuts in April between LMD Boutique and Amegy Bank, across from CityCentre plaza … French Cuff Boutique, on Bellaire Boulevard next to Whole Foods Market, has opened a second location at 6401 Woodway … The Pretty Kitty, which specializes in Brazilian waxing, opens on Rice Boulevard in Rice Village in March … On May 6, Target launches an entirely new collaboration concept called The Shops at Target. This time, it's not about teaming up with a particular fashion designer or fashion brand, but instead with shop owners of specialty stores. San Francisco's The Candy Store, Miami's hip fashion shop The Webster, luxury beauty boutique The Cos Bar, Boston-based Polka Dog Bakery and Privet House, a home-goods, antiques and curiosities shop located in Connecticut, have all been chosen as the first shops to curate their own collection of goods for the class-tomass retailer. The five collections total 400 exclusive products, with prices that range from $1 to $160. Kate Allen Stukenberg