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JUNE | PAGE 22 | 2014 Table, 1800 Post Oak Blvd., 713.439.1000, tablerestaurants.com The Americana Café, Decorative Center Houston, 5120 Woodway Dr., 832.649.8337 MASTERCRAFTED RUM-GLAZED SPARERIBS. AT THE TABLE A SLICE OF AMERICANA A PRIME SEAT MORE THAN A MAX BURKHALTER We anxiously waited and wondered for more than five months, driving by the prime Post Oak spot at the end of BLVD Place, curious about the American-inspired restaurant that would be simply labeled Table. The slow yet meticulous reveal did not disappoint. As we stepped into the taupe- toned dining areas on the second floor (revamp courtesy of Roberto Cervantes of Archi-Arts), we were greeted by a staff anxious to envelop us in a warm, unpretentious dining experience. The fare — be it on the plate or crafted cocktails in the glass — is grounded in great technique that sparkles with wit and creativity, articulating crave-worthy dishes with compelling ingredients that make one's dining decisions difficult. Shall we start with a house salad ($8)? Anything but ordinary, the Table salad is composed of endive, spears of baby romaine, breakfast and watermelon radishes, all dressed with a bright grapefruit vinaigrette. Or shall we swim with the fishes and opt for a tuna carpaccio app, this one elevated upon a thin flatbread crisp with a touch of aioli, crème fraîche and capers ($14), or the healthful changing white fish ceviche ($13). The entrees ("Knife & Fork") are where chef Manuel Pucha inspires his team to play behind the range with him. While a perfectly on-point brick chicken ($20) can be our go-to comfort dish, we also recommend the seared sea scallops over moist corn cake dotted with a spicy chili sauce ($32). But perhaps the soul-satisfying short-rib osso bucco — with tiny turned globe carrots, saffron-tinged pearl onions and fingering potatoes — is more your style ($38). Next visit, I'll be sampling either the lamb lasagna speckled with kalamata olives and lamb Bolognese ($21) or a mighty prime bacon cheeseburger ($15). But don't miss out on dessert. Jamie King's sweets are a treasure to behold. Laurann Claridge F or the interior-minded crowd that haunts Decorative Center Houston, this will come as great news: You now have a place to dine — somewhere pretty swell, too — while idling away hours choosing chintz and pondering passementerie. Chef Edilerman Molina (aka Chef Ed) has opened The Americana Café after a slew of other concepts attempted to fill the void created when Jackson Hick's Jags departed eons ago. The new lunch spot (which offers catering, too) fits the modern, art-filled setting nicely — one that DCH owner Charles Cohen installed the last go-around. The thoughtful American- leaning menu features soulful soups including tortilla ($6), composed salads and flatbread pizzas such as our favorite, studded with wild mushrooms, goat cheese and topped with a pile of arugula dressed with fragrant truffle oil ($6.25). There's also a don't-miss panini selection; the grilled chicken version is layered with avocado and pan-fried Meyer lemon slices ($9). Inventive burgers abound, all built on brioche buns, ranging from a jalapeño and cheddar-stuffed version to a Cuban-style one with a black bean aioli ($9). Larger entrees that will hold your appetite through the afternoon include a flavor-packed Indonesian chili shrimp dish ($12) and a tenderloin of beef that elicits raves ($14.50). For those on the run, check out the "Van Go" take-out bar for muffins, sandwiches, salads and more. Laurann Claridge Chef Edilerman Molina Bradley's Fine Diner, 191 Heights Blvd., 832.831.5939, bradleysfinediner.com LARK I f B radley Ogden's name sounds familiar, there's good reason: The two- time James Beard Award-winning chef rose to fame at the Campton Place Hotel in San Francisco before going off on a lark — opening his signature Lark Street Inn, Lark Creek and Larkspur all in Northern California (not to mention several other high-profile concepts). Now he's making his mark in Houston with son, Bryan Ogden, who followed his father into the kitchen and their restaurant empire. In the culinary spotlight for decades, the elder Ogden never really considered heading to the Southwest until a couple of interested fans took him on a restaurant tour of Houston. The result: a trio of concepts, from the fast/casual Funky Chicken to Bradley's Fine Diner at opposite ends of a shopping center in the Heights area, with yet another one brewing — a beer- and wine-focused eatery scheduled to debut in Memorial later this fall. Known for his tasty, approachable take on American cuisine, Bryan interprets many of his father's recipes through the prism of his own experience at Bradley's Fine Diner. Now, don't take the label "diner" seriously; it's a cheeky play on our perceptions and misconceptions of what a diner can be. This is hardly your grand-daddy's greasy spoon. BFD feels like a modern, stylized country cabin with banquettes and tables fashioned from old oak trees; cushions covered in plaid (ditto, the waitstaff); and an exposed ceiling with wooden beams sturdy enough to support a massive chandelier made from the lacquered roots of an ancient tree. The service is polished and solicitous, with an eager, well-trained staff that serves up starters such as peekytoe crab-cake bites ($16) and Caesar salad with baby romaine spears balanced atop chive pancakes with a sprinkling of Wisconsin Parmesan ($11). The main courses change frequently and could include free-range chicken and dumplings ($26), wood-grilled swordfish topped with an avocado, cucumber and field pea relish ($24), and a mighty burger made with ground chuck topped with caramelized onions and served with fries ($15). Home-style desserts such as butter scotch pudding ($8) provide a sweet, cozy ending. Laurann Claridge Oak-grilled burger HENRY V. THIEL/THE EPICUREAN PUBLICIST HENRY V. THIEL/THE EPICUREAN PUBLICIST JOE AKER DEBORA SMAIL A lthough the name 60 Degrees Mastercrafted is certainly a mouthful, this new restaurant's moniker has double meaning. Austrian-born chef/owner Fritz Gitschner spent the better part of the last 20 years serving as executive chef at the Houston Country Club; before that, he worked at five-star hotels around the globe. Along the way, he was awarded the title Certified Master Chef (aka CMC, attained through a series of examinations at the Culinary Institute of America). Gitschner's new restaurant brings to the table the famed Texas- raised Akaushi beef, derived from the Japanese breed of cattle (a herd that's a direct descendant of those that roamed Mount Aso). Here, a 60-degree triangular evolution links the ranch to their kitchen and the dishes "master crafted" within it. The ties that bind the storied ranch and the cattle that roam it are linked not only through the fare — juicy burgers (from $10 to $200, the latter made with chopped rib-eye steak, foie gras and white truffles), Akaushi rillettes ($14) and steaks cut to size/order ($6 to $8 an ounce) — but also in the polished, rustic-inspired surrounds. Talented Melanie Herz Promecene of the architecture firm Morris, used natural materials such as timbers from fallen trees to create a patchwork-like coffered ceiling, an open kitchen with a wall that resembles a carefully balanced stack of firewood and a life-size image of those majestic cattle grazing through the ranch land. The casual, contemporary menu features hits such as the beautifully done three-pork medley, comprised of an Asian braised pork-belly strip, rum- glazed spareribs and house-made spiced pork sausage ($27.50). But the gracious patio might just be the prettiest place in town to while away a couple hours over one of their strawberry moonshine or ranch swizzle cocktails. Laurann Claridge 60 Degrees Mastercrafted, 2300 Westheimer Road, 713.360.7757, 60degreesmastercrafted.com WHAT'S IN A NAME? Owner and chef Bryan Ogden 60 Degrees Mastercrafted FOR FATHER'S DAY, WE'RE RESERVING A TABLE FOR SHORT-RIB OSSO BUCCO, GOING TO A FINE DINER FOR PEEKYTOE CRAB-CAKE BITES, ENJOYING AN AMERICANA JALAPEÑO AND CHEDDAR-STUFFED BURGER AND MUNCHING ON Table