Eats and Drinks
Best New Restaurant
Pazo
Here in Hater-town, some folks were kind of hoping that Pazo, the latest project from Cindy Wolf and Tony Foreman (Charleston, Petit Louis), would lay a big stinky egg. But Pazo shut up (almost) everyone. It’s pretty hard to talk, much less grouse, with your jaw on the floor. The place is gorgeous, with the perfect interplay between bar, lounge, and dining room. Credit Patrick Sutton for creating a chic and intimate Spanish meson out of an abandoned machine shop, and Wolf and Foreman for imprinting their wisdom and insight into every aspect of the business, from the logo to the impeccable house wines to the awesome cheese selection. (Wrap your mouth around some creamy Lingot de Quercy.) In between, the food welds rusticity with sophistication—pasta filled with rabbit and sage butter; grilled swordfish with tomato-mint coulis. Oh, the purebred, professional haters still like to murmur about the trendy small plates (most plates now come in two sizes). Not everyone loves everything on the menu (surprise), and some true morons complain about the prices after ordering rounds of specialty cocktails. But most of us are just plain grateful.
Other Awards for Best New Restaurant:
Mekong Delta, 9/16/2009
Woodberry Kitchen, 9/17/2008
Rocket to Venus, 9/19/2007
Salt, 9/20/2006
Soo’s Kimchee House, 9/22/2004
Kali's Court Mezze, 9/17/2003
Chameleon Café, 9/18/2002
Blue Agave Restaurante y Tequileria, 9/19/2001
The Bicycle, 9/13/2000
Atlantic, 9/15/1999
Holy Frijoles, 9/18/1996
All Awards for Pazo:
Best Tapas/Small Plates, 9/20/2006
