Recent eats: Firebrand Saints, Myers & Chang, Prezza and 'Za

[Bob MacAdoo]

Firebrand Saints - The interior design here is stellar. I'd love to know the name of the architect who crafted this ultra-modern homage to hip-meets-smart space. The food did not match the design, but came close. The tremendous beer list (love the Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA) and the lamb-sirloin burger were tops. Also, the excellent meze tapas trio (unusual hummus with toasted pine nights and ground lamb, a smoky-baba ganoush, and a fresher than fresh tzatziki) hit the spot. Go with a crowd after work, you won't be sorry.

M&C - A lot's been written before, so I'll do my best to stick with relevant material. Everything we ate was excellent. Sure, a high-end dim sum cafe like this will hit your wallet much harder than a few blocks north in Chinatown. But the sinful cocktails (their version of a margarita is a must-try) and the perfect renditions of clams and black bean sauce (yes, perfect) and scrumptious braised pork belly buns are worth the price of admission. Rock on M&C, rock on.

Prezza - It's inexcusable to have left this star off my 2011 dining destination list. This place has been knocking it out of the park for a long time now (12 years) yet it feels every bit as new and exciting as it did a decade ago. We made a meal out of apps, burratta with a nice red wine reduction studded with bacon and shallots, a crispy shrimp that went perfectly with the slightly hot aioli, and my favorite, the grilled clams. Wine was good too, a bottle of cab made by Antinori.

Za - Went for lunch, had a portobello house special pizza. Pretty darned good thanks to rich goat cheese and evenly cooked crust. Would go back.

[gini]

I concur about Prezza! We hadn't been in about a year and returned this winter. I don't know how it could have fallen out of rotation. Resolution 2012: go back more often.

[MC Slim JB]

Sosolimited is the design firm behind Firebrand Saints: I think they did an amazing job, too.

I think the food and drinks are a little uneven, but I liked the same things about them you did.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[Bob MacAdoo]

Thanks MC Slim. I think this group(http://www.studiotroika.com/projects/...) may have done the design but Soso did the awesome video installation. According to their website, the Soso piece follows, deconstructs, and transforms live TV on 5 HD screens.The installation highlights "emotional language" and other elements of the broadcast. It's wicked cool, if I do say so.

[jgg13]

I was pretty disappointed with Firebrand Saints. We had the tortilla strips, porchetta and roast chicken. Thought all of them were just so-so, and much pricier than they should have been. The ability to get pitchers on all their beers (decent list) was novel. Didn't have a burger but they could easily get really pricey.

[Bob MacAdoo]

Inre mains, the waiter steered us clear of everything but the burgers. FWIW.