n The Tuf-Nut Shops, on the corner of River Market Avenue and Third Street, is getting two new tenants on November 1. Brown Sugar Bakeshop, a dessert bakery located in the River Market’s Ottenheimer Hall for the last year, plans to move and expand its menu and hours. Run by sisters Kristi and April Williams, who operated a cake-decorating business, April’s Cakes, for eight years prior to opening Brown Sugar, the bakery will offer Jamaican and Cuban coffee, gourmet cupcakes and pies in its new location. Its hours will be 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Nearby, Troy Deal and Michael Puckett will open Zin Urban Wine & Beer Bar. Further details weren’t available at press time.
Restaurant capsules Every effort is made to keep this listing of some of the state’s more notable restaurants current, but we urge readers to call ahead to check on changes on days of operation, hours and special offerings. What follows, because of space limitations, is a partial listing of restaurants reviewed by our staff. Information herein reflects the opinions of the newspaper staff and its reviewers. The newspaper accepts no advertising or other considerations in exchange for reviews, which are conducted anonymously. We invite the opinions of readers who think we are in error. Restaurants are listed in alphabetical order by city; Little Rock-area restaurants are divided by food category. Other review symbols are: B Breakfast L Lunch D Dinner $ Inexpensive (under $8/person) $$ Moderate ($8-$20/person) $$$ Expensive (over $20/person) CC Accepts credit cards
LITTLE ROCK/ N. LITTLE ROCK American
ADAMS CATFISH CATERING Catering company with carry-out restaurant in Little Rock and carry-out trailers in Russellville and Perryville. 215 N. Cross St. All CC. $-$$. 501-374-4265. LD Tue.-Sat. ALLEY OOPS The restaurant at Creekwood Plaza (near the Kanis-Bowman intersection) is a neighborhood feedbag for major medical institutions with the likes of plate lunches, burgers and homemade desserts. Remarkable Chess Pie. 11900 Kanis Rd. Beer, Wine, All CC. $-$$. 501-221-9400. LD Mon.-Sat. ATHLETIC CLUB What could be mundane fare gets delightful twists and embellishments here. 11301 Financial Centre Parkway. Full bar, All CC. $$-$$$. 501-312-9000. LD daily. B-SIDE The little breakfast place in the former party room of Lilly’s DimSum Then Some turns tradition on its ear, offering French toast wrapped in bacon on a stick, a must-have dish called “biscuit mountain” and beignets with lemon curd. Top notch cheese grits, too. 11121 Rodney Parham Road. Full bar, All CC. $$. 501-554-0914. B Wed.-Fri.; BR Sat.-Sun. BAR LOUIE This chain’s first Arkansas outlet features a something-for-everybody menu so broad and varied to be almost schizophrenic. All sampled was unexceptional but not offensive in a very generic sort of way. The way-above-average aspects: friendly, attentive servers/ bartenders and broad, creative beer/cocktail selection. 11525 Cantrell Road, Suite 924. Full bar, All CC. $$-$$$. 501-228-0444. LD daily. BEEF O’BRADY’S FAMILY SPORTS PUB The signature item is the wings, with a variety of sauces, plus burgers, specialty sandwiches, wraps, salads and fish dishes. 115 Audubon Drive. Maumelle. Full bar, All CC. $$. 501-8039500. LD daily. BILL ST. GRILL AND PUB Massive burgers, batter
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■ dining Lulav deserves national exposure Chef Lewis Curtis’ appearance on ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ bound to be a bump. n No matter how Lewis Curtis fares on “Hell’s Kitchen,” Lulav’s executive chef is a winner just by being chosen as a contestant on the popular Fox reality show. And, by association, Lulav will be a winner, too. The new season with Curtis and company enduring the bombast of surly host/chef Gordon Ramsey debuted Sept. 22, and by now the eclectic, pleasantly funky/chic bistro on Sixth Street surely has seen a nice bump in business. Based on a recent quiet Monday dinner, Lulav is ready for the increased scrutiny and judgment of new and returning customers. And with only a smattering of folks there when we had dinner and only one to-go customer stopping by the next morning when we tried the still relatively-new Lulav “bistro breakfast,” the “Hell’s Kitchen” publicity infusion is well timed. Lulav’s dinner menu is small, but every item is appealing, and narrowing down choices is tough, just as you’d want it to be. We began with two outstanding appetizers. The brandy cream shrimp ($13) is a musthave, the tail-on crustaceans cooked to perfectly tender and the brandy providing just the right amount of kick. You’ll find yourself sopping every thimbleful of sauce with the accompanying pita points. We also tried the foccacia del Giorgio ($9), which really is more like a world-class French bread pizza – chopped vegetables and cheese layered with top-quality Italian meats. Half made it home for a next-day brown-bag lunch. Our entrees were almost as beautiful as they were delicious, prompting a couple of iPhone food shots (my kingdom for a flash!). For lovers of delicate, flaky white fish, walleye can’t be beat. And Lulav doesn’t try any tricks, pan-searing a thick fillet, garnishing it with fresh dill and artfully placing it atop a bed of creamy, cheesy grits. Pork tenderloin has become ubiquitous and often mundane, but not at Lulav. Two
brian chilson
what’scookin’
keys to this dish — the blood-red, rich, cranberry-based demiglaze that accented but didn’t overwhelm, and fleshy gnocchi on the side. We’ll see whether the breakfast experiment lasts. It seems logical to think there’d be downtown demand, and there is limited supply, but based on our one trip either the word hasn’t gotten out or folks are hustling just to get to their offices on time. Frankly, there was little about our Lulav breakfast to distinguish it. The $5 tab for the basic breakfast is very reasonable, and there’s little arguing with two eggs over easy, a couple of well-crisped, spicy sausage patties; a small mound of hash browns with a sprig of rosemary and two nice slabs of toast. But it wasn’t revolutionary. The Spanish omelet ($7) also was solid but didn’t redefine or elevate the genre. And the blueberry muffin ($2) we took to the office for later was truly unexceptional – large, a bit dry and shy on berries; Otis Spunkmeyer does better work. Its downtown status means lunch is the hoppin’est meal at Lulav, and while we didn’t make lunch this go-round, we remain big fans of the wide selection of smallish bistro burgers and many of the creative sandwiches. There is much good news for Lulav
No Mundaneness Here: Lulav’s grilled lamb, topped with a fresh berry compote garnished with Arkansas micro greens and corn shoots. beyond the short-term benefits of “Hell’s Kitchen” exposure and even the long-term foundation built by serving creative, wellprepared food, including: 1) it’s a cool place to hang out; a historic building that’s well appointed; 2) it has fun happy hours including weekly martini and wine tasting specials; 3) it’s got a built-in clientele with Arkansas Rep goers; 4) it’s a see-and-beseen kind of place. Veterans and newcomers will find plenty to like there.
Lulav
220 W. Sixth St. 374-5100 Quick bite
Consider stopping between 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, when for $8 you can get eight “tasting pours” of different wines featured on Lulav’s list.
Hours
Breakfast 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, lunch 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday, dinner 5 to 10 p.m. nightly, lounge 10 p.m.-1 a.m.
Other info
Full bar, credit cards accepted. $$-$$$$. www.arktimes.com • september 23, 2010 39