Le Soleil’s owner left the excellent Sunflower after splitting with his wife and co-owner; of the two, Le Soleil is slightly more ambitious, with a longer menu and many more tables, and an odd stage with lighting that suggests banquets are a big thing here. The mirrors and ugly décor are vaguely depressing in the vast, pinkish hall. And what seems a charming informality of service at Sunflower feels irksome and harried in the larger room.

The food, while… [More]

This is our most often-visited, most reliably delicious, and—coincidentally—cheapest Mexican restaurant. We don’t even care that it’s wedged up north, inconvenient to any freeways, or that it’s bland and cramped inside (although the no-frills patio is protected from grackles by see-through plastic curtains, a nice touch). The service is unfailingly nice, and fumblings at Spanish are met with patience. Its consomé de cabrito is maybe the best deal in the city, a fantastic, spicy, deeply goaty experience that we have… [More]