Provisions, Lucy and More

Chronicle critic Alison Cook finds that Provisions, the casual half of The Pass & Provisions, is a bit of a mixed bag; she awards it two stars but tweets that she considered only giving it one. Although "the results can take your breath away," she writes that sometimes "the chefs' love of novelty and play fails to hit the mark" as in a dish of roasted salsify that "came to the table with listless textures and flavors." She hopes that Provisions "will smooth out to match the discipline of the higher-end half of the operation, the Pass" and says that there's reason for hope, because "when their notions work, it's a joy." [29-95]

Press critic Katharine Shilcutt praises Ethiopian restaurant Lucy in Southwest Houston. "On another visit, I was pleased to find the food again in huge portions and branched out even further to dishes I'd never tried in the past: fish dulet, finely flaked fish in a curry rich with mitmita, the spice blend that's warmed by cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin and spicy peri peri peppers; lega yebeg tibs, cubes of dusky lamb meat stir-fried with rosemary, garlic and onions; and gored gored, the chunkier version of kitfo that sees raw cubes of beef dipped ever so lightly in more of that fiery red mitmita sauce." [Houston Press]

THE BLOGS: Hank on Food takes a look back at his favorites of 2012 in one post and lists the restaurants he most wants to visit in 2013. This post finds that Witchcraft, the new craft beer and comfort food spot in the Heights, is a solid replacement for Dragon Bowl. Mike Riccetti gives some love to the tortas at 100% Taquito on Serious Eats and provides some end of year analysis at the Houston Examiner. Finally, CultureMap's Lane Lynch provides a restaurant guide for Austinites who visit Houston.