Shall We Dance?

True carnivores won't be able to resist the mixed grill, a conglomeration of meats including skirt steak, New York strip, beef tips called "tri tips," a butterflied steak known as vacio or "flap meat," chicken, blood sausage, and sweetbreads and entrails. The staff is happy to leave off the last two items, but adventurous diners will want to note that every piece of meat, chicken, and innards was perfectly grilled to best emphasize individual flavors.

A greater variety of dishes, spurred by international cultures, is listed under a misleadingly labeled "summer specials," which are still available despite the current season. Note that prices are higher here: Something like the shrimp Santorini, shrimp and mussels sautéed with lemon sauce and topped with feta cheese, or the lamb Madeira, three grilled chops served with the signature wine sauce and baked stuffed potatoes, can top out at $29. Still, the chicken saltimbocca listed here, a hefty breast wrapped with prosciutto and glazed with Marsala, cost only $14. Fish can also be a more reasonable way to go, since red snapper franaise or grilled tuna fit the post-holiday bill as well as a shoe sale does the foot. We were particularly wowed by the breadth and quality of a salmon "burger," which was a large fillet of freshly grilled, tenderly flaking fish on a toasty bun, accompanied by lettuce, tomato, onion, and French fries.

In the end, portion size could also be blamed for our failure to complete our dining mission. But as I tell my chef pal, skipping dessert isn't necessarily a negative comment. It could simply mean that, judging by the excellent previous courses, we'll have inducement to return. And next time, we'll know to save room in our stomachs -- and in our hectic schedules -- for a leisurely, lingering final course.