Diner's Diary

This week Miss Dish presents some entries from her Diner's Diary, March Madness edition. (WARNING: Not Weight Watchers compliant).

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On occasion we all like to dress up and play nice. The big secret is, you don't need big bucks to do it. Swagger into Bluehour all gussied up, as Miss Dish did recently, and grab yourself a seat at the bar. For $11, indulge in the recently added fondue option, which presents bubbly, artisanal cheeses in a fancy-pants silver crock. Dip bread chunks into the cauldron, or go sin city as Miss Dish did and order some of BH's superb frites to create an aristocratic cheese-fries concoction.

250 NW 13th Ave., 226-3394

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Nothing brings people together like groaning platters of Italian food. If this $25 (kids 10-16 are $12, those nine and under are free) four-course meal of Pazzo chef Nathan Logan's selections doesn't drive you to fast the next day in repentance, well, then your stomach is the size of Brooklyn. God bless you. The menu rotates, but on this night an antipasto plate with thin slips of perfect prosciutto, pliant rounds of buffalo mozzarella, crunchy shards of fennel and other goodies start the night. A plate of savory risotto comes next. Just when you think you can't handle any more, a platter that could best be described as turf and turf and turf (braised short ribs, roasted pork loin and moist boneless breasts of chicken) comes tableside. But wait, there's more. Dessert brought Logan's signature panna cotta, a cream custard that's got the smooth moves of Benicio. Exercise not included.

627 SW Washington St., 228-1515.

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Miss Dish had been meaning to check out the handiwork of Lawrence DiJoseph, the chef imported by Zinc Bistrot from New York. Lucky for her she picked a Tuesday night to do it. Flying a bit under the radar is the fact that on Tuesdays Zinc offers half off most wines as long as you spend $25 per person (there are a few more rules; call for complete details), and she indulged in a zippy California zin for $15 that usually costs $30. While bunches of restaurants are offering $25 three-course meals as part of a special promotion in April, Zinc has been positioning a $27.95 three-course meal for some time. Miss D. enjoyed a silky leek soup to start, a positively Platonic chicken dish cooked with weights flattening the bird to create both crackling skin and lush meat for her entree, and a decadent dish of profiteroles crowned with gooey hot fudge to end the evening.

500 NW 21st Ave., 223-9696.

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Miss Dish is still puzzled that The Daily Cafe doesn't have lines out the door. What serves as a homey lunch haunt during the day transforms into a fine dining place that prides itself on affordability in the evening. Miss D. lapped up a mesmerizing plate of wild boar braised in an incredibly rich and complex mole sauce that came with two delicate hand-patted tamales. It cost $12.50. The menu changes every two weeks. People, where are you?

902 NW 13th Ave., 242-1916.

WWeek 2015