The talk around here comes to the state of restaurants in the bay area a lot, and whether they are good enough, in general, and why can't they be better. Blah, blah, blah. Well, apparently, we aren't the only place having that conversation. After John Kessler, the dining critic at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, wrote a open-letter blog post challenging area chefs to up their game, one of Atlanta's chefs, Nick Oltarsh of two Atlanta restaurants, responded with an open letter to diners, challenging diners to reward chefs for upping their game. I thought both letters brought up a lot of good points and were applicable far outside the 404 area code.

Sorry, meant to link to this story about Pepin closing earlier in the week, but it got lost in my stack of things to deal with. Thanks to EquinsuOcha for the reminder. Have to admit, I have never been to Pepin, so I can't really add anything. If it was a favorite of your's, you still have time to get in one more time before it closes Jan. 30.

It seems we are at the end of two stories for which there has been much ado.

I never quite figured out when Lagniappe Bistro (350 First Ave. N) was ever open. I know it was, because i walked in once. There were people behind the counter and everything. That restaurant had been in the making for some time, and with the amount of history it had amassed before even opening, I decided to give it some time before checking it out. The early menu I had suggested it was open for lunch hours only. So, when I decided that, officially or not, i wanted something New Orleans-flavored, I went over to get a po' boy. But no matter when I went over, they were closed. Not in a way that looked like they were out of business, because there were tables set, and lights on, but decidedly unopen. Friends told me that they had seen them open in the evening, but that it didn't look like they had anything resembling food.

All this leading to the fact that there is now a For Lease sign in front of the store, and brown paper covers the windows. So, I'll pretty much scratch that one off the list. ... Read more

Emilio's Bistro (437 Central Ave., St. Petersburg) and Gallagher's Steakhouse (615 Channelside Dr., Tampa) have closed.

The story with Gallagher's is that it will re-open as a different concept -- Italian -- under the same franchisee. The story with Emilio's location is more complicated.

Here, despite the fact that no one has asked for my opinion, is what I would do if I was putting in the next restaurant that will go in that space: Gut it, and start over. That sliver of a restaurant has been more things in the past six years than any location I can think of. And I can't help but think it is at least in part due to the strange layout of the place. You walk in, and all you see is kitchen. You have to walk down a thin aisle to get to the seating area. Once back there, you are trapped back there with all the noises, smells and heat from the kitchen. Emilio's had upgraded the room from previous incarnations, with fans and lighter walls, which helped move some of that air. But in the best-case scenario, that room is awkward. ... Read more