Reidinger Calls Txoko "Easy on the Jaws," Kauffman Tries One Of The Only Pamonhas in the U.S., and More

After deciding new Broadway restaurant Txoko "sounds like the stage name of a particularly menacing rapper," Reidinger tells us he thinks chef Ian Begg's Basque menu is "mostly Cal-Med." His favorite thing is surprising: the tomato tartlet that comes with the lamb loin chop: "a kind of ratatouille napoleon reminiscent of the pièce de resistance in the Pixar movie Ratatouille." Finally, "desserts are excellent." He finds both the date bread pudding and gâteau Basque "easy on the jaws." [SFBG]

Kauffman journeys to Pamonha's Brazilian Cuisine in Daly City for "a type of sweet-corn tamal (called pamonha) that's hard to find in the United States." First he must get past The X-tudo, a "baroque burger" topped with lettuce, cheese, tomato, bacon, ham, a fistful of corn kernels, potato crisps and—belch—a hot dog. "The real reason to visit Pamonha's is for its eponymous dish (all varieties cost $5.99)." Its "yellow sweet corn" is imported from Mexico, and Kauff tastes every type. There are sweet and salted versions with cheese, one with linguiça and—on some days—a version that might be his favorite, stuffed with rice and beans, then re-fried. He calls it: "a hush puppy beyond compare." [SF Weekly]

Birdsall tries out the Chez Panisse-affiliated Mexican newbie Cosehca: "nobody else I know in the Bay Area is doing quite what Rice is attempting here, a style somebody sooner or later will call farm-to-table Mexican (hell, I think I just did)." He goes on to describe the best dishes, which "have a simplicity that seems to glow from the inside." [EBX]