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| - Zack Bruell makes marvelous restaurants, and Cowell & Hubbard is no different. We went less than a week after its opening, but things are almost already firing on all cylinders. First, the good stuff. The place is elegant and modern, though I have never gone to any of Bruell's restaurants for the decor. The food was excellent. On this occasion, my husband and I dined with two close friends, so everyone was able to try a bit of everything -- and we ordered a lot. We all got appetizers, and the servers brought us spare plates for sharing. Standout apps included a playful and amazingly tasty beef "ceviche" with diced fruit and vegetable, the tower of crispy pork, and the radicchio salad. It was also great to see bone marrow on the menu, which was executed similarly to the now defunct Bar Symon version (that's a good thing). For entrees, two of us got fish, one got the outrageously large but incredibly tasty crispy pork shank, and one got excellent boneless - not skinless! - chicken thighs. The food was superb. Both fish filets were seasoned and cooked well. My dining companion raved that the thighs were like fancy elevated chicken wings. The pork was absurd in its scale and bordered on obscene in its flavor; it's an ode to the pig, featuring everything good about pork on one plate -- tender lean meat, pockets of fat, crunchy skin and decadent richness. My only niggles with the place are mostly related to its newness. The menu isn't as descriptive as it could be, which led me to order a side I didn't need. The service was very attentive but a bit uneven, the front desk wasn't particularly welcoming and seemed a bit unorganized, and we ended up with three menus even after they tried to get us a fourth. All minor issues and easily fixed as the place finds its legs. This part of town was really lacking in options like Cowell & Hubbard. I'm sure it'll do well with the theater crowd, but I'll be back whether I'm seeing a show or not.
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