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By Brian Tagtmeier
I recently wrote about the art of the power lunch . For a small business owner like me , a more economical approach is often a better choice . Fortunately , many local restaurants agree and have put together prix fixe menus that provide a great meal at a very reasonable price . While the choices are limited , the quality and quantity of the food is not . Radio Milano , Le Mistral and Peska have three of the best business lunch menus .
RADIO MILANO
CUISINE : Modern Italian Cuisine 800 Sorella Court | 713.827.3545 | www . radio-milano . com Lunch , Mon – Sat : 11am – 4pm ; Dinner , Mon – Wed : 5 – 9pm ; Thu – Sat : 5 – 10pm Sunday Brunch : 10am – 3pm
Radio Milano , the modern Italian restaurant run by Chef Juan Hernandez , offers a three-course lunch for $ 20 . The starters are the soup of the day , an arugula / strawberry salad or mixed greens . I went with the soup , a roasted cauliflower in a creamy base . The flavors were well-balanced and bright . The entrées all sounded good : a lemon sole pan-seared over a lemon brown butter , a pork steak with tomato chutney and duck confit . While tempted by the fish , the duck confit served was too much to pass on . With a perfectly crispy skin and meat that fell off the bone , I was more than satisfied . During lunch someone asked me when I was coming back to the office : I said never , as the confit was perfect for a last meal . As a finale , I had to choose between bread pudding and a pistachio crème brûlée . I went with the crème brûlée . Served on a chocolate graham cracker instead of in the usual ramekin allowed for a presentation that was almost as good as the dessert itself .
Salmon with cauliflower puree , hazelnuts , brown butter and saba sauce
Overall , the choices , the quality of the food and the attentive service make Radio Milano a perfect choice for the executive lunch .
Photo by Karen deAmat
PESKA
CUISINE : Seafood 1700 Post Oak Blvd . | 713.961.9229 | www . peska . us
Sun – Mon : 11am – 9pm ; Tue – Thu : 11am – 10pm ; Fri – Sat : 11am – 11pm
Peska Seafood Culture serves some of the best seafood you ’ ll find in Houston . What most don ’ t know is that Peska also has one of the best Business Lunch specials featuring its seafood . For $ 25 , you can pair any appetizer , salad or soup with an entrée or sandwich / burger . What takes Peska over the top is the number of choices available . If you wanted to eat a different combination every day , you ’ d have to visit Peska 99 times . ( I went to Rice . Of course , I did the math .) For dessert , a paleta ( frozen fruit-flavored lollipop ) is a nice light ending .
Pastries
For starters , the ceviches were excellent . Served on corn tostadas , the Ceviche Trainera ( Mahi mahi , olives , tomato and red onion ) and Caramelo ( yellowfin , citrus soy and caramelized onions ) were superb . The Trainera is a more traditional approach . The Caramelo was a pleasant surprise – sweet , yet not overly so from the onions and citrus .
24 LOCAL | february 17