Alison two

Reducing flavorful Vietnamese pho broth to sauce for an appetizer is another good instinct, but the morsel of poorly seared tuna made a gray and chewy centerpiece. It wasn't the only victim of a poor finish. The potatoes beneath the daurade, soaked in lemony olive oil and bagna cauda sauce, were just oily. There wasn't nearly enough sauce, meanwhile, to moisten the delicate fluke, perched high and dry atop mushrooms and leeks. A nicely house-smoked trout fell flat beside soggy little potato cakes, roe that lacked pop, and fried capers that stole the dish.

I had no clue of the impending disappointment from our greeting at the bar, where beverage director Tom Pittakas has assembled a remarkably well-rounded sipper's menu. It ranges from superb classic cocktails crafted from top-notch spirits and house-made mixers (ginger beer, brandied cherries, an excellent Manhattan) to nearly 20 wines by the glass (white Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Qupe viognier, Cline GSM, Trefethen meritage) that were fine enough to merit the high-tech preservation system they're poured from.

Perhaps even more intriguing, though, was a serious beer list that had some nice surprises on the constantly changing taps (Brasserie Dupont's Christmas ale, Russian River Damnation) and 30 international all-stars (from St. Bernardus to Innis & Gunn) by the bottle.

This should make Alison two a worthy destination for brew-thirsty northern suburbanites, especially if they stop at the long and inviting bar, where there's a less expensive menu of nibbles, including the ginger-fried calamari that are a signature at her Blue Bell bistro. Or skip straight to dessert, where the power of positive menu writing (with items like "Wow 11 Awesome Cookies") is put to good use.

But Barshak will need more than smart ideas, warm ambience, and crafty menu wordplay to give this expensive dining room the real luster her fans expect. How about starting with some "Wow Awesome Cooking"?