Zaranda

Zaranda sits over Discovery Green with the century-old live oaks in view, but the real spectacle is on the table. Nearly every party is working through a whole fish grilled in a wire basket, the technique that gives the restaurant its name and the meat its smoky, crisped edges. It gets stacked into oversized tortillas, dragged through sharp salsas, eaten fast. That's the kind of place this is: built for hands and appetite, not fuss.

The kitchen, from the same group behind Hugo's, splits its attention between a Mexican menu and something closer to a steakhouse, and the split works. Beef and fish share the same table without either feeling like an afterthought, and the smoke, citrus, and chile that run through the grilled dishes extend into unexpected places, like a hamachi tostada finished with ponzu and furikake. It reads as a kitchen unafraid to pull from outside the expected register and confident enough to make it cohere.

The recognition has followed fast, including a spot on Robb Report's list of the best new restaurants. That's confirmation, not the point. The point is a room built around one great grilled fish and a kitchen willing to build outward from it without losing the thread.