Jackson Free Press

Changes galore have taken place at BRAVO! in Highland Village—with a new menu, new grill, new wine tastings and new décor.

The menu changes are in response to suggestions from the public. Some of the new dishes meant a bigger grill was needed, so chef Dan Blumenthal had a 36 x 27 inch, seven-gas-burner-beneath-the-cooktop one installed. Blumenthal told me, "It's 105,000 BTUs, with a pit underneath the top where I put wood which gives the dishes a smoky flavor. I can put 10 to 15 steaks on there at once, and they'll cook."

Among the new menu offerings are Angus ribeye with herbed compound butter; filet of Angus beef with port wine demi-glace; bone-in Angus New York strip with a gouda-bacon potato cake; veal chop with porcini demi-glace; peppered rack of American lamb with roasted red bell pepper soft polenta; pan-seared jumbo scallops with fine herb beurre blanc; Moulard duck breast with truffled polenta and wilted field greens; veal scallopini with lobster and a chanterelle mushroom and sherry-veal reduction; double cut, bone-in pork chop "Zatarainaise," with a Creole mustard cream sauce; and a crab and deviled egg new potato appetizer.

As for the wine tastings, sommelier Lesley McHardy has one scheduled for Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. It's $70 per person for the 1994 Vintage Tasting that's a celebration of BRAVO!'s 10th anniversary. Come sample Ridge Monte Bello, Beringer Private Reserve and Haut Brion, among others. They've all been in the wine cellar at the restaurant since 1994. Norm Rush will be at this special tasting, too. Seating is limited, so make your reservations soon at 982-8111. The same holds true for the next wine tasting on Nov. 7, once again at 4 p.m. This one's $50 per person and features wines from the Adelsheim Vineyards. Chef Louis Larose and sommelier McHardy will work with Michael Adelsheim to match the great wines from the world-class Oregon winery with delicious food from the kitchen.

Décor changes at BRAVO! include new lamps at the window tables; a complete re-do of the women's restroom; a take-out window just off the main walkway, a mere 20 steps from your car; and a flat-panel television in the cocktail lounge.

Out at Colony Crossing, that big new shopping center in Madison at the intersection of Highland Colony Parkway and Highway 463, The Bonefish Grill will open soon. Fresh fish is their specialty. On the corporate Web site, they tout the fish as flown straight from the ocean to your table by way of a wood-burning grill.

Speaking of new eateries, the building right between Whitley's Florist and the Conoco, on the north side of Lakeland Drive just before it dead ends into Old Canton Road in Fondren, is being remodeled. The banners out front proclaim the Aladin Mediterranean Grill will soon be occupying the space. We can't wait for the doors to open.

Like the Byrds song says, "To everything there is a season ... and a time to gain." That time is now, Jacksonians. And the place is your favorite restaurant.

Bites is a food news column. Send food news to [e-mail missing] She does not accept free food, as much as it kills her.