Just had a scouting report on Rand Packer's Mariposa from our own wine maven Taylor Eason (as well as this blurb from the Times). She's not too impressed:

"Didn't eat there since it really looks like an upscale Tijuana Flats (and we wanted sit down, upscale service that night)… You order at the counter and they bring it to you. He spent a fortune on dÃ©cor but uses plastic trays, forks, etc. Kinda shocking actually… But maybe it reflects what he wants at this stage in his career…"

I guess you can't blame a guy for wanting to take a more casual route. She could at least have tried one of his popsicles.

This article appears in Jul 11-17, 2007.