Fans of California cuisine often contend that great food is a result not of technical know-how but of the quality of ingredients a chef uses. That notion drives Redwood, which opened last year, but with a chef who failed to execute the concept. In his place since May is Blake Schumpert, who’s serving dishes such as rockfish with summer vegetables and a lemony farro salad with grilled octopus—tasty, no-fuss dishes that showcase good ingredients. The highlight of a recent visit: a juicy steak, cooked medium-rare, with a house-made steak sauce—about as good and simple as it gets.

-September 2009