Sal's is supposedly the Italian wing of the well-known Malone's in the Landsdowne Shopping Center. The decor is wonderful, but last night's meal with my wife was a disappointment.

For the price you pay (two entrees and a bar beverage each cost us over $50) one would expect near perfection for this class of restaurant.

However, upon arrival our reservation had been lost due to computer trouble. Next, we were given lunch menus instead of the correct dinner menus. Third, our server had to take our drink menu away to borrow for another table (we asked for it back).

Our entrees were brought out before we were able to finish our salads. My ravioli with crab meat sauce was great.

My wife's steak was delivered without a steak knife; the server brought one later. Her steak was unspectacular; unusual for a diner whose partner restaurant Malone's prides itself on having the best steaks in town. She wanted A1 to help the flavor.

All in all, this would have been a perfectly fine meal ... if we were at Applebee's and paid Applebee's-type prices. However, it was not as good as I expected for Sal's.

My wife and I ate at Bonefish Grill last weekend. We arrived at about 6:15 on Saturday night, and we were quoted a 30-45 minute wait. We sat at the bar and no sooner than our drinks had arrived, our buzzer lit up. Approximate time elapsed: 5 minutes.

At the table, we were greeted promptly by the server. We both ordered our entrees with salads. The salads came in good time and were both better than average. I had the Bonefish salad; my wife had the Caesar.

For my entree, I had the Ahi Tuna. It came over a bed of mashed potatoes that were very tasty. Although mild, the tuna was cooked perfectly and very tender. My wife had the encrusted pork entree. It was outstandingly delicious, far better than my tuna. The server said the pork entree was their most popular non-fish entree.

The background music was very much to my liking, a nice mix of modern pop and alternative tunes that are not heard in heavy rotation on the radio.

When my family and I ate at this Fridays location a few days ago, we were seated in a large booth in the bar area. What I presume was a bar server waited on us.

We had two appetizers plus entrees, including the mozzarella sticks and artichoke dip. I had a burger. The food was good.

However, the service was lacking. The table was not clean when we sat down, and I had to ask for silverware. When we were finished, we waited a long time for our plates to be cleared and for the check. The check finally came; the plates were never cleared.

The trick was that it was the middle of the afternoon and they were not very busy.

I dined with my wife at O'Neill's a while back; we had a good dinner including appetizers and entrees with drinks. They have all the Irish beer standards.

The table space is a bit cramped. But that was not as bad as the band who played on the particular night we visited. It was a country duo or trio, just guitars and vocals, and I am not a country fan and was not expecting country at an Irish pub-style bar. To make things worse, the volume was overbearing.

However, there were several inebriated patrons at the bar who really seemed to dig the music, so to each his own I suppose.

Lynagh's is informally known among me, my friends and coworkers for having the best hamburgers in town. That, plus having a good beer selection, makes it a favorite of mine for a comfort meal.

I give it 3.5 stars because at dinnertime, you basically have to serve yourself. You order at the bar, then go back to your table. This applies to both food and drink. In addition, they don't serve french fries; instead, burgers come with chips.

However, Lynagh's burgers are fantastically delicious.

Dudley's is one of my favorite Lexington restaurants. It's a great place for a date (hint: pair dinner with a couples' massage at the Massage Center). The atmosphere is very nice, either inside or outside on the patio.

The food selection, although not a huge menu, is great, and the quality and taste is always excellent. Dudley's has a nice selection of wines and drinks.

What finalizes the rating of four-and-a-half stars is the finesse of the service. I have never had a bad service experience there.

The media review is spot on; Cheapside is more about the atmosphere and drinks, with food on the side. I would classify it as a must-go for a typical sample of Lexington nightlife. They have a good beer and drink selection, and portions of the menu are good too.

Azur is a great place to take your date. The food is very good and the atmosphere is modern and clean. However, it is a bit pricey, so be prepared to pay upwards of $60 for dinner and drinks for two.

I have eaten at A.P. Roots 2 or 3 times and have not been disappointed. The dishes on the menu tend to be a bit different from your standard Italian fare. However, each entree I have ordered has been very good.

The reason I can't give it higher than 3.5 stars is due to the service; a couple times the server we had seemed either awkward or inexperienced. However, that won't prevent me from returning for a good meal.

I have been a fan of Alfalfa's only recently, after their move to the new location on Main Street. The food is eclectic and delicious, with plenty of options for vegetarians. The location is central; one can walk there if you're already downtown. The large windows let in lots of light which makes it a pleasant place to eat. In general, the portions are smaller than what chains like Applebee's and TGI Friday's serve, so plan accordingly.

B n' T is a great place to go if you just want some cheap, good, quick cajun cuisine. Go there for lunch and be prepared to wait in line to order, then wait again for a table. It's not a good choice for a date night, but it will more than satisfy your craving for New Orleans cajun fare.

My wife and I have dined at Buddy's about 3 or 4 times in the past year and have never been disappointed. The menu has a number of very interesting entrees, and there is something in every price range as well as for every taste, including vegetarian.

The decor is clean and contemporary. Parking can be difficult to find, but that is the case with many good restaurants downtown Lexington.

The reason I can't award higher than four stars is for certain bar drink pricing. Although most of their drinks and beer are priced reasonably, Buddy's has a poor system for Red Bull Highballs that has the customer paying about $4-5 more than they would somewhere else.

We ate at Lucie's for Valentine's this year. The food was tasty and well-prepared, but the thing we remember most was being packed in like sardines. Even with reservations, it seemed like the staff was unprepared in how to fit everyone in. It was so tight, in fact, that my jacket on the back of my chair was touching the table of the couple behind us. I wish they had focused more on the quality of the experience than the quantity of guests they could squeeze in.

We like the newly-styled building at the new Richmond Road Applebee's location. However, that's the only thing good about it. We have eaten there probably 3 times, and there was a problem with either the service or the food each instance.

Problems included taking a long time to be greeted at our table, very limited drink and beer selection, and problems with the food. The food problems included orders coming out wrong and not being cooked properly.

In summary, this location doesn't quite seem to have its act together yet. You're better off going to one of the "old" Applebee's if you want a better meal.

I have eaten at Puccini's probably 30 or 40 times. They have a good menu selection of both pasta dishes and pizza as well as a decent beer selection.

I have never been disappointed with the food. The service, on the other hand, can be hit or miss, depending on who and how many people are working and how busy they are when you sit down.

Otherwise, if you don't mind the spotty service, you will get a good pizza.

My wife and I have eaten at Murray's several times both before we were married and after. I proposed to her one evening on the patio, we had our wedding rehearsal dinner there, and recently celebrated one year since our engagement there.

We had a good meal and a great time on each occasion. Murray's food is very good, and the atmosphere inside and out is great.

The mangotinis we had on our most recent visit were delicious and very well made. Our appetizer was the grouper fingers dish. My entree was the halibut, which was delicious.

The service was good. The only reason Murray's receives 4 and not 5 stars is because the blackened chicken was a bit too salty and the steak fries came out lukewarm.

Overall, however, we can always go to Murray's and know we'll leave happy.

My wife and I ate at Jack and Maddy's for dinner and had a great meal. For starters, she ordered a cosmopolitan and I ordered the Guinness Bloody Mary. Both were tasty and well-made, and since it was happy hour, both were only $5 each. We ordered the mozzarella sticks for an appetizer, which were baked and not fried. We each ordered a dinner salad. Mine was the caesar salad with salmon, and it was delicious, some of the best-tasting salmon I've had. Overall the interior is very nice and contemporary. I would recommend J&M to anyone.