As a general rule, chardonnay is aged in wooden barrels whether it’s made in France, California or almost anywhere else.

Losing the Mariano’s at Old Town was definitely an event to mourn, but the Tex-Mex restaurant has been resurrected less than two miles from its original spot.

Legal Grounds needed something to fill its dormant space at night, and “Lakewood needed a little bit of the Mediterranean.”

It’s the same great, inexpensive Italian food you find at the original restaurant, but with a few menu additions.

It was a very good year for the bubbly, and more …

Twelve to 15 of the restaurant’s entrées appear on dry-erase board menus that are regularly wiped clean and re-imagined.

They may never have been as good as they are today, from most expensive to least.

All of the coffee here is roasted in-house thanks to Bob Baker, who got his start back in the Pacific Northwest espresso boom of the 1970s.

Plus some good, inexpensive wines to try.

One place to see many new developments is at the 19th annual GrapeFest, set for Sept. 8-11 in Grapevine.