All of the elements for gastropub success — daring dishes, beer nerdery, nostalgic '80s soundtrack — would seem to be in place here. But so far, the food, divided into "plates," salads and burgers, is not rising above average old-school bar fare.

In print, chef Ralph Kane's menu is as savvy and appealing as its interior, giving Southern-fried a new freshness.

Brilliantly fusing past and present, El Rey is pure velvet-painting kitsch and Mexi-fetishism, in the can't-fail vein of El Vez, Distrito and El Camino Real. And the flea-market finds, loud music and rec-room hideaway vibe absolutely deliver the fantasy.

SPTR builds on the classic model: a casually delivered combination of basic sandwiches, fried items and relatively exotic animal parts, with an emphasis on the latter.

Kanella is a fresh, fantastic addition to the local BYO lineup. For one thing, there's no other kitchen serving this food — the cuisine of Cyprus is an unmistakable amalgam of Greek and Turkish influences augmented by notes from France, Italy, Lebanon and elsewhere — in the region.

Are these the beginnings of some kind of local Ottoman restaurant empire? Fine by me.

Much like the late great Café Habana, ¡Cuba! eschews nuevo-style, guava-glazed, truffle-studded cuisine for homespun, soul-pleasing cooking.

It's just a shame that the burger in question is, in actuality, just fair to middling.

With its gilt clocks and silk-screened images of timepieces affixed to the walls, the "concept" seems to be nostalgia itself — whether the longing is for an '03 vintage or for an era when drinking hallucinogenics and grooving to jazz were the habits of true bohemians, not Urban Outfitters-clad condo owners.

The droves of people lined up here on any given weekday know there's treasure in them thar falafel fryers.