Since the spring of 2007, I have driven the same route home almost every evening — past Cathedral Park, up Old Santa Fe Trail, by 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar, past the Capitol Rotunda and toward the snarling traffic on Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive.

Until recently, I'd noticed that Louis Moskow's 315 (formerly Bistro 315) was frequently absent any activity, save for a crew making repairs to a leaky roof that caused Moskow to close down his restaurant for many months — including the profitable summer season. During the closure, there were rumors swirling about whether 315 would ever open again.

Every night, as I drive by 315, I experience a tinge of nostalgia. Back in the mid- and late-'90s, 315's kitchen felt like my second home for a few years. It's where Il Piatto Cucina Italia chef Matt Yohalem taught me how to make compound butters and butcher ducks; it's where Moskow, Yohalem and others schooled me in charcuterie, offal, omelet techniques, and of course, the mother sauces. It's where they threw down the gauntlet and challenged other local chefs and cooks to be half as passionate as they were. Yes, they were cocky, but I suspect back then — more than now, anyway — that attitude was considered a more cardinal facet of being in the restaurant business.

Fast-forward to two weekends ago, when Moskow and his staff presented a soft reopening of 315. The excited (and grateful to be back at work) floor staffers have always been tight-knit, and for the lot of them, getting ready for service that night was like slipping on a pair of comfortable jeans — or sitting down to a large family meal. A few familiar faces reappeared in the kitchen, as well.

The improved roof isn't the only new addition to 315. Moskow has also revitalized his kitchen brigade with two new gents, both of them fantastic chefs in their own right. Executive chef Ryan Mann, who has been overseeing the daily kitchen operations at the Railyard Restaurant and Saloon, joins Seattle transplant/returning resident/Chef de Cuisine Michael Easton, who some may know as the fellow behind Santa Fe's La Lucciola Supper Club (lalucciolasupper
club.com).

The pair revitalize a menu that still embraces some of its classics, like steak au poivre with frites and mussels with club fries (I also suspect the squash blossom beignets will continue to appear seasonally to prevent a violent loyal-customer uprising). Is there a theme to the new cuisine? Not in a geographical sense, which serves Louis' nomadic culinary sensibilities just fine. But seasonality plays a central role, as do ingredient quality and a do-it-yourself attitude concerning some items that many restaurants normally just have delivered (for instance, Easton — who has an Italian-cuisine background with Seattle roots — makes his own pancetta and cavatelli pasta).

These days, Moskow takes a front-of-house stance, applying his extensive wine knowledge and passion (and increasingly convivial ways — something that also seems to improve for him with age) to his customers in the dining room and at the wine bar. Easton and Mann are running hard with the ball they've been given (although I overheard Moskow telling his new starters not to burn out, and to "have a life").

After a recent sampling of what's to come from the new chefs, Moskow and the rest of the staff, I'm confident this team can go all the way. Think crispy pork belly with cider glaze, roasted butternut squash and braised mustard greens; pan-seared sole with roasted fennel, braised endive, white grapes and saffron/honey/lemon vinaigrette; handmade cavatelli with leek fondue and the best chanterelles I've ever had in a Santa Fe restaurant; roasted baby beets with French lentils, Montrachet goat cheese and sherry vinegar reduction ... desserts don't slouch, either: a beggar's purse filled with roasted apples and pears with sweetened crème fraîche and mascerated dried fruit; sweet potato/date pie with mascarpone ice cream and pumpkin seed brittle; and a hunk of Morbier cheese from the Franche-Comté with fruit compote and lightly grilled bread.

It's a good thing Moskow plans to expand his dining room. A bevy of devoted customers champing at the bit to get back into their favorite chair or barstool is just the tip of this definitely-not-iceberg lettuce. When everyone else discovers the positive changes still being made there, Moskow's going to need all the extra room he can get.

315 Restaurant & Wine Bar, 315 Old Santa Fe Trail, dinner 5-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 5-9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, Prix fixe options available, nightly specials, Reservations recommended, 986-9190, www.315santafe.com


Good things (with the exception of a small fire on Monday that caused minimal damage to property, but thankfully no injuries) are also afoot at the Coyote Café, which is now offering lunch a few days a week. Chef Eric DiStefano and his kitchen staff deliver a Chef's Luncheon Tasting Menu, a Vegetarian Tasting Menu, small plates like Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes and Ahi Tuna tartare atop mini hotcakes with English cucumber slaw, and a selection of heartier dishes.

My favorites (so far) include Washington state mussels with Manila clams, spicy pork sausage and semolina pasta in cilantro-tomato broth; the rotisserie chicken salad with apples, grapes, gorgonzola, pecan toffee and whole-mustard vinaigrette; and the chef's tasting menu, where DiStefano's green-chile meatloaf with mushroom gravy snuggles between a demitasse of creamy porcini-sherry soup with mini grilled fontina-cheese sandwiches and a flight of house-made ice creams.

And for fans of DiStefano's meatballs — which he immortalized locally during a brief run at The Palace Restaurant a few years ago — you can now get them again for lunch at "the 'Yote." Lunch is served 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, and on Sundays, DiStefano said, "a few extra brunch-y items" will also be available. Prices range from $9-$20, and three-course tasting menus run about $25-$29 without wine. Service is as unobtrusive and friendly as it is during dinner, which I applaud. These folks actually seem excited to be working, which is more than can be said for much of downtown's lunchtime food-service pool. And DiStefano's portions? As always, they're exceedingly generous.

Coyote Café is at 132 W. Water St., 983-1615.

Send tips on the local food and restaurant scenes to Rob DeWalt at rdewalt@sfnewmexican.com.