Best chef on the rise

Every year, like a perennial plant that keeps changing its appearance, Boston sprouts some fine new chefs. This year's crop -- which includes Sel de la Terre's Geoff Gardner and Aspasia's Christos Tsardounis -- is headed by Bomboa's E. Michael Reidt.

Although Reidt was the chef at the late Restaurant Zinc (at the same location) and has been helming the sex-sceney Bomboa since day one, his climb toward his current perch as One To Watch has been gradual. All the better. Cooking food like no one else in town can be both a blessing and a curse. Such was the dilemma faced by Reidt when he began what we're hoping is a lifelong mission to reconcile the deep-flavored funk of Brazilian cuisine and the transformational seriousness of French food. Now, a year into his quest, Reidt's talent and poise are becoming hard to ignore. The result is that he's cooking sensuous and distinctive food that is undeniably French in look and taste, but also has the all-important Brazilian "feel." Duck is roasted rosy-rare and served with a cocoa-scented purée of malanga and, in a twist on a French classic, sauce gastrique touched with tamarind. Reidt's ceviche is easily the best in town. And his skate is handled with four-star care, perched on a truffled mixture of diced potatoes that's cooked like risotto and completed with a sweet corn broth. We're keeping an eye on further developments here.

Bomboa, 35 Stanhope Street, Boston, (617) 236-6363.