SERVICE: 2 1/2 stars
AMBIENCE: 3 1/2 stars
FOOD: 4 stars
VALUE: 4 stars
OVERALL: 4 stars
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If you happened to be strolling near the corner of 10th and J streets just past midnight recently and gazed through the large windows of the new Grange Restaurant & Bar, you would have spotted one very talented, forward-thinking chef, immersed at the back of the house.

It was after hours, of course, but Michael Tuohy (pronounced Too-ee) was preparing a large batch of braised short ribs.

Rub the meat with salt and pepper. Sear it at high heat in grape seed oil, forcing the juices toward the center. Sauté the mirepoix, deglaze with zinfandel, which nudges the fond from the pan and builds flavor in the stock, which goes into the pot, which braises the beef.

Then, it's a longer process at low heat, which forces the meat to release its juices into the flavorful stock, breaking down the tough tendons over time. And with the right amount of pressure, magic and science inside the covered pot, the wondrous melding of liquids is drawn back into the beef.

That takes 15 hours.

I ordered an 8-ounce portion of what is described on Tuohy's ever-changing menu as "Zinfandel braised Vande Rose beef short ribs" for $26. They left out "heavenly."

I'm still thinking about that oh-so-tender meat, served without the bone atop a silky and surprising rutabaga purée, and I'd pay $26 this instant simply for another glimpse, a whiff, a tease.

The same goes for the beet appetizer, which was nothing like the beets of my youth – bleeding, bland and ugly. Tuohy boils three kinds of beets, then puts them in a pickling brine of apple cider vinegar, sugar and seasonings. With the crumbled goat cheese, we oohed and aahed to the last bite.

On and on it went – the duck, the lamb, the squab cooked rare (as it should be), the raw sturgeon crudo, the carpaccio (raw beef sliced tissue thin).

I loved the boldness of flavors and the crust of the hangar steak. For that, the chef uses a rub featuring his favorite spice, pimentón, a Spanish smoked paprika.

Tuohy pretty much had me at hello, slipping into town with a reputation as one of Atlanta's best chefs and as a pioneer in that city's farm-to-table and Slow Food movement.

After 22 years in Atlanta, the Bay Area native sold his widely admired Woodfire Grill over the summer and headed west.

He was a key hire for the San Francisco-based Joie de Vivre Hotels. The restaurant, which serves breakfast, lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch, will anchor the new 198-room Citizen Hotel. (Grange was already decided upon as the name, but it cleverly reflects Tuohy's way of thinking; it refers to the fraternal organization formed by 19th century American farmers.)

After perhaps the most expensive renovation the city has known, the hotel emerged from what was once a grand office building dating to 1926.

Folks have been talking about Grange for months, and it opened Dec. 4 to a packed house. The attractive second floor, featuring some private booths, will open later.

I arrived three days into the feeding frenzy. The room is tall and striking, the lighting stylish, the seating cozy but not cramped. The espresso-colored bamboo floors are beautiful – and different.

Four weeks into a crowd- pleasing but occasionally clumsy opening, is it too soon to suggest it will take its place among the very finest restaurants in the region? I don't think so.

It's also safe to predict Tuohy will become, as he was in Atlanta, a beacon not only to fine-dining aficionados but those buying into the Slow Food movement.

Tuohy's pork and lamb come from Bledsoe Pork in Yolo, where John Bledsoe believes in gently raising his livestock free of antibiotics. Same with the duck from Sonoma County Poultry. The beef is from two premier sources, the squab from Modesto. The produce comes in from boutique farms that emphasize sustainable practices.

Call The Bee's Blair Anthony Robertson, (916) 321-1099.