Chef Michael Koertgen of Lee Roy Selmon’s just raised good old mac-and-cheese to Mount Everest levels. He starts with fresh whole milk, aged cheddar and smoked Gouda cheese. Perfectly cooked curly pasta is blended with the melted cheeses, then topped with a kick of chipotle toasted bread crumbs. Now here it comes: Slow-braised fall-off-the-bone short ribs are tossed into every bowl. Eat it with a spoon, eat it with a fork, but eat it before all your friends at the table eat it up.

Lee Roy Selmon’s, 8253 Cooper Creek Blvd., (941) 360-3287; 6510 Cortez Road W., Bradenton (941) 798-3287. Learn more about Lee Roy Selmon’s at chef Judi Gallagher’s "Foodie’s Notebook" blog at sarasotamagazine.com

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