Since pizza parlor and bakeshop St. Philip opened in October, its menu and aesthetic have been updated and refined, said John Baydale, president of Uchi Restaurant Group, which owns St. Philip. "We're running new items as specials to see how the guests like them," Baydale said. "The root beer and sassafras ribs started as a special and everyone loved them, so we put them on the permanent menu." Line cook Carlos Soto prepares food.[/caption] In terms of pizza, the NYC ($12) with pepperoni is a top seller, he said. Ricotta dumplings ($13.50) with wild mushrooms, corn and Serrano ham are popular, as well as its cauliflower side ($6), which features herbed yogurt, pine nuts and golden raisins. "We want to do the unexpected to the expected," Baydale said. St. Philip added more seats and a tenting enclosure to the patio in December. Philip Speer, Uchis director of culinary operations, resigned effective Jan. 31, he said. In mid-January Uchi rehired chef Page Pressley, who was chef de cuisine of Uchiko two years ago, Baydale said. St. Philip, 4715 S. Lamar Blvd.,512-358-7445, www.stpaustin.com Hours: Mon.-Thu. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.,Fri. 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-11 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-10 p.m.