Advice for Gift Knife

[ender18d]

My brother was kind enough to send me an Al Mar Mini SERE for my birthday to replace a Benchmade that had served me for a long while (issued to me when I got to Group) but went missing. I was touched by the thought and research he put into choosing that particular model as he's not a military type, so the connection would not have been obvious without real research.

So now with Christmas approaching, I thought that it might be nice to return the favor and select a fine EDC for him.

He is a chef in Chicago, so the first big issue is that the city has a 2.5" limit on blade length for "concealed" knives, which limits most of the obvious contenders. He is also a city-guy, so more looking at a "gentleman's" style than an outdoor or tactical knife.

Some options I've been looking at:

-Spyderco Dragonfly 2, probably G10 as I like the feel better but understand its not as sexy a steel. Most likely candidate checking most blocks. The limited edition with zdp-189 & nishijin would be nearly perfect, but $$$ and hard to find.

-Spyderco Lil Native, which has both G10 and sexy steel, US made, but form factor and handling more controversial than Dragonfly apparently

-Spartan Nymph, a little smaller than I was hoping for but seems very nice. Wish blade was closer to 2.5"

-William Henry Pikatti Ares, just about perfect but $$$

What else is out there that I should be looking at?

Criteria:
-Gentleman's Style
-Willing to consider lock vs slip
-Good quality cutting knife, he's a chef and knows sharp knives. VG10 or better.
-Don't love Spyderco FRN, prefer either G10, wood, or metal handle
-prefer as close to 2.5" as possible without going over.