Get Cloudy Bay Wines at Wine’tastic

Do not wait. If you want a bottle of Cloudy Bay Sauvignon that I raved about in the January issue of D Magazine, head over to Wine’tastic (4140 Lemmon Ave. Ste. 130, 214-252-9494). A little birdie told me that the wine lounge still has a few bottles on the shelves for just $37.99. They still have a few bottles, that is, unless I get there first. Ready. Set. Go. In case you didn’t see it, check out these videos of Cloudy Bay winemaker Eveline Fraser as she talks about the popular wines (scroll to bottom for links).

Valentine’s Day, Avner Style

I admit I love what Avner Samuel can do in the kitchen. Cooking is what he does best. So I’m not too surprised to find a press release touting a “special a la carte menu” for Valentine’s Day at Aurora with no further details. Who cares, right? Just call 214-528-9400, get a space, and show up for what will surely be a wild culinary ride. Aurora has a fabulous Champagne trolley.

RE: A Cell Phone, Chocolate, And Police

Merritt Patterson, who writes a column for our sistah pub, Park Cities People, braved the French bravado of the mad chocolatier of Lovers Lane. She files this report. Nice. This guy is growing on me.

Almost Open: La Condesa in Victory Park

I admit I haven’t eaten at many restaurants in Victory Park. I love to shop down there, and I love to go to the AAC and House of Blues to see shows, but so far the food hasn’t wowed me (I did enjoy a meal at Kenichi, and I’ve been wanting to try Medina, but anyway). I met an old college friend of mine last night for a drink and to talk about his two new restaurants, La Condesa and Pacific and Central, both located in Victory Park. La Condesa (named after the Condesa neighborhood in Mexico City) is opening February 7, and it’s located just to the right of the AAC if you’re facing the main doors. Just look how cute it is. Jump for the design and menu.

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It’s Always Time For Champagne

In the movie Old Acquaintance, Bette Davis, the hag we hate to love, utters one of my all-time favorite lines: “There comes a time in every woman’s life when the only thing that helps is a glass of champagne.” Truer words were never spoken—take it from a pro, one glass of bubbly works better than a handful of these. Especially when the bubbly is pink. Which brings me to this: Cork, that quirky wine shop in the West Village, is hosting a Pommery Champagne Tasting on Tuesday, February 12 from 6:30p.m. to 9:30p.m. And it’s a bargain—they’re pouring six Champagnes along with light apps for only $20 per person. 214-780-0373. Pop goes the weasel.

A Cell Phone, Chocolate, And The Police

In case you missed it here, I thought I’d share this e-mail I just got detailing a big little soap opera in the Park Cities. I hate people on cell phones in stores, but it sounds like a clerk at Cadeaux Chocolates and Gifts on W. Lovers went berserk on a customer. Settle in with popcorn:

I am writing to you because of an experience I had at Cadeaux Chocolates and Gifts store located at 4506 Lovers Lane. I moved to Dallas in the past few years and a girlfriend of mine just told me about this store. I needed to buy chocolates for my pre-school daughters’ teacher for her birthday. So this past Friday I went to the store. I was on a business call when I walked into the store.

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Best Neighborhood Restaurants, Online Edition

Ever since D’s February cover story—Best Neighborhood Restaurants—hit the stands, readers have been “hitting” me with places I left out. First of all, let me say that it is impossible to get them all in and I do try and rotate restaurants around. But this reader makes a good point for a long-time Plano favorite. Hear him roar:

I’m talking about Vincent’s Seafood. It is in Plano off Park and Preston behind TGI Friday’s. I was a little disappointed to see that it was not mentioned in the “Best Neighborhood Restaurants” issue. Mainly because Vincent’s clientele is primarily regulars that have been going there for as long as 40 years. It has been run by the same owner (Angelo Stergios) for 40 years as well. You may remember another one of his Vincent’s Seafood restaurants off Northwest Highway by Bachman Lake that was immensely popular just over a decade ago. Anyways, I would like to give it an honorable mention as I have been a patron of Vincent’s for quite sometime and I think quite a few people thought it was gone completely with the closing down of the Bachman store.

OK, Honorable Mention. But Vincent’s is listed in D Magazine’s regular listings under Seafood. Dishers, read the magazine. If you don’t see your favorite neighborhood spot, list it here. Get to work.

Love Mediterranean Style

OK, so not all of us like to get gussied up and googly-eyed on Valentine’s Day. Some of us like to go out for a nice dinner, grab our the DVR remote, and settle in for back-to-back-to-back episodes of the sexiest show on TV, The Colbert Report. I may be in the minority on the Colbert assessment, but I’m right on when I tell you where to go for a nice well-priced—which is always romantic to me—dinner. I’m talking about the 54-seat Canary Café in Addison where quirky-in-a-good-way chef-owner Mansour Gorji will prepare a four-course Valentine’s dinner for $55 per person (tax and gratuity not included). The special menu will feature plenty of choices including an appetizer of grilled chilled avocado (yes, please!) with poached shrimp and pomodoro sauce, a wedge salad with gorgonzola dressing, prosciutto, and grilled jalapeno and Prime beef tenderloin, which is one of the best in town. Seriously. For more information and reservations call 972-503-7080. Colbert Bump, not included.