A Real Neighborhood Restaurant

So I finally went to Kitchen 1924 last weekend, and shame on me for waiting this long. Ironically, I used to live in that neighborhood, but now I reside in Midway Hollow (A Treasure To Keep!). But I digress. What I wanted to mention—and, Sarah, forgive me if you reported this in your revisit a few months back—is that there was a note on the door, explaining that the prices had been lowered to keep the neighbors coming back for dinner. As you know, I’ve been on a bit of a rampage lately, because I think there are too many restaurants in town that don’t warrant their price points. And, interestingly, before I went out that night, a friend of mine (a longtime Lakewood denizen) was lamenting that he thought the prices at Kitchen 1924 were a bit high. Well, Neal, it’s time you go back. For example, a tilapia entree is $13. (Compare that to the $12 quesadillas at Mi Cocina. IJS.) My portion of the bill was just north of $30, including wine and tip. We shared spinach and artichoke dip with crabmeat; flatbread pizza with prosciutto, salami, and pepperoni; a side of smoked gouda grits and another of mac and cheese with peas and bacon (could have done without the peas); and three salads (two wedges and one spicy Caesar). True, it wasn’t the kind of meal to make your trainer proud, but we left pleased as punch—rather than pissed off that we’d spent too much.

Pizza Pizza

Famous New York pizzeria Grimaldi’s has just opened its first Dallas outpost. (And apparently the NY guys have gone to great lengths to ensure that our Dallas crust tastes the same as it does in Brooklyn by hiring a chemist to re-create the mineral content and composition of the water.) Celebrities seem to love those hand-tossed pizzas cooked in a coal-fired brick oven. I wonder if that means that we’ll be spotting Vince Vaughn in West Village. And maybe he’ll buy me one of Patsy Grimaldi’s signature martinis. A girl can dream.

Re: Mexican Meltdown

Todd, to be honest, Mia’s is my favorite Tex-Mex place in Dallas—probably because it is my mom’s favorite, too. When I was growing up, she used to drive us to Lemmon all the way from Plano for a “special treat.” In fact, when she’s in my neck of the woods, Mia’s is always where she wants to meet me for lunch. I’m not sure why I strayed the other day. That’ll teach me.

P.S. Speaking of brisket, I had the brisket quesadillas there not too long ago. To quote the ridiculously annoying Rachael Ray: YUM-O.

Fearing’s Named One of NY Times 10 “Intriguing Restaurants Outside of New York”

Huge news: Frank Bruni, food critic from the New York Times, has named Fearing’s as one of his ten “Intriguing Restaurants Outside of New York” in today’s Dining and Wine section. Click here to read. He traveled across the country to find his top places, and they had to have opened between January 1, 2006, and December 31, 2007. He says:

All in all I visited 15 acclaimed, ambitious, promising or intriguing new restaurants from coast to coast, excluding New York City, in late January and early February.

I identified these restaurants through extensive reading and inquiries to food lovers around the country. The work of the chefs at many of the restaurants automatically draws interest. Other restaurants had simply generated considerable chatter.

Others on the list include Guy Savoy in Las Vegas and Cochon in New Orleans. (Fearings also beat out Thomas Keller’s new Ad Hoc). This week, he reviews Central Michel Richard in Washington, D.C., and Tilth in Seattle, with the others being discussed in the next three weeks. Go, Dean!

Radio DJ Is Crushin’ On Casey

It’s no surprise that lovely Top Chef finalist Casey Thompson has a few male admirers, and this morning, listeners learned that one of those is Gene Gates from the Gene and Julie Morning show on 103.7 Lite FM. Dorian Isenberg of J. Dorian Chocolatier presented Mr. Gates with a surprise: A poster-size version of D Magazine’s February cover, which features Casey looking pretty and hangin’ out at Shinsei restaurant. We’re assuming he was excited, but hopefully not too excited. Click here to see pics of the poster.