Come As You Are to The Grape

You don’t have to wear sexy jammies or a fur rug like Padma to The Grape’s monthly “Come-As-You-Are” wine dinner. June’s din-din, hosted by long-time local beverage master George Howald, is scheduled for the 29^th and will feature a four-course menu to highlight wines that inspired Howald on his last trip to Italy and the Amalfi Coast. Details: 214-828-1981.

Somebody Help This Poor Girl

An oh-so-hip-and-trendy Disher isn’t as resourceful as she is beautiful. Somehow I don’t feel one bit sorry for her. However, in the spirit of peace, love, and Woodstock, I ask the Fightin’ Foodies© of the SideDish Nation to help this femme fatale. She begs on bended knees I’m sure:

My girlfriends and I just hit some big sales and bought scads of new clothes. Next week we want to hit some really cool spots for lunch. Where oh where do we go?

Oh, somebody hold me back from saying what I really want to say. I suggest Marie Gabrielle. Now you. Be naughty or nice, this is your blog too.

Review: The Wow Factor is Alive and Well at Nick & Sam’s

Remember my post about the cake? It was served to me at Nick & Sam’s. And to begin at the end, it was, to me, a horrible ending to an otherwise lovely meal. Jump for my love of Nick & Sam’s

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Speaking of Meet Markets

Whoopsie, I mean meat markets. A progressive Dallas Dishers sends this SOS:

Is there a meat market where can I buy a good skirt steak?  I’m making a Latin dish for the missus. Also, what do you consider to be the best meat market in Dallas?

Used to be a time when only mom-and-pop markets like Rudolph’s in Deep Ellum  or David’s Meat Market in Garland were the only reliable places for butchering meat to order. Now we have Central Market and Whole Foods plus a couple of indy butchers—the last time I chased a great skirt steak was at La Michoacana. Delish and inexpensive.

 BTW, I have a bone to pick with butchers. I should say, I don’t find enough bones to pick up at butchers. Anyone else remember the good old days when you could go into any grocery store and get a bag of dog bones for almost nothing? Now the only bones I can find for my hounds are in the frozen section at Whole Foods. Yesterday I paid $8.79 for a package of beef marrow bones. Sure they’re excellent for making sauces and stocks, but pricey for my precious pooches. Oh, I take that back. Discuss.

Hotel Zaza Debuts Sexy New Brunch

Dallas continues to rise as Brunchtown, USA. On Sunday, August 17 from 10:30AM—2:30PM, you can feast on French-Creole goodies and listen to New Orleans jazz in your PJs. You read that right: the dress code is “simply dreamy nightgown chic.” (Hmm, guess my flannel pants decorated with white labs and my “Property of the Colbert Nation” t-shirt don’t qualify.) If you are nightgown chic and hungry, then “Jazz in Your Jammies” is just what you’ve been looking for. I’m sure voyeurs are welcome. And Padma.

Culinary Wasteland

After years of living in Dallas and dining at some of the most enjoyable and innovative restaurants a city could offer, I made a decision that would rock my very core. I moved to what I now affectionately call the “culinary wasteland of North Texas.” I hesitate to disclose the location, as I may offend some, but the truth is that I’m now a resident and should be able to be honest and truthful. Jump if you can handle it……. (more…)