Articles for July 5th, 2011

Fearless Critic Hits Dallas

posted by Nancy Nichols | July 5th, 2011 5:42pm | filed under Bring it!, Dog Friendly, Food Writing | 4 Comments »

Fearless Critic, The Dallas Restaurant Guide, a compilation of “Dallas’ top 250 places to dine as compiled from a panel of discerning local food writers”  hits newsstands soon. According to the press release, “the slim and plucky collection of reviews” will guide the reader “beyond beef and Tex-Mex.” Fearless Critic guides to Austin, Houston, and San Antonio are already available. Thanks to Coco Owens, Associate Publisher & Social Media Director, the group is a “pithy bunch.”  Full press release here. Love the bloated ego of Sambuca 360 review. Fear. Less.

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Lowbrow Alert: Libertine Bar’s July 4 Brass Knuckle Corndog Beatdown

posted by Sarah Reiss | July 5th, 2011 1:50pm | filed under Cheap trick for comments, Cult Cuisine, Diets are stupid, Food Crime, Food Fight! | 1 Comment »

The detritus—evidence of a job well done. (Photo by Dorothy Shain)

Yesterday, plucky intern Kelsy McCraw attended the Libertine Bar’s July 4 Brass Knuckle Corndog Beatdown (hey, somebody had to do it). Read on for her report, if you dare. Don’t say we didn’t warn you…

With 2:39 left in the competition, the first contender to loose her stomach in the Libertine’s Brass Knuckle Corndog Beatdown rushed outside, yarked, then returned to finish 13 corndogs in 15 minutes.

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Del Frisco’s Grille Taps One McKinney Plaza for First Dallas Location

posted by Sarah Reiss | July 5th, 2011 11:36am | filed under Openings/Closings, Restaurant News | 1 Comment »

Word on the street is that Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group has selected One McKinney Plaza (at McKinney & Hall in Uptown) for their new concept, Del Frisco’s Grille.

What we know: the grille will open in late November or early December, offer an exhibition kitchen, casual dining, and a lower price point than Del Frisco’s Steakhouse. Only one other grille location exists, in NYC’s Rockefeller Center.

Also coming in the building: Tiffany Derry’s Private Social. Sounds like our kind of corner.

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Meso Maya to Open in Preston Forest in Dallas

posted by Nancy Nichols | July 5th, 2011 11:24am | filed under Openings/Closings, Regional Mexican Cuisine, Restaurant News | 3 Comments »

Just off the phone with former MCrowd veteran, Elizabeth Ruiz. She is consulting on Meso Maya, a “simple modern Mexican food” restaurant slated to open August 1 in the former Chic from Barcelona space in Preston Forest. The chef is Nico Sanchez, formerly of Consilient Restaurants (The Porch, Hibiscus). The house specialty will be Budin Azteca, sort of a Mexican lasagna or tortilla pie if you will, along with sopas such as sopa de lima and posole de puerco. William Baker (Meddlesome Moth, Cibus, Rusty Taco) has designed the 4,800-square foot space which includes three dining areas with three vibes and a floating bar overlooking the open kitchen. Meso Maya is owned by Mike Karns, president of El Fenix. Follow them on Facebook.

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Post Holiday Brews News: Who Owns What?

posted by Sarah Reiss | July 5th, 2011 10:49am | filed under beer, Brews News, Buzz Killer! |

What’s not to love about a Tuesday morning run-down of all of the buying/selling/contracting shenanigans going on in the Bud-Miller-Coors commercial brewing merry go round. For an amusing detailing of how it all spins out, read this Who Owns What article from the DrinkAmerican website.  It’s enough to drive you to homebrew.

2011 Texas Wine Vintage Report: Perissos Vineyard and Winery in Burnet, Texas

posted by Andrew Chalk | July 5th, 2011 8:57am | filed under Andrew Chalk, GO TEXAN, Texas Wine |

Syrah grapes at Perissos Vineyard and Winery

Recently I asked  Seth Martin, winemaker and owner of Perissos Vineyard and Winery whom I profiled here, about the status of the 2011 Texas wine grape harvest. I was well aware that 2010,  a stellar year, would be a tough act to follow. He was kind enough to send photos of his grapes.

Martin talks about the 2011 harvest from his vineyards close to Burnet  in the Hill Country. “I’d say excellent.  The biggest single variable is that we did not have any late freezes at our place,”Martin said. “We have had enough water to keep the vines from dehydrating too much and as of the past week or so the wind has backed off a bit.  Because of the lack of rainfall and unseasonable heat  (3.7″ of rain since January) the disease pressure has been low.”

He sent this picture of his Syrah. Note how much vivid blue coloration is present in the grape skins. That means that they are close to ripeness so Martin must monitor the must weight (sugar), total acidity and pH of the grapes on a daily basis in order to catch what may be a spike in levels in a very short time. “So, overall I’d have to call this a good year so far,” Martin said. ” If we don’t get any rain, which I actually don’t want at this point, then the harvest will be early 9like 2009) and we can wait for mature flavors to develop.  Sugars are starting to increase rapidly.  Flavor comes last.”

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