Articles for July 8th, 2011

3rd Annual Food For Thought Features Big Chefs for Big Thought

August 6th the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers (DAYL) will host their third annual Food for Thought event featuring some of our favorite chefs in the city, benefiting Big Thought, a Dallas based non profit dedicated to helping improve public education. 

Signature tastes will be presented throughout the night from Brian Luscher of The Grape, John Teasar of The Commissary, Tiffany Derry of the soon to open Private Social,Matt McCallister, Samir Dhurandhar of Nick and Sam’s,  and many more.  Former Dallas Cowboy, Daryl Johnston will also be in attendance to accept the DAYL’s Gavel of Excellence award for his work with SLANT 45, the youth education program of the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee.  Tickets and more information available here.

Hector’s on Henderson is Closing

A loyal Disher sends this sad news:

I’m a regular reader of the Side Dish blog, and I wanted to let you know that I got word today that Hector’s on Henderson is closed. My wife’s birthday is next weekend, and we had a party scheduled for approximately 18 people, but I got a call from Hector himself this morning letting me know of the closure. He didn’t want our party showing up next week to find a locked door. I’ve been there several times over the years, and I think it speaks to his credit that he called me personally.

I hate it when bad things happen to good people. Hector has been, and I’m sure always will be, a good Samaritan in  the Dallas dining scene. Details to follow.

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BBQ Snob Daniel Vaughn Has a Baby Boy

Daddy's little brisket boy.

Obviously our barbecue correspondent Daniel Vaughn does more than eat barbecue. He, his lovely wife Jennifer, and daughter Madeline, just took delivery of their first baby boy. James Lucas Vaughn was born on July 2 at 9:19am. He’s about the size of an average brisket: 7lbs, 8oz, and 21 inches long. He has yet to suck his first rib bone. “My daughter got all the publicity on CNN for teething on a rib bone,” Vaughn said. “So I’m thinking brisket for him. Chopped before sliced.” Sounds like a line of baby clothing to me.

Park Restaurant Sold and Gets a New Bad Name

A few weeks ago, I actually made a phone call and reported the closure of Park Restaurant. Short story shorter: Owner Donald Chick sold the place to Peter Kenny, owner of Capitol Pub. Today, Teresa Gubbins digs deep in the dirt and reveals Mr. Kenny has already come up with new names for both Park and its sibling, Bar Celine. Park will now be Swig. Really? “Hey gang, let’s go to Swig for brunch?” Doesn’t work for me.

Meanwhile, Bar Celine will be called The Gin Mill. I love gin so I won’t complain about that. However, Swig is going on my Bad Names for Restaurants List. Right beside our this place. Teresa has more important stuff here. (Asador, really chaps my sass.) Moving on.

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Hubba Hubba. Carrie Keep From NOSH Goes to Hell With Gordon Ramsay

Carrie Keep from NOSH landed herself on Hell's Kitchen.

Look for local hottie, NOSH line cook Carrie Keep, on the upcoming season of Hell’s Kitchen, premiering on July 18. Keep is the latest in a long series of Dallas restaurant pros to throw themseves into the reality gristmill and is rumored to have made it to the finals (although that’s just foodie buzz rumor at this point). Show up at Nosh on Monday July 18 for the premier-watching party.

Her profile on the show’s site reads as such:

Name: Carrie Keep
Age: 31
Occupation: Pantry Chef (editor’s note:yes, it says pantry)
Hometown: Dallas, TX
Signature Dish: Chicken-Fried Rib Eye with Yukon Mashed Potatoes and White Truffle Cream Gravy

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Restaurants For Sale in Dallas

I love to search for real estate. This morning a fellow restaurant real estate junkie pointed me to this site. I found several interesting listings. One sounds like Tramontana in Preston Center. Then there is a Mexican food restaurant in Grapevine. A downtown pizza place for $500K??  Have a look. Make some guesses.

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Social House Reopens in Addison

Yes, it’s true. The Social House has reopened—not in Uptown, but in Addison. So many “social”-themed names, we’re trying to keep it all straight. There’s The Social House, The Cedars Social, Social 121, and the soon-to-come Private Social.

Regardless, at least in terms of The Social House, their press release says it all:

The Social House, a new supper pub offering contemporary American cuisine, is now open at the Village on the Parkway in Addison.

Created to enhance all forms of social interaction, the Social House offers guests a comfortable, yet polished atmosphere featuring stone walls adorned with wooden framed televisions and a unique wooden ceiling. This casual setting features an indoor/outdoor patio perfect for late night dining. With 22 televisions, a fireplace and private meeting areas, the Social House can accommodate almost any social gathering like a guy’s night out, a fun date or corporate happy hours.

With three full bars, guests can easily order from the Social House’s drink menu which offers more than 50 beers on tap including craft, import and domestic beers along with a 60 bottle wine list and ten specialty cocktails. The 75 item menu offers an array of bar snacks, salads, burgers, sandwiches, tacos and entrees including a luscious Chicken Fried Steak crafted with 21 day aged  beef. Among the more adventurous dishes found on the menu include III Meat Meatloaf with ground beef, pork and buffalo, Chicken Fried Oysters with horseradish cream sauce,  The Sink Burger with white cheddar, Swiss cheese, Ancho pulled pork, and fried onion strings and the Social House Griddle Cheese with white cheddar cheese, Granny Smith apples and Wright’s apple wood smoked bacon.

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Will Addisonians Flip Out Over Made-To-Order Crepes From a Drive-Thru? Watch the Video and Decide For Yourself

In case you missed the Flippin’ Out Crepes teaser a few weeks back, back in June, we had a nice little daisy chain going on with Nancy reporting on Teresa Gubbins coverage of the press-release announcement of Flippin’ Out Crepes drive-thru creperie in Addison (for the record, Teresa Gubbins reported the story in May and added the press release when they issued it in June).

This morning I stumbled upon a Thrillist video (thanks, guys) giving us a visual.

Sounds like a trip through a drive-thru is in order, pronto.

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Gas Station Tacos: Taqueria Los Delicious in Dallas

Christopher Baccus loves cars and gas station tacos. We find that very attractive.

Dishers, Christopher Baccus is  a taco junkie and blogger. Not just any kind of taco, primarily those found in or near gas stations. Last week he took you there, this week he takes you here.

I live a food paradox. At home I cook using fresh, mostly organic and try to buy local as much as possible. We also p alurchase all of our meat from Burgundy Pasture Beef a ranch in Grandview, Texas that raises grass-fed animals. Our chicken comes from another local source, Windy Meadows Family Farm.

As part of our pursuit to eat local and to know where our food comes from, my wife recently heard about an unique Farmer’s Market. It’s called Eden’s Organic Farm and refers to itself as the “Home of DFW’s first All-Clean, Real Food, Real Farmer’s Market Day!” It’s located about 25 minutes from Dallas in Balch Springs. We hit the road. Continue reading "Gas Station Tacos: Taqueria Los Delicious in Dallas"

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Food Feedback Friday

Hey, Dishers. Can you believe it is only the 8th of July?  Where did you eat this week? Did you find something fabulous? Did you find something foul? We’d love to hear your thoughts on your latest restaurant experiences. Here’s what you reported last week.

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Kathy Jack, Owner of Jack’s Backyard in Dallas, Releases Statement to Clear Controversy

Give these gals some credit (sorry) for speaking up when they’re down on their luck. Kathy Jack and Susie Buck of Jack’s Backyard closed their popular indoor/outdoor venue on June 26. There has been some talk going around about why they closed and even though they’ve released the statement below, I’m still a little unclear on their message. Owner Kathy Jack writes “I developed a plan with the head of the creditors’ committee to repay our back debts and start repaying investors but ultimately, we were not given that opportunity.” By the landlord? By the bank? Whatever,  I admire her courage and commitment to make things right. I’ve asked for more details. Below is the statement she released late last night.

Continue reading "Kathy Jack, Owner of Jack’s Backyard in Dallas, Releases Statement to Clear Controversy"

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