Food Feedback Friday

Posted on July 15th, 2011 9:00am by Nancy Nichols
Filed under Food Feedback Friday

Hey, Dishers. 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.

18 comments

  1. Red Fork. Great burger. Interesting cocktails. And a really nice and attentive staff. Went without reservations last Friday night and it was crowded but we were seated within about 30 minutes. Will be back.

    @ 10:57 am on July 15, 2011

  2. Tried out RedFork this week. Service was prompt and refreshingly non-pretentious. Food was good. I really hope this place takes off, so one bit of criticism: the cheese board was ridiculously minimal, especially for the money. Aside from the fig and apple slices, our board had a couple chunks of the two types of cheese we ordered and about 10 tiny paper thin slices of salami (thinner than carpaccio and about the size of a quarter; it seriously was about one bite of salami cut into 10 slices).

    I’ll be back soon to try the burger I’ve heard so much about.

    @ 11:11 am on July 15, 2011

  3. Any updates as to when Dough is opening?

    @ 11:54 am on July 15, 2011

  4. Had a nice little adventure in Grapevine. Brie nachos at Into the Glass, dinner at Esparza’s.

    Lunch at La Margarita in Irving. Salsa is tasteless, but the duck tacos get two thumbs up.

    Bastille Day on Bishop! Tried Tim Byres and Matt McAllister’s mussels. That was some tasty business. What’s this I hear about McAllister opening up his own place? When can we get some deets on that?

    @ 12:06 pm on July 15, 2011

  5. McCallister is fairly tight-lipped on the new restaurant, but he has alluded to the first quarter in 2012 if all goes as planned. Should be wicked.

    @ 12:13 pm on July 15, 2011

  6. Urban Crust in downtown Plano last Saturday night. By 7 p.m. there was a 45 minute wait. (Next time, we’ll go at 6.) Food was excellent, but service was off. Our waiter was passive agressive. My friend had a diet coke up in the bar, but the waiter wouldn’t bring her another one nor did he bring her water. Not sure what that was about. Also, he whisked away our peach pie before we had finished it. At first, I was upset, but then I figured he had saved me from myself because it was casting a spell over me, and I couldn’t stop eating it. I love the complimentary bread (pizza crust, acutally) with the sides of marinated sun dried tomotoes and olive spread. The pizza margherita was superb–perfect combo of ripe tomatoes, silky mozzarella and basil, and the Genova with eggplant and goat cheese also pleased everyone. Even if the service isn’t the best, we will go back because the pizza is so good.

    @ 1:19 pm on July 15, 2011

  7. My wife made brisket tacos with homemade guac and salsa; the tomatoes and onions and peppers came from a local farmers market.

    @ 1:20 pm on July 15, 2011

  8. Loopy, Dough is now saying “August.”

    @ 1:46 pm on July 15, 2011

  9. Thanks NN!

    @ 2:24 pm on July 15, 2011

  10. Had a wonderful dinner yesterday when Sokol Blosser hosted a wine dinner at The Place at Perry’s. Sokol Blosser is an Oregon based winery 30 miles south of Portland.

    Their brand ambassador Staci Pettus was a lovely hostess along with Kerri and the great staff at The Place.

    I am by no means a wine expert, I will drink anything pretty much, so forgive me if I use the incorrect terms to describe my experience.

    We started with Spicy Tuna Roll on a stick. Seared ahi tuna with a spicy pistachio crust was served lollipop style. Incredibly fresh, wonderfully succulent cut tuna with a nutty crust was paired with Evolution, a blend of nine grapes that creates an incredibly lush, very slightly sweet white wine that was perfect for a 100f evening.

    Next up was Almond Lobster Gazpacho with fennel, vanilla & orange! Wow! Super juicy, sweet, plentiful chunks of lobster in a fantastically smooth, chilled soup. The wine was a 2009 Pinot Gris whose creamy, fruity flavors complimented the soup perfectly. One of the highlights for me.

    2nd course was Roasted Duck Arugula Salad paired with a 2008 Pinot Noir, from Dundee Hills. Amazing wine. Quite unbelievable nose. All about terroir we were told and one had to agree. The Dundee Hills are, apparently, very similar in climate to Burgundy and aging for 16 months in oak just adds to this wines marvelous taste. The duck salad wasn’t too shabby either – fresh lime vinaigrette was all that was needed for everything to come together.

    Stuffed Roasted Pork Medallions were teamed with Meditrina – a red blend of Syrah, Pinot Noir & Zinfandel. OMG! For some reason I got a glow-all-over-happy-to-be-alive-Thanksgiving/Christmas vibe from this pairing. I wanted to hug everyone! The andouille & cornbread stuffing was to die for. I could have just eaten bowls of that yummy goodness. And the wine was judged to be spot on for balancing the heat of the spicy dressing.

    Desert – le pièce de résistance! The Place at Perry’s Brown Bag Apple Pie has been lauded on Sidedish before and rightly so. It’s a sweet yet tart (how they do that?), cinnamon rich bundle of joy! Chef Jaime cranked it up a notch or two by sprinkling bacon and cheddar cheese on the top! Unbelievable. Served with a 2009 White Riesling.

    Wonderful evening, pleasant company. Life is good.

    @ 2:28 pm on July 15, 2011

  11. Tried out RedFork this week as well. Beet salad was killer, but not sure the burger was worth all the buzz.

    @ 3:46 pm on July 15, 2011

  12. What the heck is Redfork?

    @ 4:09 pm on July 15, 2011

  13. Cafe Izmir for lunch today after reading Nancy’s review on $8.00 lunches.
    It wasn’t the best hummus I’ve ever eaten as proclaimed but, it was very good. I prefer mine not pureed as smoothly. I asked for more olive oil drizzled on it and it was added without any hesitation. I had the falafel, too and they were delicious. Crispy and fresh with Persian spices. The gracious owner, Mehmid is a great host and even gave me one of their butter cookies for dessert because I’d never been there before. But, I will return for sure. Btw, their ice tea is a Persian recipe. Different but very refreshing. The best part? They deliver!

    @ 6:51 pm on July 15, 2011

  14. @Loopy – It’s a brand new restaurant on Fitzhugh – east of central, just south of Henderson. It’s a solid concept with fresh and delicious food. NN can correct me if I’m wrong (I don’t feel like googling right now either), but one of the chefs is ex-York St. and the other is ex-Craft. That’s some solid cred. Cheers.

    @ 6:52 pm on July 15, 2011

  15. Re: Cafe Izmir. I misspelled the owners forename name as Mehmid. It’s actually, Mehdi.

    @ 7:00 pm on July 15, 2011

  16. Ardy, yes you are correct. Jeff Harris from Craft is execuchef.

    @ 2:08 pm on July 16, 2011

  17. Doan (Vietnamese) in Garland for lunch today. “air” was correct about the intense flavor of the pho broth. The best I’ve had. Overall, very good. Pleasant staff all speak English. I will return.

    @ 7:12 pm on July 16, 2011

  18. Love Campisis

    @ 9:45 pm on July 16, 2011