Articles for July 25th, 2011

Decanter Restaurant in Bishop Arts is Closed

Tonight I received a note from Najam Jaffri of Decanter Restaurant in Bishop Arts withe the sad news:

I wanted to let you know that I have decided to close Decanter Restaurant and wine Lounge in Bishop Arts District as of today. We could never implement our original concept and staffing,weather and economy were other factors.Shop owners at Bishop Arts are great people and I will miss them.

UPITTY DATE: Jaffri says he and chef Tony Gardizi will stay together to do catering.  “We will be opening new restaurant in November before Thanksgiving,” Jaffri said.

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Watch Local Glass Blowing Artist Create Designs for Tiffany Derry’s Private Social

Tiffany Derry pointed us to this video of glass being blown for her soon-to-open restaurant, Private Social:

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Best Hangover Cure in Dallas?

Lots of questions coming in this morning. This one arrives via Twitter:

dallasbeerweek
dallasbeerweek dallasbeerweek
Help me oh @Dsidedish, what is the best hangover cure? Burgers? Tex-Mex? Hemlock? <head pounds>
Tweet us at DSideDish or leave a comment here.

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Yelp Versus the Restaurateur—Read and Discuss

Luther Lowe, Manager of Local Business Outreach for Yelp, chimes in on the great Yelp debate. (Image courtesy of TheFoodNetwork.com)

In an article on TheFoodChannel.com, Kay Logsdon updated us on the Yelp vs. the restaurateur debate—specifically whether online reviews via Yelp (and, eh-hem, other sources) are a good or a bad thing? The following is the opening excerpt from her article:

It was the food fight of the year. The tall, wavy-haired young marketing genius vs. the wiry, shaved-headed young chef. Both technically-savvy. Both heavily invested in the food business. Both opinionated.

In this corner, Luther Lowe, Manager of Local Business Outreach for the popular ratings powerhouse, Yelp.

And, in that corner, Stefan Richter (photo, right), the Finnish chef who was a runner-up on the fifth season of Top Chef, and owner of Stefan’s European Catering, Stefan’s at L.A. Farm, and Stefan’s Steakhouse (in Finland).

In the audience? Restaurant owners and operators who have a definite stake in the game. These are the people whose very livelihood can be impacted by a negative or positive review of their restaurant, and those online ratings can be important to attracting new customers. How popular is Yelp? The site this week passed a significant milestone: its 20 millionth review was posted.

The drama was all part of the great debate showcased at the National Restaurant Association’s session: Are Online Reviews a Good or Bad Thing?…

Click here to read the whole article. Then come back so that we can discuss…

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National Hot Fudge Sundae Day is Way More Fun Than Administrative Assistants’ Day

Love to grouse about Hallmark holidays? Well, strap in and get ready to either love or hate the following. Apparently there are a lot more interesting faux holidays out there than National Epitaph Day or Sweetest Day (how this differs from Valentine’s Day is beyond me). And they focus on food. (National Watermelon Eating Day, anyone? BTW, it’s on August 3.)

Yes, now you can forget about loving your fellow man, these holidays are all about loving you some food. The good folks at TheNibble.com actually went to the trouble of compiling a list. You’ll want to merge this with your Google calendar so you don’t miss out on a chance to throw a party for National Lasagna Day. (Too bad that one doesn’t fall on a weekday; the office party, and all of the mournful moaning afterward, would be epic.)

Jump for the remaining July holidays… Continue reading "National Hot Fudge Sundae Day is Way More Fun Than Administrative Assistants’ Day"

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What to Drink Now: Tropical Cocktails

Lychee Mojito at Hualalai

I just spent two weeks on The Big Island of Hawaii.  While there I tried a few island cocktails that kept us cool most afternoons.  Keep one in mind if an afternoon in the pool is calling, or a happy hour in the sweltering heat….I promise, you will feel refreshed after one sip.

Lychee Mojito from Hualalai Four Seasonson The Big Island.  Perhaps one of the most beautiful places in the world, and a place that knows how to open an incredible bottle of wine from their well appointed list and mix up stellar signature cocktails.  This sweet and savory mojito combined rich lychee fruit, Kai lychee vodka, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, soda water and refreshing herbal notes from fresh mint.  I asked the bartender to go light on the simple syrup keeping the drink relatively non-sweet, but incredibly refreshing and flavorful.

Continue reading "What to Drink Now: Tropical Cocktails"

Somebody Help This Poor Boy: Best Milkshake in Dallas?

Oh, boy this sounds so good right now. Listen up and give him good advice.

Nancy, my wife and I just moved here from San Francisco. We are milkshake freaks. What places in Dallas make really good milkshakes using artisan ingredients or housemade ice cream.

Should we tell him now? Or wait for him to get to know Dallas a little better. Give him your best shot.

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Is Casey Thompson Leaving Dallas Permanently for Napa?

Last Friday, Brownstone’s Casey Thompson tweeted:

Putting an offer in on a space in Napa and a house all at the same time!

Does this mean that this former Top Chef contender from Fort Worth is permanently leaving the prairie for the vine-covered hillsides of Northern California? That she won’t be guest-mixing margaritas behind the Brownstone bar for much longer? Granted, the house she put an offer in on could be here in town, but it’s vague enough to have us guessing.

We’ve got calls out. Stay tuned for updates!


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Cavalli Pizza Napoletana Claims First Napoli Certified Pizza In Texas Honors

Cavalli Pizzeria Napoletana's Pizza Margherita

For Paolo Cavalli, making pizza is just continuing the work started by his great grandparents. For the rest of his family running Cavalli Pizzeria Napoletana it is also the continuation of the family work. The family is now large enough to support two locations: the original spot in Irving the more recent McKinney incarnation. They might be able to birth another at some point but that will depend on such imponderables such as span of control and birth rates. However, from the first bite you take from the pizza at Cavalli, this is not chain restaurant mentality pizza. In fact they have been so under the radar that I dare say many Dallasites are unaware that such a gem exists in the area. To partly rectify this problem they organized a press dinner.

Jump for the whole story.
Continue reading "Cavalli Pizza Napoletana Claims First Napoli Certified Pizza In Texas Honors"

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