Articles for September 22nd, 2011

What to Drink Now: Race Cocktails from Patron

posted by Hayley Hamilton | September 22nd, 2011 3:31pm | filed under cocktails, Silly Reasons to Celebrate, Wine & Spirits |

Alexis DeJoria, her father John Paul DeJoria, and his wife Eloise DeJoria; Photo courtesy of Jerry McClure

Last night Patron Tequila welcomed an enthusiastic group of Dallas socialites and car racing fanatics to “The Apartment” in The Design District for a good luck and have fun party for the newest member of the NHRA Nitro Funny Car, Alexis DeJoria, the daughter of John Paul DeJoria (owner of Paul Mitchell and Patrón Tequila.)

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Continue reading "What to Drink Now: Race Cocktails from Patron"

Upcoming Opportunities to Taste

posted by Hayley Hamilton | September 22nd, 2011 2:20pm | filed under Wine & Spirits, Wine Pairing |

There are a handful of great opportunities to taste around Dallas in the up coming weeks. Here are a few stand outs.

Gloria Collell with Ferrer

Next Wednesday night Veritas welcomes Gloria Collell from the Ferrer family of wines to taste selections from their Heredad Collection of high end, boutique wine from throughout Spain.  And, best of all, it is free.

The tasting will be from 6pm-8:30pm, a perfect place to stop prior to attending the Domaine Serene dinner at The Grape at 7pm on Wednesday.   Continue reading "Upcoming Opportunities to Taste"

Rumors Behind the Restaurant News: Mico Rodriguez is Planning to Take Burger Girl Space

posted by Nancy Nichols | September 22nd, 2011 1:45pm | filed under Cult Cuisine, make mine a double, margaritas, Mexican Revolution | 8 Comments »

Several eagle-eyed Dishers and Pegasus News have reported Mico sightings at the space formerly known as Burger Girl. I spoke with Mico Rodriguez and he detailed his vision for a small restaurant. However, nothing has been finalized and nothing is official. I know several of you saw a Mico 12 sign go up, but it is my understanding it has been taken down. Mico is eager to get going but loose ends need tightening. Stand by.

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Chew on This: Seating, or Not Seating, Incomplete Parties

posted by Nancy Nichols | September 22nd, 2011 12:13pm | filed under Bring it!, Celebrity Chefs, Cult Cuisine, How to Open a Restaurant 101, Procrastination is part of the creative process, Restaurant News, Slow News Day | 21 Comments »

I understand why some restaurants are reluctant to seat incomplete parties. Sometimes the rest of the party doesn’t show up and the restaurant is left with a deuce at a four-top during the dinner rush. Lost revenue on valuable real estate. Allowing two people to sit while they wait for another couple can also throw the pace of service off: two separate drink orders and/or two different water pours. If a restaurant is busy, they have to remain firm on this policy. I get it.

However, a few weeks ago my mother and I showed up at a small restaurant for a 5:30PM reservation. We were on time, but our other two friends had called to say they would be 15 minutes late. I told the hostess our situation. She told us she would seat us when our party was complete. The restaurant was empty. Oh, sorry, there was one two-top in the back. The hostess handed us menus and walked away. A few minutes later, I broke up a conversation between said hostess and a server and asked if we could order a glass of wine. She brought us the wine. We stood for 18 minutes with a menu in one hand and a glass of wine in the other. No other diners entered the restaurant. When our tardy party arrived, we were escorted four steps to our table.

Restaurateurs, tell us why this is right or wrong.

Dishers, tell me some  similar stories.

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Eat This Now: Red Velvet Twinkies from Horne and Dekker in Dallas

posted by Daniel Walker | September 22nd, 2011 11:01am | filed under Baking, cake, dessert, Diets are stupid, Eat This Now!, Expensive cheap eats, Junk Food | 5 Comments »

The old urban legend regarding Twinkies states that they have a shelf life comparable to carbon-14, able to fulfill cream filled fantasies for ages to come. And if something is going to be around for that long, it had better be great. This delicate golden sponge cake is truly a piece of American history, and has no doubt left a lasting impression on the millions of lives it has touched.

Every so often, we try to screw around with it.  Deep frying it wasn’t a bad idea.  Various fruit and chocolate creams have crept into that little golden fortress of solitude.  But nothing has compared to that original blend of high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.  That is, until Mr. Horne (or perhaps Mr. Dekker) decided to take a crack at it.

You may call red velvet a fad, and you would probably not be too far off, but regardless it is winning over the hearts of diners around the country.  Red velvet cupcakes, waffles, whoopie pies, and pancakes have all flooded the ovens of America, so much so that the lowly RV cake seems to be getting lost in the shuffle.  Now Twinkies invade the red velvet world and there seems to be no sign of stopping.

Perhaps it’s the simple nostalgia that won me over, perhaps the joy of being allowed to dunk stuff into milk while having a nice dinner, but I am definitely on Horne and Dekker’s “Team Twinkie.”  Light and airy red velvet cake, slightly spongy, baked fresh, crammed full of housemade cream.  Each order comes paired with a glass of satisfyingly cold milk.  It’s a simple delight, but one that deserves credit in a town apparently “dessert challenged.”

I wish Twinkie the Kid could have lived to see this day, he would have cried joyful tears of creamy filling.  It would have made him so proud to have graduated to an undeniably more sophisticated snack cake.  So get to Horne and Dekker, the patio’s mighty fine, the fried chicken is hot and juicy, the biscuits are among the best in the city, and anything tastes better when chased down by a fat red twinkie.

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Burgers and Burgundy To Benefit DIFFA Is October 9 in Dallas

posted by Andrew Chalk | September 22nd, 2011 9:56am | filed under Andrew Chalk, Bacon, Burgers, Celebrity Chefs, Charity events | 2 Comments »

This year’s event is at One Arts Plaza. Once again, John Tesar is lead chef.

Roll the press release… Continue reading "Burgers and Burgundy To Benefit DIFFA Is October 9 in Dallas"

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Monica Greene’s New Restaurant, Tajin, is Under Construction

posted by Nancy Nichols | September 22nd, 2011 9:00am | filed under Celebrity Chefs, Openings/Closings, Regional Mexican Cuisine, Restaurant News | 16 Comments »

Veteran Dallas restaurateur Monica Greene’s new Mexico City-style full-service restaurant, Tajin, is under construction at the ILUME building on Cedar Springs. “The name represents beginnings to me,” Greene said. “I was born on a street named Tajin and it was there I would sit in the kitchen with the family cooks and learn how to cook.”

The space is designed around personalized service. “Google Tajin and the Olmec people can see the inspiration for some of the design elements,” Greene said. “El Tajin are ruins near Veracruz and the people had huge round faces and almost an African look.” The menu? “Mexican, Mexican, Mexican,” Greene said. “This is not Ciudad, this is  going to be traditional Mexican stuff that nobody in Dallas is doing. The menu will feature liver, rabbits, and grasshoppers.” Greene will be in the kitchen but she is also interviewing chefs to work with her.

Take a look at the two logos above. Monica is also trying to decide which logo to use. Which do you like?

The 80-seat restaurant is scheduled to open in January, 2012.

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