Articles for December 19th, 2011

What To Drink Now: Miner Family Winery

posted by Hayley Hamilton | December 19th, 2011 5:32pm | filed under Wine & Spirits | 3 Comments »

Many years ago at the then Sense nightclub (now Victor Tango’s) I was introduced to Miner Family Wine from Napa Valley. It was a Sangiovese, not the typical grape from Napa, served by the glass and filled with cherry, spice and a hint of vanilla. From that moment I was a fan, making Miner one of my first stops on my initial trip to Napa, and now a must visit every trip since, tasting great wine and creating wonderful memories with friends and family along the way.

I recently sat down with owner Dave Miner while visiting the valley to get his perspective on the industry, his wine and plans for the future.

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Grocery Store Updates: Central Market Preston Royal, Carbone’s Fine Food and Wine

posted by Nancy Nichols | December 19th, 2011 1:14pm | filed under Groceries, Restaurant News | 1 Comment »

Julian Barsotti's Uncle Al at Carbone's in Harrison, New Jersey.

Carbone’s Fine Food and Wine. Construction on Julian (Nonna) Basotti’s much anticipated deli, grocery store, and mini-restaurant on December 2. It’s going into the space formerly known as Talbot’s on Wycliff and Oak Lawn. Barsotti says he anticipates opening in March 2012. The store’s logo was inspired by the sign of his family’s restaurant on the East Coast. It opened in Manhattan before moving to Harrison, New Jersey. It was open for 75 years and closed in 1993.

Central Market Preston Royal. According to a loyal Disher, construction workers were on duty last night inside the Central Market going into the former Border’s space in Preston Royal. The store is scheduled to open in February 2012.

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Food Trucks in Dallas Give Back; And The 12/19 Weekly Schedule

posted by George Lewis | December 19th, 2011 12:22pm | filed under Food Trucks | 1 Comment »

In DFW, the local food trucks are all run by individuals.  No corporate action here.  They come from a variety of backgrounds, including food service, bar service, real estate, brokerage, nutritionists, and a couple of architects.  The common thread is how much they give back to their community.

Yesterday, Good Karma Kitchen and Rollin Diner participated with the 26th Annual Big Texas Toy Run.  Ruthie’s Rolling Cafe generally has one or more events each week, supporting various charities, including Genesis Women’s Shelter and The North Texas Food Bank.  This last weekend, at the Santa Rampage event, Cup Cakin Machine, 3 Men and a Taco, and Ruthie’s all donated their tips to the NTFB.

For the last couple of months, Nammi has been selling T-shirts at $15, with $10 of that going to NTFB.

Every month, So-Cal Tacos picks a local family in need and supports them with 100% of their tip jar.  This last month, they helped a family nearing foreclosure.

This week we also introduce a new truck in Dallas: Easy Slider serves up all varieties of sliders, targeting primarily the late night crowd, as well as dinner and lunch.

Tuesday Update: Added new truck: Rock ‘n’ Roll Tacos.  Also added the weeks schedule for Crazy Sisters.

And with that, remember the magic words: “weather permitting”.  Also, several trucks will be taking some well-deserved vacation this week.  Check Facebook and Twitter feeds first.  Jump for your schedule.

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Bolsa Mercado in Oak Cliff: The Top 10 Sellers

posted by Nancy Nichols | December 19th, 2011 11:45am | filed under AgriBusiness, Groceries, oak cliff | 5 Comments »

I meant to post this copy earlier in Desiree’s photo essay, but I am running behind schedule. Yesterday, I asked the folks at Bolsa Mercado to give me a list of the top ten products they sold during their first week. Curious to see what the folks in the OC bought? Read on. Continue reading "Bolsa Mercado in Oak Cliff: The Top 10 Sellers"

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Chef Richard Blankenship Introduces Winter Menu at Charlie Palmer at The Joule

posted by Andrew Chalk | December 19th, 2011 10:10am | filed under Andrew Chalk, Restaurant News, Wine & Spirits | 6 Comments »

Roasted Baby Beets (goat cheese, upland cress and honey vinaigrette)

Scott Romano, the opening executive chef at Charlie Palmer at The Joule, firmly established the restaurant as a leading chef-driven establishment and a forerunner in the trend to house-cure meats. Since he left in October, the restaurant has been in the hands of Richard Blankenship. Although he holds the title of Executive Sous Chef he is, for all practical purposes, Executive Chef. Witness, he just introduced a new winter menu.

Braised Veal and Gnocchi (matsutake mushroom and pumpkin leaves)

What effect has this change of chef had on the food? Since Blankenship worked under Romano for years,  delivering such things as the hotel banquet service, it will comes as little surprise to learn  the watchword for the personnel change is continuity. The cured meat program continues. The menu remains focused on sophisticated New American cooking (with a strong section catering to steak lovers because over one third of the diners order steak). Farm-to-market and seasonality figure prominently. All the other personnel remain in place. GM Enam Chowdhury ably runs the front of house. Wine Director Jeffrey Andrus maintains one of the best lists in town.

Let’s get to the new food.

Continue reading "Chef Richard Blankenship Introduces Winter Menu at Charlie Palmer at The Joule"

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Snippet From Snooty Foodies: Del Frisco’s Grille in Dallas

posted by Nancy Nichols | December 19th, 2011 9:30am | filed under Keep Dallas Douchey!, Restaurant News, Snooty Foodies | 19 Comments »

Hey y’all, remember the Snooty Foodies? The dashing couple who dine out so much they had to take a break from their blog? Well, they’ve decided to dip their toes back into the blogosphere by sending in a snippet whenever they bloody well feel like it. That’s why we call them snooty. Plus they use “I” instead of “we.” Here, they go.

The first Del Frisco’s Grille in New York has been open for a while in very modest digs (ha!) at 50 Rock which is just down the street from their steakhouse in Manhattan. The NYC DFG is rocking. So is the Nick & Sam’s Grill, the light version on Nick & Sam’s here in Dallas. Judging from the crowd’s I’ve seen at Del Frisco’s Grille on McKinney, I think Del Frisco’s opening on McKinney Ave in the heart of uptown is a good idea.

Three major concerns leapt to mind before my first visit to DFG: it’s a new glitzy spot in douche bag central, casual off shoots from fine dining restaurants rarely wow me, and inevitably the bar will be 4 deep and I don’t like to wait on drinks. So I decided to visit mid-afternoon and I didn’t have to wait on a couple of Bentleys to move so I could get to the valet stand.

Jump for it. Continue reading "Snippet From Snooty Foodies: Del Frisco’s Grille in Dallas"

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Desiree + Camera: Photo Essay of Bolsa Mercado in Oak Cliff

posted by Nancy Nichols | December 19th, 2011 9:00am | filed under Desiree Espada, Food Porn | 3 Comments »

Interior of Bolsa Mercado. Photos by Desiree Espada)

Desiree Espada, our energetic young photographer, is taking her camera all over town to shoot all-things-food. Today she brings us Bolsa Mercado. From her eyes to yours.

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