My Astro-Weenie Christmas Tree contribution to D Magazine's holiday party.Circa 2008.

Three years ago, I introduced you to Charles Phoenix, the “Ambassador of Americana.” More importantly, I introduced you to his “recipe” for the Astro-Weenie Christmas Tree. (I made several for the D Magazine holiday party in 2008.  Co-workers still stalk me for my secret herbal ingredient.)

Well, thanks to SideDish, Phoenix’s  career and has catapulted over hosting grade school field trips and roller skating parties to doing national TV spots with Martha Stewart and commenting on NPR. (Rawlins in drag?) I think it’s time to bring back the Astro-Weenie recipe. Remember, as they say in England, you can always make one suitable for vegetarians. Mind your head.

Florida Stone Crabs – a trip to Miami without leaving your home. Stone crabs are sweet, mild, and delicious. Dip in TJ’s Creamy Mustard Sauce for an authentic experience. Prices are in flux – right now LARGE claws are 31.99/lb.

Thanks for that, Jon. Oh, and I love the video. It cracks me up.

Dinner Delivery menus change each week. Each meal includes an entrée, two sides and dessert.Menus for the week of October 31 include: Tuesday November 1st , 2011

brown sugar and maple grilled pork loin, chicken breast  or seabass sundried cranberry demi-glace rosemary garlic smashed Yukon potatoes shaved pumpkin manchego salad

pecans, sundried cranberries, tomatoes, roasted corn and a smokey raspberry vinaigrette

fudge oatmeal bars

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

grilled meatloaf medallions with wild mushroom demi

classic mac and cheese casserole haricot verts with roasted pearl onions and tomatoes chocolate pumpkin bars

Thursday, November 3rd, 2011

gluten-free cornbread dressing stuffed chicken breast,salmon filet, or portabella mushroom roasted baby veggies field greens and radicchio salad cucumbers, olives, feta, toasted almonds and a white balsamic vinaigrette chocolate dipped strawberries

Dine in for lunch or take dinner home.  Anytime, anyplace, Two Sisters will deliver too. The store offers year round “To-Go” dinner entrees, party trays, gift baskets, and desserts as well as gourmet gift items. Ask us about the monthly specials and selection of frozen ready to heat & eat.

Two Sisters Catering To–Go is the sister company to Two Sisters Catering with two Dallas locations: 3111C Monticello (between Cole and McKinney), open Tuesday through Saturday 11AM to 4PM and 2633 Gaston, open Monday through Friday 11AM to 4PM.

Established in 1989, Two Sisters Catering is a full-service catering and event planning company offering everything from boxed lunches to catering for events up to 5,000.

For more information contact:

GM / Chef Jonathan Stirnweis kitchen@twosisterscatering.com

Connie Chantilis, Founder cchantilis@twosisterscatering.com

214-823-3075

www.twosisterscatering.com

Please email Jennifer Herbert with your questions, comments, orders and or to be added to our email list to find out our upcoming menus delivery@twosisterscatering.com

Fun to look at in the front yard. On TV? Not so much. Go Rangers.

Raya has told you where to go if you want to watch the game in public. However many of us prefer to view the game from the comfort of our own couch with a few friends and dogs. A commenter, who wants to party at home, asks what she can cook to represent each team. I know you will be tempted to say roasted a few Northern Cardinals. There are six of them in my front yard this very second. You can buy Nolan Ryan’s beef at Kroger and maybe do some toasted ravioli.

I say we get this party started! Get creative. Go Rangers!

“The theme of the restaurant is based around elements: water, earth, iron and fire. Live music, theatrical lighting, fine wines and four courses of delicious food prepared in an open kitchen will make for a once in a life time experience.”

Live music? Oh, no! That song! I am sure this will be a lovely celebration. The Elements menu is below along with all the details you need to know.

ELEMENT MENU:

Water

Sous Vide Sea Scallops with Butternut Squash-Sage Brown Butter and Texas Muscat Syrup

Joseph Carr Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast 2009

Earth

Mushroom Soufflé, Hydroponic Watercress Salad and Truffle Essence

Buena Vista Pinot Noir, Carneros 2007

Iron

Iron Seared Filet Mignon, Lobster and Crabmeat Dynamite, Yukon Potato Cake

Elements by Artesa Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa/Sonoma 2007

Fire

Flaming Plantains with Latte Da Dairy Goats Milk Caramel Sauce

SEATINGS:       One seating time each night, Friday, October 27 and Saturday October 28, 2011

7:30 p.m.      Seating is limited to 104 people per night

RESERVATIONS:

Reservations are required.  $89 per person

For reservations please call Chamberlain’s Steak & Chop House at 972-934. 2467.

PARKING:         Complimentary valet parking at Vitruvian Park

3850 Vitruvian Way
Addison, TX 75001-4017

ART & WINE STROLL:

During the stroll throughout the beautiful park, ticketed guests will sample Chef Chamberlain’s culinary offerings that are perfectly paired with fine wines.  For example:

         Artisan Cheese Fondue with local bakery breads complemented by Copperidge Merlot, California 2009

         Hummus, Herb Goats Cheese and crispy flat bread paired with a Helena Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon, California 2010

         Southwest Seafood Cocktail with Chipotle Cream accompanied by a Canyon Road Sauvignon Blanc, California 2010

         Roasted Pears, Smoked Bacon, Brie Cheese with Balsamic Syrup, Painters Bridge Chardonnay, California 2010

Artists include Addison resident and painter Karen Antos, ceramist Jo Clay, artist Gregg Frnka and others.  Entertainment will be provided by classical guitarist Eddie Healey, Tres Leches, a Latin instrumental Jazz group and the Dallas String Quartet.

WHEN:             October 27 and 28, 2011

7 p.m. – 11 p.m.

WHERE:           Vitruvian Park

3850 Vitruvian Way
Addison, TX 75001-4017

Parking:  Free parking and shuttle at Spring Valley and Marsh.

TICKETS:          To sample the food and wines:  Tickets are $35 in advance and $45 at the door

A portion of sales will benefit Addison’s George H.W. Bush Elementary.

Available at:  http://vitruvianartandwinestroll.eventbrite.com/

There is no charge to simply stroll, enjoy the music and the art.

I am hosting an engagement party for a friend, and we need full-service Tex-Mex catering for 90-100 people. I have estimates from some of the larger restaurants (El Fenix, Uncle Julio’s, Mariano’s), but I would like to find another option that would be more flexible, perhaps family-owned and not a chain. I have tried Manny’s, but their catering person is a disaster – it took me 6 phone calls to get her on the phone and within two minutes she put me on hold and never returned. So far in my experience, it seems like the bigger restaurants are more efficient at this sort of business, but if any SideDish readers have had a great catering experience with a smaller Mexican restaurant, I would love some more options.

Speak now. (I used Herrera’s once for a Christmas party.)

In the comments section of Reitz’s post, the ubiquitous Jon Alexis (jonfromtjs) made some remarks that rocked my opinion of One Arts Plaza. I admire Lucy Billingsley and her vision of creating a space where Arts District patrons can dine before and after a show. However, Jon pointed out the problems on Monday night. Snippets: “Commissary delicious but slammed, understaffed, and stressed;” “Screen Door, chef working bar, poor lady so frazzled she’s knocking glasses over;” “Jorge’s, one bartender for 20 people at the bar.” Both Tei-An and Fedora were closed.

Jon brings up a great point. “Can the restaurants not look at the schedule and see when a concert is sold out MONTHS prior that they should staff up?” I thought Screen Door offered pre-event dinners but perhaps they only run for larger events. The patio area is a perfect place to hang before and after events. I would think the already struggling restaurants would at least stick a buffet table outside and serve some drinks. Or call in the food trucks. This is a perfect scenario for One Arts on what would otherwise be a slow Monday night. I’m sure the Kathleen Edwards concert drew a crowd that would have returned to any of the places at One Arts Plaza if they’d been impressed. Now, all they remember are plastic packets of Pacman canapés made by Wolfgang Puck Catering. But don’t get me started on that again. (Wolfgang Puck? Why not a local caterer.)

Part of the Total Catch.(photo by Jon Alexis.)

Jon Alexis, know on every blog in the United States of America as jonfromtjs, handles the marketing for TJ’s Seafood Market, the successful fish market in Preston Forest. He is a conscientious student of seafood. Recently he learned about Total Catch Market, a project (and blog) run by PJ Stoops and Billy Tellez of Louisiana Foods. Their niche is selling by-catch fish, the innocent fishes caught by fishermen actually fishing for a higher profile fish. JonfromTJs was so moved when he heard about these guys, he jumped in his car and drove to Houston.  He sends a brief story about his experience along with cell phone pictures. I am going to run it below. Grammar police be warned: the copy is unedited only because I am low on time at the moment. Take it away jonfromtjs:

Fact – Global demand for seafood is increasing exponentially.

Fact – To meet this demand, we are overfishing our oceans.

Fact – When targeting a species, fishermen throw back any other species they weren’t intending to catch.

Fact – The majority of these fish die when thrown back into the water.

Conclusion – why are we not better utilizing Gulf BY-CATCH?

PJ Stoops and Billy Tellez came to this conclusion a while ago. Now every weekend in Houston, they set up a pop-up market to sell absurdly-fresh Gulf by catch. By catch is any fish caught by the fisherman besides what species they are intending to catch.

Most of these fish are delicious – some are even considered delicacies in other waters.

I traveled to Houston last weekend to learn more about Gulf by catch and some unique species of fish.

After spending some time with Billy Friday afternoon (PJ has gotten tons of media recognition lately for his seemingly infinite seafood knowledge, but Billy deserves a lot of credit as well), I had dinner at Reef restaurant.  Chef Bryan Caswell is another proponent of using everything the Gulf has to offer. Kinilaw Ceviche with Blue Crab, Orange, Coco-Lime Broth was light and fresh.   Roasted Grouper with Corn Pudding, Salsa Cruda, Grilled Peach had a Southern warmth…Houston meets Charleston.

My favorite dish was Grilled Cobia, Broccolini, Orange Mustard, Jalapeno Relish. Cobia is a farm-raised fish that we don’t see too often in Dallas.  Buttery flavor of Mahi Mahi with the firm texture of Swordfish – you can cube it like you can beef.  If you like Ivory Salmon, you’ll love Cobia.

Saturday morning at 8:30am, I arrived at the Total Catch market and in-the-know Houstonians were already lined up for the 9am start time.

The selection is different every week depending on what the fishermen caught. The catch is posted the Friday prior on their blog. Last week’s catch included mangrove snapper, barrelfish, beardfish, triggerfish, blackfin tuna, rock hind, almaco jack, longtail bass, scorpionfish, and more.

So what does this fish taste like?

Barrelfish is very similar to Grouper and a great fish for any recipe requiring a mild-medium flavored flaky white fish.

Beardfish is extremely rare – PJ and Billy had only seen it a handful of times in their years working the Gulf. Beardfish is a sweet whitefish with a very small flake – it almost tastes like crabmeat as it breaks apart in your mouth.

Triggerfish is sweet and firm. Similar to Pompano. My favorite fish of the catch.

Utilizing these fish is not just a marketing gimmick or a “green” ploy.  Sustainability aside- these are delicious, healthy fish we are throwing back most likely to die!

Houston and Austin are already seeing these fish and others available in their cities. TJ’s will be carrying a selection of Gulf By Catch on the weekends and chefs and restaurateurs around the city have already expressed interest.

And they’re having a contest! And Sweet Tea flavored vodka from Deep Eddy!

“Deep Eddy Vodka will also be on hand to sample their amazing Sweet Tea flavored vodka. Pecan Lodge will be encouraging Twitter followers to tweet ideas for a Pecan Lodge t-shirt slogan with the hash tag #pecanlodgebbq. One lucky follower with a clever slogan idea will be selected to win the grand prize giveaway: Father’s Day BBQ Sampler for 10, featuring smoked brisket, ribs, sausage, pulled pork…and Burnt Ends.

Dallas Farmer’s Market, Saturday, June 11, 2011, from 11:00am to 3:00pm with free samples from their new BBQ menu. Pecan Lodge will post additional details about the festivities later this week via Twitter @pecanlodge and facebook.com/pecanlodge, including inside information about additional smoked specialties to be revealed for the first time on Saturday.”

jump for the Vitality mission statement…

At Vitality House we offer delicious, flavorful, unique dishes that are nutritionally beneficial. Our mission is to make your journey for a healthy lifestyle a simple path to follow. With the collaboration of our first class Chefs and our in-house Nutritionist, the menus we present are designed to meet the highest nutritional standards. All of our dishes are pre-portioned and nutritionally analyzed so that the biggest decision to be made is which tasty creation you will chose to enjoy!

In addition, our Nutrition and Wellness Consultants are always available for your individual goal setting, meal planning, and fitness programming.

Vitality House offers the complete package for your well balanced, healthy lifestyle.

Enter Highland Park Cafeteria’s picnic program. Click onto Highland Park Cafeteria’s website by 2 pm on the day of the concert and staff will assemble a custom picnic (think cookies, sandwiches, chips/guacamole, gourmet cheese tray, salads, hotdogs, BBQ sandwiches, beverages, whatever) and have it ready for pick-up by 6 pm in their van next to the Martin Rutchik Concert Stage.

Problem solved. Disaster narrowly averted. Catastrophe staved off for another week.

Do you know of any bakeries in Dallas that sell yummy French macarons, besides Tart Bakery?

A dude who loves food wonders:

Do you know any bakeries that regularly have slider rolls? I’m particularly interested in ciabatta since they are typically prettier and slimmer than a small, hamburger type bun. I see them at catered events and I can’t imagine that the caterers are baking them.

Buns and macarons are the order of the day. Fill it!

DALLAS, TEXAS (March 3, 2011) – Providing gracious hospitality and attainable luxury for twelve years strong, Wynnwood Catering & Special Events, the 2010 and 2011 American Association of Certified Wedding Planners (AACWP) Caterer of the Year, has found a new home.

Dallas natives Dean McSherry, CEO of Preferred Restaurant Services, and Brian Black, President, Preferred Restaurant Management Group and Owner of Mi Piaci Italian Restaurant in Dallas, purchased Wynnwood Catering & Special Events from Jerry Walker of Cityplace Conference Hospitality Group in February of 2011 for an undisclosed amount.

Dang, how much dudes. Jump for more.

McSherry stated his and Black’s plans to grow Wynnwood, “We are more than excited to attain such a well respected and award winning company and are eager to contribute our food and beverage expertise as well as integrate Wynnwood with some of our current operations.”

Vice President and Creative Director Jennifer Harris and her established hospitality team will be moving from North Haskell to Preferred Restaurant Services’ corporate office on Montfort next week. This move represents a final step in the process, which will allow Wynnwood Catering & Special Events to continue providing culinary artistry to special events nationwide. Culinary direction will now be overseen and executed by Executive Chef Ross Demers of Mi Piaci Italian Restaurant and a growing team of established chefs. The Wynnwood purchase will also allow Mi Piaci catering services to expand their capabilities to accommodate parties of up to 5,000 people with both their authentic Italian menu and the Wynnwood book of customized menus to fit any theme.

Located at 14850 Montfort Drive in Dallas, Texas, Wynnwood Catering & Special Events is a premium special event company offering attainable luxury through thoughtful planning, culinary artistry and gracious hospitality. For more information about Wynnwood, please call 214.628.7000 or visit, www.wynnwood.com.

Founded in 2001 by restaurateurs for restaurateurs, Preferred Restaurant Services was established to expand outsourced services to all major restaurant markets, identifying needs that are unique to the foodservice industry and tailoring their services to meet those needs. PRS is located at 14850 Montfort Drive in Dallas, Texas. For more information about Preferred Restaurant Services please call 214.628.7000 or visit, www.prslp.com.

With a proven record of maximizing unit profitability and turning around distressed restaurants, Preferred Restaurant Management Group provides operational, culinary and concept consulting and management for startup and existing food and beverage operations. PRMG is located at 14850 Montfort Drive in Dallas, Texas. For more information about Preferred Restaurant Management Group please call 214.628.7000 or visit, www.prslp.com.

Founded in 1991, Mi Piaci is an Authentic Italian Restaurant located in Dallas at 14854 Montfort Drive just south of Beltline Road. With handmade pastas and house cured meats, Mi Piaci’s claim to fame is that they ‘makes it in house or import it from Italy.’ For more information about Mi Piaci please visit, www.mipiaci-dallas.com.

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