D Home editor Joslyn Taylor had this brilliant idea of doing a cross post. Since the weather has been kind of wunderbar, we thought it’d be fun if I picked out my ideal picnic basket foods while Joslyn paired them with pretty basket accessories.

Jump if you can’t wait for this weekend.

I tried to pick foods that would be good for families with kids and no kids. (Or even picnic baskets for those of us who like to go on dates by ourselves with a nice book.) Either way, the grub has to be good, right?

1. JJ&B jelly - I’m just terribly smitten with the toasted pecan-pepper jam. Kathy Neumuller makes her jams locally, and you can find her sitting at a booth every second and fourth Saturday at the White Rock Local Market. If that’s too long of a wait, then head over to the Garden Cafe where they offer a little shelf of these jam beauties.

2. Crackers and jam go hand-in-hand. Ak-mak 100% whole wheat crackers are the most versatile crackers I have ever eaten. They go well with hummus, cheese, and any other kind of spread. Whole Foods, Central Market, and Bolsa Mercado all carry them.

3. Enough about side items. You need something light, but filling, to occupy your stomach. Bridge Bistro’s chicken salad sandwich is not too mayonnaise-y, and it has onions, tomatoes, lettuce, grape halves, and nuts infused in the chicken salad mixture. I could eat one every single day of my life, and that’s saying a lot. Order this item to-go and save yourself some time.

4. Holy moly, have you tried Holy Kombucha yet? I walked into Bolsa Mercado the other day and saw that they offered green apple ginger and pomegranate for $4 a cup. A little pricey, if you ask me, but totally worth this brew of fermented tea and sugar cane. It’s also a local product that you can support.

5. Your picky little ones might not like weird kombucha flavors. I suggest you mix your own lemonade for the kiddos instead. (Recipe here.) It’s easy and takes two seconds.

6. Edamame is such an easy snack. You can buy these anywhere, and the steam bags are a time saver. A friend of mine told me that edamame is a great way to keep his kids occupied. They’re so busy getting the pods out that they’re quiet and enjoying something healthy at the same time. If you don’t want your kids running wild around your picnic blanket, hand them some edamame.

7. What’s a picnic without strawberries? Now that they’re in season, you can buy them everywhere as well. I really do suggest you pop into Urban Acres, though, and buy your strawberries the local way.

On March 4th, the dynamic ladies of the Dallas Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier host their annual raiser grazer and silent auction at Union Station from 5pm-8pm, with this year’s theme being “Dames In The City.” Les Dames is truly a one-of-a-kind organization, dedicated to supporting and promoting the achievements of women in the culinary profession. The Dallas chapter, which started in 1985, is filled with some of the finest women in the city whose passion for the food, wine and hospitality professions shines from deep within, including Grande Dame Caroline Rose Hunt, Janet Cobb, Janice Provost, Courtney Luscher, Rachel Gaffney, Sharon Hage, Kathryn Hall, Gina Puente and so many, many more. In celebration of Julia Child and what would have been her 100th birthday, the event will also feature a cake walk in her honor. Their annual event raises funds for their many endowment, scholarship and grant programs focused on helping women interested in food, wine and hospitality professions. Tickets are available here.

16 year Cotes du Coeur participants Chefs Jim Severson (left) and David Holben

Last night, Côtes du Coeur hosted their Chef Announcement party for the 2012 Cotes du Coeur International Fine Wine Auction and Celebrity Chef Dinner. Unfortunately, Chef Richard Chamberlain, Côtes du Coeur Founding Chef, was absent due to being a bit under the weather, but some of his fellow heart health conscious pals attended, including Chefs Jim Severson, David Holben, David McMillan, Kevn Garvin and Anthony Bombaci. Other participating chefs for 2012 include Chefs Dean Fearing, Kent Rathbun, Bruno Davaillon, Scott Gottlich, and more embarking on this year’s theme, a voyage of the heart, to make the 2012 event the best of its 20+ years.  2012 Cotes du Coeur for The American Heart Association will take place on April 14th, 2012 at the Hilton Anatole.  Tickets will be available shortly so check back often.

If you are in the mood to leave town, consider heading west to the picturesque Texas town of Buffalo Gap for their annual educational food and wine summit from April 20-22. Chef Stephan Pyles has been a partner at this event for years, as have Dallas’ Brenda and Clay Cockerell of Coquerel Family Wine Estates. The mission of the weekend is to cultivate the appreciation of fine wine and food through education and industry discussions. It is also a great opportunity to sip incredible wine from California, Texas, and Italy this year. Dive into hearty Texas cowboy-influenced cuisine at the Perini Ranch in Buffalo Gap.

Savor Dallas is just around the corner, holding their 8th annual event the last weekend of March. This year its International Grand Tasting heads to the new Irving Convention Center due to the ever- expanding size of the event. A silent auction will be held at the Grand Tasting, featuring large format wines, wine tours and luxury get-aways with proceeds benefiting the North Texas Food Bank. Tickets available here.

And, if you haven’t purchased your tickets for the May 6th Chefs For Farmers Mixin’ It Up on the Boulevard event at Lee Park, you should now! This is a great opportunity to taste delicious bites from some of the best in Dallas, get to know some of the local farmers in the area and help two great causes, Meals on Wheels, Inc. and Water for Chizavane.

Update – A few more opportunities just came to light (a.k.a. the press releases just hit my inbox.)

Though wine won’t be flowing at the North Texas Food Bank Empty Bowls event on March 9 at the Meyerson, the event is certainly a great opportunity to sip and slurp hearty bowls of delicious soup from area restaurants including Nick and Sam’s Grill, Bolsa, Hatie’s, Truluck’s and many, many more for a great cause.  Empty Bowls benefiting The North Texas Food Bank has helped provide over 2.5 million meals since the event started in 1990.  Tickets available here.

March 8th, World Kidney Day, Executive Chefs Scott Gottlich and William Koval will team for the second annual Bonne Santé, a food and wine showcase benefitting the National Kidney Foundation.  The walk around stroll event will feature Chefs Abraham Salum, Bruno Davaillon, Samir Dhurandhar, Joel Harloff, and many more including a few out of town guests like Shawn McClain from Sage at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas and Pascal Sanchez and Gianni Santin from TWIST by Pierre Gagnaire, also in Las Vegas.  Each chef’s specialty dish will be matched with a perfect wine pairing.  Tickets available here.

New Orleans : Mardi Gras ::
Germany : Fasching Fest ::

If you didn’t understand that, retake the SATs and jump below.

Since Germany’s Fasching Fest is supposed to be as wild and crazy as Mardi Gras in New Orleans, let’s hope there aren’t going to be naked ladies at the GermanDeli European Food Store’s Fasching Fest on Sunday because they’re planning to have face-painting and prizes for kids.

Entrance is free for anyone who enjoys grilled bratwurst, Fleischkäse, and authentic Nürnberger Bratwurst for low prices. Adults can attend a beer and wine sampling event from 1-3 pm, while the offspring can listen to music and run around a big tent.

The deets:
GermanDeli European Food Store
5100 State Hwy 121, Colleyville, TX 76034 817-354-8101
We will host Fasching Fest in the store and under the “big Tent”
Sunday, February 19th
12:30pm – 4:30pm

Emcee Scott Murray Tells The Chefs About The 50LB Anchovy He Landed. Sleeping peacefully in the background (L to R) are David C. Smith, John Tesar, Janice Provost, Brian Luscher, Samir Dhurandhar and Jim Severson. Those with X-Ray vision will be able to see James Neel behind Scott Murray.

Holy Anchovy! The AIWF Caesar Salad Competition may be an annual event in its 20^th year but the organizers behind the event have no intention of letting the format get stale. So this year, the organization that brought you the competition that often leads to a winner who wins for an ingredient that is far removed from any ingredient in the traditional Caesar salad is mixing it up. The competitors will all be previous winners of the competition. The winner will a kind of Grand Fromage of Dallas Caesar Salad Competitions.

Of the 19, 12 are still in town and this week the AIWF introduced them at the Westin Galleria Hotel, which is where the competition will be held. Without further delay, the role of honor..

Year     Chef                             Restaurant

1994     Kent Rathbun                Abacus, Jasper’s, Rathbun’s Blue Plate Kitchen

1996     George Brown                George Catering

1997     Jim Severson                 Sevy’s Grill

1998     James Neel                   Tramontana

2000     Samir Dhurandhar          Nick & Sam’s, Nick & Sam’s Grill, Coal Vines

2001     Gilbert Garza                 Suze

2002     Doug Brown                   Beyond the Box , Dish

2003     Brian Luscher                The Grape

2004     David Holben                 Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse

2007     Janice Provost               Parigi Restaurant

2008     John Tesar                    The Commissary

2010     David C. Smith               Westin Galleria Dallas.

As emcee Scott Murray reminded the attendees, the aim of the event is to raise funds for AIWF programs to educate children about good nutrition.

The reception was hosted by David C. Smith, Executive Chef of the Westin Galleria, and winner of Caesar Salad Competition XIX.

The event is October 30^th, 1pm-5pm (you will be back before the evening Cowboys game). Tickets are available through the AIWF Dallas Chapter web site. Given the talent on duty, this sounds to me like one of the big events of the fall.

This is the prize.

Memories. Like the corners of my mind…

To distract myself, I’m looking ahead and thinking about creating some new arcane traditions. Here’s the list of upcoming unusual holidays. Some have to do with food, but not all. And I left out the boring ones. Any ideas for ways to commemorate?

10 Lazy Day

10 National S’mores Day

10 Vinyl Record Day

12 Middle Child Day

14 National Creamsicle Day

17 National Thriftshop Day

18 Bad Poetry Day

21 Spumoni Day

23 Ride the Wind Day

24 Vesuvius Day

24 National Waffle Day

25 Kiss and Make Up Day

26 National Dog Day (hot or furry)

30 Frankenstein Day

30 Toasted Marshmallow Day

31 National Trail Mix Day

Would you like to eat dinner with this man?

Tweeter up, Dishers! Tomorrow is the MLB All-Star Game. Don’t give a twit about the game? Me either! But Evan Grant, the Dallas Morning News Rangers beat writer and The Ticket contributor, and I are going to auction a special dinner for two to raise money for the family of Shannon Stone, the Ranger fan who died tragically on Thursday night. You will have a chance to bid on having dinner with Evan and me which is funnier and more interesting than any reality TV show.

Besides Happy Hour prices all night, there will be trivia games and prizes. Rangers swag and baseball tickets, and FREE garlic fries…Check it out. It’s all happening at Gordon Biersch in the Shops at Park Lane. Hope to see you there. Deets.

Ryan meets the man himself.

I’m almost to double digits. After stopping by the Ritz-Carlton for lunch at Fearing’s on Thursday, I can count nine of the Things Every Dallasite Must Do as accomplished.

Full disclosure: Dean Fearing knew I was coming. I’d set up my lunch ahead of time with Lauren Lapeyre, who does PR for the Ritz, because I knew that Fearing’s schedule doesn’t afford him the time to work his downtown restaurant every day, and I needed him there. In order to cross this one off my list, I not only had to eat at Fearing’s, I had to meet the man, too. So let’s concede that the amount of attention I was paid during my visit wasn’t typical, and I might not have gotten quite so much face time with one of Dallas’ most renowned chefs had I just wandered in off the street.

But that’s not to say that Fearing isn’t plenty charismatic with all his clientele, whether you carry cash by the briefcase or have to scrape your pockets for spare change just to pay for your meal. He’s sort of a ubiquitous presence around the restaurant: working frying pans in the kitchen, keeping his cooks and servers privy to who’s-sitting-where, strolling through the dining room to schmooze customers. And he doesn’t just check on his diners once — he heads back for seconds and thirds, learning names and getting laughs and making sure that everything is oh-so-perfect.

I sat in the main dining room (there are several smaller, more intimate locales as well) along a row of chairs pulled up snuggly to a long counter. I had trouble deciding as I glanced over the lunch menu, because everything sounded good. My eyes darted from the Dublin Dr. Pepper-braised short ribs to the barbecue-spiced Nova Scotia halibut, then over to the Comanche buffalo Sloppy Deans and the pan-roasted Fran’s Fryers chicken with sweet corn pan stuffing. Eventually, Fearing stopped by to consult me.

“Anything you recommend?” I asked him.

“Yeah, I recommend closing your eyes and pointing,” he said with a grin.

In other words, everything’s good.

My meal: Fran’s Fryers chicken with sweet corn pan stuffing.

I settled on the pan-roasted chicken. Fearing worked his way back over after a few minutes, and when he found out I hadn’t ordered a starter, his eyebrows shot up like I’d just asked for a side of Cheetos. “The tortilla soup!” he said. “It’s been with me since 1980.”

Now, I’m not a food critic, and this isn’t a restaurant review. But I must admit that, to a relative foodie Philistine, it all tasted pretty damn good. The soup was first – a bowl of avocado, chicken, and crispy little strips of fried tortilla that comes to the table dry before it’s drenched in a smokey broth. The pan-roasted chicken was ultra tender. The sweet corn stuffing — oh so buttery —might’ve been my favorite.

For dessert, Fearing told me that he had something special they’d just put on the menu the night before. Then a server brought out a square plate packed with three small, round coconut cupcakes over Key lime sauce, some pineapple tapioca, and two fried coconut cream pies that looked like little empanadas.

Fried coconut cream pies

I wasn’t overly hopeful. See, I’m not much for coconut — give me a Mounds bar, and I’ll give you a swift kick to the shin.

Having said that, I could eat fried coconut cream pies from Fearing’s at every meal for the rest of my life. I mean, seriously. The outside was warm and crispy and flaky, the inside was filled with a sweet yellow sauce that drizzled out with every cut.

As good as the food was, one of the most endearing aspects of the restaurant — to me, at least — was the relatively casual vibe, which eased my fears of committing some terrible foodie faux pas. I was probably guilty of a few (though I did, somehow, resist the urge to lick the plate), but Fearing’s isn’t the sort of place where anyone will call you on it anyway. So pop out your monocle, collapse your opera hat, leave your cigarette holder in the glove box. And if you can’t decide what to order, just close your eyes and point.

Could this be the food of the gods?

For my 12th stop on the list of Things Every Dallasite Must Do, I went to Mattito’s for some of their Bob Armstrong dip. Armed with insider knowledge, I planned to impress the waiter with my Dallas savvy when ordering the off-menu dip.

As soon as we were seated, our waiter offered to get us drinks and asked if we would like to order some Bob Armstrong dip. My bubble was burst.  I convinced myself that merely saying, “yes please,” instead of asking what it was still gave me an aura of being in the know, but it was far less satisfying.

All of my disappointment melted away when he came back with a bowl of queso, guacamole, ground beef taco meat, and a dollop of sour cream, ready to be thoroughly mixed with the accompanying spoon. Though probably not the most original mixture of ingredients, it is delightful, and much better than just plain queso. I had to remind myself to eat it with tortilla chips instead of digging in with a spoon.

I’m not sure how Teresa Pullen managed to eat 2 pounds and 14 ounces of the mixture in last year’s Bob-eating contest on Cinco de Mayo. Today’s happens at 5 p.m. After sharing a bowl — along with more than a few baskets of tortilla chips and one of Mattito’s unsettlingly bright blue Rumbaritas — I could not bring myself to order an entrée.

I did, however, finish by ordering a plate of two sopapillas dusted in cinnamon sugar with a dish of honey to dip them in. Sounds like a balanced meal to me.

Lisa Collins is a D Magazine intern.

Lisa raises her glass.

I’m not sure if living in Texas for more than 10 years makes me qualified enough to be considered a Texan, but I do know I have acquired quite a few Texan traits over the years, especially having to do with my palate. I now understand what queso means, stomach jalapenos, crave tacos, and every now and then I need a good margarita. Typically I satisfy my Tex-Mex and tequila cravings by making the rounds between Mi Cocina, Mattito’s, Javier’s, and Taco Diner.

When reading that every Dallasite must drink a frozen margarita from Mariano’s Hacienda, I knew I was up for the job. It would be my 11th stop towards completing the Things Every Dallasite Must Do.  I headed to Skillman Avenue, not knowing if I should expect a small family-run operation or a busy restaurant. What I found was surprisingly large and festive, though quite empty.

The friendly host told us we could sit wherever we liked, so we chose a table out in the warm air on the patio. Although the patio sticks out into a parking lot, the burning chimanea and salsa music made me feel like I was on a Mexican vacation. We had the patio to ourselves, with the exception of two women who seemed to be having some sort of altercation with the waiter about whether they had already paid. I would imagine this sort of people-watching entertainment occurs quite frequently after a few of Mariano’s 100 percent blue agave margaritas.

I ordered a plate of chicken nachos along with the classic Top Shelf Frozen Margarita. I had half expected a grand display, perhaps complete with a neon plastic souvenir cup. However, the drink arrived in a simple glass tumbler with a lightly salted rim and a straw. It tasted just like a frozen margarita should — not too sweet or syrupy, with the perfect blend of citrusy saltiness and tequila kick. After finishing it, I wanted another one, as is the curse of the margarita. However, I was dissuaded.

Throughout the evening, I experienced the feelings of pride and awe one has when they know they are in the presence of historical greatness. According to the menu, owner Mariano Martinez invented the frozen margarita machine on May 11, 1971. The original machine was inducted into the Smithsonian Museum in 2005, where it is on display along with the rest of the world’s finest inventions.

In 2010, Smithsonian Magazine published a list of the “Top Ten Inventions from the National Museum of American History’s Collection.” Mariano’s frozen margarita machine made the list only at No. 10, but, hey, No. 1 was the light bulb.

To celebrate the upcoming 40th birthday of the machine, Mariano’s is hosting “Margaritafest” from May 5 to 11. Stop by then for half off of various margaritas throughout the week and revel in the realization of the American Dream.

We regret the error.

Nicole practices her Spanish but fails to communicate with much coherency.

After a few fierce rounds of pub trivia (read: drinks) at Lee Harvey’s recently, a friend from out-of-town asked me where he could fill up his car. “Why just get gas,” I said, “When you can get gas and tacos?” So off we went to Fuel City to cross the 12th item off my list of Things Every Dallasite Must Do.

Pulling up to the oversized fueling station, I glanced at a swimming pool sitting across the parking lot. A mirage? Perhaps. Nearby, a red neon “TACOS” sign shone like a beacon. As we walked through the sliding door, a shimmering beer island greeted us — offering a prolific selection of cold ones packed in ice. This was but a minor distraction, and we made our way to the taco window.

The late-night crowd drawn to that magical "TACOS" sign.

The idea of eating at an icehouse off the interstate may be off-putting to some — but it seemed to be of little concern to the dedicated diners at the truck stop taco shop. Even at 11 p.m., we had to wait in line to place our order. It was a bit of good fortune, as it bought me some time to choose between an al pastor, picadillo, barbacoa, chicken fajita, or beef fajita taco on a corn or flour tortilla.

The tender beef fajita taco floats on a beer island.

A tough call — but I ordered the beef, corn tortilla. When my name was called, I picked up the little white Styrofoam shell and opened it to reveal a street-style taco served with a heap of fresh cilantro, chopped onions, jalapenos, a slice of lime, and some hot sauce. The beef was tender and flavorful, and the crisp toppings were its perfect complement.

I’ll definitely come back, maybe for lunch next time — and I’ll be bringing my bathing suit.

Nicole Holland Pearce is a D Magazine intern.

Courtney bites into the Cuban.

After last week, I have now done six of the Things Every Dallasite Must Do. Now I’m going for my 7th: Eat a sandwich at Jimmy’s Food Store.

I wasn’t quite sure if Jimmy’s would live up to my expectations when I first found the place. I’ve always heard how great the sandwiches are and how much I’d love the food. At first glance, I wasn’t convinced.

The market-style restaurant threw me off initially, until I got a good look of the layout of the place. I couldn’t help but notice the funny looks given to me and D Magazine’s shopping intern, Maggie, when we walked in wearing heels and holding our iPhones. It’s not the type of place where a dress code is enforced.

After stumbling past aisle after aisle of wine bottles, we finally found where you were supposed to order your sandwich at the back of the store. I took a look at the menu and ordered what the man behind the counter suggested was his favorite, the Cuban sandwich. The description read, “Toasted on a 6″ bun with roasted pork, ham, Swiss, pickles, and mojo sauce.” I didn’t ask what the mojo sauce was, but being the picky eater I am, I got my sandwich minus the pickles.

Since the sandwich takes 10 to 15 minutes of prep time, I thought I’d take a look around. The place is full of fresh food, any type of wine you can think of, and frozen food section with plenty of of ice cream, wheat pizza dough, and something called pumpkin tortellini (which I’m not brave enough to try). The concrete floors and cramped aisles didn’t really feel like a restaurant, but when my name was called to get my food, the guy ringing me up asked if we were dining in or taking it to-go. I said dining-in, and to my surprise, there is a small seating area behind the register to eat.

When I finally got around to trying the Cuban, I was pleasantly surprised. Like I said before, I’m a very picky eater. Outwardly the sandwich looks pretty normal, but the combination of ham, roasted pork and Swiss really tasted pretty good. I think the mojo sauce had something to do with it as well, but overall I was impressed with Jimmy’s Food Store. The ambiance of the place was also a plus, considering that Italian music was playing over the loud speaker and we even got to hear two men speaking Portuguese sitting at the table next to us. All in all, Jimmy’s Food Store has a good sandwich, and I will say it’s worth the visit.

Courtney Foreman is a D Magazine intern working her way through the Dallas Must-Do List.

Where to get your sandwich at Jimmy's

What’s that you say? You want short & sweet weekly updates about Dallas’ craftbrew, microbrew, and homebrew culture?

You got it.

As much as we hate to think about it, these warmer temps mean that yet another punishing summer is lurking just around the corner. So, the way we see it, there’s no time like the present to get started—prime the tap, if you will—and give you all the info you’ll need to add some new brews to your repertoire and beat the heat at the same time. Every Thursday we’ll do our level best to keep you in the know about upcoming rare beer tappings, brewery openings, new arrivals, and can’t-miss events. If it’s on our radar, you’ll find it here.

Want to get something on our radar? Drop an email to sarah.reiss@dmagazine.com.

See you in the brews!

Katie found a little piece of heaven.

I’ve been told the best restaurants are found in the worst places. You know, those old hole-in-the-wall joints that always seem to have lines stretching down the street. Who knew I would happen upon one such place today in my quest to try the cinnamon roll at the Mecca restaurant?

So far I have done just 10 of the Things Every Dallasite Must Do, so I set out to accomplish No. 11: consuming the aforementioned breakfast treat. Among the tire stores, carpet warehouses, and gentleman’s clubs on Harry Hines Boulevard, I couldn’t help but worry that I had chosen the wrong adventure. Surely nothing delicious could come from such an out-of-the-way area. Raised in a growing Dallas suburb where Starbucks mounts every corner and there are pastry shops aplenty, I was skeptical as I parked in the dusty parking lot and shuffled into the crowded old diner where I had called earlier to reserve two cinnamon rolls (I was told that if I didn’t reserve them, my trip would probably be in vain).

The walls were covered with collegiate banners and a hodgepodge of black-and-white pictures. The staff were welcoming but different than what you find in a typical Dallas restaurant. The customers were a mix of obvious regulars and businessmen, who I found were also regulars. After ordering coffee and my “on hold” breakfast, I was still a bit skeptical, but after that first whiff of strong cinnamon mixed with sugar, butter, and homemade roll, I was at the mercy of this heavenly treat. My mouth found itself watering at the sight of the gooey cinnamon roll the size of my hand. In sum, it was delicious.

The Mecca Restaurant is certainly a diamond worth going through the rough for — don’t mind the scenery.

Katie Minchew is a D Magazine intern.

Crossing another item off the Dallas Must-Do List has made Courtney Foreman a happier human being.

I know it’s embarrassing, but I’ve only done 4 of the Things Every Dallasite Must Do. This only encourages me to set out and accomplish as many as I can. First on my to-do list is:  Eat chicken fried steak at Babe’s in Roanoke.

There’s something about coming to Roanoke to eat at Babe’s chicken that really sets the mood for fine dining. Of course, “fine” is a term used loosely, considering Babe’s in Roanoke has been around for 18 years and your chances of running into a local hillbilly greatly increase when walking in. But regardless of the way the restaurant looks, you know for a fact you’re going soon to be eating your weight in chicken or chicken-fried steak, as those are your only two options on the menu.

Though the restaurant has nine locations now,  I’m partial to the original in Roanoke, since I live only 5 minutes down the road from it. So it came as a shock to me when I realized I had never actually ordered the chicken-fried steak. Time and time again I would resort to my usual order of fried chicken, but on Monday night, I ventured off and ordered what was said to be so legendary.

Everything is just so much better at the original Babe's location in Roanoke.

Needless to say, I was not disappointed. In front of me lay a chicken fried steak almost taking up the entirety of my plate itself, fried to perfection. It was accompanied with all-you-can-eat servings of green salad with a house dressing, gravy, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, and fresh-baked biscuits. Did I mention the chicken and the chicken-fried steak were all delivered on a massive serving tray, like the ones you think of when watching movies set in the medieval times? They say presentation is everything and in this case, it certainly was.

The wait staff did their best at re-filling the sides as often as we requested. That is, until the hokey pokey song came on the radio, and they all lined up in the center of the restaurant and literally did the hokey pokey. The restaurant is decorated with taxidermy and has casual style seating tables. All in all, good food, excellent service and to-die-for chicken-fried steak. I’m glad I could cross off my fifth item from the list and move on to the next one. But I’ll need a minute, I’m still full from Monday night.

Courtney Foreman is a D Magazine intern. She’s completed 5 items of the Dallas Must-Do List.

Our fried chicken plate, before and after.