Brunch @ The Grape

The Grape
2808 Greenville Avenue
Dallas, TX 75206
(214) 828-1981
http://www.thegraperestaurant.com/
Price: $$ (for brunch)

For Christmas my cousin gave me a $25 gift certificate to The Grape! Thanks!!! :D I've been wanting to go there forever!

I keep hearing great things about this place, especially the brunch and of course their burger. Texas Monthly gave them the title of "Best Burger in Texas" in 2009. They were also awarded "Best Brunch, Best Fries, and Best Calamari" by Dallas Observer; "Best Neighborhood Bistro" by Modern Luxury Magazine; and "Top 8 Best Brunches in Dallas" by Dallas Morning News. That's quite a list of accolades!

My bf and I decided to go there this past Sunday for their brunch. Parking kinda sucks in Lower Greenville, luckily they had complimentary valet. :) We arrived at 1PM and the place was pretty packed. I had already made a reservation and we were seated immediately. The place was bigger than I thought...there were many different rooms, but each room was small, and I kinda felt crammed...

We took a look at the menus...I had no idea what I was going to order. I've been eating out wayyy too much lately and gained a bunch of weight. :( So I was hesitant on ordering a lot of the items. Sooo sucky...to go for brunch and trying not to get any pancakes, biscuits, or waffles. haha.

Before the meal they gave us each a little banana bread muffin-let (cuz they mini) haha. They were ok...Bread Winners has wayyy better banana bread.
Finally, I gave in a little and decided to try the Cinnamon Pull-a-Parts (warm from the oven with pecans & caramel) $7~ I've read great reviews on this item so I thought I'd give it a try. And I knew I can take the rest to go! haha. This was HUGE! At least 8" wide... It was gooey and sticky and sweet. A little too sweet actually. Not only was it covered in caramel, pecans and powdered sugar, there was also a ton of honey...which wasn't in the description. The texture of the actual cinnamon bun was good but I felt the honey and just intense sweetness killed everything else. We could only eat a quarter of it. We took the rest to go. I wouldn't recommend this if you don't like too sweet...or honey...

To be a little "healthier" I decided on the Pan-Fried Rainbow Trout (stone ground cornmeal dusted, fried eggs, frisee salad, apple smoked bacon, and candied roasted yams) (small portion) $14~ I thought the presentation was so cute with the little pieces of yams. The portion was just right for brunch in my opinion. Not too much or heavy. The fish was cooked nicely, tender and flakey with a good crust. The waitress never asked me how I wanted my egg cooked but they cooked it over easy which I like. The bacon was awesome! Great flavor and texture. I really like the frisee on top. It was fresh and added a nice crispness to the dish. The yams were also cooked perfectly, but along with the syrup it was too sweet. The yams were already sweet on their own. One complaint is that it was hard to get all the elements on the fork together for that perfect bite. Doesn't mean I didn't try though! Overall I really enjoyed this dish. It was pretty delicious! :)

My bf already knew what he wanted before we got there...the Classic Cheeseburger "Best Burger in Texas by TX Monthly" (grilled 10oz. fresh ground patty, homemade peppered bacon, vermont white cheddar, nathan's horseradish half-sour pickles & dijonaise on a toasted pain au lait bun, with homemade frites on the side) $13~ The burger was MASSIVE! Holy Crap! The meat was cooked at a nice medium with really fresh veggies, awesome bacon (again) and the bread was very good. The bottom bun held up nicely with such a big burger, didn't get too soggy. The cheese however was quite potent. It overwhelmed the other flavors in the burger a little bit. I think a different (less heavy) cheese could've paired better. The biggest complaint was the size. It was wayy too hard to eat! Overall a pretty dang good burger...I can see how they earned the award. Definitely up there as far as flavors and quality goes, but we both agreed that our favorite burgers were still from Village Burger Bar. I guess we're just more gourmet burger people, VBB burgers are just a little bit cleaner and sophisticated in my opinion. But if you want a "man's" burger (that's how I described it at the restaurant...haha) this is definitely a good one. On the side, the fries were delicious. I can see that award given to them as well. They were crispy, great texture, and great flavors...very addicting! :)

On the whole, it was a great meal. My fish dish was amazing (aside from the syrup being too sweet). The burger was pretty tasty and the fries were awesome. I felt like we could've definitely done without the Cinnamon Pull-a-Parts though. Oh well, at least I can say I got to try it... And thanks to my cousin for the awesome Xmas gift! :) Oh yea, service was ok. Not as good as I'd expect in a place like this. She was fine, I just feel she could've been a little more enthusiastic or something.

Anyways, I totally recommend brunch at The Grape. Just make sure you make a reservation though, they fill up pretty quickly!

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