Still hungry after happy hour, I took the opportunity to head to Bishop Arts since it was so close!
I wanted to try Oddfellows and hoped that there wasn't a wait. Every time I've tried to go there's a line out the door... And we lucked out this time. No wait at all. Sweet! I'm super excited!
Oddfellows - Bishop Arts
316 West 7th Street
Dallas, TX 75208
http://oddfellowsdallas.com/
(214) 944-5958
Price: $-$$
The hostess greeted us at the door. Really nice and told us we can sit wherever we want. The decor was very rustic and homey, definitely fits the comfort food, brunchy food they've got going on. And the menu looked awesome... I wanted to try everything!
My friend got the Beef Brisket Pasta (egg noodle, braised brisket, butternut squash, cream sauce, blue cheese, fresh herbs) $14~
It was like a southern twist to beef stroganoff. I liked it a lot. The egg noodles were cooked well. The cream sauce was delicious. We were a little apprehensive when we saw blue cheese in the description but the flavor was really mild, you couldn't really even tell it's in there, so that was good. The brisket was a bit dry and I didn't see any butternut squash which was a bummer. But it was a very comforting dish. My friend didn't like it as much as me though. It's ok, I helped him eat it. hahaha.
I wasn't super hungry but wanted to try various things so I got a Taco (egg, heirloom tomato, quinoa, baby
mustard greens, queso fresco, grilled
flour tortilla) $3.75~
The combination sounded interesting, and the waiter said it was a pretty light and healthy option. Plus I love quinoa so I was sold! I'm not a big taco fan, but I do love breakfast tacos and this was basically like a scramble in flour tortilla. The eggs were nice and fluffy and I liked the mixture of the greens in there. There wasn't much quinoa though, and could've used more seasoning. The salsa on the side helped. I liked it still, good portion for the price and it was light.
I also got Pancakes (gingerbread and red velvet) 2 for $6~
I LOVE pancakes and these were two flavors I just couldn't pass up. I'm glad I only got two because they were huge!!! Super yummy, especially the red velvet one. The texture was perfect and it wasn't too sweet. The whipped cream cheese was literally the icing on the cake. haha. The gingerbread was spicy and warm but was a bit drier than the red velvet. Nothing a bit of extra maple syrup won't help though! SO GOOD! The red velvet pancake totally beat the one I had at Max's Wine Dive in uptown...
Totally satisfying dinner. Definitely trumped the puny happy hour earlier. The food was fantastic, did not disappoint even with my high expectations. And our waiter, Jonathan, was awesome as well. Very personable and friendly. He gave some suggestions and even joked around with us. Always makes the dining experience better when there's good service. :) And guess what? Our entire meal was less than what we paid at happy hour... Geez. :P I will definitely be back in the near future. So many more menu items to try!!!
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Yesterday I went with a friend to go check out the happy hour at Wolfgang Puck's Five-Sixty at the Reunion Tower. I've heard it's pretty good plus great view of course!
I hadn't been to the Reunion Tower in like over 15 years?? I was excited to go again. But as luck would have it, the weather was so blah. Grey and gloomy all day so we weren't able to see any sort of a sunset. :(
Five-Sixty - Reunion Tower
300 Reunion Blvd
Dallas, TX 75207
(214) 741-5560
http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3917
Price (for HH): $
560's "Seven Until 7" Happy Hour: Monday - Thursday 5-7PM.
They say on the menu that it starts at 5PM. We arrived around 4:50PM. But no one was able to go up the elevators until about 5:20PM... :/ By then a big crowd had gathered in the downstairs lobby area and we basically crammed into the elevators and had to fight for seating in the bar area (since no reservations for bar area). I did not expect a crowd like this.. but I guess it's because of the holiday season, lots of people visiting and off work. I had to do some maneuvering skills to bypass people and was able to get a pretty good seat. haha.
The restaurant is pretty cool, given that it's revolving. The decor is really modern and chic.
We were starving so we immediately ordered some food. And I was really looking forward to it... all sounded good.
Crispy Pork Belly Bao Buns (sweet bean paste, Gochujang aioli, scallions) $7~
Anything with pork belly is a must! I think it's funny that the name has "bao" and "bun" in it... It's basically the same word, haha, kind of redundant. :P Anyways, when it came, both our faces dropped. We were starving!! And they were teeeeeny. I thought it would at least have a slab of pork belly on there, not some tiny little shreds of pork. Boooo... It tasted great. The bao was steamed well and the pork belly was crispy and flavorful. But at $3.50 a piece...not worth it. :(
Crispy Maine Lobster & Shrimp Spring Rolls (honey ten-spice sauce) $7~
Then we had this. It was even more ridiculously small. It was basically ONE spring roll cut in half. REALLY?! $7 for ONE spring roll? I mean I get it's lobster but how much lobster can you really fit into this? Sigh... Again, quite tasty but I can't get over the size.
Kobe Beef "Sliders" (mushrooms, fried jalapenos and ginger, garlic aioli) $7~
I had high hopes for this last one since I saw 3 on a plate. Until they set it down in front of us. Smallest sliders I've ever seen in my life. It's like play food... size of a cream puff. :( Notice the size in relation to the fork.. No wonder the word "sliders" are in quotes. And I've had better sliders in many other places.
Hot Green Tea $6~
We also each got a hot tea. Since it was such a cold day, the tea hit the spot. But I had joked to my friend that the tea probably cost $6 and I was spot on. haha. We were so hungry we drank the crap out of that tea. hahaha.
Well, it was definitely an experience. Not what I expected for sure. The portion sizes were laughable. Although we didn't think it was funny at the time cuz we were so hungry. haha. At least at night the view was nice and it was something new to do. And our waitress was super nice. I really liked her. But I'm sure I won't be back for hh. And we had to go elsewhere after for dinner!! :(
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Happy Holidays from CHOMP!
May your days be filled with yummy food, family and friends! And MORE food!!! :D
~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Went to check out this Taiwanese noodle place in Plano (by 99 Ranch) on Sunday. It seemed to have decent reviews plus we don't really have that many good Taiwanese restaurants in Dallas so I wanted to try it out!
Mian Cuisine
121 W. Spring Creek Pkwy. #311
Plano, TX 75023
(972) 517-1688
http://miancuisineplano.com
Price: $
The place was pretty packed on a Sunday night. The decor was pretty standard as far as Chinese restaurants go... nothing fancy.
The menu looked pretty good. I wanted to try so many things. Sorry I don't remember most of the prices but everything was under $10.
But the first thing I noticed is that service is pretty lackluster. The water I ordered never came. I had to ask twice. And then the water glasses were never refilled until I asked them again. But it didn't really phase me. This is almost expected at Chinese restaurants. I know it's a terrible expectation but they tend to hold up to the stereotype. :( However, I'm there to try the food, the service is secondary.
I got the Chili Beef Noodle Soup $6.99~
Since they are known as a noodle shop, I should try the noodles, eh? It was a huge bowl! There was a ton of noodles...more noodle ratio to meat. But I loved the texture of the noodle...cooked al dente and had that nice chewy bite. Many people compared this place to King's Noodle in Richardson and said it wasn't as good. But I thought it had more flavor than King's Noodle plus the noodles were cooked better. The meat was tender and the broth was actually spicy! It also had a hint of sweetness from the daikon that was in there. I liked it a lot. My mom makes the best Beef Noodle Soup in town, hands down, but I'm ok with this one as well. I'd order it again for sure.
My friend got the Pork Chop Rice.
Which is usually my go-to but I wanted to try their noodles. But this way I get to try the pork chops as well! hehe. It comes in a bento box, the portion size is pretty decent. The pork chops were pretty thin but were cooked well and I liked the seasoning on the batter. Reminded me of flavors in Taiwan (and being a Taiwanese restaurant...it SHOULD, right? haha). Not too bad!
We also got the Hand Grab Scallion Pancake.
They also have the regular scallion pancake but this kind is better in my opinion. It's looser and more "fluffy". It was a big portion for 2 people to share. Nice crispy top layer and good texture throughout. Yum!
So I also read online that they have pearl milk tea for $1...so I had to verify! Yes and no... it's a dollar if you spend a specific amount and the lady wasn't very clear on it. But since our dinner was pretty cheap we were only able to get 1 for $1 the 2nd cup was like $2 and some change. Still not bad. But... it wasn't good. Really sweet (artificial tasting) and the boba was not good. I'd save the dollar and go to Fat Straws or something. hahaha.
Anyways, it was a good dinner overall. I'm glad this place is much closer to me than King's Noodle. So now if I want Beef Noodle Soup and my mom isn't here... I know where to go. :)
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I've been dying to go to Driftwood forever!! Ever since I knew it was opening, I've heard great reviews. Plus my boss went and said it was one of the best meals he's ever had. Now I really have to go!
I got lucky and was able to get a reservation on Saturday at 7:30PM. Initially the host told me only 5PM or 9:15!! Geez!
Driftwood
642 W. Davis Street
Dallas, TX 75208
(214) 942-2530
http://www.driftwood-dallas.com/
Price: $$$
It's located in Oakcliff just outside of the Bishop Arts District. It's a tiny little place. Nice decor, classy yet rustic. The color scheme is mostly this aqua color which I really liked and then they hung pieces of wood on the walls for the rustic feel. It was just really loud since the space is pretty small. It was hard to hear the person directly in front of you!!
We were immediated seated. I was told by my boss to get cocktails there because they are delish. So it's the boss's orders.. I got the Hibiscus Guava Sling (Cana Brava, orange liqueur, hibiscus, lime) $10~
Really pretty. But I'm not the expert on drinks. I only know I like super sweet stuff. haha. This was a bit tart for me but still tolerable. And ohhh... super strong for me. One is more than enough!
Our waiter was really nice and informative and gave us a run down of the specials and popular menu items.
I opted for the Crispy Seared Wild Halibut Cheeks (turnips, fennel confit, little neck clams, smoked marble potatoes, Nueskes bacon) $24~
It was a really pretty dish. I was surprised that I got 3 pieces of fish! The sauce and veggies on the bottom reminded me of clam chowder. Creamy and warm... yum! The halibut was crispy, I'm glad they didn't pour the sauce over it. I enjoyed it a lot.
My friend got the Chargrilled Octopus (marble potato confit, Manzanilla olives, watercress, pickled onions, smoked tomato vinaigrette) $25~
This was one of their most popular items. Basically put them on the map, so I was eager to try. The portion was pretty small, but presentation was nice. However, I wasn't impressed. The octopus was quite chewy. The flavor was ok. The tomato vinaigrette reminded us of BBQ sauce... I guess it's the smokiness. But the texture of the main protein was just not cooked properly. The octopus at Spoon and Carnevino were just SOOO much better... :(
We also got a side of the Crispy Brussels Sprouts (pork belly, fish sauce) $8~
THIS was the reason I was here. My boss would not stop raving about it. And you know I love brussels sprouts! With fish sauce?? How interesting! And I loved it. The brussels sprouts were cooked well, good texture. You can definitely taste the fish sauce which added a complexity to the dish and it was also a bit spicy. YUMMMMM!!!! I think I'll just get 2 orders of that as my entree next time! :P
The meal was enjoyable but I was a little disappointed overall. For the price, I'd much rather go to Spoon! :) Since we had dessert before dinner. We were too full to order more. And business was really good, there were already people waiting at the door so we didn't linger!
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I went to check out the new Perot Natural History Museum on Saturday. Totally cool place btw... So I also took the opportunity to go to Bishop Arts in Oakcliff for dinner (since it was so close!)
We had 2 hours to kill before dinner and were already hungry so we walked around the area looking for a snack. Dessert before dinner? Yes please!! :P
Emporium Pies
314 N. Bishop Ave.
Dallas, Tx 75208
(469) 206-6126
http://emporiumpies.com/
Price: $
I've heard great things about this place and have been wanting to try it out for awhile. It's in a cute converted old home, very homey inside. It was pretty small, only about 6-7 small tables in there. And business was good! Constantly a stream of people coming in.
They had a yummy display of pies by the register. They all looked so good! All their pies are homemade and seasonal with no preservatives, hydrogenated oils, dyes, or corn syrup. Let's just say it's "good for you". :P
My friend got The Snowball (flaky crust filled with creamy coconut custard, house whipped cream, topped with crunchy toasted coconut) $5~
I'm not a fan of shredded coconut but he said it was really good. It did look pretty good. (minus all the coconut on top! :P haha.) I kid...
I got the Buttermilk Blitzen (chai spice blend with classic buttermilk pie) $5~
Made it A la mode +$2~
I love buttermilk pies and they made it even better with the addition of the chai spice. It was spicy and warms you up. It was super moist and the crust was buttery and flaky. The ice cream was a necessary addition. haha. Who doesn't want a side of ice cream with all their desserts?! I really enjoyed it. I would definitely have it again.
It's a cute place to hang out on a lazy afternoon or something. I only wish it was much closer to where I live!
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Last week my awesome boss took our team to our holiday lunch. He chose The Mercury (used to be known as Mercury Grill)... which is a fantastic place. I've been once before for dinner. So I was super psyched!
The Mercury
11909 Preston Road
Dallas, TX 75230
(972) 960-7774
http://www.themercurydallas.com/
Price (for lunch): $$-$$$
The Mercury has been in Dallas for a long time and has consistently done well. For lunch, business was booming and most of the customers were well dressed.
I knew the food here was good so the hard part is just picking what I want!
After asking our waiter like a million questions about different menu items I settled on the Pearl Couscous Carbonara (with soft poached egg and black truffle sauce) $13~
It was an appetizer but just sounded awesome. And it was! Really pretty presentation. All the different colors in the white couscous contrasted by the black truffle sauce around the edges. The taste was fantastic. The creaminess you want from a carbonara and then topped of with a beautifully poached egg. There was a slight tang from the black truffle sauce which helped contrast the richness of the couscous. I thoroughly enjoyed it. And it was rich enough as a lunch portion.
I also got a side of Butter Braised Brussels Sprouts $7~
You know me... love them brussels sprouts. haha. So cute in the little cast iron pot. They were cooked nicely. Still had great texture. And soaked in butter?? YES please!
My boss got the New Orleans Style BBQ Shrimp (with soft cheese grits) $17~ Delicious. The sauce on the shrimp and grits was the highlight. Very bold and complex. The grits had good texture. He really liked it. And it quite a big portion for lunch!
My co-worker got the Pecan Crusted Idaho Trout (with asparagus and pepper salad) $18~ It was large piece of fish. I liked the sauce on it and the crust was nice. I felt like it should've came with some sort of side though.
We all shared a Bread Pudding (with cherry sauce, pecans and cinnamon ice cream) $8~
Different than what I expected. It was a large slice of super moist bread instead of your typical chunks of bread. It was yummy. I especially loved the pairing with the cinnamon ice cream. The cherries were a bit too sour for me, but my boss and co-worker loved it. It was just enough to round out the meal because I was so full already.
It was a delicious lunch. Which is expected since my boss is also a huge foodie. :) Kind of a pricey lunch, but with the caliber of food, it's pretty standard. The one complaint is that our waiter wasn't the friendliest and didn't really give us the time of day. No real greeting when we were given the menus or anything. I know they were super busy, but I felt like he had no time for us. But the food was fantastic so I'm willing to overlook that a bit. haha.
And just a side note... I have the best boss ever! :)
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