Casa Rubia

Having out of town guests means going out to eat! But then again... it also just means it's the weekend. hahaha. What else is new? :P

My fiance's parents were in town last weekend so I had made a reservation at Casa Rubia in Trinity Groves for Saturday night. I talked so highly about it the first time I went, my fiance really wanted to try it. Also, we wanted to show his parents the downtown cityscape. Usually when they come visit, we just end up staying around Rockwall. They've never really seen our downtown! Plus at Trinity Groves, you get the best view of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, which is probably one of the coolest structures we have in DFW! :)

Casa Rubia in Trinity Groves
3011 Gulden Ln.
Dallas, TX 75212
(469) 513-6349
www.casarubiadallas.com
Price: $$$-$$$$

We arrived on time for our 7PM reservation and was seated immediately. Our waiter greeted us and was very friendly. He took our drink orders and introduced the restaurant concept to everyone.

He asked if we'd like some Bread (with tomato and garlic spread) $8~ 

I had this last time I was here. It's not on the menu and one of the ladies I was with had to ask for it. This time the waiter suggested it. So that was cool, cuz we wanted to order it again. Although he also didn't tell us how much it was going to be. So for a second I thought maybe they started serving it as complimentary bread for the table. haha. Oh well, it wasn't free, but it sure was delicious! The bottoms were nice and crispy and the bread was warm and fluffy. The tomato/garlic spread had so much flavor.

We knew we were getting the Paella... which you can't order unless you have 4 or more people, btw... so take your friends and/or family with you. So we just got 2 other dishes. It's all tapas style so all the dishes are not super big.

Pulpo a la Plancha (Spanish octopus, duck fat potatoes, pickled onions, smoked tomato-jerez vinaigrette) $16~ 

My favorite from last time, so we had to order it again. Again, it was super tender. I don't know how they cook it to be sooooo tender. The sauce was a little tangy and paired well with the duck fat potatoes. A great dish once again. My fiance's dad even liked it. He's more of a meat and potatoes guy. Yay. Win! :)

Costillas Cortas de Cerdo (heritage pork short ribs, coriander-tomato jam, charred onion, rainbow chard, porcini emulsion) $17~ 

We also wanted a meat dish. This was soooo good. The meat was seriously falling off the bone tender. No need for a knife! My fiance liked this better than the octopus. I can't choose... I love them both!

We had a little time to chat and digest and then the finale arrived. Paella del Dia (squid ink, chicken, clams, mussels, shrimp, kale, peas) $50~ 

This takes 35-40 minutes to make, so make sure you order it early. And the price is market price, just FYI. When the waiter described it to us, he said it was black rice. I was thinking forbidden rice... but it's actually rice colored by squid ink. Score! 

Both my fiance and I love squid ink. I've even had squid ink ice cream once. :P It was soooo yummy. The rice was cooked perfectly. I was a little disappointed that we didn't have as much chicken this time as last. The chicken was one of my favorite parts of the dish. The squid ink added a savory, sea-like quality... umami. Yummm! And I love the aioli the include on the side. Adds a tanginess and creaminess to the dish. We each got a pretty big plate full... and we still took half of the pan to go. Yea, this is why you need to take more people with you. But for us, we got leftovers for the next 2 days! Woohoo!

For once, we didn't over stuff ourselves! So we MUST get dessert! :P

Pan Calatrava (vanilla bean flan, Texas blueberry-almond bread pudding, ginger ice cream, sea salt caramel) $8.50~ 

I had this last time too. It was so good, I couldn't get myself to order a different dessert. Still just as good. That crust on the bread pudding is fantastic. So much complexity in texture between the creamy, silky flan and the bread pudding. And that caramel sauce just pushes it over the top. Deeeelish!

It was a fantastic dinner once again. His parents were so impressed, and we got to take a stroll by the bridge after. :) Service was great as well. I will definitely be back again.

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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~