Shiawase

We were running around town one day and decided to swing by Shiawase in Allen. We rarely make it to that part of town since it's quite far. But I've heard nothing but good things about this place.

Shiawase
2540 N. Watters Rd. #100
Allen, TX 75013
(214) 383-4462
http://shiawaserestaurant.com/
Price: $$-$$$

Apparently the original owners of Densetsu in Plano, which is one of our favorite sushi spots, so we had high hopes. We got there pretty late (after 1pm) and the place was pretty empty. It's way bigger than Densetsu.

We were seated immediately but took a while for someone to come and take our drink orders... Keeping in mind that they have gigantic sushi rolls like Densetsu, we tried to keep the order small. hehe.

Hiyayako (organic Japanese tofu served with green onion, seaweed, fish flake, and ponzu sauce) $6.25~ Pretty good. The tofu was silky and soft. Nothing super amazing though. I do still prefer the fried Agedashi tofu in general. hehe.

House Green Salad (spring mix salad with tomato, cucumber, carrot; served with house dressing) $4.50~ I always like to have some veggies with every meal. I liked their dressing a lot.

Shooting Star (ahi tuna, salmon, yellowtail, crab meat, avocado inside; topped with smelt egg; served with Japanese mustard sauce) $14.95~ 

These rolls were ginormous!! Definitely a 3-4 biter. Wow... and LOADED with sashimi. Everything was fresh, they definitely didn't skimp on the seafood. Deeelicious. I liked the added flavor of the mustard sauce as well.

Fashion Show (California roll topped with ahi tuna, salmon, yellowtail, albacore, shrimp, smelt egg, spicy tuna, spicy scallop; served with yuzu and sweet eel sauce) $15.95~ 

This is probably one of the prettiest rolls I've ever seen in my life. Each of the rolls is topped with a different kind of fish (or seafood). It's just so beautiful! And it's about 2 whole pieces of sashimi on top of EACH roll. OMG! Soooo worth the money. Goodbye Rainbow Roll, this is now my favorite. haha.

It was a great lunch. Shiawase definitely delivered on the food. And I don't believe Densetsu has some of these rolls so we'll definitely have to come back. And we were stuffed! NOMS!

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Bliss Cupcakes & Confections

I got a recommendation on Friday from Jeanine at Dallas by Chocolate of a great cupcake place up in Allen. She's tried many cupcake shops all over town and assured me that Bliss Cupcakes & Confections definitely stood out among the rest.

Bliss Cupcakes & Confections
190 East Stacy Road, #1414
Allen, TX 75002
(972) 912-3155
http://blisscupcakesdfw.com/
Price: $

I was lucky enough to be eating dinner in the area later that day and decided to pop by the shop to check it out. It's in The Village at Allen. That place has expanded so much it was a little difficult to find it. The shop was cute. Very pink! haha.

I was very warmly greeted by the staff. And the first thing I noticed was that their cupcakes were massive!! And then saw that their cake pops were also massive! OMG!

And they also make this thing called Cake Parfaits where they layer cupcakes, custard and frosting.

Geez! It sounds and looks too sinful even for me! And their Cake Pops are only $1.99. And being at least 30% bigger than normal cake balls, that's a killer price!

I wanted to try everything but was too full from dinner. I ended up with 2 cupcakes. The cupcakes are AT LEAST 30% bigger than normal cupcakes and each one is $3.99. Not bad for the size.

Chocolate with Cream Cheese Frosting (moist chocolate cake frosted with cream cheese icing topped with chocolate sprinkles).

The chocolate cake was moist, fluffy and not too sweet. I really liked it. It kinda reminded me of the Betty Crocker Super Moist Dark Chocolate cake. haha. The cream cheese frosting is different than normal cream cheese frostings. I think it had more butter or sugar in it instead of the cream cheese? I prefer having more cream cheesy flavor in my frostings. Overall a good cupcake.

Tres Leches (rich butter cake soaked in a sweet three milk cream, frosted with creamy caramel icing drizzled with caramel).

The lady told me that this cake needed to be refrigerated if not eaten within the next hour or two. It was really good. I could actually see the milk in the cake, making it super moist. The cake was also very fluffy. The frosting was a caramel frosting. It definitely had a lot of caramel flavor. I liked the creamy consistency of it. The cupcake is even better if you let it sit out and get to room temperature. The frosting melts just a little and the texture is perfect. I did feel the the frosting was bit sweet though. But it was still delicious.

They also offer an option of creating your own cupcakes. You pick the cake, the filling and frosting for $3.99 each. That's pretty cool.

It's a great place and the cupcakes are legit. If you are in the area, definitely go check them out. :) Thanks for the recommendation!

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Dulce by La Duni

Two weeks ago I got an email telling me that the new La Duni was open in Allen (Village at Fairview on Stacy and 75). I was pretty excited. They were introducing some new stuff that I wanted to check out. So we went last weekend to have a taste! Turned out last weekend it was only a soft opening. They were still doing construction on the main dining area. But for the most part the kitchen and bar were operational.

Dulce by La Duni

The Village at Fairview

233 Town Place

Fairview, TX 75069

(972) 549-4069

Price: $-$$

I really liked the look and feel of the place. A more casual setting for La Duni. It was actually called Dulce by La Duni. It's a Euro-latin Coffee Studio..so more casual/cafe type place. They also have cool gadgets, such as a touch screen kiosk where you can see the menu items and stuff. And they offer some new items than the other La Duni locations such as:

- micrema - bespoke frozen desserts
- raspas - shaved ice
- bunuelos - latin beignets
- grillados - latin paninis

The micrema was the main thing that caught my interest months ago when I heard this place was opening. They basically have a station with stand mixers where they make your ice cream to order. How cool is that???

Since it was their first few days of opening we also got some samples of Bunuelos (latin beignets fried to order with different sauces). We got some with chocolate sauce and caramel sauce. It was really tasty. Fried to order so it was really fresh and warm. Coated with sugar and sauce... yum! The outside was crispy and inside was fluffy yet still doughy so you feel like you are actually eating something more substantial than a donut.

I was super excited about going there, and with the new decor and menu items, it was like a kid in a candy store! :P It took me a while to finally settle down and order something...

Since it was a soft opening, they only offered a few different savory items. We got some Empanada Pies (Classic Argentinian turnover with homemade flaky crust; served with chimichurri mojo) (on the left: Beef Picadillo and Vegetables; right: Argentinean Sausage & Provolone) $5.95~ each. I thought these were better than the empanadas in the other La Duni locations. First of all, they looked different. It had a thinner crust and was crispier. And since the crust was thinner, there was more filling inside. :) I liked both of them but the sausage one a little bit more. It got a little salty after a while but I still really enjoyed it.

They also offered 2 different Grillados (Latin Paninis). We got both of them to try.

Peruvian Chancho (Crispy pork, pickled vegetables and apple cider mayo; on wheat Ciabatta) Large $7.95~ This was interesting. The pork had a slight crispiness on the outside which I liked texturally. The pork flavor was good too and paired really well with the apple cider mayo. It added a nice tang to the sandwich. The pickled vegetables complimented the sandwich well but I felt like overall it was missing a hint of something. It needed a kick, maybe some sort of spice? And maybe some green veggies would be good in it too.

I got the Gaucho Chicken (Grilled chicken breast, avocado mash, tomato, lettuce, chimichurri, latin manchego cheese; on white Ciabatta) Reg $4.25~ The regular was smaller than I thought, but actually turned out to be a good size. It's quite filling. I REALLY liked this. The avocado mash MADE the sandwich. The creaminess of the avocado with the tender chicken breast and the cheese...it was delicious. I also really liked the bread...needed maybe a little longer in the toaster to crisp up the edges but I really liked the texture. Both sandwiches came with chips which seemed like they were freshly fried. It was a good side to the sandwiches.

Then it was time for dessert! We definitely had to try the Micrema (made to order ice cream). So what you do is, pick the mix-in you want, then select an ice cream flavor, and if you want...a sauce to top it with. I was still pretty full so my friend ordered one first. She opted for no mix-in's and no sauce but she wanted the Roasted Banana and Vanilla Bean ice cream mixed together. You get to watch the chef make it right in front of you!! Basically they use liquid nitrogen to flash freeze the ice cream. It was soooo cool!! He told us that while in the tank, the liquid nitrogen is pressurized and had a temp of -900 degrees. He extracted it into a measuring cup and showed it to us. It looked like it was boiling in the cup. But still had a temp of -300 degrees. WOW! It was like mad scientist or something. Definitely one of the coolest things I've seen done with food. It only takes a few minutes to turn the liquid cream into ice cream. Each order is about 8-9 ounces (makes about 2 scoops) @ $0.95 per ounce which came out to be around $13~ O.o The price shocked me quite a bit. They didn't tell us how much the ice cream cost...and I guess none of us expected it to be so expensive. :( The ice cream was really good though. You can definitely taste the vanilla bean and also there were little chunks of banana throughout the ice cream. It was rich and creamy but didn't feel heavy at all. If only it was cheaper, then I would get it all the time. I don't think I've ever spent that much money on ice cream or even most desserts... ever. It's definitely a deterrent for future purchases. But I would still recommend at least checking it out at least once. The experience is really what you are paying for.

We just hung out there for the rest of the night, some people got coffee and hot chocolates. All their drinks are really good!

French Hot Chocolate (made with melted Belgium Chocolate, assorted cocoas, half & half and topped with Whipped Cream) $5.25~ Rich and chocolatey. It was yummy!

Cafe con Leche (espresso shot or Tinto served in a glass with 2 parts of hot milk and a dash of frothed milk) $4.75~ I thought for the portion, this price was really good. The mugs were huge! If you are a coffee lover, definitely check out La Duni.

Since I didn't really get dessert, I got the Viennese Truffle Iced Chocolate Milk (made with melted Belgium Chocolate, assorted cocoas, half & half. Served with whipped cream over
crushed ice) $5.50~ I've always wanted to try this. It's kind of like a mix between a milkshake and chocolate milk. Semi-slushed. It was AMAZING! Super rich and decadent. The whipped cream on top was really thick and creamy as well. I think it was freshly whipped cream. I would for sure get this again...to share. It's too rich for me to drink on my own!

We were informed that they would be having their grand opening that following week. Which means, everything should be up and running by now and their full menu is available. I definitely want to go back in the near future to check out the rest of the menu. It's quite a bit different than the other La Duni restaurants.

Go check it out! Whether you are a La Duni fan or not, it's definitely a new experience. The people there are super friendly too!

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Woodlands Grill @ Watters Creek

**Update 12.30.10**
Woodlands Grill is now closed. The Londoner has taken the spot in Watters Creek.

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I went to Woodlands Grill in Watters Creek in Allen over the weekend. http://www.woodlands-grill.com/allen.htm

The hostess was very friendly and seated us immediately. It wasn't very busy.

Our waiter warmly greeted us. He was very nice and took our drink orders pretty quickly. The menu items were ok priced and everything sounded pretty delicious.

I ordered the Cobalt Sandwich (grilled chicken, onion, bacon aioli, avocado, lettuce, tomato) $9.50~

It came with a side of fries. The sandwich was pretty good. A little too big to bite into so I used fork and knife. The bread was pretty awesome. It had great texture and nice crispy edges. The bacon aioli added a lot of flavor and there was a ton of avocado. SUPER YUM! The only thing is the chicken breast could've used more flavor, but with all the other ingredients, it made up for it. I would order this again in the future. The fries were also pretty good...thick cut and still had nice crunch.

My friend ordered the Campanelle Pasta (chicken, spinach pesto, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, pecans) $13.50~It looked really yummy. I love weirdly shaped pasta. The flavor was pretty good, and it had lots of ingredients in it. I would've preferred the pasta to be a little more al dente though. It was a little soft for me...just slightly.

Next time I'm at Watters Creek, I wouldn't mind trying Woodlands Grill again. After I try all the other restaurants of course...hehe. :P

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Craving Thai food ~

I was craving Thai food one night, so I looked up different places on Google maps and came across Thai Pan in Allen (on McDermott and Alma). Never heard of it…but hey, why not! Haha. :P

Thai Pan
1223 West McDermott Dr.
Allen, TX 75013
(972) 747-0057
http://www.thaipanallen.com/
Price: $

Usually I find the food at different Thai restaurants to be pretty similar in flavor, quality and prices. However, I think that Asian Mint (on 75 and Forest) has the best Pad Thai, and I use it to compare to all the other Pad Thais in other restaurants. Asian Mint is on the more expensive side of Thai food places though.

I pretty much already knew what I wanted to order. Gotta try the staple dishes at a new Thai place! While waiting for our order, they gave us a plate of shrimp chips. :) They were in a cute little dish. I used to LOVE these as a kid! They stick to your tongue and lips as you are eating it…it’s a funny feeling…definitely worth experiencing…hehe.

We ordered the Pad Thai (rice noodles stir-fried with chicken, bean sprouts, fresh green onion and crushed roasted peanuts). $7.45~ This price for dinner is fairly cheap for Thai food. The flavors were all there, and overall it was pretty good. It had plenty of ‘stuff’ in the noodles (chicken, bean sprouts, etc…), unlike some places that give you mostly noodles. Slightly sweeter than I would like it, but not as bad as some other places I’ve been. I would have to say that Asian Mint is still number 1 though.

We also got the Pad Kee Mow (spicy, stir-fried wide rice noodles with Thai peppers, basil leaves, tomatoes, yellow onion on a bed of mixed vegetable with chicken). $7.75~ I liked this dish. They did it differently than other Thai restaurants because they put in ingredients that normally don’t go into a Pad Kee Mow, like mushrooms. I LURV mushrooms so that was a big plus to the dish. The flavor was also slightly different than other Pad Kee Mows I’ve had in the past. So it makes me think that it’s not quite as authentic as some other places, but it tasted good, so I’m not complainin’. Hehe.

All in all, it was a good dinner. We had enough leftovers to have another meal! If I’m ever in that area again, I might go back…but I wouldn’t specifically make a trip out there.

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