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Brunching with friends is one of the best things ever!! We decided to go check out Pink Magnolia in Oak Cliff. It's the newest restaurant by Chef Blythe Beck... known for her Southern, fried, and "naughty" cuisine.
Pink Magnolia
642 W. Davis Street
Dallas, TX 75208
(469) 320-9220
http://pinkmagnoliadallas.com
Price (for brunch): $$
We had a reservation but upon arrival, the place wasn't very full. We were seated immediately. The decor is interesting... faux grass, lots of colors. It's kinda like a garden party. I guess I can dig it.
Everything on the menu sounded yummy. But I'm a sucker for southern food, AND brunch. I asked our waitress for recommendations but she wasn't much help. She said all their menu items are the best versions she's ever had. I guess she has to say that right?? But it's of no help to me. haha.
I went with the Hoecake Stack (cornmeal cakes, grilled spicy sausage, bourbon maple syrup) $14~ I liked how the sausages and hoecakes were stacked but I wished the dish came with more... It was good, not great. I did like the sausage a lot.
Oak Cliff Cristo (smoky ham, honey turkey, melted swiss, strawberry port jam; with side of fries) $14~
My fiance got this. It was pretty yummy. The strawberry jam was an interesting addition to the savory sandwich. The fries would've been good if they were hot. It seemed like they were sitting out for awhile before being served.
Ham Benedict (toasted English muffin, sauteed spinach, grilled ham steak, poached eggs, cayenne hollandaise; with side of fries) $12~
A friend got this. She said it was ok. The eggs were kinda watery... like they didn't drain it enough after being poached. Eh.. The hollandaise was tasty though. And same slightly cold fries.
Bacon Cheddar Meatloaf Sandwich (melted cheddar, black pepper aioli, toasted ciabatta; with side of fries) $14~
Another friend ordered this. I was looking at this too, I'm totally regretting I didn't get this. I got to try a bite.
Oh it's sooo delicious. That bacon wrapped around the meatloaf. Om nom nom! By far the best thing we ordered. My fiance was sad that he didn't order this either.
I've heard nothing but great things about Pink Magnolia's desserts. So we had to try some. We were all pretty full so we got one thing to share. Maker's Mark Banana Pudding (vanilla wafers, whipped cream, caramelized banana) $10~
Ooooo wheee! This thing is LOADED with bourbon. Is it ok that we start day drinking?? It was super strong, and yum. That one banana pudding was large enough for the 4 of us to share.
It was an ok meal, aside from the awesome meatloaf. We were all a little disappointed. And the service was lacking despite business being slow. :( I saw Chef Beck in the back several times, but she never came out to greet the diners. Oh well.. I doubt I'd go back any time soon. There are so many more places to check out on my list.
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Continuation of my Florida trip...
We found this place across the street from our hotel. It's freaking awesome and the food is amazing. It's right on the beach, they have a section in the sand with lounge chairs, hammocks, and games... like a day club. Too expensive for us to partake, but we managed to have dinner, lunch, AND breakfast there over the course of the weekend. And yes, in that order.
Hyde Beach Kitchen + Cocktails
111 South Surf Rd.
Hallandale Beach, FL 33009
(954) 699-0901
http://sbe.com/restaurants/locations/hyde-beach-kitchen-cocktails/
Price (for dinner): $$$
We had actually had dinner already and was just going for drinks... But there were a few items on the menu I just had to try, since there was a big chance we won't be back again for dinner.
Some of my friends did get drinks. hehe. They tried several but I only took a picture of the Hibiscus Punch (bacardi 8 year rum, freshly pressed lime juice, wild hibiscus syrup, licor 43, orange flower water, splash soda water, muddled fresh strawberries, muddled lime wedge) $14~ It was pretty cool looking.
Pumpkin Butter Rolls (maple butter, rosemary, salt) $7~
This just sounds amazing. I had to get it. We were all pretty full but I got another friend to agree to help me eat. It was better than I expected.. the texture was like a Hawaiian roll, but better! Slight crispy top and soooooooo warm and fluffy in the middle. It was dark, but looking at the picture I realized how orange it was. I loved the sprinkling of salt on the top, paired with the sweetness of the maple butter. FANTASTIC!!! I can eat this all day!
Oxtail Bucatini (red wine braised oxtail ragout, garlic bread crumbs) $16~
I wanted to try this as well. I love oxtail, you don't see it often, and I love Bucatini... also not a common pasta. It's basically like a thick spaghetti, but hollow. The texture of the pasta was on point! And I expected them to just have a ragout where the meat was pretty much blended in the sauce, but no! There were large chunks of super tender oxtail in the dish. And the cherry on top was the garlic bread crumbs. Such bold flavor and added an awesome crunchy texture to everything. Every element was perfection. I was so full but couldn't stop eating. Another friend tried a bite. She's usually not a fan of pasta and was already super full, but she couldn't stop eating either. hahaha. I have to say this is one of the best dishes I've had in a long time.
Sooooo freaking delicious. I really wish we had time to go back for an actual dinner, but we didn't have time. :(
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Saturday Lunch:
Price (for lunch): $$
The sun finally came out on Saturday!!! It had been raining since we landed. So we went to the beach!! Yeah!!!! Gettin' my tan on!
We decided to walk over for lunch. For breakfast and lunch, they only allow seating outside, and on the first floor. The second floor is opened up just for dinner. It was a beautiful day so sitting outside was perfect. I shall continue my much needed tan.
Ceviche (corvina, leche de tigre, tortilla chips) $9~ Pretty small portion but pretty. My friend didn't like it though... it was way too sour. And I agree.
Fish & Chips (cod, tartar sauce, malt vinegar; fries) $11~ Deeeeelicious. The fish was super moist and tender and fried well. The fries were awesome. And I loved their tartar sauce. I really wanted to finish all the fries but it was a little heavy while sitting outside in the sun.
8oz. Prime Burger
(aged cheddar, lettuce, tomato, mustard, onions, dill pickles; fries)
$11~ Pretty good burger, needed more seasoning. Although the natural
flavor of the beef patty was nice.
Rock Shrimp Taco (guacamole, pico de gallo, chicarrones) $7~ Really pretty tacos and fully loaded. Yum.
Mini Lobster Roll (butter brioche bun, home made chips) $9~ Truly a "mini" lobster roll. It was so cute! haha. Not the best I've ever had, but was good.
Two of my friends got cocktails. Ginger Mojito $14~ and Strawberry Mojito $13~ They came in these plastic cups and were pretty small. Same price as dinner cocktails but smaller, not a very good deal.
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Sunday Breakfast:
Price (for breakfast): $$
Our last day there, a few of us really wanted breakfast/brunchy food. So we got up early and hit up Hyde Beach for breakfast. Check out our spread!!!
Pumpkin Maple Sticky Bun $7~
I'm obsessed with pumpkin and since their pumpkin rolls were so good, I had to try these. Also delicious, but the rolls were better. I wish the top with the syrup was more caramelized with a crunch. Other than that it was yummy.
Mushroom Toast (sauteed mushrooms, sunny side up, greens) $7~ I also got a savory dish. Love, love, loved this. All different types of mushrooms, sauteed in this sauce. It was so flavorful!
Very Berry French Toast (brioche, mixed berries, mascarpone whipped cream, side of maple syrup) $11~ Plus side of Egg +$4~ The $4 egg was pretty ridiculous. haha. But the french toast was good. Nice sized portion, lots of fresh berries.
Green Eggs & Ham Benedict (french ham, basil hollandaise, English muffin, spinach) $12~ The basil hollandaise was delicious. The eggs were poached well, but I guess they didn't drain it well enough cuz there was excess water. But other than that, my friend loved it. It was just what she was craving for.
I absolutely loved this place. The food is fantastic. The setting is awesome being beach-side and all. The service was also great. I wish I could go there everyday!!
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
About 2 weeks ago, I met up with a couple of friends for brunch. We're all huge foodies... but just too busy to meet up all the time. :( I suggested Proof + Pantry because I recently reposted an amazing picture of their French Toast on @bestfooddallas. I really wanted to try it. haha. Luckily, they haven't been either so it's going to be a new experience for all of us!
Proof + Pantry
1722 Routh St.
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 880-9940
http://www.proofandpantry.com/
Price (for brunch): $$-$$$
It's located in One Arts Plaza. This is a cool little area by the Winspear but it doesn't seem to hold on to it's businesses. :( The last time I was here, it was the Commissary. Then it turned into a Greek restaurant or something before Proof + Pantry.
It's a cute place. Shelves full of stuff, which I guess is the "pantry" part, a full bar, and that day there was a live DJ playing music. My friends were already there when I arrived. They were lucky and found free street parking. I parked in the lot behind the plaza for $5, I didn't want to mess with parallel parking in the street. I'd be there all day! XP I was quickly greeted by our waiter and he brought me a water.
The brunch menu is fairly small, which is not a bad thing. This gives us less temptations to order more stuff. haha. We decided to do family style.
Benedict (pork belly, spinach, English muffin) $15~
This was really good. The pork belly was thick cut and seared well. The poached eggs were nice and runny. And those potatoes were so crisp, it really added a nice texture to compliment the benedict. I'd have to say this was my favorite. I ate one by myself. :P haha.
Dutch Cakes (Jarlsburg cheese, maple syrup) $14~
I saw a couple other tables with this and it was massive (see fork for size reference). The addition of the Jarlsburg cheese was quite interesting, although it seems like it was concentrated in the middle of the cakes... they should spread it out more. But the cakes were only slightly sweet, and the cheese added a savory factor. I really liked it. The maple syrup added more sweetness which worked well with everything. It was so big, we had half left over. I took it home to my fiance. He...did not like it. :( Because it was less sweet and more savory. You really need to like that combo to order this. Needless to say, I ate all the leftovers myself. OH well! :P
Stuffed French Toast (candied apples, mascarpone, maple syrup) $14~
The French toast wasn't what the menu described. The cream in the middle also had a savoriness to it and it wasn't apple. It was like strawberry cream cheese or something... I liked it, but it was my least favorite dish of the meal. I wish they had more cream in the middle or something. The savoriness was nice... but it would've been good to just have a normal sweet French toast too.
We all enjoyed the meal. I ate the most... what else is new. haha. Our waiter was super nice and quite fun too. Every time he came around to check on us, he told us a joke. Some were quite good actually! It was an interesting twist to the normal "coming by to see what you need" thing. The jokes made us laugh and made the experience better. I'd recommend this place. But only if you are ready for some interesting flavors in your sweet dishes. hehe.
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Bin 303 only does brunch on the 2nd and last Sunday of each month so we usually miss it. But this past weekend, my bf's parents happened to be here and it was the 2nd Sunday! We jumped at the opportunity to take them to brunch. :)
Bin 303
105 Olive Street
Rockwall, Texas 75087
(972) 771-5303
http://bin303.com
Price (for brunch): $$
We arrived around 11:30AM and there were only a couple other tables taken. It was a unusually quiet day. But that's fine, that just means we get the place to ourselves! :P
Everything I've had there in the past were good but I wanted to try something else. So I got the Texan Style Bin Benedict with Hollandaise (Nueske smoked bacon, avocado, tomato, english muffin, poached egg) $13~
I love eggs benedict, mainly because of the hollandaise sauce, and it did not disappoint. Every part of this dish was good. Starting with the two perfectly poached eggs on top. It was glorious as I cut into it and the yolk runs out.
I liked this twist on eggs benedict... the addition of avocado and tomato was nice. I like both of those. The avocado added another layer of richness to the dish. And the tomatoes provided freshness, I did wish there was a little bit more tomatoes. I also really liked that they cubed the English muffins so I didn't really have to cut anything. It was already bite sized! And the yolk and hollandaise soaking into the bread was delightful. It would get partially softened by the yolk and sauce but still have parts that are crunchy and toasted. Different textures, that's my thing! The roasted potatoes had that lightly burnt/crispy edges which I like. They had lots of flavor too. Went well with the eggs and English muffin. My bf really liked this too, said I had the best dish of the day.
He got Kammer's Choice of Quiche (with mixed greens and balsamic dressing) $9~
The quiche of the day was spinach, bell pepper and goat cheese. I'm not a fan of goat cheese so it wasn't even up for consideration for me. haha. I did try a bite though. Despite the goat cheese, which I still didn't like, the quiche texture was great. The eggy center was fluffy and the crust was buttery. The salad was good too, I liked the dressing and wasn't overpowering. He ended up trading half his plate with his mom and she cleaned the plate!
Both his parents opted for the Breakfast Quesadilla with Seasonal Fresh Fruit (eggs, cheese, bacon, potato, red pepper, onion, house roasted salsa) $10~
Biggest quesadillas ever. They were really loaded up with eggs, potato and bacon. I tried a few bites and it's delicious. I love any kind of breakfast burritos/tacos/quesadillas and this was good! The salsa was a nice compliment too.
It was a nice quiet brunch on a lazy Sunday.
They certainly don't skimp on the portions here. Haven't had a bad dish at brunch yet! If you haven't been, I suggest you go. :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
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