Mi Piaci

I had a big holiday get together with a group of friends before the new year. We try to get together once a quarter, but with jobs and babies and life, it's longgg over due! I chose Mi Piaci because one of my friends mentioned to me a few months ago that they had squid ink pasta. Sold! I had to go try it. hehe. 

Mi Piaci 
14854 Montfort Drive 
Dallas, TX 75254 
(972) 934-8424 
http://www.mipiaci-dallas.com 
Price: $$$-$$$$

We had a party of 10 for Saturday night around 7PM. We were immediately seated and they put us in the private room with a giant round table. Felt so grand... definitely like a family holiday dinner or something. hehe. At one point we even closed the curtains so it was completely closed off to the main dining area. 

I was pretty hungry, so I attacked the bread plate when they served it. I think it was herbed Foccacia, garlic Foccacia and bread sticks. The bread was awesome. I loved the pillowy texture and lots of flavor. I had to refrain myself from eating it all. haha. 

We got started with some appetizers and salads. 

One couple got the Calamari Fritti (pan-fried with red chili sauce & cilantro oil) $9~ (in the background...)

I got to try one. It was awesome. The calamari was cooked beautifully and each piece was huge. It was like calamari steak fries. haha. The sauce complimented it well. 

I had the Insalata di Cesare (heart of romaine salad with classic Caesar dressing, garlic croutons, spiced pumpkin seeds) $8~ My favorite part was the pumpkin seeds, gave it that crunch it needed. It was a good salad, nothing fancy. 

A few people got the House Salad. They said it was really good. 

Zuppa Aragosta (Adriatic style lobster bisque topped with house made lobster fritter) $9~ This looked really good. I didn't get to taste it though. But those who ordered it cleaned their bowls. 

On to the entrees... They hand make all their pastas and even have a window into the kitchen where you can see the guy making it. I thought that was pretty cool. 

Spaghettini Neri (house made black spaghetti with butter poached blue crab and chili butter) $24~ 

All the pastas sounded great but I was here for this. You can definitely tell the pasta was handmade and had good texture. The chunks of crab were big and cooked well. I felt there was a bit too much pasta vs sauce though, but wasn't a big deal since I don't like too much sauce anyways. I liked the sprinkle of bread crumbs on top to add some texture. I liked it but I still like the one at Spoon better... It was a pretty big portion too. I took half of it to go. 

I also got a side of Broccolini Fritti di Peperoncino (flash fried fresh broccolini with red chili flake) $7~ I think they prepared it another way because it didn't seem flash fried nor did it have chili flakes on it. Oh well...still good veggies. 

 
Fettuccine al Prosciutto (wide, flat noodles in a light parmesan cream sauce with prosciutto and peas) $18~ 

I was able to have some of this. It's like a alfredo/carbonara... super creamy and decadent. I really liked it. The peas were cooked perfectly and the sweetness paired well with the salty prosciutto. Not for those watching their waistlines that's for sure. haha. 

I didn't get to try anything else, but it all looked yummy. 
Penne All' Arrabiata (hand rolled quill shaped pasta with spicy tomato sauce, pancetta, vodka, basil and pecorino cheese) $18~ 

Pesce Branzino (tamarind glazed Chilean sea bass with lemon basil risotto, radish sprout, with spicy sweet portabella mushroom sauce) $30~ 

Maiale al Forno (spice-rubbed pork tenderloin with parmesan polenta and blackberry demi glace) $25~ 

Osso Bucco alla Milanese (braised veal shank with traditional sweet pea and saffron risotto) $38~ 

Funghi al Forno (oven roasted wild Italian mushrooms) $9~ 

So our main waiter wasn't that great. But the waiter that served our entrees was super cool. haha. I mean the main guy wasn't rude or anything but after they cleared the entrees, the waiter came with the check. We were all chatting so no one realized that we weren't asked if we wanted any dessert or coffee, etc... at first. We thought it was weird so we called him back and said we at least wanted to see the dessert menu. I think he knew he made a mistake so when he brought the dessert menus he gave us some excuse saying he overheard some people talking about cake earlier and thought we had dessert already... Whatever. Even if we had cake earlier, that doesn't mean we don't want the option of getting more dessert!! Right?! There can never be too much dessert! 

And we DID get dessert. I love how all my friends love to eat. hehehe. 

Gelati o Sorbetti (assortment of gelato and sorbet made fresh daily) $6~ 

Torta di Limone (pistachio encrusted lemon tart with fresh berries) $6~ 

Crema Italiana (maple-flavored custard with fresh berries) $7~ 

I got Tiramisu (the Italian classic with espresso and mascarpone) $7~ It was pretty good. Nice and light since I was already pretty full. But pretty standard, not the best I've had. 

Also, just FYI, they don't do split checks but they can take multiple credit cards so I took it upon myself to list out all the totals for each card. Took a while, but I'm used to it. But it would be nice for restaurants to be able to do split checks. Just my thought. Thanks. :P 

It was a good time. The food was yummy and portions were pretty big. I probably wouldn't request the private table again though unless the group is bigger. It was hard to shout across the table. haha. I'd recommend this place for a special occasion. 

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CHOMP! and Blue Plate together again~

Oh Blue Plate Kitchen, how I've missed you! I can't believe it's been over 10 months since I was at Blue Plate last. This crazy year has just flown by...

My visit to Blue Plate was wayyy overdue. I decided to go there with one of my Quarterly eating groups. The same group that went with me the first time we visited Blue Plate.

I was super excited! Looking at the menu online everyday to try and decide what I wanted to try. :P Finally the day came! We arrived at the restaurant and was warmly greeted by the hostess and Dennis, the manager. We were immediately seated (same table we were at the first time we went. hehe). Our waiter, Tim, was friendly and really informative. Not only did he tell us about the specials, he also included the prices in his presentation. Most places never tell you the price when introducing their specials and sometimes you end up ordering something super expensive that you didn't intend to. I thought it was cool that he did.

Before we made our orders, Tim brings out 3 appetizers, complimentary! :) Thanks Blue Plate!! It was a great 'welcome back'.

Wood Roasted Cheesy Bread (rosemary olive oil, sea salt) $9~ Always delicious, nice crust, super cheesy. This is one of the many things I always recommend to people who are trying Blue Plate for the first time.

Garlic Hummus, Wood Roasted Flatbread (feta cheese, kalamata olives, diced tomatoes) $11~ I really enjoyed their hummus, it had good flavor and great texture. I think they should consider replacing the flatbread with pita bread though. I think the fluffiness of the pita bread will pair with the hummus even better.

Texas Blue Crab Gratin (roasted garlic cream cheese, grilled empire sourdough) $12~ The presentation of this dish was cute...with the gratin in the ramekin and the mini tabasco. I liked the toasted breadcrumbs on the top of the gratin and there were actually chunks of crab in it! I did not really care for the grilled sourdough though. Maybe use baguette instead?

For the entrees I was undecided between the Wood Grilled Scottish Salmon or the Dr Pepper Barbeque Rotisserie Chicken (cheddar leek hash browns) $18~ Tim talked me into getting the chicken and I'm glad I listed to him. I liked it a lot! The flavor of the sauce was delicious, slightly sweet and was perfect with the chicken and hash browns. The cheddar-leek hash browns was awesome. Nice crispy crust on top and also went well with the chicken. I wanted a little more cheddar in it though. You get about half a chicken, the breast was a little dry but the sauce definitely helped. The dark meat was perfectly juicy and tender. I scraped the plate clean! YUM!

My bf ordered the Texas Pecan Crusted Trout (roasted spagetti squash, Jim Beam butter) $18~ The crust on the fish was perfect, golden brown and crispy. The spaghetti squash was interesting and I liked it with the fish. The sauce on the side was really good, I just wanted more of it. The dish needed more sauce. I wonder if we could've asked for a side of the sauce?? Hmm...didn't occur to me to even ask for that...

The other dishes that my friends ordered include:

Butternut Squash Soup $7~ Creamy and silky smooth. YUMMY!

Shrimp, Crab and Lobster "Coleslaw" (cilantro lime dressing) $20~ This was light and refreshing. You can also see big chunks of the crab and lobster in there. It seemed pretty healthy for anyone who is looking for a lighter fare.

Grilled Chicken Breast, Portobello Mushroom (cottage cheese, basil yogurt, avocado) $16~ This dish was pretty straight forward. It's one of their 'heart healthy' selections along with the Crab Coleslaw. I didn't get a taste but my friend said it was good.

Ancho Barbequed Pulled Pork (Cabrales blue cheese roasted corn grits) $16~ I've tried this dish in the past, the pork is tender and the grits were tasty. My friend really liked it but thought it had a little too much sauce. She loved the grits and wanted more of it.

Lastly, the special of the night...Blue Plate Special: 10 oz. (or 12 oz...I can't remember..) Prime Rib (with mashed potatoes and veggies) $28~ I didn't get to try this either, but the prime rib looked delicious. My friend said it was pretty great! :)

They also ordered a side of Brazos Valley Cheddar Mac 'n' Cheese $9~ Again...cute in the little ramekin. :) It had a nice crust on top and was good and cheesy. I liked that they used mini macaroni pasta, it made the dish more "dainty" I thought.

I was super stuffed, but Tim came around with the dessert menu. I was debating whether or not to get any dessert until Tim started telling us about some dessert specials. The 2nd item he started introducing made me really happy. Blue Plate had created a limited time Fried S'mores dessert during the time of the State Fair. Fried S'mores (graham cracker battered chocolate on a stick with flame-seared marshmallow fluff & raspberry puree) $7~ with side of Vanilla ice cream $3~ http://www.thrillist.com/video/163392 I had thought they no longer had it since the state fair was over, but they still offered it off the menu. SWEET! I had to get it! It was SUPER cute. It was made to look like corn dogs. Made with a graham cracker batter with melty gooey chocolate in it. Served over melted marshmallow fluff. We got it with a side of vanilla ice cream. IT WAS AMAZING! The batter wasn't too thick, and the amount of gooey chocolate inside was sooo decadent. The ice cream was a nice pairing. Added some cold to the warm. I would recommend everyone to try this before it's no longer offered!!!

My friends ordered the other special dessert. Chef Jenay's Lemon Bars $7~ Created by this little girl and now featured on their menu. You can find more details here: http://www.kentrathbun.com/newsletter/september2010.php#jenay My friends thought it was cool that she contributed to their menu so they decided to get the dessert. None of us are really lemon people, but we all thought it was pretty good. The bars had good texture and the lemon wasn't too tart. With a scoop of ice cream, it would've been even better!

Once again, I had an amazing time at Blue Plate Kitchen. Thanks to Dennis for always making the visits so great. And also thanks to our waiter, Tim. I always look forward to my next visit there, hopefully the next time will be much sooner than 1o months! haha! :P

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Lumi - Latin meets Asian~

I went to Lumi - Empanada & Dumpling Kitchen for a birthday dinner this past weekend.

3407 McKinney Avenue
Dallas, TX 75204
(214) 979-2424
http://www.lumikitchen.com/
Price: $-$$

I've been wanting to try this place for awhile. When I first heard about it I was very interested in how they put latin and asian food together. I love latin food so I always like trying new places.

It was a fairly small restaurant and it was packed!! That was a good sign. The decor was clean/bright and modern. One bad thing with all those people was that it was REALLY loud in there. The acoustics in the restaurant wasn't designed very well... it was hard to talk and hear even people sitting across from me.

They mainly do dishes in tapa style (smaller portions and they serve it as it comes out of the kitchen) and everyone kinda shares.

We started with the Sal Picõ Tower (Tasty chicken, sautéed red and green bell peppers piled high and dressed in a creamy aioli dressing) $9~
This was very interesting. It was basically chicken salad but they topped it with crushed sour cream and onion potato chips. That added a nice crunch and different texture to the tender chicken and the crispy bell peppers and carrots. I personally hate carrots and try not to order anything with carrots in it. I don't really even eat carrot cake just because there's carrots in there. But I ate every bite of this dish. The dressing was very flavorful so I couldn't taste the carrots. The fact that I didn't pick them out was a really big deal. I really liked it. I think it could've been even better in the middle of a croissant! :P

Next we go the Spinach, Mozrella & Portabello Empanadas (Served with cilantro cream sauce) $6.50~ and Hearty Beef & Yukon Potato Empanadas (Served with ancho cream sauce) $6.50~ (they look the same so I only took 1 picture) I liked the empanadas a lot. They were fried, not like the typical baked empanadas I've had in the past. The shell was nice and crispy and the filling was very tasty. Both were good but I think I liked the Spinach one better. The cheese was all melted inside and it was hot and gooey! One thing I would suggest is that they put a little more filling in the empanadas. They were a little flat...

We also ordered a couple dumplings. The dumplings took longer to prepare and we waited quite a while for them to come out. You can order the dumplings either steamed or fried so we got one of each. We got the Chinese 5 Spice Duck & Leek Dumplings (Fried; Served with spicy plum sauce) $7.50~ and Thai Panang Curry Chicken Dumplings (Steamed; Served with our coconut-curry sauce) $7~ The dumplings were...ok. I was very excited to try the curry dumpling because I love thai curry. But it was alright. The dumpling was normal (I'm sure if you are asian you've had dumplings some time in your life...). The skin was thin which I liked but it dried out very quickly after being served and the top edges became kinda hard. Also the sauce for the curry dumpling had wayy to much ginger flavor. I didn't really care for that. I liked the duck dumpling better. I think maybe because it was fried. :P Fried is always more tasty..haha. But the sauce was REALLY sweet. I didn't really taste any spiciness. Luckily I liked the sweet sauce with the duck, but some of my friends didn't like it at all. I wouldn't recommend the dumplings. They were ok and I felt like anyone can make those dumplings.

I was able to try some other dishes other people ordered.

The Thai Blue Crab Fried Rice (Lightly battered soft shell crab served over savory blue crab fried rice) $16~ I heard the fried rice was really good and it was talked about on a lot of the reviews of this restaurant. I thought it was really cool that they had an entire small fried crab with the rice. The rice had a lot of flavor and was pretty good. But it wasn't that special of a fried rice... I definitely don't think it's worth $16.


I also got to try the Ba Noi Egg Rolls (Pork and shrimp rolled in a flaky & crispy wrapper) $7~ If you've ever had a vietnamese egg roll, this is basically it. Same flavors, same ingredients...just skinnier. It was good because I love vietnamese egg rolls, but I can get that at any Pho place for $2 instead of $7 here.

Overall I enjoyed the dinner. The food was pretty good and I was in great company! But I definitely think that it wasn't worth the price. It's a cool little place to just go check out at least once, but I don't think I would go back again.

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