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A while ago I bought a deal on Living Social for a 6 course chef's tasting at Nobu Dallas for 4 people. I've been to the original Nobu in NYC and was not impressed at all but this deal was pretty damn good. Plus I had an additional discount on Living Social so that knocked the price down even more! Turned out to be about $46 a person after tax and tip. I think we saved over 50%!
Nobu
400 Crescent Court
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 252-7000
http://www.noburestaurants.com/dallas
Price: $$$$$+
I have never been to the on in Dallas. It's inside the Crescent Court Hotel (beautiful btw, if you haven't been). You can either park in the self parking garage and get your ticket validated at the restaurant, or you can do valet... I think it's like $4 if you are dining there.
Our reservation was at 7:30, and we got seated immediately once we checked in. The place is much bigger than I imagined and the decor is great. A lot of great accents on the walls and dim mood lighting.
I went with my fiance and 2 other friends. One of my friends was running late so we ordered our drinks and waited for her (for as long as we could... haha). My fiance got a hot tea. I loved the teapot.
And my other friend got some sort of cucumber drink.
Finally we told the waitress to start serving, we were too hungry to wait any longer! XP
1st Course: Yellowtail Sashimi (jalapeno slices, soy sauce).
Very nicely presented. We were a little worried about the portion size since we were all very hungry. And usually tastings have smaller portions, right? The yellowtail was super fresh. The waitress recommended us eat a piece with a slice of jalapeno and a cilantro leaf. I don't like cilantro, but the combination works. It was a good start.
My friend made it before the 2nd course came out. Seared Salmon (Japanese spicy sauce, shaved radish).
Really good salmon. Fresh. I loved the spicy sauce, even though it wasn't really spicy. And the super thinly sliced radishes added a nice crunch and lightness. I liked this better than the first dish.
3rd Course: Miso Cod (with eggplant).
I love miso cod. So much flavor and usually melts in your mouth. This one met the expectation. It was delicious. I even ate the eggplant! (I'm not a fan, usually.) I said I would love to have some rice to go with this and others agreed. So we got a bowl of rice to share. Great combo. I ate very slowly to savor it all. Best dish of the night, although so far everything has been delish!
4th Course: Tenderloin (with Peruvian anticucho sauce and spicy sauce).
We were all worried we would still be hungry after this meal, but this course started making me change my mind. haha. The tenderloin looks small but man, I was getting full! I would've liked the meat more medium rare, it was closer to medium. But it was still super tender. I really liked the flavor on the meat. The duo of sauces were interesting. I'm not sure if I liked either of them. I think the meat can hold its own without the sauces... The charred pepper was actually quite spicy when you get to the part with the seeds. It added a really nice heat to the dish.
5th Course: Tuna and Yellowtail Roll (with avocado and spicy sauce).
For some reason I had it in my head that this was a 5 course meal. So I was a little confused when they served us sushi for what I thought was the last course. I quickly found out it was 6 courses. hehe. Score! I was officially full by now. This was a big course! I am determined to eat it all. haha. Really beautiful rolls with the thin slices of radish around the outside. The pyramid presentation is cool too. And the colors from the fish and avocado made me think of a painting. Delicious too. I loved the radish on the outside because it gave it a crunch and freshness. The only complaint is that their wasabi wasn't strong enough! :P
6th Course: Miso Cappuccino (milk chocolate miso brulee, vanilla ice cream, candied pecans, cappuccino foam).
For our last course, we saw a waiter carrying these around earlier and peaked our interest. Miso cappuccino? How cool! It came in a cute little cup. I loved the presentation. The foam was puffy on top and looked so good. I kept forgetting it was foam and expected it to be more like a mousse consistency. But it really was foam. Super light. But to eat it, you scoop all the way down so you get all the layers. The candied pecans added a crunch, a much needed texture. The miso brulee at the bottom was the best layer. Rich and sweet. It was a really great, and unique dessert. I didn't get much of the miso, but I think it mostly added a slight salty element so that it brings out all the other flavors. Now give me a giant mug of it!!
This was a great meal. Completely different than my initial experience at Noby NYC. (Everything tasted the same there for some reason, and ridiculously overpriced.) I'm glad I got the deal. This is not a cheap restaurant and I don't know if I would pay $20+ for any of our starting dishes... I wonder if a la carte dishes are slightly bigger in portion. But anyways, I got a great deal. The food was delicious. I loved the decor. And we were all stuffed afterwards! Service was also really good. Sometimes the waiters bringing the food aren't very good about describing the dish but that's probably my only complaint. The manager came over after to scan my deal and she was super friendly. Asked for our opinion of each course and told us what the chef's thought process was for each one. I like learning about those things. Makes you appreciate the creations more.
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
My friend that lives in NYC was the one that told me about Eataly. We went there twice during the course of our trip. First time was just to check it out and walk around and we went back on our last day for some lunch and souvenirs! I don't know HOW I didn't know about this place!!
Eataly
200 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(212) 229-2560
http://eatalyny.com/
(Iron) Chef Mario Batali is the partner and co-owner. It's basically an Italian marketplace with restaurants all around. Like a mini-indoor Little Italy! They've brought together some of the best Italian producers from every region and some of the best chefs. Not only do they import great products but also have local ingredients, such as using New York flour for the breads, local dairy for the gelato and American beef and seafood.
It's such a fabulous place! Super packed with people so it was a little hard to navigate. But on Sunday when we went back, there were lots of samples! I had some of the best butter and ricotta I've tasted!
There are also several "restaurants" where you can sit and dine (with waiter service) or community seating where you can find your own seats. They have a pasta area, seafood, meat, deli, gelato, coffee... you name it. In the center is La Piazza where you see people standing around with meat and cheese plates while drinking wine. Very cool!!
There was a wait at the pasta restaurant so we decided to just pick up some sandwiches and find our own seats.
I Panini - Price: $
I got a Speck & Taleggio (smoked prosciutto with a tangy cow's milk cheese, served hot) $8.80~
It was pressed and warm and the cheese was nice and melty. The panini was super simple. Just meat and cheese and bread. But that's how they do it in Europe right? Simple ingredients that speak for themselves. I wished there was some arugula or greens in there though. Just personal preference.
My friend got the Porschetta (boneless whole roasted pork seasoned with garlic and rosemary, topped with giadiniera - spicy pickled vegetables; served cold) $6.20~
It reminded me of an Italian Banh Mi. haha. The ingredients were all really fresh. But I couldn't really taste much of the giadiniera...I wish they had put more of it. It was a good and fairly light lunch and just to be in that environment was very cool. I wonder if Italy is like this?
I love gelato. So while my friends got some coffee, I got me some gelato! :)
Gelateria - Price: $
Waffle Cone with Pistachio Gelato and Stracciatella & Banana Sorbetto $4.90~
The pistachio was their best seller and I know why! It was amazing. The best pistachio gelato I've ever had. Normally I don't get pistachio because I find the flavors very bland but this was not the case. It was bold and slightly smokey and FULL of pistachio flavor. The banana sorbet with chocolate chips was awesome as well. Both had great texture and full flavors. And for a giant 2 scoops and waffle cone it was only $4.90? It's cheaper than Paciugo back home!!
My bf said the Cappuccino he got was really delicious. And the foam art was perfect even the Barista took a picture of it before he served it to us! haha.
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
I asked if I could do half/half orders and she said yes. I LOVE Andes Mint chocolates...probably one of my favorite candies ever. The cookies were great. I could really taste the Andes Mint and the consistency of the cookie was pretty good. The Cocoa Cappuccino wasn't what I expected at all. It felt more like a brownie/cookie mix...which is definitely NOT a bad thing..hehe. There was definitely plenty of chocolate, but could've used more cappuccino flavors. And it would've been better if both cookies were bigger! haha. I felt like I could just keep popping them in my mouth because they were so bite sized! hehe. 
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