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Haywire opened at Legacy West in Plano just 2 weeks ago. Being part of the restaurant group that brought us Whiskey Cake, Sixty Vines, Ida Claire, and more... this place was definitely on my radar. My husband and I happened to be in Plano on the 2nd night of opening so I quickly snagged a reservation.
*Now open for Lunch and Dinner. Brunch will start Christmas weekend!*
Haywire - Legacy West
5901 Winthrop St. Suite 110
Plano, TX 75024
(972) 781-9473
http://haywirerestaurant.com/
Price (dinner): $$$+
Y'all... this place is amazing!! My husband was caught in traffic so I explored the place while waiting for him. THREE floors completely decked out in awesome decor. Definitely a very western/Texas theme, but each floor had its own vibe. Also, a bar on every floor! The rooftop is extra awesome, complete with a cabin-esque nook area to enjoy a game, and a full size Airstream! It's a fancy Airstream too, I would like to dine in there some time.
This place is huge! It's definitely going to be a popular spot when the weather is nice. So I was walking around just looking and taking pictures when I was greeted by the GM and the Director of Operations from Front Burner Restaurants. They just walked up and said hi! How nice! They informed me that they were having a complimentary wine tasting event and asked if I wanted some wine. I don't drink, but they guided me over there for some appetizers and cheese boards. Yay, free food! I sampled the Cornmeal Fried Texas Gulf Oyster and Fried Green Tomato (with Green Goddess dressing).
So good. I'm not a huge oyster fan but it was so good! And loved the fried green tomatoes. You must have the dressing! Btw... since I don't drink wine, the GM brought me a glass of water, himself! I felt so special!! :)
I was getting a little worried and feeling bad that we were so late for our reservation, however, they were so laid back and easy going. When my husband arrived, we even went and got him some free wine first before being seated. The main dining area is super cool. Dimly lit, and really nice decor. They have a sitting area with really cool chairs and a fireplace.
Our waiter, Oscar, came over to greet us. He was super nice! We noticed that it was Happy Hour and he helped to recommend some drinks. My husband got the Frozen Texas Tea (4 types of liquor; with sangria swirl) $5~ during HH.
This was a bigger glass than I expected. It was really yummy... did NOT feel like you were drinking that many different kinds of alcohol. But that's deadly right? My husband liked it so much he ordered a 2nd one, and that was one too many! He got quite tipsy towards the end of the meal. haha.
Happy Hour is M-F from 4-7PM. They have $5 apps and drinks. I highly recommend the Frozen Texas Tea. But have a DD! And... half priced wines every Sunday!
Mini Elk Tacos (spicy elk picadillo, caciotta cheese, grilled corn pico, cilantro crema, micro greens) $9.95~
We were also intrigued by the elk tacos from the HH menu, but they hadn't started food specials when we went. We got them anyways. So the meat is a elk and wagyu beef blend so it's not gamey at all. I was a little surprised it was a crispy taco... these days most people do soft corn tortillas (which I don't like). I liked the crispy taco shell. It was filled to the brim with meat. The toppings kept falling out. haha. A good problem to have. It was really good. I would've like some hot sauce but I just like spicy foods. hehe.
I asked Oscar about their cornbreads cuz a friend of mine had gone the day before and raved about them. I asked him because it's not on the menu... But yes, you can order them, and it's super cheap.
Buttery Cornbread. I think they're like $1~ each?
Can I get a dozen to go please! :P These were my favorite things of the night. They were perfection! Warm, fluffy, with slightly crispy edges. It was sweet yet had a slight heat to it. I wonder what kind of spice they used but it was very slight... you just get a hint of heat. Enough to make you wonder. Loved it. I can have this with my meal, or as dessert.
For the entrees, there were so many things we wanted. I ended up with the Mesquite Grilled Bone-in Pork Chop (warm farro and rainbow chard salad, smoked chili honey butter) $24.95~
Mainly because of the farro and chard salad... sounded yummy! Plus this was healthier than getting the mac and cheese. (Next time!) Really thick cut pork chop, perfectly tender. I ordered it medium and it was a little under. Since it's bone-in, it takes a little longer to cook through. I would suggest med-well for next time. Loved the flavors too. The farro salad was amazing and had this peppery-ness to it. I liked the bit of heat.
My husband went with the Double Cut Texas Wild Boar Chops (local oyster and shiitake mushrooms, butternut squash, cipollini onions, pan jus) $31.95~
The most tender boar everrr! We did notice that the veggies underneath did not include any of the mushrooms or onions so we brought it to Oscar's attention. He was able to get us a side dish of that. Ours just had brussels sprouts and butternut squash which also paired really well with the boar. I did wish the chops were bigger though. My husband inhaled his plate quickly.
We were pretty full. But I made sure to stop eating and take the rest of my entree to go because I wanted dessert. My husband regretted getting the 2nd drink because now he's way too full. haha. To our surprise, Oscar asked us if we wanted a slice of cake and it was going to be on the house. Well duh!! Bring it on! :P We chose the Chocolate Cake (with vanilla ice cream). Not sure how much the cake is since it was on the house! :)
It was a big slice of chocolate decadence. That ganache is amazing. We ended up taking more than half of the cake to go, but killed the ice cream. Tip: If you let the cake warm up a bit... it's even better!!
It was a fabulous dinner. Brian, the GM, came by and talked to us for a while. Another manager came by to greet us towards the end of the meal too. And Oscar was just a joy. We absolutely loved our experience and cannot wait to go back. We're already planning to visit again next week.. and bringing LOTS of friends. :D
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Happy New Year everyone! Hope you all had an awesome holidays/vacation/staycation/etc...
So we had some crazy cold front come on NYE eh? Kinda sucks but my friends and I stayed in and had a house party. It was a great time. New Year's day was just cold and dreary as ever. I think it's nature telling us all that vacation is over and back to real life we go. Booooo. And perfect weather to stay in and sleep. But I had a friend in town and we planned to meet up for a late brunch. Luckily, the roads didn't freeze and traffic was very light. It didn't take long for us to get to our destination.
Savor Gastropub
2000 Woodall Rodgers Freeway
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 306-5597
http://savor-relish.com/savor/
Price (for brunch): $$
I've wanted to try Savor's brunch for awhile now so I suggested it to her. Plus they take reservations. Yay. So we met there at 1PM. Parking there is pretty sparse, plus it was cold and wet, so I opted for valet. It's complimentary, so why not. It was pretty quiet in there. I guess most people decided to stay home. We were seated after everyone arrived. The restaurant was quite cold... since the entire place is glass windows. haha. But once we got some food in us, it was better.
My fiance ordered the Short Rib Tortilla Hash (short rib, fingerling, salsa verde, sunny-side up egg, chipotle hollandaise) $17~
I wanted to try that one too. The portion was quite big. He just cut up the egg and mixed everything together. It was yummy. The short rib was super tender. I liked all the flavors. It was a very comforting dish...good for a cold day like New Year's day. The tortilla was already mixed in, so it was pretty soggy. I wish they would've topped it, so it would be crunchy to start with. Other than that, I'd totally have this again.
I decided to keep it lighter. I got the Farro Salad (charred red onions, cherry tomato, pine nuts, basil mint vinaigrette) $13~
It was more like a plate of farro, than a salad. There was one big leaf of lettuce under all this. hahaha. But I didn't mind. The farro has incredible chewy texture. The flavors were light but not at all bland. And I loved the basil mint vinaigrette. Not heavy, but a little is enough to add great flavor to everything.
Brussels Sprouts (with bacon) $13~
I remembered the first time we came, their Brussels sprouts were really good. I didn't see it on the brunch menu so I asked the waitress if we can still order it. She says usually it's only available for dinner service... but she'll check with the kitchen. And YES! They'll do it!! :) It's considered an appetizer, that's why its $13. But it's a pretty big portion. I'd say about x3 what other places serve as sides. So the price balances out. Delicious!! The bacon gave just enough meat for my meatless farro salad. I'll probably order this every time I go.
Deviled Eggs (pepper relish, spiced pecan brittle) $8~ One friend ordered this to start. It was a very pretty plate. And it was very good. I really liked the spiced pecan brittle on top, added a crunchy texture.
He also got the Chicken Fried Steak (bacon and maple gravy, crispy breakfast potatoes, over-easy eggs) $19~
I got a bite of the chicken fried steak. It was pretty good, but in that bite I felt like maybe the meat was a little overcooked? I can't fully remember since there were so many other dishes and flavors going on all at once. He seemed to enjoy it though since he cleaned his plate. hehe.
Lemon Ricotta Stuffed French Toast (brioche, blueberry jam, spiced pecan brittle) $14~
Another friend ordered this. It was what I wanted... but opted for a healthier route. The waiter had said it was his favorite on the menu. It was so pretty... and looked AMAZING. And it tasted AMAZING! The whole thing was like a cloud, so fluffy!! The brioche was light and airy, the lemon ricotta filling was fluffy. Nothing was overly sweet, so it wasn't heavy at all! I ended up eating a fourth of her dish. hahaha. :P Oh man... next time I go, I'm totally getting that!!
Fried Chicken Salad (romaine, cheddar, cucumber, avocado, spiced pecans, tomato, honey mustard dressing) $16~ I didn't try any of this. Seems pretty standard... But there are lots of big chunks of fried chicken. :)
Nicoise Salad (coriander seared tuna, saffron aioli, olive tapenade, tomato, deviled egg, mixed greens) $19~ I didn't try this either but it looked really good. My fiance was sad that he didn't see that this had seared tuna in it.. his fav. hehe. My friend said it was good, but the salad part had a bit too much dressing, so he didn't finish that.
It was a wonderful brunch despite the yucky weather outside. I got to see people I haven't seen in over a year! Tried a new place for brunch and loved it! So far 2015 is looking pretty positive. :) And Savor is such a cool looking restaurant, definitely a good place to people-watch when the weather is nice.
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On Tuesday, a friend of mine got a last minute invitation to Cadillac's Road to Table event (presented by Cadillac and Bon Appetit). He had been on the waiting list for several weeks and they contacted him the afternoon of the event. So it wasn't until 2 or 3PM that day when he called me to see if I wanted to go. Initially we were hesitant since it was such late notice and it didn't start til 8:15PM in downtown. (We both live in West Plano...btw. It's a bit of a drive.) But we decided to go. Why not? Do something new. Plus it includes a full dinner featuring some special chef!
I started do some digging into the event since I knew nothing of it. I realized that the featured chef was Matt McCallister of FT33! One of the hottest new restaurants in Dallas and of course it's been on my radar since it opened a year ago!! Now I'm super excited!
I met up with my friend and we carpooled downtown. We arrived at the Cadillac venue, got registered, and they told us we'll have a car waiting for us to test drive to the restaurant. Restaurant?? I assumed we'd just have some food made by the chef at the venue, but we get to actually go to his restaurant?!?! I'm on cloud 9 by this point. haha.
So Cadillac was featuring their new ATS which we got to test drive. It's a pretty sweet car. Lots of leg room, smooth ride, and plenty of gadgets.
And then we arrived at FT33. OMG OMG OMG!!! I still can't believe this is happening! This place has been at the top of my list for a while and I heard it's pretty hard to get a reservation. And now we get to have a 3 course meal AND meet the chef? So excited my heads about to pop! hahaha.
While driving to the restaurant, our Cadillac rep actually gave us a brief background on the name of the restaurant. Apparently FT33 stands for "fire table 33". Table 33 is a table for 6 that is directly in front of the kitchen, and deemed the best seat in the house. Cool! That's a nice little trivia. And I said how awesome would it be if we got to sit there tonight! :P
FT33
1617 Hi Line Drive, Suite 250
Dallas, Texas 75207
(214) 741-2629
http://ft33dallas.com/
Price: $$$$
We were greeted by people from Cadillac. So far I've been very impressed with their friendliness and professionalism. Everything was running very smoothly since we didn't have much event details to go on. We were directed to some waitresses with cocktails and wine. They told us that dinner wasn't starting for another 20 minutes so feel free to have some drinks and hors d'oeuvres.
I started with a Gimlet. Pretty good! But I need some food in me so I don't pass out! haha.
Several waiters walked around with food on wood platters. I loved the presentation!
Chicken Liver Mousse. Very rich mousse and quite livery. Liver is not usually my thing. But you could tell the quality and smoothness of the mousse is good.
Next was a Pork Terrine of some sort. With some kind of gelee on top. It was beautifully presented and my favorite hors d'oeuvres of the night.
Charcuterie Board. Hard to eat in passing but the meats paired well with the pickled vegetables.
Then it was time for dinner. We walked into the restaurant and looked for a table to sit. A lot of the tables were pushed together so we had to sit with other people. Which is cool. We met some good/interesting people at our table. And guess what, when we walked in, there were 2 seats left at table 33! It's like fate. It was left there just for us! :D I couldn't stop taking pictures of the kitchen. haha.
Here's a blurb I got from the FT33 website on the restaurant...
"FT33 is Chef Matt McCallister’s first solo venture, opened on October 13, 2012 in Dallas and serving “season-inspired modern cuisine.” He showcases the highest-quality products and treats them with respect. “I don’t print my menu until I know which ingredients are best that day,” he explains."
It's pretty cool that he doesn't finalize his menu until that day. This ensures the best quality of ingredients. I'm super impressed!
Before dinner, a rep from Cadillac welcomed us all, and then introduced the chef and he talked about his food and restaurant for a bit. They did this in between every course so we got to understand more about the restaurant and also the dishes we were eating. Each course was paired with wine as well. OMG! And the waiters just keep refilling your glasses. haha. I wish I drank wine! XP
For the first course we had Farro Risotto (herbs, wild mushrooms, puffed grains, kale juice).
I love farro (ever since I saw Giada De Laurentiis cook with it. hehe). I love the texture and this dish was fantastic. All the flavors were balanced and there were several layers of textures. The kale juice kept it fresh while the puffed grains added a crunch. And the wild mushrooms were earthy. Loved it! I did hear mixed reviews from other people though. Farro is not a common ingredient so some people didn't know what to make it, especially when they see "risotto" and already had a different expectation. And some didn't like the texture. For me, I'd take chewy and crunchy over soft and mushy any day! I think if you like cous cous, quinoa, wheat berry, or the like... then you'll love this dish.
For the main course it was a Sterling Lamb Duo (salsify, apples, coffee-chocolate crumble, pumpkin).
I was nervous about this dish since I don't like lamb at all. There's a stank and gaminess to it that I just cannot stand. But I told my friend I'm going to eat it all! The presentation was fantastic. It looked small but it was quite filling. The piece on the left was lamb shoulder. It was leaner but still super tender and moist. The meat was fork tender. And guess what, I did not mind it being lamb at all! I could still get a hint of the gaminess but the meat was cooked so well that I didn't even care. The piece on the right was the lamb belly. You know how I feel about pork belly and this was pretty close. Again, fork tender. It was amazing. Every element on the plate was fantastic, but it worked together so well to make an even better complete dish. The pumpkin puree was magnificent. Everyone at our table raved about it. Silky smooth and you can really taste the pumpkin. The sweetness paired with the lamb superbly. There was another sauce that was an apple puree. It was so fresh, it help cut the fattiness of the lamb belly. The salsify is a type of root vegetable. You'd think it would be hard but it was tender with just the right amount of crispness. And the coffee chocolate crumble? Genius! It wasn't overly sweet or bitter, but helped elevate the flavor of the lamb. And I liked the extra crunch it gave the dish. Gorgeous dish... and so yummy.
For dessert we had Roasted Sweet Potato Budino (coffee, cocoa nibs).
I was really excited about this. Budino is basically pudding. But his budino had this fantastic texture. My friend and I were wondering how they got the consistency. The budino was rich and smooth and paired nicely with the soft and fluffy mocha cream. The coffee and cocoa nibs added a slight bitterness and depth of flavor to the pudding. And I liked the texture of the crumble and thin brittle/wafer pieces on top. A perfect end to a fantastic meal. I scraped every plate clean!
Such an amazing experience. Flavor and texture explosion! haha. I'm so thankful for my friend for bringing me! :D After the dinner we got to meet the chef. Holla! I told him that I had never eaten more than a bite of lamb in one sitting and I cleaned my plate! I hope he knows that's probably the biggest compliment I can give him. haha. I'm super impressed that the chef is so young too. Only a few years older than me. This Saturday will mark their one year anniversary of FT33!! Yay!!! Best wishes to Chef Matt McCallister and the FT33 team. Actually, if they continue to do what they do, they really don't need any luck! :)
Quality of Food:
Service: 4.5
Ambiance: 4.5
Value: n/a (courtesy of Cadillac & Bon Appetit)
Overall Experience: 5
But wait... the night's not over yet! The Cadillac people have brought over Escalades to drive all the guests back to the venue. Since everyone's been drinking they shuttled us back. Never been in an Escalade before! Sweeet! We got to sit in one of the uber big Escalade ESV's. :)
Back at the venue there were more desserts (from La Duni) as well as gourmet coffee. You can also walk around and look at some of the new cars. We were stuffed, but of course I tried all the different desserts. :P
We also got a gift bag to go! Wow... I'm so happy I got to experience this event. And impressed from beginning to end, with Cadillac and FT33. Professional, welcoming, and enthusiastic. What a night! :) And the cars were really nice! If you are in the market, don't forget to check out Cadillac.
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