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Great things are coming, y'all!! Get excited! On April 1st, Frisco will be getting the first arepa restaurant in DFW, Arepa TX. We don't have that many places in Dallas that serve arepas. And those that do, do not put their focus on it. What is an arepa you ask? Arepas are Venezuelan pan fried corn flour cakes that are stuffed with sweet or savory fillings of choice. They are delicious! And they're gluten free, which is in line with the whole gluten free trend that's happening right now. Also, different items can be made vegetarian or vegan by just eliminating a topping or two.
Arepa TX
5355 Dallas Pkwy #600
Frisco, TX 75034
(603) 366-8471
www.arepatx.com
Price: $-$$
I recently got an amazing sneak peek at the food. I was 1 of 2 people to be invited by @prestonroyalsw to dine at the chef (and owner's) home!! What an honor! I've been to a good amount of media/blogger events at this point but this is the first time I was invited to someone's home. The hospitality from the Arepa TX team was beyond amazing. From the moment we walked in, we were treated like friends and family. They were all just super friendly. We immediately smelled the food cooking and my mouth started to water. How amazing is it to have the chef cook for you in her own home? I geeked out a little. hehe.
They were plating when we got there. I cannot wait! We got some drinks and sat around chatting with Jammil (the chef's son who is handling the management and finances of the restaurant) and his wife, Susana. Along with their friend, Eric, who's in charge of Development and Design. We got some background and insider info on the development of the restaurant and menu items. Everything sounded delicious and I was getting hungry.
We were seated in the dining room and I was glad that several of the family members sat down to dine with us. The conversation just kept flowing like we've all known each other for a while. Then they started bringing out the food.
First up... Brisket & Chimichurri Arepa (tender and juicy slow cooked brisket in an ancho and guajillo sauce with pickled onions and avocado). It was served with a side of Plantano Frito (sweet fried plantains) and Seafood Cocktail (shrimp and crab cocktail in spicy clamato, with crunchy white onion and avocado).
Everything was fresh and made from scratch. I'll start with the arepa... pressed thin and the outer layers were nice and crispy. The brisket and chimichurri combo was fantastic. Beef is always great with chimichurri... and of course, they make their own chimichurri! It's so creamy... but there's no cream! I've never had chimichurri of that consistency. I loved it. I poured it on everything that night. The brisket was tender and the combination of flavors was well rounded. The plantain chips were great too. Super crispy but not at all greasy. Went really well with the shrimp/crab cocktail and/or chimichurri sauce. I had a refill on the chips. I'd take these over potato chips any day! The shrimp and crab cocktail was a nice little side. The addition of the crab added a variety of texture, plus it's more seafood, so who's gonna complain. :P One of my friends that went with me is Mexican and she said she makes her shrimp cocktail with very similar flavors. So it's pretty damn authentic, I'd say.
The next one is their "Banh Mi" Arepa (tender chicken with radish, carrot, cucumber, and avocado crema).
I'm usually weary when I hear non-Vietnamese restaurants say they have Banh Mi. But you can't take this literally... they have components of a typical banh mi, but the flavors are very much their own. The chicken that was in there was unreal! It was incredibly tender and that was probably my favorite protein of the night. The radish, carrots, and cucumber added freshness. And the avocado crema was a nice creamy element. It was really fantastic. I don't care what they call it, I can eat this every day.
After the 2nd arepa, they realized we were all getting full so they made a mini version for the 3rd one. They will have both sizes at the restaurant btw, to accommodate all appetites. The last one we sampled was their Vegetarian Arepa (black beans, avocado, caramelized onions, sauteed peppers, queso fresco).
It had no meat, but can you believe that this was our favorite one? It had so much flavor!! Whatever that sauce was... I bow down to it. I can only imagine if I added the chicken from the Banh Mi one into this... it would be SO FREAKING AWESOME! :P
We also got to try some Yucca Frita ( crisp slices of yucca, served with chimichurri sauce). I love yucca fries and this is by far the best I've ever had. It was PERFECTLY fried and so crispy. When you see that translucency on the outside, you'll know you have a perfect fry. Yucca is a really starchy root, so to get it to that texture was amazing. I wanted to eat more... I was stuffed.
And then they brought out the desserts. haha. Luckily they were mini. They will also feature homemade custard popsicles at the restaurant. There are two sizes, regular and mini. These mini pops are so adorable! Mini Frozen Custard Popsicles: we got to try the Flan and Dark Chocolate flavors.
I'm so excited about the flan flavor... I love flan and this was great. My friend said she doesn't like normal flan, but loved this popsicle. Because these are frozen custard instead of regular popsicle mixture, they are a lot richer and more decadent. Just one or two mini ones had satisfied my sweet tooth. The dark chocolate was so smooooooth. Yum! I can't wait to try all the other flavors when they open. Supposedly they have a Horchata flavor too!
Like I said, get excited people! The food is freaking amazing and made with so much love. You can absolutely see the passion pouring out of everyone on the Arepa TX team. And I truly believe that when someone cooks with love, you can taste the difference. I think Arepa TX will do so well in Frisco, and cannot wait for them to expand through the rest of Dallas. Come to Rockwall, please! :P
I'm just still in awe of this phenomenal family team. They welcomed us into their homes with open arms, fed us amazing food, and showed us the love they have for their business. I really wish the best for them. Thank you Chef Mary Ann, Peter, Jammil, Susana, and Eric. This had been one of the best experiences for me to date. And a huge THANKS to @prestonroyalsw for inviting me and sharing this experience. :)
Their grand opening is April 1st. They will have some great deals I'm sure. Definitely go check them out. I want to try everything on the menu!
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Last week I had dinner with a friend for her bday. It was a small group and she had chosen to go to Joyce & Gigi's. It's been on my radar for a while and I haven't gotten to try yet. I made a reservation for 6 people at 7PM.
Joyce & Gigi's Kitchen
1623 N Hall St.
Dallas, TX 75204
(469) 334-0799
http://joyceandgigis.com
Price: $$$
We arrived right on time. The place was empty, and it was a very small restaurant. Maybe fits like 40 people... maybe? The decor is nice, quite cozy. Apparently this is a mother-daughter duo so you get that homey feel. They specialize in South American food. I sure love me some Latin food!
Two of my friends were already there and ordered cocktails from the bar.
Sour Joyce (Creamy papaya, pisco sour) $12~ This was a pretty drink. A little tart for me but not bad.
Joyce and Gigi's (Rhubarb and strawberry sangria) $11~ This was delicious! And I never like sangria because I don't like wine. But it was like drinking juice. So yum!
We were seated immediate (duh!). The table was 2 small square tables put together. For 6 people, it felt quite cramped. :( I guess you can say "more intimate". Haha.
The waitress came and gave us the specials and took our orders. Then we were served their Homemade Mint Bread (with chimichurri butter).
It was fresh out of the oven. And it was heavenly! The bread had so much flavor, and that crust on the top was perfection. At first we thought the butter was chunks of cheese. But then we spread it on and realized it wasn't. It was really rich in flavor and went very well with the hot, fluffy bread. I found out that you can buy a fresh loaf to go for $5.50~ I decided to get one before dinner was over. hehe. They freshly baked one for me to take home. Made my car smell so good! You can buy 8 oz. of butter to take home as well...that's a lot! I think it's like $8.50 or something.
One friend got the Soup of the Day: Peanut Soup (with beef and noodles) $6~
Sounded very interesting. The waitress said it was more brothy. But one would think peanut soup would be more creamy/rich. It was a very dark soup and the flavor punches you in the face. It was really tasty but I don't think I could finish that bowl in one sitting. It was very strong and heavy. It went really well with the bread though.
For the entree I got the Milanesa (Chicken milanesa fritatta, served over chicken skin quinoa grits and a side of beurre blanc sauce, garnished with a pickled onion and herb salad) $16~
The waiter poured the beurre blanc over the chicken for me when he served this dish. It was not a typical chicken milanesa which is usually a pounded out chicken cutlet. This just looked like fried chicken. Tender juicy awesome fried chicken. haha. It was pretty damn tasty. The crust was really nice. It was on a bed of quinoa which I felt was a little soggy? But still went ok with the chicken. The pickled onion salad was a nice compliment with the fried foods.
Pescado Sudado (seared chilean sea bass served over a yuca root cake topped with dried chili broth) $27~
This was market price, just FYI. So ask before you order because the price will change. It was yummy! The fish was cooked really well and paired surprisingly well with the yuca cake. I thought 2 soft textures would be boring, but the flakiness of the fish and the creaminess of the yuca was great. The sauce had so much flavor. I don't know if I liked this more than my chicken!
Feijoada (Pork sirloin, pork shoulder, homemade chorizo and black bean stew, served with a pickled onion and tomato salad) $17~
This wasn't as good. It was mostly beans, which was actually cooked well. But I dunno if I'd want to eat all of this as a main entree. I didn't get to try any of the chorizo, but my friend said it was very dry. He didn't like it very much. :(
Majadito (Duck confit red risotto with plantains, topped with a poach egg, garnished with pickled onion and tomato salad) $18~
I almost ordered this, but 3 other people were getting it so I changed my mind. I'm so glad I did, cuz this did not live up to expectations. First of all, where's the duck?!? It was so finely shredded and mixed in that you couldn't really tell. And usually I find risotto as an entree is just too much carbs... too heavy. The flavor was actually good, to me. The flavors were surprisingly light. The poached egg was nice. But we also didn't see any plantains. I'm thinking that was probably mashed up and mixed in as well. One of my friends really did not like it so she barely ate. I took the leftovers home to my fiance. haha. One of my other friends really enjoyed it though. Just depends on your preference I guess. But it would've been nice to have actual sliced duck on top or something and more textural differences in the dish.
So the dinner started off good but then took a different turn. Some of us really liked our dishes and some hated theirs. The drinks and bread were amazing though. By the time we had gotten our food, the place was almost half full. It's definitely a quaint little place off the beaten path. I doubt I'll go back again, but I don't regret trying it.
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Last week, some of my co-workers treated me to lunch to celebrate my recent graduation. How sweet of them!
I chose this Peruvian place that's close to the office but I've never heard of before. I just found it online.
I can't say I've had much Peruvian food before. I know La Duni does some Peruvian stuff... but I don't think they are specifically Peruvian. I always want to try it more. I do love Latin food.
Tineo Peruvian Cafe
525 W Arapaho Rd.
Richardson, TX 75080
(214) 256-4535
http://tineoperuviancafe.com/
Price: $$
This is definitely a hole in the wall, although it was a pretty big space. It's at the end of a nondescript shopping center. It was pretty bare when I walked in. No decor to speak of. There were a few people in line to order at the counter. And not only is it a restaurant, it was also like a mini convenience store. They had some Peruvian snacks and drinks for purchase. Oh, and some good looking bakery goods too!
I was the first to arrive so I waited in line to ask the guy if I can pull some tables together. The service is pretty slow. Even though there were only 2 people in front of me, I waited quite a while. I realized that they only had one guy manning the register and front of house, and I think one person in the kitchen.
We thought we had to order at the counter but the guy finally emerged with menus and said we can sit down and order. He was very friendly, although not so good in English. It was a little difficult to ask questions about the menu (which I always end up doing.) :P Yes, yes.. I'm the difficult customer. haha.
We finally all ordered. We waited quite a while to get our food since it seems like there's only 1 person cooking in the back. None of us really minded though, we weren't in a hurry. However, they didn't really turn on the heat in there so we were all freezing to death. Definitely go when it's warmer or bundle up!! Finally the food came out one by one. We told others to start eating so the food doesn't get cold. Every plate looked yummy and huge! I thought the prices were a bit expensive but then you see the portions and it was better.
Tallarin Saltado a la Criolla (flamed beef or chicken with sauteed onions and tomatoes; served with noodles) $10.99~
3 people ordered this. 2 got beef, and 1 got chicken. It was on a large plate and was overflowing. The noodles came out steaming hot too. Looked amazing. I was starving by then. They used spaghetti noodles which my mom uses at home when she makes stir fry noodles because they hold their texture well. It was very good. All of them loved it. And 2 of them cleaned their plates! Impressive.
Seco de Carne (beef, potatoes, and cilantro stew served with beans and rice) $10.99~
2 other co-workers got this. It looked really good too! Definitely a great choice for such a cold day. The beef was nice and tender. The beans were an interesting pairing but worked well. They said the rice was flavored with something and kinda threw them off a little. But overall they loved it.
Tallarines Verdes con Bistec (Peruvian style pesto on spaghetti; served with a thinly sliced steak) $12.99~
Last but not least, I got my dish. I really didn't know what to expect with this when I ordered it. I just know I like pesto... but I had no idea what Peruvian pesto is. haha. It was a pretty green color. TONS of noodles topped with a seared steak on top. The steak was pretty flat but I liked how the edges were seared and a little crispy. The noodles and pesto was good too. The pesto was slightly different than an Italian pesto. There was another spice/flavor that I couldn't really identify. I enjoyed it a lot. I only wish that there was some veggies in it as well. It would've been nice to have some freshness.
My co-workers all loved it and were already saying they were going to come back. I want to say that the food here is more "homey", maybe something people would cook at home for their families instead of restaurant cuisine. However, don't believe everything I say because I am really not an expert in Peruvian food/culture. I CAN say that I've never had Peruvian food like this before.
I took half of my dish to go because I wanted to save room for dessert!
Flan $3.25~ Like a typical Latin flan, it's much heavier/denser. It was good. Not the best I've had, but I would definitely eat it again.
Bread Pudding $3.25~ Some others wanted to try this. It was cold, since it was prepackaged and put into the fridge/display case. They loved it. The raisins were nice and plump. I thought it was ok. I personally like warm bread puddings with a little bit of a crispy edge. And I would've loved a rum sauce or creme anglaise or something.
Chocolate Cake $3.25~ I caved and also got a chocolate cake. From the display case, it looked soooo gooey and moist. However, after I opened it up, I realized they just drizzled some chocolate sauce on the top of the slice so it looks really moist. It was a pretty generic chocolate bundt cake. Compared to the other two it wasn't anything special.
What a great new find! The service is quite slow but the guy was super nice. And the place isn't anything fancy, but we all loved our food. I'm sure most of us will be back there again at some point. I can't believe they only had 2 people running the place! So go on a day you don't have much going on. hehe. And thanks so much to my co-workers for the great lunch! I feel so loved. :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Houston to visit my fiance's family. His parents live there and his sister from NYC also flew down. They wanted to take us out for a nice dinner to celebrate our engagement and also it was his parents' anniversary! So I started researching places to go and came across this place. I love Latin food. The menu looked delicious and we were able to get a reservation on Saturday night even though it was only a few days in advance.
Américas River Oaks
2040 W Gray St.
Houston, TX 77019
(832) 200-1492
https://www.cordua.com/
Price: $$$$
Only after I made the reservation did I discover that it was also Houston's Restaurant Week and Américas is participating! $35 a person for 3 course like in Dallas, and partial proceeds going to charity. :) They had so many choices on the RW menu. Excited!
The restaurant is located upstairs in a shopping center. As soon as we walked in, we started noticing all the decor. It was very unique! Then we saw a plaque that says Zagat's Best Decor Award in 2013. It was very whimsical. Lots of interesting shapes on the walls, chairs, lots of different textures too. I haven't seen a restaurant like this before. They had one wall with these giant popcorn all over, made with some sort of fabric? The booths' chairs were over the top and really cool.
The waiter came by to greet us, he was very nice. Took our drink orders and we got some Fried Plantains with 3 dips. All 3 were great, especially the chimichurri. I love plantains, these were fried to perfection. And with the sauces, yum! We were hooked.
My fiance's sister ordered a michelada, which is Mexican beer mixed with lime juice and assorted spices and peppers... kind of a Mexican bloody mary. Looked pretty cool, and quite spicy!
4 of us ordered from the RW menu, and his sister decided to order from the regular menu.
RW First Course:
Empanadas (flaky, golden-brown savory latin pastries): Beef (caramelized onions, cumin, malbec-soaked raisins, roasted peppers and olives with rocoto sauce); Chicken (pulled roasted chicken, red pepper, sherry, basil and candied pecans with avocado mousse).
I got one of each, and his mom got just chicken. Both were fantastic. The crust was flaky and crispy. But the sauces were the stars on both. I thought I would like the chicken better because of the avocado mousse but the rocoto sauce on the beef edged it out. It was amazing. I have no idea what rocoto is, but I can drink it!!!! Both had a ton of flavors. Definitely two thumbs up.
Cubana (black bean soup with onion-cilantro relish and provolone cheese served in a toasted sourdough bread boule).
My fiance got this. It looked so good. So cheesy and the soup was thick and full of beans. Really tasty. However, the bread bowl was hard to eat. And there was a lot of it. There really wasn't as much soup as it seemed. But that may be a good thing since this is only first course!
Fish Taco (mahi-mahi, cabbage, rocoto pepper and pico de gallo). Cute little taco. A little small compared to the other dishes but looked yummy.
Mixed Greens Salad $6.95~ His sister ordered this. Looked great with all the toppings... pickled onions, corn, etc. She said it was spicy too! Nice.
RW Second Course:
The Churrasco (6 oz. signature center cut beef tenderloin, chimichurri seasoned and chargrilled with fingerling potato, grilled vegetables and bearnaise sauce). This was "Voted Esquire Magazine's Top 20 Steaks in America". His dad ordered it and said it was really good. I didn't try it since I had steak myself.
Beef Tenderloin Brocheta (grilled beef tenderloin and shrimp with onion and poblano over chorizo caribbean rice).
This was my entree. Huge portion. The beef was super tender and the rice had so much flavor. So far everything here was a flavor explosion. It was hard to tell everything apart after awhile since all the flavors are so bold. But it was good. I shared some and still took over half of it to go, there was too much food!
Grilled Mahi Mahi (black bean and shrimp veloute, fried pickled okra). His mom ordered this. The fish was cooked well. It was good. The fried pickled okra was totally interesting and awesome.
Achiote Seared Ahi Tuna (cilantro broth, citrus salad, goat cheese snow).
My fiance got this. I didn't even consider it because of the goat cheese snow. (I don't like goat cheese as y'all know.) But you can't taste it at all. It was amazing. Best dish of the night in my opinion. The tuna was top notch and full of flavor. And such beautiful colors!
His sister got the Lobster Corndogs (house made lobster sausage, carnival style corndog batter, lemon chardonnay aioli) $12.95~
As soon as she saw they had this, that was it. It was so fun! The plating was very whimsical like their decor. And food on a stick, always fun to eat.
With all our dishes, they gave us some sides. From the top: some sort of fried yucca balls, white rice, sweet plantains, and lentils. The lentils and plantains were my favorite. Sooooo good. The yucca balls were good but quite dense. I like the yucca fries better.
We also got some additional Sides $6~ each:
Chargrilled Corn & Crispy Mushroom. Interesting flavors, we couldn't quite pinpoint what some of the spices were. I liked the crispy mushrooms for added texture.
Grilled Asparagus. Pretty standard, good with the creamy dipping sauce.
Yuca Steak Fries. No picture, sorry. But looked like normal thick cut fries. It was fried really well.
RW Third Course:
Tres Leches (soaked in sweet vanilla laced cream then topped with Italian meringue).
One of the best tres leches we've had. My fiance recently discovered this dessert and he's now pretty obsessed with it. haha. He said it was definitely the best one he's had. It was sooo moist, the meringue on top was great.
Kettle Corn Tres Leches (fresh grated corn, whipped mascarpone, caramel, and Italian meringue).
This sounded totally interesting. It was topped with caramel and kettle corn. I liked the added texture of the popcorn. But the caramel made it a tad too sweet for me. My fiance tasted mine second and he was like "omg yours is even better". And then he would eat anothe bite of his, and say that's still the best. haha. He couldn't decide, they were both amazing.
Besame con Alfajores (miniature melt-in-your-mouth dulce de leche cookie sandwiches).
His dad ordered this just so we can all try something different. These little cookies were so cute. And they really did melt in your mouth. The filling was rich and sweet. It would be great with tea or coffee.
Their normal tres leches comes with a tableside show. They light it on fire! I was a little disappointed that they didn't do it for the RW desserts. But the table next to us got one and I was able to get it on video. I'm always a sucker for tableside presentation... and FIRE! :P
Really great find. Not only great food, but an experience to discover all the little (and big) decor elements. All their door handles were these dog or mouse figures. The bathroom was trippy too, like walking into Alice in Wonderland a little bit. It was a fantastic dinner. We ate so much and it was all delicious. I definitely recommend this place. I would go back again whenever I'm back in Houston. And a big thank you to his parents for taking us out to dinner! :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
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