Anytime you write something about service these days, you’re hit with a barrage of angry retorts from people identifying themselves as waiters and waitresses. According to these fed up staffers, diners are all just a bunch of unappreciative, whining morons who keep demanding more.Presumably the right entrees, drink refills, that…
Sambuca 3607200 Bishop, Plano469-467-3393The revamped glow of Sambuca’s new Legacy space doesn’t have the original’s brick walls, screaming urban authenticity. It lacks the Addison location’s dated, desperate atmosphere. The menu is less ambitious than their Uptown setting. And just maybe it all works to 360’s benefit.Then again, maybe it’s nostalgia…
Each week in ‘Knockers’ we order from a different delivery restaurant, assessing their efficiency and keeping a running score.Qdoba Mexican Grill 6505 W. Park Blvd., Plano972-403-7372 Promised Delivery: 60 minutes Delivery Time: 45 minutes Scoring Summary:Finally having Mexican food delivered to my apartment: 40 No awkward phone pauses: 20 Getting…
Even though it makes no difference to most City of Ate readers, Dunkin’ Donuts coffee is the official coffee of the Dallas Cowboys and the new stadium. To promote the partnership, participating DFW locations of the doughnut chain are offering 25-cent medium-size hot coffees to all customers until noon every…
Norma’s Cafe broke out of Oak Cliff with a gut-busting bang at a grand opening for their North Dallas location Thursday night, hosting a pie-eating throwdown between two high school teams and an epic chicken-fried steak giveaway.In the strip mall parking lot at Dallas Parkway and Trinity Mills Road, five…
Rough and rustic little joints have always captured our imagination, although we’re never sure why. The tables wobble, seat cushions are torn and there’s something more than stale cigarette smoke lurking in the air…though we don’t really want to know just what.But that’s just one version of a dive. So…
Who knew our two demented artist types–Patrick Michels (of Pairing Off art fame) and Alexander Flores–also had a talent for shameless money-grubbing…by which I mean marketing.This week they designed a line of blog-related apparel. My favorite item? The Dude Food trucker’s hat.Great prize idea–except that Michels and Flores aren’t really…
In my school of thought–and keep in mind, it’s not a very well attended school–cocktails born in the heyday of gentlemanly drinking are to be revered. Drinks such as martinis, old fashioneds and the great sazerac came from an era when even the prettiest glass carried a big, stiff belt…
This week Dave visits York Street in East Dallas, where Sharon Hage bucks tradition across the board, from the restaurant’s location and signage, right on into the kitchen.For a three-course feast for the eyes (four, if that thing on the wall does anything for you), check out Sara Kerens’ work…
A beer tasting event like last Saturday’s Fall Beer Festival at the Fort Worth Flying Saucer is an easy way to try several new beers at once, hang out with fellow beer people and see a lot of hilarious T-shirts. However, as I discovered, it’s also an easy way to…
I met with girl drinkers Marla, Melissa and my sis Tracy for a night of comedy and cheesy appetizers. And drinks. Of course there were drinks. We were all geared up to see the partly-cloudy comic with a side of soapbox, David Cross. Unfortunately, we had no idea what time…
Maybe you flipped through this week’s Top 10, a countdown of foods to fry next time the state fair rolls around.We put together what we thought was a pretty unassailable list–Pop Rocks, Jello shots, vegan cupcakes and the like. Hard to beat, right?Ah, but then you lot chimed in.There were…
People tell me I have a glamorous job. They tell me over and over…until I respond with “gotta go to Furr’s; want to come along?” As much as we dismiss pile-it-on buffets, however, we’ve all bellied along a serving line. Whether we regret it moments later or rationalize the experience…
Believe it or not, even vegans can get squeamish about tofu. Now, I’m not talking about just any kind of tofu–I mean that stuff that’s slimy and jellylike, but partly charred around the edges. Combine that with the faint smell of fish, here’s what you might hear: “EEK!!!” That was…
Recipe Demonstrated by Abraham Bedell of Victor Tangos We all have those mornings where we wake up with the sensation of a little Oompa Loompa is hammering away at our brain, last night’s bar stamp is now on your forehead, articles of clothing are making a trail from your front…
When I heard about Sweet Georgia Brown’s bevy of pork offerings, I also heard that they were a little outside my price range. So, I bet my friend that strippers will beat you up if you snap quarters at them instead of giving them dollar bills, made my couple extra…
Sharon Hage went about everything the wrong way when she opened York Street way back in May 2001. Not only was she among the first to tie her menu to the vagaries of seasonal, often local, organically grown ingredients, the chef also violated all the rules of small business success…
Each week, Pairing Off attempts to find just the right bottle of wine to go with ordinary food. Deriding fast foods is somewhat de rigueur on blogs such as this. We’re supposed to appreciate the efforts of chefs and skilled short order cooks as opposed to the corporate ethic, right?…
Even though I was only 10, I actually cast a ballot in the 1972 election. You’ll recall that it was a landslide. And as with every election in which I could legally vote afterwards–at least until the early 90s–I ended up on the losing end. That’s right, I marked the…
On The Range is a weekly exploration of the history and lore of Texas menu items.Cochinita pibil, a slow-roasted Mexican pork dish which originated on the Yucatan peninsula, is often made from suckling pig. Of course, in these less literal times, cooks use butt or loin as well.During Mayan times…
Avila’s 4714 Maple Ave.214-520-2700Dude Factor: 8, or “Nuevo Laredo”, on a scale of 1 (“Stays in Mexico”) to 10 (“El Paso”)A wise man once said “don’t shit where you eat, kid.” Whoever built Avila’s blatantly ignored his advice, however, which is why the one-holer bathroom is located in the back…
If Memory Serves chronicles moments from my dining past, perhaps explaining why I’m so damn strange.We lived just off Hampstead High Street in London. This was back in the days when Brits in search of a decent meal headed for French restaurants. On trains you could buy tomato and butter…
