Winter hasn’t even officially begun, but winter beers and holiday seasonals have already been on the shelves and bar taps long enough that I thought I’d offer a quick rundown of those I’ve particularly enjoyed so far this year — and one that gave me a good laugh. This is…
With the holidays upon us, money is tight. What better time than now to take advantage of the many happy hour food specials available throughout the city? Several Dallas restaurants are feeling the pinch, too, and are offering up great discounted food specials to bring in the happy hour crowds…
It should be easy to shop for food lovers, since their hobby’s been so relentlessly commodified. Any self-respecting big-box store stocks cooking utensils, cooking gizmos, cooking show DVDs, cookbooks and cooking magazines. But which of those items are really worth buying? We asked a few local chefs which attractive culinary…
Each week City of Ate will give you the lowdown on a local happy hour in Quittin’ Time, with the details and why you should or shouldn’t take up the featured bar or restaurant on its drink specials.Where: Nodding Donkey, 2900 Thomas Ave., 214-922-8898When: 2 to 7 p.m. Monday through…
Tea at Christmastime tends to be a Victorian affair, complete with jam cakes and velveteen trimmings. But Farmers Branch Historical Park is this month reminding visitors that Brits don’t have the monopoly on hot tea service. A traveling exhibit on global tea traditions, curated by Tea in Texas Magazine, is…
With 22 days left for online voting, Dallas is trailing the leader in a Walmart-sponsored contest for food bank funding by more than 11,000 votes. Walmart’s “Fighting Hunger Together” program pits the nation’s 100 metropolitan areas with the highest rates of food hardship against one another in a Facebook race…
Let’s face it, business lunches suck. There’s nothing more you’d rather do during your one hour away from the office than dine with coworkers or your boss, right? You can’t always avoid the dreaded lunch with the boss, but at least you can get a good meal out of it…
Yesterday, we gave you the goods on Julia Lopez, corporate chef for La Duni restaurants. Today, we asked Lopez to finish a few sentences for us. Tomorrow, she shares one of her delicious recipes. (Lopez’s words are after the ellipses.) I grew up… on a small little ranch in Chihuahua,…
Last week, I had some underwhelming chicken at Pope’s. Since then, my fried-chicken stomach has been super pissed. After almost a week of letting FCS relentlessly hurl unkind words at me (including, but not limited to, “Jeggings are awesome!” and “Scarlett Johansson is a talented actress!”), it was time to…
I once had a job at a bridal boutique that sidelined in dresses for prom. What I learned from the girls who came to our store in search of sparkles and sequins and as little material as their principals would allow is that preparing for a high school dance is…
Elvis Tuna Tartare at Shinsei Top Chef contestant Casey Thompson may be gone from Shinsei, but thankfully Elvis is still in the house, rockin’ the fresh sushi. Recovered completely from a motorcycle accident, Shuji “Elvis” Sugawara still draws crowds with specialties like his Elvis Tuna Tartare, a sumptuously simple preparation…
National chains are apparently racing to win over area burger eaters before In-N-Out reaches Dallas. Elevation Burger, which bills itself as the “only organic burger franchise in the U.S.,” is readying to open an outlet at the Hillcrest Crossing shopping center. And, according to Business Journals, Cheeburger Cheeburger is planning…
Tiffany Derry will be in the kitchen at Loft 610 tonight, joining fellow Top Chef All-Stars competitor Tre Wilcox to produce a $100 nine-course meal. And while tonight’s supper may be served with extra on- and off-screen drama, restaurant trend watchers say chefs showing up in each other’s kitchens is…
Vegetarian activists are rejoicing over the debut of five new vegan items at 7-Eleven stores in Manhattan, but a spokesperson for the convenience store says the sale of artichoke spinach noodles on 42nd Street doesn’t portend the national roll-out of a meatless menu. “I’m not sure where they got it…
According to Samuel Adams press material included with a sample bottle of Infinium (and an ice bucket and pair of flutes — aww, you shouldn’t have!), 60 percent of men would prefer to toast with beer instead of Champagne if given the choice. Whether or not that’s a good reason…
It’s a very cold Monday night when I go to La Duni on Oak Lawn to visit with their corporate chef, 37-year-old Julia Lopez. Horse-drawn carriages roll by outside and almost all of the tables inside are filled with large parties of revelers. ‘Tis the season and all. Warm, freshly-made,…
No matter how busy you are at work, it’s always refreshing to leave for just an hour to have lunch. Of course, if you work at our office, you’re just trying to escape the noontime odors of Lean Cuisine and microwavable mussels. We’re not effing around. Microwavable mussels. Central Market…
A food trend that came to the fore in 2009 has found a tenuous foothold in Plano. In February of that year, The New York Times ran a profile of Roy Choi and his Kogi BBQ food truck. This Los Angeles novelty traded (and does so now in a fleet)…
The nation’s second-largest theater chain is opening a dine-in theater at Grapevine Mills tomorrow, suggesting the movie world’s major players aren’t ready to cede the “watch and eat” model to smaller operators. Grapevine is the sixth entry in AMC’s growing Dine-In Theater concept; a seventh location is slated to open…
A familiar name in doughnuts is returning to Oak Cliff after a four-decade absence. A new Southern Maid is set to open next week at the corner of Davis and Polk streets, Rob Shearer reported on the Go Oak Cliff blog this afternoon. Les Franklin, Southern Maid’s vice-president of development…
“Here’s what I was thinking for the Observer,” researcher Arnold Schecter says when I reach him by phone to discuss his latest findings. “You could say: Do you want flame retardant in your Christmas cookies?” Since some Observer readers might, it’s relevant that Schecter discovered 10 samples of butter purchased…
Fish tacos had a banner year in 2010, but California-style tacos made with beer-battered tilapia and chipotle mayonnaise are still outpacing the grilled fish variety more commonly served in Mexico. According to a survey from industry research firm Technomic, the number of fish tacos on restaurant menus surged 22 percent…
