Sometimes there’s some kind of theme to this column, like last week’s tie-in to Belgian Independence Day or previous weeks’ explorations of beers tried on a trip to Alaska. Other times, new or newly available brews are fodder for a Hophead column. Then there are times when I simply write…
The Friar of Fried, Abel Gonzales Jr., might have already gone national with coverage of his blessed artery-clogging concoctions at the State Fair of Texas, but he’s about to steal the hearts of housewives everywhere with an appearance on the Rachael Ray Show. On July 28, four-time winner of a…
A Hickory, North Carolina restaurant is mounting a significant challenge to Bavarian Grill’s status as “Best German Restaurant in America,” a title bestowed in an online competition. Plano’s Bavarian Grill last year beat out more than 400 German restaurants nationwide to claim its crown in a contest sponsored by an…
A mobile barbecue operation in Deep Ellum is readying to move into a permanent location on Commerce Street. Momma Raye’s Old Fashioned BBQ, which has been selling ribs and sliced beef sandwiches from a truck parked at Club Clearview, has been cleared by the city to take over the former…
There’s a little over an hour to get your Bravo-loving ass to Sigel’s (5757 Greenville Ave.) to taste the latest in one of the few libations appropriate for a proper reality TV-watching Wednesday night: Top Chef wines. The swirl-fest features Quickfire Cabernet and Quickfire Sauvignon and is free to the…
The Wall Street Journal’s Lettie Teague, late of Food & Wine Magazine, was stunned by Dallasites’ wine habits when she was in town this week. Teague yesterday wrote about her recent visit to a Sigel’s Fine Wine shop in Frisco, where she picked up a $9 Domaine du Pouy -…
Each week City of Ate will give you the lowdown on a local happy hour in Quittin’ Time, with the details on why you should or shouldn’t take up the featured bar or restaurant on its drink specials.Where: Aw Shucks, 3601 Greenville Ave., 214-821-9449When: 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. dailyWhat: Half-price…
On a rare night out a few weeks ago, I found myself in a ladies’ room, eavesdropping on a conversation between two leggy blondes. They were ready to move on to the next party and were debating the destination. What occurred next left me in momentary shock and made me…
As a countdown to the Dallas Observer’s “Best of Dallas” 2010, City of Ate is serving up 100 of the favorite dishes we crave, savor and hope to scarf down again soon. These dishes are in no particular order. Some are little known, others celebrated. Some are pricey, others can…
When Peg Bracken wrote The I Hate to Cook Book back in 1960, the former advertising copywriter’s admission that she’d rather enjoy a drink and good company than trim toast points was considered radical. “Add the flour, salt, paprika and mushrooms, stir, and let it cook five minutes while you…
This morning, after hearing very good things about the coffee and espresso at Zaguán Latin Café & Bakery from several of the folks around the bullpen at Observer HQ who regularly visit the establishment, Roasted finally headed across the street for an early-morning coffee break.And, we’re glad we did, because…
99 Ranch Market marks its debut in North Texas this Friday. (Thanks to City of Ate reader twinwillow for the heads up.) The West-Coast based Asian grocery mega-store chain will open its second Lone Star outpost in Plano, off Central and Spring Creek Parkway. (The first opened last year in…
The Boiler Room2723 Elm St.214-758-0104Today, during a quick lunch at the newly opened Boiler Room on Elm Street in Deep Ellum, I had a conversation about actually, actively moving to the neighborhood as soon as possible, instead of meandering through hopeful speculation about how Deep Ellum is maybe, kind of,…
You get up in the morning and immediately beat The New York Times’ crossword. You watch an episode of House and drive to work. Excel spreadsheets hold you over for a couple of hours, building the perfect model, but you crave more puzzles. You, mind-bending-puzzle-lover, demand that even your foods…
Setting up shop in the shadow of Whole Foods Market seems like a risky proposition for a family-owned health food store, but a spokesperson for Natural Grocers — readying to open at Preston Road and Forest Lane on August 31 — says proximity to the natural food giant is a…
Just four weeks to go until KRLD Restaurant Week, and I’ve already made my reservations and shopped at Central Market for my special Fourth Course certificates. I’m all set, but like a football fan between the end of the season and the Super Bowl, I can’t wait. So my mind…
“What do you think of when you think of doughnuts?” Hypnotic Donuts’ owner James St. Peter asks me. Um, coffee? Nope. Sugar? “No, no, no,” says St. Peter, who’s obviously never going to pick me to be his Password partner on Board Game Night. “People like their doughnuts fresh and….”…
As a countdown to the Dallas Observer’s “Best of Dallas” 2010, City of Ate is serving up 100 of the favorite dishes we crave, savor and hope to scarf down again soon. These dishes are in no particular order. Some are little known, others celebrated. Some are pricey, others can…
Tollie’s Barbecue 6407 S. Cooper St., Ste. 101 Arlington 817-465-8300 Like our own Hanna Raskin has written, the contemporary food critic is tasked with finding gems in the ‘burbs. Since my Arlington-living mother-in-law returned from a holiday in Europe, the family and I thought a little Texas ‘cue at newly…
A new project at Louisiana State University may eventually extend the crawfish season through the fall, but a local seafood purveyor says many consumers don’t realize live mudbugs are already available through Halloween. “You can get crawfish from the Pacific Northwest,” Jon Alexis, co-owner of TJ’s Fresh Seafood Market says…
When Baskin-Robbins recently announced it was axing five of its 31 signature flavors, the resultant uproar centered on French Vanilla, a fixture since the company’s founding in 1945. More than 1000 people have joined a “Save French Vanilla,” group on Facebook, pleading with the company to keep the sundae-suited classic…
Sunday brunch was likely a bigger deal than usual for the multitude of music-loving Dallasites who came out to the DOMA showcase this weekend in Deep Ellum — the whole thing had the feel of a holiday street party, and the drinking was done with this in mind. Surprisingly, when…
