Matt McCallister

Dallas Observer's Iron Fork 2013 Through Your Instagrams

And so we come to the full-bellied end of another Iron Fork. Hope you had a lot of great bites. We sure did (sweet fancy Christmas, did you have the sausage orgy from Kuby's?). Anyway, a few days ago, we asked you to hash tag us on Instagram #IronForkDallas and mentioned you might see your photo in ... More >>

Awesome Beer and Dinner Events This Week in Dallas, Including Iron Fork and Picnics

Wednesday, May 8 It's a culinary showdown at the Dallas Contemporary as Scott Romano battles Matt McCallister of FT-33 in the Iron Fork chef challenge. The King Bucks will perform as guests (you!) sample food from different restaurants along with wine, beer and cocktails. Tickets are on sale at obs ... More >>

Outpost in Oak Cliff is Great, But Not Great Enough to Draw Travelers

Reviewing the restaurant that replaced Campo.

Jack Perkins' Slow Bone BBQ Causes Disturbance in the Barbecue Force

A recent article on Culture Map has caused a small ripple on the Internet. Teresa Gubbins' story on Slow Bone BBQ, the upcoming restaurant from Jack Perkins, was filled with the confident, and perhaps cocky, language the burger-meister has become known for. "You can master this process fairly quick ... More >>

The Biggest Restaurant Closings of 2012

Time for some more year end reflection. Next week we'll look at the most notable openings, but right now I'm feeling glum. Did you lose one of your favorite restaurants recently? There were a number of notable closures over the past 12 months, some of which were expected and others which were a com ... More >>

Presenting: The Winners of Meat Fight 2012 (And Incredible Meat Photos)

Sunday, at Sons of Hermann Hall, it was every carnivores' dream Meat Prom. Purple, sparkling pigs, each wearing tiny party hats, sat on top of tables and glittered gold letters on standing signs indicated where myriad animal parts would be served. This was the scene at Meat Fight. In case you miss ... More >>

The Cheap Bastard Is Throwing A Party, So Brian Luscher Took A Leak On Cane Rosso

Last November when I was a newly branded food critic, running around Dallas trying to figure out who had the best chips and salsa, Alice Laussade sent me an invite to a backyard barbecue. She called it meat fight, and while no punches were thrown, a fierce battle ensued as amateur barbecue enthusias ... More >>

Ten Things You Missed at Sunday's Chefs for Farmers Event. Plus, the Food. Oh, the Food.

Chefs For Farmers is an event in which 30 area chefs compete for attendees' votes with a singular signature bite. The winning chef gets $2,500 toward his or her charity of choice. The event was created by Iris and Matt McCallister to support local farms, local ingredients and getting really full, d ... More >>

Lucky Strikes Back: Eddie Campbell Holds His Ground at The Chesterfield

SideDish reported late yesterday on the ongoing saga at The Chesterfield, where majority owner Ed Bailey has continued his efforts to have bartender and minority owner Eddie "Lucky" Campbell removed from the premises, after an apparent dispute over how to run the business. Hearing that Campbell w ... More >>

Eddie Campbell Gets Booted from Chesterfield While It and Campo Shuffle Chefs

There's drama fit for daytime TV at two notable Dallas restaurants. A few chefs and a notable bartender have been spinning in and out of the front doors at a dizzying rate. The afternoon my Chesterfield review ran I heard that Michael Ehlert, the chef responsible for the lackluster cooking I'd tas ... More >>

Five Things You Missed from Last Night's Mix-Off at the Chesterfield

Last night The Chesterfield hosted an event called the Mix-off Battle. It featured five local bartenders whose cocktails were pitted against one another in the name of awareness for Chefs For Farmers. Here's what you missed if you weren't there.

Can Neighborhood Services Tavern Turn This Green Box of Crap Into Awesome St. Patrick's Day Booze Drinks?

Welcome to the return of The Box. Last time, Matt McCallister turned the ingredients from the box into a bunch of awesome Super Bowl appetizers. This time, we gave our big box of crap to Craig Cottier, the surprisingly unbearded drink-mixer-man at Neighborhood Services Tavern. (Seriously, can you mi ... More >>

Vandals Attack a Local Bee Colony. Like Facing Extinction Wasn't Hard Enough.

Vandalized bee hives at Eden's Organic.​Marie Tedei created Eden's Organic Garden Center and CSA farm for several reasons. One was self-fulfilling: She's a studied horticulturist and has a passion for living clean and healthy off the land. But the primary reason was to have a place where the l ... More >>

Komali Chef Anastacia Quinones on the Allure of Victor Tango's, the Mulato Chili and More

Anastacia Quiñones is just one week into her new job as chef at the modern Mexican cuisine spot Komali. The Dallas native attended the Culinary Institute of America in New York, then fell in love with San Francisco after just several hours visiting. After working there for a few years, she returned ... More >>

Lockhart Goes Nose-to-Tail on Friday. Let's Hope It's a Sign of Weirder Things to Come.

While I loved the whole thing, there are some stand-out lines in Lauren's recent cover story on the state of Dallas dining. Matt McCallister's quotes are priceless, but there's also a bite from Brian Luscher that has stayed with me. Fifteen years ago -- hell, even five years ago -- sweetbreads, hea ... More >>

Food For Thought, Young Dallas Lawyers' Food-Centric Benefit, Brings Out Big-Name Chefs This Weekend

Tiffany Derry​The Dallas Association of Young Lawyers hosts its third annual Food for Thought on Saturday at The Tower Club, where guests can buy goodies in the silent and live auctions and sample fare from a number of top-notch local chefs and restaurants. The event is a benefit for Big Thou ... More >>

Some Pictures Aren't Worth 1,000 Words, But Go Ahead and Comment Anyway

Editor's note: We tried to get Hanna to wear former critic Dave Faries' dining disguise, but she just wouldn't do it.​I'm proud to be a member of a community of food writers that care about working conditions in food processing factories, the availability of fruits and vegetables in impoverish ... More >>

What's in Store for the Taco in 2011?

​Having looked back at how the taco has fared in Dallas and across the country in 2010, Taco Trail now is looking toward the horizon and to what's next for our favorite food. What is clear from the beginning is that regionalism, whether Mexican state, foreign state or Lone Star State, will be ... More >>

Dallas Toques Give Thanks: Five Chefs Talk Turkey

Hopefully, your turkey will turn out better than Clark Griswold's. ​Over the past week, City of Ate has caught up with Dallas-area chefs. We asked them about their Thanksgiving plans and what they're thankful for - because if we have to suffer the same cheesy fate at our families' Thanksgiving ... More >>

Part 2: Dan Landsberg on Odd Requests, Local Foods and the Day He Nearly Burned Down
A Kitchen

Photo by Robert BostickDan Landsberg​As we told you yesterday, Chef Dan Landsberg puts an inventive twist on American-style fare at Tillman's Roadhouse in Oak Cliff. For a further peek at the mind behind Tillman's down-home/upscale menu, today we pose a few questions about the chef's likes and ... More >>

Part 2: Second Floor Chef J. Chastain is So Over Steakhouses

Photo by Robert Bostick​In part two of our three-part series, we lob a few questions at Second Floor chef J. Chastain. CoA: What is your favorite Dallas restaurant? Chastain: I can't pick just one but I mainly enjoy restaurants that are chef-driven, highly creative but maintain a casual atmos ... More >>

100 Favorite Dishes: Bone-In Short Rib at Stephan Pyles

Photo by Robert Bostick​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, oth ... More >>

Dallas' Top Chefs Express Themselves Through Something Other Than Food: Their Tattoos