North-American Food and Cooking

The 14 Best Spots to Get Cheap Food and Drinks on Cinco De Mayo in Dallas

It's certainly not a weekend for lightweights. Leave your fanny pack at the house and imbibe in many of the options around town as we collectively celebrate General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín's defeat of the French in 1862 in the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. Despite the fiesta, many ... More >>

Los Torres Taqueria Has Got Your Goat

And they've tucked it into a compelling taco.

Meso Maya Misses the Fiesta

Downtown's new Mexican joint plays it safe and dull.

The Foundry Has Celebratory $5 Old Fashioneds Today, Plus New Turkey Wings at Chicken Scratch and a Nod from Brits

The Foundry was recently named by Southern Living magazine as one of the best bars in the South on account of its spacious, twinkle-light covered courtyard. This bar just opened last year and has quickly gained a lot of attention, primarily on account of said courtyard, which is more like a small co ... More >>

Mia's Gets Shunned In Two Top-Nine Tex-Mex Restaurant Lists

When I put together a list of the nine best Tex-Mex restaurants back in December, commenters jumped right in with passionate opinions. Ambelleina Warwillow was so incensed, she used my post as fodder for an official break-up. "NO MIA'S?!" she wrote. "Dallas Observer, we're OVER." See Also: - The Ni ... More >>

30 Essential Texas Restaurants to Visit Before You Die

Barbacoa Estilo Hidalgo Masters Real Slow Food

Raymundo Sanchez's roast lamb embraces authenticity without even trying.

The Tacos of La Ventana, or How I Ate Too Many Tacos for Lunch

Back in November I talked with chef Nico Sanchez about his upcoming taqueria opening in tandem with the new Meso Maya downtown. After hearing his descriptions of the space and the tacos I was excited to get down there and try them -- all of them. Just after noon there was a modest line out behind ... More >>

The Nine Best Tex-Mex Restaurants In Dallas

Hang onto your pants. It's time to lay out or favorite Tex-Mex restaurants -- an endeavor that consistently draws as passionate a comment stream as any burger post. Pepe & Mito's (Pictured above) This Deep Ellum mainstay won last year's award for Best Tex-Mex in Dallas with homemade tortillas, gre ... More >>

How They Roll at Les Bon Temps Cajun Seafood at the Farmers' Market

Les Bon Temps (my key board doesn't allow me to explain the phonetics in French, but in Texas we'd say "Lay-bon-ton") opened across from Shed 2 in the Farmer's Market this past summer. Chef Patricia Killingsworth, originally from Mississippi, previously owned a local catering and personal chef busin ... More >>

Mi Tierrita Serves Mexico's Taco Burger

For Burger Week, we asked former City of ate contributor and King of the Taco Trail José Ralat-Maldanado to put down his crown and introduce Aters to Mexican-style hamburgers. For more of José's reports from Dallas' huge and growing taco scene, be sure to pay him a visit at The Taco Trail and foll ... More >>

Monica's 2.0 Has a Few Bugs, but It Feels Like a Successful Release

Dallas Morning News Critic Leslie Brenner Really Hates Queso

Leslie Brenner laid down the gauntlet today publishing a blog post that promises to inflame an entire state. "Queso is awful," writes Brenner saying she's ready to come out of the queso closet. She goes on to defend queso fundido, which often makes use of higher quality cheese, but that Velveeta bas ... More >>

Seven Awesome Tacos to Celebrate National Taco Day

Today is National Taco Day, so thousands of free corporate tacos will inundate American bellies. Taco Cabana and Taco Bueno are giving tacos away, but why not visit a real taqueria and mark the made-up holiday with something that actually tastes delicious? Who needs free when most of these tacos wil ... More >>

Monica Greene's Nueva Cocina Opens This Evening: Will Serve Sushi

We first told you about Monica Greene's departure from Aca y Alla to open up a restaurant in Oak Cliff just before summer. Now the restaurateur has released new details about the space on Cedar Springs Road that will have a soft opening this evening, with a grand opening scheduled August 7. Nueva ... More >>

The Rangers' Rossome Nachos: The Glamour Shot Series

Earlier this week Scott Reitz told us about the Rangers' new culinary treat, the Totally ROSSome Nachos, named after rookie relief pitcher Robbie Ross. The Rangers finally got the shipment of big pink helmets, which serve as the nacho holder and sent over a picture.

La Nueva Fresh And Hot: Come for the Tortillas and Bring a Fan

I visited La Nueva Fresh and Hot twice before I added their guisado verde taco to the 100 Favorite Dishes list and there's a lot more than green pork tacos to make a visit worth it. In fact, the Webb Chapel road tortilla factory and take-out may be one of Dallas' most compelling taquerias. The "Ho ... More >>

If You Had A Little More Than A Day In Dallas, Where Would You Eat?

Every once in a while someone mistakes Scott for a food expert and risks ruining dinner by trusting him to answer to a burning question. Got a question about food or restaurants? Send it via Twitter @scottreitz, Facebook @ Cityofate or in the comments. I'm from Charleston, and I'm going to be in t ... More >>

Nando's Is Open at Preston and Royal

Nando's opened a couple of weeks ago at the southwest corner of Preston and Royal (specifically, the opposite end of the strip from Gazebo Burgers where Le Rendezvous used to be). The chef is from the landmark Original Mexican Café in Galveston. At Nando's entry is a bar with a fancy chandelier ... More >>

The Tortilla-Wrapped Destiny of SB 1070

Neo-Nazis, burritos and the tortilla-wrapped destiny of SB 1070.

Tacos La Banqueta's Deliciousness Cracks Me Up

What's in a name? That which we call a taco would, by any other name would taste just as kick-ass. Sorry, but Cheap Bastard's deep, deep love for Tacos La Banqueta, formerly Tacos El Guero, got us thinking about Romeo and Juliet. And butt crack. Whatever it's called, the joint's at 4500 Bryan St., 2 ... More >>

On Fat Tuesday, Local Chefs Break Down the Fine Art and High Science of Making Gumbo

Aligator's Cafe Gumbo​With Fat Tuesday upon us, gluttony is the single goal of the day. While lots of shenanigans will surely ensue, as they do every Tuesday in this city, don't forget to fill your ulcerated tummy with a bowl of hearty gumbo. I spoke with several local chefs on the art behind ... More >>

Dallas' Five Best Tex-Mex Restaurants

​While barbecue is certainly important foodstuff in the Lone Star State, it has roots in many other areas of the country and world. But Tex-Mex has been jacking up G.I. Tracts here for 100 years -- long before the rest of the country bastardized our already-bastardized signature cuisine. Thes ... More >>

Peanut Butter in a Cocktail, and Other Worthy Discoveries from the Bar at Mesa

It's a Tuesday night in the O.C., and Mesa is abuzz with a low murmur of conversation. Three couples and a group of four populate the soft brown velour banquettes and chairs; with only 40 seats, four tables is enough for the place to feel alive. We take a seat at the gray concrete bar and rest our ... More >>

"Eater X" Dominates Again at the Lewisville's Tamale Eating Championship

​Behind the counter of every Taco Bell, there's a slew of people who fancy themselves champions of food, but once a year in Lewisville, the real champions arrive, ready to relieve suburban Dallas of its tamale population. Last Saturday was yet another such occasion, with a healthy roster of new T ... More >>

Wild Salsa Opens For Lunch With a Polished Look and Some High-Priced Tamales

​Wild Salsa, Dallas Restaurant Group's latest addition to Dallas' upscale Mexican scene, opened for lunch yesterday, doling out chips, salsa and pricey tamales to hungry downtowners. I stopped in just as a light lunch crowd began to ebb. There were three of us at the cement bar, and a handful ... More >>

Mextopia Brings Home the Bacon

Free bacon: The sweetest words in the English language.​Let Happy Hour help quench your thirst by pointing you to some of the city's best drinking deals. Where: Mextopia, 2104 Greenville Ave. When: 4-8 p.m. Thursday and Saturday What: $3 house margaritas, $2 Tecate Light, Firemans #4, $2.75 ... More >>

Ka-Chow! At Tortas La Hechizera, an Action-Packed Pambazo

​The sound of the word is gustatory TKO, fit to play the role of an exclamatory bubble in a classic Batman episode: Pambazo! And eating Tortas La Hechizera's rendition of a pambazo, a Mexican sandwich of white bread traditionally dipped a red chile sauce and stuffed with potato and chorizo, i ... More >>

Chipotle Serves Up a Mean Impromptu Quesadilla

Chipotle's quesadilla.​Here at City of Ate we heard murmurs that, despite not having it on their menu, Chipotle can actually whip up a pretty darn good quesadilla, and we had to see and taste it for ourselves. We awkwardly asked for a quesadilla, and the staff happily obliged. The woman behi ... More >>

Taquería Tiquicheo Hides Taco Artistry

Up and down we drove, hungry for tacos after La Carretera Argentina's satisfactory empanadas consumed at Oak Cliff Earth Day. Surely Jefferson Boulevard would produce happy sustenance. It did -- kind of. Jefferson is cluttered with taquerías, some advertised with gaudy neon, others off-putting with ... More >>

Taco Joint Gets the Love It Deserves

​Breakfast tacos are as Texan as Waco's unofficial status as Austin and DFW's bathroom break along Intestate 35. Breakfast tacos are as Texan as football and the state's other top sport, historical revisionism. I love Texas. I love breakfast tacos. Love led me to Taco Joint in East Dallas. Th ... More >>

Goghee To Go: Korean-Style Tacos Cause Brain to Short Circuit.

Things You Probably Didn't Know About The Goodie Mob

Latino Pupae

Latin food without the lard? It's better than you think.

Okra Shock

Gumbo's grub could be addicting

Mix-ican food

Cabo tries to redefine taqueria

Mexican light

Taco Diner tries to marry subtlety with Tex-Mex -- somehow, it works

Hot Dish

Hot Dish

Cajun quest

Good cuisine--even if it involves bathtubs of boiling oil-- never goes out of style

Taco of the town

Tupinamba deserves its spot in Tex-Metroplex history

Hot Dish

Tex-Mex time warp

Oak Cliff's Tejano hasn't changed its menu in 14 years, and they're proud of it

Our house

Sit down with the Avila family for a plate of real comfort food

Los Vaqueros time machine

And who the hell is George Poston?

Race to the border

Make like Columbus and discover the New World splendors of Monterrey

The boy next door

Javier's has been around so long, it's easy to overlook. Here's why you shouldn't

Glorioso

Dallas' favorite secret stakes a home north of the Trinity-- with wonderful results

Tex-Mex chauvinist

Only arrogant New Yorkers would confuse calamari and quesadillas; and, yes, Rafa's has the real thing

Comforts of old Mexico

Casa Navarro reincarnates one of Dallas' original Tex-Mex restaurants