"I'll put my dumplings up against anybody's." -- Cindy Gifford
Gifford's confidence in her dumplings at The Eatery in Haltom City, which she and her husband own, is borderline scandalous, yet enticing. They offer a menu full of traditional home-cooked meals, all made from scratch, but their dumplings are their bread and butter, so to speak.
"This recipe was started by my grandmother in 1892," Gifford explained. "What makes it unique is that we roll out the dumplings so that they're thin."
During October, The Eatery is offering bottomless bowls of their prized dumplings for only $6. They are also looking to crown a new champion for the most bowls of their little pillows of dough downed. So far, the record is four. The rich creamy sauce is what lures people in ... and also does them in.
"We get big, old boys in here all the time," Gifford said, "and they think they can eat five bowls with no problem. But usually when their second one arrives, they're already full. We boil whole chicken for a really rich homemade stock. Then, we add a heavy cream that is 40 perfect fat and use real butter.
At the end of the month they'll crown a dumpling champion, who gets free dumplings for the rest of 2011 and their name on the official dumpling king/queen board.
The Eatery 3257 N. Beach St., Haltom City Open 11 a.m.-8 p.m Monday-Friday and 5 p.m.-10 p.m. Saturday 682-647-0606 gototheeatery.com
