Finely tuned craft cocktails have skyrocketed bartenders to a level where their skill set is just as imperative to an establishment’s success as a cook’s. No longer is it about who can make the best Dark and Stormy or Vieux Carre, but who is inventive enough to dissect the classics…
Somewhere in the confusion of one-way streets and skyscrapers is one of Dallas’ oldest steakhouses, except for one minor detail — it actually isn’t visible at street level. If not for a sign and valet stand, it would be very easy to forget Dakota’s even exists. The Reunion Tower may…
If you want to launch golf balls for fun within the city limits of Dallas, you can use one finger on one hand to count the applicable places. If you want to hit golf balls at busted and broken down automobiles at a rustic beer garden with various billiards, you’re…
When Goodfriend Beer Garden owners Matt Tobin and Josh Yingling opened the Blind Butcher with Chef Oliver Sitrin, they created a meat-lover’s paradise inside a simple but classic old school Greenville Avenue barroom. The space has the feel of a prohibition-era saloon but also offers neighborhood warmth. Inside the Blind Butcher,…
The story of our food isn’t exactly on the forefront of table conversation. What seemed to start as a trend, the farm-to-table movement has plowed through Dallas restaurants with no signs of slowing down. If you need proof, look no further than 30 minutes north of Dallas, where McKinney has…
When the Slip Inn off Henderson Avenue closed, it definitely came as a surprise to the masses. The fact that this neighborhood dive would be missed was no surprise. For 15 years, the Slip Inn’s dance floor bested any other club in town. But when the turntables went silent, there was…
Mardi Gras: It’s happening. And as we slowly emerge from what little winter this has been, we’ve already noticed an early onslaught of crawfish boil announcements. Can it possible be true? Oh, but it is, and it’s a cause for crustacean celebration. Typically the hearty harvests come later in the…
Often I get asked, “Where’s some Louisiana-style food?” My go-to answer has become very simple; there seems to be Cajun-themed restaurants hording every corner of Greenville Avenue. Starting from Shuck n’ Jive on upper Greenville Avenue to the Big Shucks off Mockingbird and its little sister, Aw Shucks across from…
Ah, Valentine’s Day: The holiday nobody asked for, invented by poet Geoffrey Chaucer in honor of a priest who was beheaded in Rome, not some chubby flying child brandishing a deadly weapon. Not only is St. Valentine known to carry the afterlife duty of watching over loved ones, he is…
The word “tavern” might conjure up images of a dark and seedy place, funky with the scent of Camels and spilled beer, where the jukebox hasn’t changed since 1980. A hotel bar, on the other hand, can be a spiritless space, filled with itinerant drinkers with little connection to the…
Lakewood Smokehouse softly opened last week near lower Abrams Road arousing the neighborhood with whiffs of smoke. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that type of stimulation. While there is plenty of restaurants but no barbecue, owners Jason Hall (who owns 3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House in Frisco), John Patenburg,…
It’s hard enough to open one restaurant and not fail within the first year, but Steve Shin and Greg and Sandy Bussey, owners of bbbop Seoul Kitchen, have rolled the dice in Oak Cliff to keep the momentum going for their blossoming Korean food chain. The original location opened in…
At the corner of Davis Street and Bishop Avenue was once a botanica that sold herbs and roots, magical oils, religious candles and other items to ward off evil spirits. The vintage 1930s building is now a new neighborhood joint where you can devour a sandwich, guzzle beer and knock…
When news broke of chef Graham Dodds’ departure from Henderson Avenue favorite Hibiscus, the local restaurant gossip grapevine went wild — partly because it was a surprise but mostly because Hibiscus’ creative menu had won rave reviews. Days later, and more news: For the first time in Dodds’ career, he…
The much beloved Austin Tex-Mex taqueria, Tacodeli, has grown a loyal fan base since founder Roberto Espinosa opened the first location in 1999. This popularity lead them to eventually expanding into 5 Austin locations before deciding it was time to branch out again, spreading the taco love with sights set…
Pop-up restaurants have been a delectable trend for the last couple of years, one that’s still going strong with foodies, unlike some other disastrous trends we could name. (We’re looking at you, Cro-Nut.) They’re a great way to support a charitable cause or sample the work of a visiting chef,…
Dallas may not comprise miles of Irish or English-styled pubs like Boston or Chicago, but we do have pleasant handful where we can sit back and chug a pint while chewing fish and chips. Among the handful are three very successful pubs: The Old Monk, Idle Rich and Blackfriar, all…
In the not too distant past, a millennial hipster woke up with a craft beer hangover and said aloud, “On this day, I want an epic taco filled with a fried chicken leg, elevated with pineapple, copious amounts of artisanal cheese and baptized in barbecue sauce!” With that, a new…
Tolar, Texas, also known as the middle of nowhere, BFE, the boondocks, out in the sticks, etc. — you get the point. All are reasonable terms to describe this one-horse town south of Granbury, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t clued in to the hottest food trend in North Texas…
Dallasites love the outdoors. We mountain bike where no mountains are to be found, we awkwardly paddle board at White Rock lake, we even make attempts to salvage the Trinity River by pretending the water is clean enough for kayaking. Basically, we make the best of what’s around. What our…
Travis Heim’s passion for meat can be traced from when an early ancestor sneaked into America by way of cattle boat in Galveston, to when Heim attended a barbecue event and chatted up Aaron Franklin, seeking advice on meat-smoking. Soon after, Heim and his wife, Emma, begin their meatopian journey…
When Henderson Avenue’s Tried and True closed last year, its departure further reduced the stock of restaurants or bars with dedicated menus for whiskey. Scotch and Sausage has helped fill the void, but the need for whiskey-friendly joints is still in demand. Hello, California-based Eureka…
