Best Appetizer 2010 | Oyster Nachos at Fish City Grill | Best of Dallas® 2020 | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Dallas | Dallas Observer
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Best Appetizer

Oyster Nachos at Fish City Grill

Scene: Fish City Grill

Time: Any "R" month

Dad: "Son, it was a brave man who ate the first oyster."

Son, giving it right back: "It was a brave man who ate the first anything."

Dad, smiling: "True."

Waitress: "Here's your Oyster Nachos. Enjoy."

Dad digs in to an ample appetizer plate; Son, not so much. Each fried oyster is adorned with pico de gallo perched atop a tortilla chip lathered with a thin layer of chipotle tartar sauce. The result: a crunchy, fishy, tasty, briny, spicy, chewy burst of taste and texture. Fish City has been known to stand behind their appetizer; this particular waitress even tells Dad if he doesn't like the Oyster Nachos, he doesn't have to pay for them. It's a foolish man who would refuse that offer.

Best Middle Eastern/Greek Food

Fadi's Grill

The food here is served "push-along" style, with diners shoving trays in front of glassed-in troughs filled with Greek and Middle Eastern goodies. On the veggie counter are traditional dolmas, kibbie rolls, falafel, tabouli, baba ghanooge (that's how they spell it), Egyptian okra and fresh salads piled with tomatoes and onions, Mediterranean-style. The cranberry-mushroom salad and the couscous are light but intriguingly seasoned. On the meat side are beef, lamb and chicken kebabs and fork-tender broiled lamb shanks in rich mushroom gravy. Dessert is—what else?—baklava dripping with honey. Just the kind of casual, wallet-pleasing ethnic joint the busy Knox-Henderson dining corridor can be proud of.

Best Way To Keep Track Of Oak Cliff Restaurant Happenings

Go Oak Cliff

Go Oak Cliff is a nonprofit neighborhood news and advocacy operation with a mission to "develop North Oak Cliff as the most livable community in the nation." Judging by the website's news coverage, it seems that the single most important factor in livability is restaurants. There's some truth to that in Oak Cliff for sure, as dining destinations such as Smoke, Bolsa and Tillman's Roadhouse have been crucial in attracting people from outside the 'hood in to visit and see what a thriving, lively neighborhood it is. And when a new restaurant like Nova, Lucia or Burguesa Burgers even thinks about the neighborhood, you can bet that you'll find out about it at gooakcliff.com.

READERS' PICK BEST VIETNAMESE RESTAURANT

Mai's Vietnamese Restaurant

Taryn Walker
Mai's Vietnamese Restaurant

READERS' PICK BEST FRIED CHICKEN

Babe's Chicken Dinner House

Babe's Chicken Dinner House

READERS' PICK BEST SALSA

Quesa-D-Ya's

Quesa-D-Ya's

READERS' PICK BEST RESTAURANT FOR KIDS

Purple Cow

Purple Cow

READERS' PICK BEST GREASY SPOON

Metro Diner

Metro Diner

Best New Restaurant

The Green Room

Shiny, new and surrounded by buzz: Dallas restaurants love being all three, and with a sprawling metroplex in which to spread out, classy strip mall dining isn't even an oxymoron these days. But we promise we're not just being contrarian when we give this year's best new restaurant award to an old one—The Green Room. Throughout the '90s and early aughts, the upscale Deep Ellum restaurant served hordes of live music fans before shutting down. Its empty shell loomed over Elm Street for four years until this summer, when managing partner Taylor Allday brought the place—and the block—back to life with a seasonal menu that pays respect to old favorites (mussels!) and cooks up brand new ones (root beer crème brûlée!). Trust master chef Joel Harloff with a "Feed Me, Wine Me" tasting menu. Soft-opening samples of quail, pork tenderloins and spinach salads have inspired us to happily hand over our palates to Green Room experts.

Best Thai Restaurant

Naga Thai

You remember Victory Park don't you? (Crickets chirp.) In Dallas? Downtown? Going to remake the city? Remember? (More crickets chirp.) C'mon, it's that place you walk through to get to a Mavs game (a sudden burst of "oohhh"). OK, so things haven't quite worked out for the shiny—and frequently empty—development. But now there's a reason to go down there that doesn't involve basketball. Naga Thai is bravely treading where angels pick up their skirts and scarper, offering a sleek, modern take on traditional Thai food. Crab Rangoon is a tasty blend of crunch and creamy cheese. The brightly sauced sweet chili sea bass is crispy outside, flaky and tender within. A fresh, expansive lunch buffet lets you sample a variety of curries and entrées showcasing Thai food's unique mix of spicy, sweet and tangy. Better still, it's all surprisingly affordable, unlike dishes at some of the other restaurants that once upon a time filled space in Victory, God rest their souls.

Best Of Dallas®

Best Of

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