Food & Drink

Stephan Pyles’ Samar, which this weekend celebrated its first anniversary with cheap drinks and belly dancing, was today named to Esquire’s list of best new restaurants. Samar is the only Dallas entry on the list, compiled annually by culinary gadfly John Mariani. Haven in Houston also got a nod: The…

Mastermind, the forthcoming animated 3-D movie from DreamWorks, is presumably a technologically sophisticated bit of filmmaking. So why’s the studio promoting it via a medium associated with buffet lines and cruise ships? An eight-foot tall ice sculpture of the movie’s villain appeared at the State Fair of Texas this weekend;…

Even chefs who aren’t sports fans are ruing the Rangers’ performance this weekend, since the extended series is likely to keep eaters out of their dining rooms for a few more nights. Central 214’s executive chef Blythe Beck says high-end restaurants can’t compete with championship baseball. “Restaurants don’t do well…

Want to see some hot firemen and hot beauty queens while sampling some hot chili? Then head to the Sixth Annual Stop-Drop-n-Roll Chili Cook-Off in Grapevine benefiting the WPI Firefighters’ Fund this Saturday, October 16. Last year’s event raised over $110,000 for families of fallen and injured firefighters. This year’s…

The recent purchase of a Little Rock institution by the restaurant group that owns Burger Girl and Lemon Bar could help push cheese dip into the national mainstream. Steve Davis, who partnered with Jast Partners to re-open Browning’s after a short hiatus, last week told the Arkansas Times that the…

This week’s Dallas food blog round-up is testament to the belief that Dallasites only have two passions: tacos and In-N-Out Burger. Everything else is just a garnish. Dallas Morning News: Leslie Brenner gave Kuby’s Sausage House a tepid two out of five star rating, even though the food was tasty…

Kincaid’s Hamburgers4901 Camp Bowie Blvd.Fort Worth, TexasDude Factor: 9, or Roger Miller, on a scale of 1 (Mark David Chapman) to 10 (Townes Van Zandt)It seems that every time someone does a survey of metroplex burgers (or a statewide survey, for that matter), the name “Kincaid’s” seems to come up,…

You can’t buy friendship, but you can surely buy an introduction. That’s the principle underlying the latest promotion from Horne & Dekker, the evolving comfort food spot on North Henderson Avenue. According to a Facebook announcement, the restaurant’s offering a free entrée to anyone who “introduce(s) an H&D newbie to…

Many people, when they consider Cuba, think of Fidel, Guantanamo Bay, the Bay of Pigs and cigars. City of Ate thinks sandwiches. Taking their cue from Caribbean, African and Spanish cuisine, Cubans have developed a flavor of their very own. Delicious are the many soups and stews, along with their…

North Haven Gardens​Be jealous. I’m totally getting a piece tomorrow. Actually, I’m getting several pieces tomorrow…pieces of (hopefully) delicious pie. North Haven Gardens is hosting its Fall Harvest Pie Contest and as luck would have it, I’m a judge. (Maybe they heard about my office birthday baking, because it surely…

In visiting with Scott Romano, executive chef at Charlie Palmer at the Joule, we found out he enjoys his pigs. When visiting the restaurant you should consider the vast array of charcuterie offered by the downtown restaurant, but as today’s recipe indicates, Romano’s expertise is not just whole hog. The…

The Fletcher’s corn dog stand closest to Big Tex is the State Fair’s busiest corn dog stand, and it’s not just lowbrow eaters who line up to trade nine coupons for the venerated snack: Randall Copeland, chef-owner of Restaurant Ava, recently joined the throngs. But unlike most corn dog connoisseurs,…

Dean James Max, a James Beard nominee who was crowned “King of American Seafood” at this year’s Great American Seafood Cook-off and earned our sister paper’s endorsement as the “Best Chef in South Florida”, is developing his first Dallas restaurant. The not-yet-named restaurant is scheduled to open at the Renaissance…

Oatmeal, once derided as dull, is now so trendy that at least one Dallas-based restaurant chain’s slapped the name on a dish of uncooked rolled oats, yogurt and fruit. The sweet breakfast snack is officially muesli, but – after nearly a decade of name-tweaking –Corner Bakery now sells it as…

Latin American businesses line many of Oak Cliff’s streets. Because of those mom-and-pop operations, the Dallas enclave is reminiscent of my old Brooklyn nabe. Walking about the barrio was a bit of a homecoming. There was warmth, fuzziness, all that sentimental crud. Then, the tacos at El Rincon Tapatio slapped…

It was all stressy-stress on last night’s Top Chef Just Desserts. At the start, Princess Dexter was shaving and talking about his stress. Zamboyant was concerned about the Two Faces of Dex and his stress. Malika the sad divorcee was again discussing her hatred of cooking under stress. Because no chef ever…

Yesterday, we brought you a profile of Scott Romano, executive chef at our favorite downtown restaurant Charlie Palmer at The Joule. Today we toss a few questions his way, and tomorrow demonstrates how to make one of his dishes. We don’t know which dish yet, but it sounds like odds…

City of Arlington staffers are looking forward to feasting on coconut shrimp and grilled mahi mahi if the Rangers stay ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays. Mayor Robert Cluck this week made his second-ever edible sports wager, offering the mayors of Tampa, Clearwater and St. Petersburg a dinner from Spring…

Deep-fried Pop-Tarts are now available to eaters who don’t want to splurge on a State Fair of Texas ticket — if they’re willing to settle for Chef Jason Boso’s version of the treat. Boso, executive chef of Twisted Root Burger Co. and Cowboy Chow, created five fried dishes to celebrate…

It would be hard to find a seat where you don’t have a good view of a screen. ​Each week City of Ate will give you the lowdown on a local happy hour in Quittin’ Time, with the details on why you should or shouldn’t take up the featured bar…