Food & Drink

Irish Rover8250 Gaylord Parkway, Frisco214-618-6222No need to venture here for the food. You can also ignore the decor, a den of predictable Irish-themed odds and ends surrounded by dark wood and glass–what anyone gets when they call up and order an authentic look-alike.Go for the beer and the folks who…

So much to rant about this week–the Dewhurst Bill, consideration of a code of ethics for food bloggers, that sort of thing. But an email this morning about “culinary constructivism,” as practiced by chefs at Hong Kong’s Mandarin Oriental, raised a few questions.Well, one question, really: why?According to the release,…

Taste Addison filled Addison Circle Park with booths for more than 50 restaurants last weekend, and a three-day lineup of live music and other shows.We spent much of Saturday tweeting from the event, and shooting photos of the scene. After shooting all the food in these shots, then eating most…

Though the idea sounds like it’s lifted straight from The Olive Garden, chances are the endless tableside hand-made pastas offered at Nicola’s Ristorante Italiano for “Pasta Amore” are a little more palatable than those of the chain pseudo-Italian restaurant. And at $19.95 a head, it had better be.It takes, what–50…

Yep, mom. In honor of Mother’s Day–technically yesterday, but what the hell–mom sets things straight. She grew up in the Lead Belt of Missouri, graduated from Mizzou and taught university English and Communications…as well as tossing some batting practice here and there. After all, her father had been one hell…

“I’m pleased with the results. We thought this was what the people wanted.” (Rowlett mayor John Harper on the approval by voters on Saturday of a ban on smoking in that city’s restaurants–all enclosed public spaces, really–first passed by the city council in February. A petition drive force the special…

From Cafe Brazil to Jimmy John’s, we covered a handful of spots near and dear to our hearts here at City of Ate’s Oak Lawn H.Q. Dave, meanwhile, highlights a place where it’s no problem feeling right at home. But if there’s one lesson to draw from the week, it’s…

Nick & Sam’s Grill is hot. But since 2003, that same location has housed Martini Ranch, Stolik, Standard and Strong’s Everyday Tavern. Or look at Lazare, opening in the Ferre/Pescabar spot. Or Five-Sixty…There are plenty of examples. But is the location or the concept at fault? And what overcomes the…

Let’s begin, as we do every week, by making excuses for not scouring all the literature–on and off line–for potential winning commentary and for our habit of forgetting much of what we did come across during the course of the week (which may or may not have something to do…

You can find decent sparkling wines pretty much anywhere. And it’s no real drain on the bank account to try out, say, a bottle of New Mexico’s Gruet. But the splurge bottles–the vintage Champagnes–can run close to $500. No problem if you’re a basketball star treating the live-in who’s name…

These kids today… What with the Facebook and the Twitter, fail-free schooling and Red Bull with their vodka. Camille, hand us our Huxtable sweater, it’s so cold and scary.But since we have this thing about keeping up with the latest and greatest (and sometimes the oldest and worst) in foodstuffs–and…

I love you like a fat kid loves cake. -50 Cent, “21 Questions”As wise a philosopher as Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson may be, it’s not just fat kids who love cake. As anyone who’s ever worked in an office can tell you, love of cake–particularly free birthday cake–knows no socioeconomic,…

The chair of Share Our Strength Taste of the Nation for North Texas is busier than ever these days as she prepares for the big fundraising dinner.Since 1988, annual events in up to 20 cities around the country have raised more than $70 million toward the prevention of childhood hunger…

“To be honest, back then, it was more about meeting a certain type of woman at these kind of restaurants–it was about free love, and it was a cool time, and the women didn’t wear bras! And that was as big an appeal as the food was. You went to…

In this week’s paper version of City of Ate, Dave enjoys the scene at Nick & Sam’s Grill, and really tries to enjoy their food as well.For a better look at the friendly waitstaff, the wide-open, airy setting and a few choice morsels, check out Sara Kerens’ photo set here…

Ever wonder if the steaks served at Texas Roadhouse–or any other restaurant, for that matter–were actually raised in Texas? Restaurant-goers in Upstate New York and Vermont, rightly proud of their famously pure, high-quality maple syrup, have come to expect the best, even when they go to IHOP. The only IHOP…

People we’d like to shake hands with:Blogger Lisa Petty (who also handles Appetite For Instruction in these pages), who won a contest and now gets to have dinner with Ted Allen on Friday. It’s an especially momentous occasion because, she claims, it will mark her first celebrity encounter since bumping…

May Dragon4848 Belt Line, Addison972-392-9998According to my fortune, there’s an “interesting musical opportunity” in my very near future. This could, of course, mean only one thing: the Sex Pistols are back together and in need of a Sid Vicious stand in. Either that or Pete Freedman wants me to post…

Demonstrated by Chef Brian Luscher of The Grape “How do we improve on an institution?” That’s a question Brian Luscher asks himself a lot these days. It’s been almost two years since he and his wife Courtney took ownership of The Grape, a cozy bistro on lower Greenville Avenue that’s…

When you were a kid, Mother’s Day was easy. All you had to do was make a potholder or an ashtray in art class and make sure it didn’t fall apart or shatter between taking it home on Friday and presenting it (along with a similarly ill-crafted breakfast in bed)…