Kenny’s Italian Kitchen: Big Prices, Big Portions, Big Bore

Tucked into a strip mall that would challenge the most talented maze-running rats, Kenny’s Italian Kitchen isn’t easy to find by way of address. The restaurant’s so far removed from the intersection of Belt Line Road and Dallas Parkway that street names and numbers don’t make much sense; diners are…

Road Trip: Noshing My Way to Big Bend

According to the cheery student volunteer who gave a short lecture at Big Bend National Park the other day, the desert is delicious: Any resourceful visitor can make a meal of prickly pear pads and pigweed seeds. While the ranger-in-training assured us the federal government wouldn’t mind if we harvested…

Stretch Your Luck: Black-Eyed Peas at Mama’s Daughters’ Diner

Well, another New Year has come and gone, and hopefully your celebration wasn’t too over the top. (It couldn’t have been that raucous, otherwise you wouldn’t be here reading this). If you’re like many Southerners and Texans, you celebrated with a meal featuring ham and black-eyed peas, consuming at least…

Revolving Doors: All’s Well That Ends Well

As December comes to a close, it seems all is well, or at least better, as many highly anticipated restaurants made their debuts. David Uygur was back in the kitchen, plus a New York deli and the latest Lombardi venture both opened. We were expecting few restaurants to shutter since,…

The Second Coming of State and Allen’s BBQ Pork Sandwich

State and Allen Lounge’s pulled BBQ pork sandwich has been around for a while, so why is it deserving of an “Eat This” mention right now? Because even though this sandwich has forever been on the Uptown hangout’s menu, it’s reemerging to its previous greatness after having been on the…

Road Trip Barbecue Makes Traveling I-35 Less Sucky.

On Interstate 35 between Dallas and Waco, I hadn’t tried any non-chain restaurants beyond the kolache heaven that is the Czech Stop. But the last few drives to Austin put me in a barbecue mood, so I stopped at a couple places you should know about if you find yourself…

Chosun BBQ’s Pork Ribs: What Are You
Waiting For?

These pork ribs off Chosun BBQ’s specialty menu are insane. The fork-tender meat falls from the bone with the slightest nudge. Slathered on the succulent meat is an appropriately sweet sauce that packs the slightest punch of heat. A bed of sautéed onions sits beneath the bountiful ribs, soaking up…

Thai-Rrific is Thai-Ribble.

In the mood for some authentic Thai cuisine, I came across Thai-Rrific. Ballsy name for a place in a super-rundown shopping center. Even ballsier name for a place that serves up shitty food. It pains me to say that, since the service was really friendly. But it also pained me…

One2One: You Can’t Please Everyone.

Our server knew something was wrong at five paces. “A little too much whipped cream?” he asked with an ambiguous smirk that either indicated he thought we were fools for chancing another course after a disappointing meal or he’d grown accustomed to the kitchen’s clumsiness. In any case, he was…

Pigging Out at Whiskey Cake

You know the story. First pig builds house of straw, wolf blows it down, second pig builds his house of sticks, wolf blows it down. Smart Pig #3 builds house of bricks, and wolf huffs and puffs with all his might and can’t blow house down, so smart pig survives…

Crossroads Diner: Bacon Got A-Hold of My Soul.

The overall vibe at the just-opened Crossroads Diner is less Bone Thugs Crossroads, more Britney Spears Crossroads. They serve breakfast all day, which is pretty Bone Thugs of them. But they offer frittatas, which errybody knows is ungangster. “But, hey!” Crossroads Diner seemed to say. “We put fuckin’ chorizo in…

Chicken House: The Fried Chicken Gods Answer a Prayer.

Last week, I had some underwhelming chicken at Pope’s. Since then, my fried-chicken stomach has been super pissed. After almost a week of letting FCS relentlessly hurl unkind words at me (including, but not limited to, “Jeggings are awesome!” and “Scarlett Johansson is a talented actress!”), it was time to…

A Hunka Burnin’ Love for Sushi

Elvis Tuna Tartare at Shinsei Top Chef contestant Casey Thompson may be gone from Shinsei, but thankfully Elvis is still in the house, rockin’ the fresh sushi. Recovered completely from a motorcycle accident, Shuji “Elvis” Sugawara still draws crowds with specialties like his Elvis Tuna Tartare, a sumptuously simple preparation…

Pope’s Chicken, a Not-Quite Immaculate Conception.

I heard Pope’s Fried Chicken was a rundown, super-sketchy chicken place near Carroll Avenue that even some grown men are openly afraid of approaching. You had me at “Pope’s.” The guy is super angry old and he’s pretty busy being the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, but the pope…

Revolving Doors: November Is a Cruel Month

T.S. Eliot proclaimed that April was the cruelest month, but we would argue that November has been particularly unkind to some restaurants. Top Chef fan favorite Tiffany Derry found herself without a gig after Go Fish Ocean Club shuttered its doors this month, and Sharon Hage closed York Street, long…

Piggie Pies: A Good Reason to Escape the Chain Gang.

I steered clear of Piggie Pies for the longest time because of its location and name. Something about a place called Piggie Pies that’s in the same shopping center as a Condoms To Go made me question what it was that Piggie Pies might be serving up for lunch. And…