Off the Mark
Mean girl: It is very obvious that this review ("Do It Yourself," by Merritt Martin, July 12) was written by someone who was just trying to be mean and hateful. It appears that they have a personal issue with Michael Mark's Trattoria and/or the Canyon Creek area in general. They not only insulted the restaurant, but the new II Creeks Plaza and the CC "stay-at-home moms." The food at MMT is excellent, and the atmosphere, both inside and outside, is so relaxing and peaceful. My husband and I love this restaurant (shopping center and neighborhood as well), and we will continue going there on a weekly basis. (The Mac 'n' Cheese is to die for!)
Ilse Foster
Jealous rival: I must strongly disagree with the writer of this article. While the restaurant is a little off the beaten path, the ambience and beautiful patio make the experience worth a little extra effort, and after you find it the first time, what's the big deal? When I dined there, I thought the food was not only excellent but a great value. Are you sure this article wasn't written by a jealous competitor? I would urge everyone to try Michael Mark's Trattoria and make their own judgments.
Brenda Molloy
Waste of time and money: My wife and I ate at this "restaurant" a couple weeks ago and this review is spot on. Italian food is the easiest food NOT to screw up. This place does it with the processed chicken and otherwise bland ingredients. Seriously, the chicken looked like what you get with an order of chicken McNuggets from McDonald's. The service was good, and the restaurant looked nice in that faux-Italian rustic way. But the food did look and taste pre-packaged, and the chicken certainly was not fresh. Go to the grocery store, cook a chicken breast, then order something with chicken on it here and compare the two. If you can't tell the difference then you have no right to bash the reviewer. I suppose if you've never eaten any real Italian food (which is a shame, because there are some really good Italian places in the metroplex), you'd think this place was OK. Dallas is a great food city. Don't waste your time and money on places like this. Just because it's local doesn't mean it's good or even worth defending. Ms. Martin deserves hazard pay for having to eat at this place.
Geoff
Reminds me of Rome: I remember my experience at Michael Mark's Trattoria being quite different than the one described in the article. Michael Mark's Trattoria served as a perfect lunch meeting venue. The ambience reminded me of the time my wife and I were in Rome eating at one of the cafes. The waitstaff was attentive and knowledgeable yet not overbearing. The manager checked in with us early with a greeting and after the food had been served to ensure our food was prepared to our satisfaction. Indeed it was. The pizza was delicious, very similar to pizza we enjoyed in Rome. Overall, I was quite pleased with the entire experience and do plan to revisit for another lunch meeting or more romantic dinner with my wife.
Todd Cole
Try again: I've eaten at MMT no fewer than 20 times and have frequently taken business guests there for both lunch and dinner. I've never had a bad meal, and comments from my guests suggest the same. You owe it to your readers to make a return visit with an open mind. The amount of repeat business they have from upscale customers tells much more about the quality of the food than your review.
Don Reavis
Big D, Little D
Crash on my couch: Denton has its cliques just like every town ("D vs. d," by Jonanna Widner, July 19), but there's soooooo much less bullshit to deal with. We don't have the crime and the shitty parking, and we don't have the heads-up-your-ass booking situation that the clubs in Dallas seem to take great pride in. There is nothing attractive about playing Dallas shows anymore.
Nothing gets promoted in Dallas, few people go to a show for the hell of it and the atmosphere just plain sucks. There's good music all over the metroplex, but a lot of the bands are staying the hell out of Dallas. Fort Worth even seems to be picking up some good activity as of late.
Don't get me wrong; there is a flood of horrible bands as well. However, I think it's high time that the clubs and the booking agents take a severe beating for the damage they've caused to the scene by harassing bands, creating poorly put-together bills, hiring the worst sound guys on the planet, becoming lazy and smug, not paying their fucking taxes and overall shitting on the people they depend on...the bands and the audience.
Come to Denton, you can crash onour couch.
Ray
Clique-ier than thou: Not gonna choose sides, but really, there's a lot LESS "clique-iness" in Denton than there is in Dallas. Doesn't really seem to matter how good you are, for the most part. If you're from Denton, then it's always a bitch of a time trying to break in to the Dallas scene unless you have the right connections in Dallas, have a shit-ton of friends in Dallas and hang out in Dallas enough to be scene (ooh, Freudian?) by the right people to be accepted into this clique.
Greg
