TO STAY
Dallas residents worth their salt know about the patio at Fearing's. It's a great patio, the service is what you expect from The Ritz and the cocktails from Rattlesnake Bar are always on point. Fearing's recently started its live music series back again, offering live music from 7 to 9:30 p.m. each Friday. I'd suggest getting there early (reservations recommended since it's otherise first-come, first-seated) and sipping on Dean’s Signature Margarita while enjoying the live music and this cooler weather.
Dean’s Signature Margarita ($22): Avion Reposado Tequila, Damiana, agave nectar, house-made sweet and sourRattlesnake Bar, 2121 McKinney Ave. (Uptown).
TO-GO
The people behind Ritas & Queso, Julian Barsotti and Glen Collins, are doing it again, this time with frosés and antipasto plates. The Grape Ape is the new pickup/delivery service with just three options of (family-sized) meal kits, but their winner is clearly the Standard Kit. Let's be honest here: Anyone who shows up at my door with frosé and cheese will be welcome. (Welcome, that is, to drop it there and leave because no one needs to be spreading COVID-19.)
Standard Kit ($65): 1/2 gallon of frosé or Vino Tinto or a bottle of Chianti Classico Riserva.The Grape Ape, 33a Highland Park Village (Highland Park). Order online or by phone 469-724-1787 with food.
Enjoy with the Antipasto plate: whipped ricotta, roasted sweet Italian peppers, spicy olives, marinated artichokes, salami piccante, prosciutto Americano, garlic bread and olive oil.
TO MAKE
Our whiskey buddies in Waco teamed up with cocktail kit delivery company Sourced to bring us a kit to celebrate National Bourbon Month. Anyone who orders this 14-cocktail kit will also be invited to join the brands for an "exclusive immersive distillery tour experience" Oct. 3. Then, a rep from Sourced will teach a class on how to make the two included cocktails and a virtual tour of the Balcones distillery, complete with a guided, hands-on tasting using items in the box, like a piece of a barrel stave, grain and the whiskey.
Balcones National Bourbon Heritage Month Cocktail Kit ($89.67 for 14-cocktail package):Order the kit and learn more.
- Soul Rush: Balcones Texas Pot still bourbon, lemon juice, elderflower syrup and Bittermen’s Elemakule Tiki bitters
- Black Cherry Old Fashioned: Balcones Texas Pot still bourbon, fresh tart cherry juice with Bittermen’s Burlesque bitters