Earlier this week, Leslier Brenner, the food critic at The Dallas Morning News, took an indirect shot at her own food section when it paid tribute to Bisous Bisous’ muffin/croissant mashup. “How about a little originality?” Brenner grumbled. I get the grumble. When I visited Bisous Bisous last year, I…
A recent story in The New York Times tackles the the state of Mexican dining in New York. Authentic Mexican restaurants are overtaking the city, which would be great if they didn’t all suck. The Times points out that the chefs running these kitchens know little about Mexican cooking and…
I guess he read my review…
The new face of Coke?Legislators in California and New York are currently considering warning labels for sugary drinks. If it sounds like overbearing nanny-state legislation — and if you live in Texas, it very well might — recall how warning labels have contributed in part to a massive reduction in…
Liz Goulding is the former leader of Slow Food Dallas and a contributor to the Dallas Observer. The Dallas City Council this week voted on a motion to accept a number of language changes in the community garden ordinance passed in 2011. Among other things, the word “community” was replaced…
When you walk into one of the city’s better restaurants, there’s a certain set of expectations that you bring along. If you’re planning to drop a pretty penny on a decent meal, you expect great service, top-notch food, and a great atmosphere. You also probably expect for a basket full…
I realize I’m rolling a heavy stone up a steep hill, but Wabi House, the latest ramen restaurant planned for Greenville Avenue, has me feeling a little down. I get it: Trends drive restaurant menus, and they drive customers, too. But the restaurateurs who explore less fetishized cuisines contribute most…
New York state’s wage board wants the state to hike the base wage for tipped employees to $7.50 an hour by the end of the year, part of an almost nationwide push to help servers, bartenders and other employees who count on tips for a significant portion of their income…
There is much talk about the trendiness of “macaroons,” those pillowy little cream or jam filled cookies that people are lining up around the corner at Joy Macarons and Rush Patisserie to pay three bucks a piece for. “Macaroons” are the most popular cookie in the world right now. Entire…
I get it: It’s 87 degrees in January and it hasn’t rained since the early ‘1990s. We all should be conserving. But considering the overflowing dumpster the size of a short bus behind every restaurant in America, I’m having a hard time thinking drinking straws are where we should focus…
Craft cocktails are finally a thing in Dallas. The rest of the country has been drinking better than us for years, but we’re catching up. At least parts of the city are, anyway. You can’t throw a rock without hitting a craft cocktail bar on Henderson Ave, Lower Greenville or…
Like many foods, elotes is interpreted differently in different regions. Depending on where you place your order it can be served on or off the cob, and the slew of toppings and condiments varies as well. When elotes makes its way into professional kitchens it is subject to a new…
I ate a lot of bone marrow this past year, and the only dish that really wowed me was the one you see pictured above. It’s bacon-crusted bone marrow and it’s served with either uni or caviar, depending on the mood of chef John Tesar at his new steakhouse, Knife…
Last summer, Ben & Jerry’s announced it wanted to make some new ice cream flavors based on cities across the country. The notion filled our brains with po’ boy flavored ice cream from New Orleans, and scoops of chocolate-laced chili heaped into cones in honor of Cincinnati. See Also: If…
Despite a modest campaign to right puffy-taco wrongs, there remains a great rift in Dallas’ puffy-taco universe. The issue centers around an impostor, a sham, a fraudulent taco promising supple puffiness that never makes its way to the plate. You’ll find this taco at many Tex-Mex restaurants, including Ojeda’s, which…
The somber Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur begins at sundown, extending until precisely 7:44 p.m. tomorrow. So while you all are stuffing your faces with festival barbecue, Oktoberfest beers, fried fair fare and pumpkin-flavored everything, I, and millions of other Jewish folk, will be consuming absolutely nothing. No food, no…
September has been a long one for Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples. At the month’s start, Staples drew some heat for an op-ed he fat-fingered for the Austin American-Statesman. It denounced efforts to get school children to eat less meat and sparked an Internet backlash that preceded Staples’ resignation from…
In the coming weeks, you will start to see everything from the sleeve on your coffee cup to the jerseys your wife-beating running backs wear in the National Football League turn a Pepto-Bismol shade of pink. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You’ll also start to see restaurant promotions…
If you haven’t been to the West Village in a while, you might not have noticed LYFE Kitchen, which sprung up recently in the spot that used to house Lemon Bar. The fast-casual restaurant is devoted to meeting your every dietary need while supplying you with plenty of shrubbery. Outside…
It’s Drinking Week at City of Ate, which means even more stories than usual about our favorite pastime. Check back for more stories about craft beer, killer bartenders and more. I had my first “custom cocktail” about four years ago. I was at new bar in D.C. called The Passenger,…
Dear Steel City Pops, First, I want you to know I love you. On a hot day, one of your fruity pops is the pinnacle of refreshment; I can’t eat it fast enough. An avocado pop, with its creamy tang, would be a treat no matter the weather, and I’m…
Dear Tableside Restaurant Serenade Man, We all have to make a living, I know, but your present vocation is having significantly negative impact on my dining experience. I came out to share a quiet meal with a friend and all I can hear if your incessant thrumming. I can’t recall…
