by Steven Doyle
Adam and Caroline Grace Jones will be adding a new restaurant to their repertoire. We just heard that the owners of the beautiful downtown Fort Worth restaurant designed by Caroline will be opening a new concept called Little Red Wasp.
No news on a location or what the restaurant will feature, but we did hear that Grace executive chef Blaine Staniford will be behind the menu which officially makes him a corporate chef. More news as we hear.
Filed under restaurant news
by Steven Doyle
It was just a few weeks ago that craveDFW announced that Joel Harloff was taking leave of Second Floor in the Dallas Westin Galleria. The press release delivered was a bit mysterious on the chef’s departure, but today I learned that Harloff has accepted the executive chef position at Ocho Kitchen and Cocktails. Continue reading
Filed under chefs, restaurant news, Santa Fe, Steven Doyle
by Melissa Robert photos by Joey Stewart
Even on a Tuesday night, Spoon Bar and Kitchen is packed with patrons enjoying one of the most anticipated restaurants to open in Dallas last year. The sustainable seafood eatery in Preston Center has the perfect location to compliment the intimate dining experience you’ll feel once you are seated. The lights are dim, the pale aqua tones of the interior are calming and the bar is surprisingly large for the space. Ipads are distributed to assist diners in navigating the wine list but the staff is great at providing suggestions to anyone that is on the fence.
The dining room seats about 60 and I’m quite sure I had the best seat in the house, the bar top facing the kitchen. The Spoon kitchen operates seamlessly. John Tesar, Executive Chef, is nothing short of a conductor leading his orchestra to a symphony of plated perfection. The menu reminds me of being in a candy store as a child; there are enticing items I’ve never had before and I want to try everything. Continue reading
Filed under chefs, Crave, Joey Stewart, Melissa Robert, Seafood
by Steven Doyle
Dallas Observer is excited to host the 3rd Annual Artopia on Saturday, January 26, 2013 from 8PM-11PM at Dallas Contemporary (161 Glass St). Artopia is a celebration of Dallas Culture & Art that incorporates food, drink, art, music and fashion into one evening. This one-night fete celebrates the exciting, vibrant Cultural scene in Dallas. Continue reading
Filed under Crave
by Steven Doyle
The Sunset Lounge is now humming along at peak performance. We stopped in for a few cocktails during the grand opening Wednesday evening where everything was $3 making for a rather light bar tab even with a few food items thrown in for good measure. Sad you missed that deal? Fret not my fellow bar hound, everything is $3 during happy hour each day, so enjoy that if you will.
The cocktails are magnificent. Many are throw backs to your father’s generation where they sipped large and in charge cocktails that were stuffed with giant rasps of fruit and cute umbrellas. I love a good retro drink, and the zombie is well worth the order. Cautionary tale: you are only allowed two of these babies and they are deceivingly delicious and full of 151 proof rum. Continue reading
Filed under Bar Food, Bar Opening, Bartenders, Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
Standard Pour has fast become one of the best cocktail bars in the city of Dallas. Under the guidance of barman and general manager Brian McCullough the McKinney Avenue hotspot attracts locals and industry people nightly. They are looking for well-crafted cocktails without the fuss that can be displayed at other bars. The steady hand of the bar staff is quite evident as they concoct every drink imaginable in split seconds, enabling the staff to move through lines of thirsty guests in a matter of minutes.
Pretty much everyone who reports on cocktails in Dallas agrees that Standard Pour is the standard pour, but there is more awaiting past that bright patina of libations. That is where the able bodied Chef Peja Krstic steps up to the mound offering his version of genius bar fare. Continue reading
Filed under Bar Food, Crave, McKinney Avenue, Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar, Plano’s award-winning farm-to-table restaurant, recently named Brent Hammer to the executive team as the concept’s new Chef de Cuisine, leaving Michael Ehlert at Hibiscus as Chef de Cuisine.
Hammer is a nationally known chef with more than a decade of experience in the restaurant industry where he has developed a talent for menu conception and evolved restaurant concepts across the country. Most recently, he served as Executive Chef and managing partner of Hibiscus, a Zagat-rated iconic Dallas restaurant, known for it’s locally sourced and seasonally driven menu. Continue reading
Filed under chefs, restaurant news, Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
Just a few months after opening his latest venture, Stephan Pyles is already tweaking Stampede 66. The homage to his hometown roots integrates cuisine from across the great state of Texas. Now Pyles is rethinking the idea of so much in one menu.
“My initial intent was to give diners a sampling of Texas foods cut from a broad cloth. In retrospect, I have come to realize the menu is perhaps too broad and tries to encompass too much. Streamlining the menu a bit will help the kitchen focus more intently on each of the items that remain,” said Pyles. Continue reading
Filed under Stephan Pyles, Steven Doyle, Tacos
