by Steven Doyle photos by James Gates
Last weekend we were invited to stop in and enjoy the festivities at 3015 in Trinity Groves where chef Uno Immanivong and her cocktailing biz partner Adrian Verdin hosted an evening that previewed and highlighted the menu from Chino Chinatown, their Asian-Latin fusion restaurant that should be rolling out in August 2013.
Guests were delighted by the marvelous service, and colorful and flavor-packed dishes prepared by Uno and her pop-up staff. The beautiful “pho”zole was single handedly an enormous hit, and how could she miss with her bone marrow broth, braised oxtail and hominy for a true fusion win. The flavors meld together so wonderfully.
There have been other fusion concepts in Dallas that simply did not make the cut, but it is a good concept. Look no further than to New York’s Zengo who has been working the Asia-Latin fusion menu for nearly 20 years to high praise.
Uno also bought along her recipe for larb gai, the spoonful that gave her the gig on The Taste television program. The spoon of ‘everything’ spun flavors across our palates as we sipped a beautiful wine pairing from Glazer’s.
A special treat was the surf and turf which was a bounty of flavors as well. The lemongrass grilled flank steak was topped with a chunky crab and coconut cream sauce and served up alongside a tangy bok choy mash potato.
The perfect ending for the evening was when Uno and her staff strolled the room with a colorful ice cream cart and hand served each guest with coconut ice cream cone that was laden with a mole ganache, salted caramel and pistachio brittle ice cream. The obviously home-made cream was salty, sweet and delicious all at the same time.
There is another pop-up planned in the near future, and will most likely be hosted in Deep Ellum alongside a speakeasy bar. We will detail out all the information as it is released.
I want Chino to open tonight for more of that “Pho”zole. Until then, enjoy the slideshow.
Fantastic dinner. Great concept with unique offerings. Loved the pho-zole and would kill for another mole ice cream cone. Looking forward to the next pop up and when Chino opens.