Category Archives: Crave

Three Fall Cocktails to Make at Home, From Tito’s, Maker’s Mark and Waterloo Gin

The first real cold front of the season is the signal. The frozen margaritas can take a break, the cider goes on the stove and the bar cart starts leaning toward bourbon, spice and anything you’d want to sip by a fire pit.

These three fall cocktails come straight from the brands that make the spirits, so you know they work, and all three are easy enough to make at home without a bartender’s kit. Two of them are made with Texas spirits, and the third uses a bourbon that’s on just about every back bar in Dallas.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave, Steven Doyle

Sugar & Sage Bakery Wants You Back for Lunch

For most of its life, Sugar & Sage Bakery has been a morning place. People come to the shop on Lovers Lane for a kouign-amann and a coffee, linger over a danish, maybe leave with a box of pastries. Now the bakery wants you back around noon.

Sugar & Sage has rolled out a lineup of five made-to-order sandwiches and wraps, and if you know anything about what executive chef Jill Bates does with butter and dough, you already know why that’s good news. The breads are baked in-house, the croissants come out of the same kitchen that turns out the bakery’s famous pastries, and the whole menu reads like it was put together by someone who understands that a great sandwich starts with what’s holding it together.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave, Steven Doyle

The Heat Check: 15 DFW Spots Everyone’s Talking About, From Omakase to KFC Breakfast

Welcome to The Heat Check, CraveDFW’s weekly list of the places Dallas-Fort Worth can’t stop talking about. Every spot on it is open right now. The Dallas side is ranked from splurge to cheap thrills, and Fort Worth gets its own list at the bottom, because buzz doesn’t care what you spend or which side of the Metroplex you live on. It changes every Friday.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave, Steven Doyle

Can Dallas’ Food Scene Help Combat Social Isolation?

Social isolation can affect anyone, regardless of age, background or lifestyle. While staying connected with other people is an important part of maintaining good mental wellbeing, busy schedules, changing circumstances and modern life can sometimes make it difficult to build and maintain meaningful relationships.

There are so many reasons for this, whether it be through age and feeling lonely, mental health conditions, relationship breakdowns, even the rise in people struggling with addiction and going through the likes of alcohol or ketamine rehab.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave

The Connection Between Food, Comfort and Mental Health

Food is about much more than nutrition. What we eat can be closely connected to our emotions, memories, routines and relationships. A favorite meal can provide comfort after a difficult day, while sharing food with friends or family can create a sense of connection and belonging.

The relationship between food and mental health is complex. Eating certain foods does not automatically improve our mood, and emotional eating is not necessarily a sign that something is wrong. However, there are some foods that can be great for that sort of thing and can even be useful for combatting mental health conditions like addiction, with treatment for cannabis addiction often promoting certain foods that can help reduce cravings as well as providing comfort.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave

Chef Yia Medina’s First Fall Menu at The Vandy Brings Lobster Thermidor and a 2-Pound Fried Chicken

A portrait of Tom Vandergriff greets you at the door of The Vandy, and it belongs there. The longtime Arlington mayor spent his career insisting the city would be the center of North Texas, then went out and landed the ballclub and the amusement parks to back it up. The restaurant that bears his name now sits a short walk from both stadiums, on the ground floor of the rebuilt Caravan Court at 205 N. Collins St.

The hotel opened in June on the site of the old Caravan Motor Hotel, a 1961 motor court whose sign made it through the rebuild intact. Chef Yimara “Yia” Medina had been on the job only a matter of days when the doors opened, cooking from a starter menu handed to her by the hotel group. Fall is the first time the menu reads like hers.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave

The Role of Food and Hospitality in Poker Traditions

Dinner was built into Harry Truman’s poker afternoons in Key West. Cards usually began around 4 p.m., with dinner served at 7. Sometimes the president and his guests returned to the south porch afterward and played until midnight or later. That schedule captures something familiar about poker gatherings: the meal has its own place in the evening, giving everyone time to leave the cards and talk over food.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave

How to Set a Fun-Money Limit for a Big Night Out in Dallas, and Spot a ‘Free’ Perk Worth Taking

When we talk about fun money, we usually think of limits we need to set for digital activities. Common examples include cutting two subscriptions to one, tracking app charges, or setting a fixed monthly amount for online play.

Digital users, especially casino players, often look for ways to stretch value through free perks and low-risk offers. Many check out this no-deposit bonus rundown as a basic strategy because no-deposit promotions offer quick access without upfront spending.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Crave