by Steven Doyle
I stopped by Trinity Groves last evening for a light bite and checked into Souk to find that Najat Kanaache, aka the “Pilgrim Chef” is no longer the executive chef. In her place now is long time Baboush chef Abraham Castillo. If you attended Fork Fight you no doubt met the Castillo. Continue reading
Filed under Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
Trinity Groves is undeniably the hot spot in Dallas at the moment with new restaurants opening at a pace of every two weeks. This makes for exciting times for those that follow the latest restaurant trends, or those merely looking for a fresh take on dinner or lunch. Souk opened its doors last week, and is operated by Yaser Khalaf, the genius behind Baboush, Medina, Farnatchi, and Ketchup. And in about 8 months from now Khalaf will premier his own bakery in Uptown Dallas that will feature many European-style pastries and dishes.
Filed under Restaurant Opening, Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
There is plenty of activity gong on at local restaurants and we have the scoop for you today. Be looking for a handful of restaurants to open up in the coming weeks, as well as some changes. We have a few items for you to savor.
Oishii opens tonight at 5pm. We get more calls abou this restaurant than any other in Dallas. The local’s favorite suffered damage due to a fire last December. It took nearly a year, but fans can enjoy their menu favorites tonight, finally.
Souk opens in Trinity Groves tonight at 5pm. Souk is a Moroccan bistro and bazaar owned by restaurateur Yaser Khalaf and cheffed by Najat Kaanache, who Yaser told us some time back would eventually be his corporate chef. Yaser owns Baboush, Farnatchi and Ketchup. Baboush is one of our very favorite Dallas restaurants, so we look for big things to come out of Souk. In addition to the new restaurant, you can also find some interesting retail items for sale at this Bazaar. Continue reading
Filed under Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
A name you may not be familiar with in the Dallas restaurant world is Yaser Khalaf, but chances are you have dined at one of his Dallas restaurants. Currently he owns several including Baboush, Ketchup Burger Bar, and Farnatchi, plus he is opening yet another in Trinity Groves called Souk. We spoke to Yaser yesterday and he mentioned yet another new restaurant that will be walking distance to Baboush that will be a Middle Eastern Bakery and Restaurant. He also formerly owned Medina and LA Gourmet Pizza. A work horse.
Mr. Khalaf is sort of an enigma with an infectious laugh. He runs restaurants, and also designs and builds. He has a keen eye for beauty and that is vibrantly displayed at Baboush where we spent the evening chatting about food and happiness. Early in the evening he pointed at one of the bar stools and said it was made in Pennsylvania with local wood, but the leather and design was made in the Middle East. That is what his restaurants are all about. A bit of Yaser Khalaf’s culture which is this mélange of countries and spice. Continue reading
Filed under Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle photos by Joey Stewart
As each bracket nears closer to the final entry, the Trinity Grove’s Fork Fight battle gets more and more heated. Last night proved to be one of the more exciting chapters in the history of the contest with Souk and Chino taking it to extremes on the plate. Both Yasar Khalaf (Souk) and Uno (Chino) worked the crowd one final time as the crowd filled the space at 3015 Trinity Groves, first sipping hand crafted cocktails made by both teams, then finally settling in to a starter course.
The night rolled on and the servers continued to bring the many course, eight in total, to the sold out crowd. With the final fork count showing a decisive Chino win it was evident that the true victors were those dining, even with the team of belly dancers invited by Souk (smart play). Continue reading
Filed under Steven Doyle
by Steven Doyle
Yet another edition of Trinity Grove’s Fork Fight will be held at 7pm this Thursday at 3015, the seemingly go-to party venue for North Texas. We have a look at the menu, and list it below. I know we have discussed Trinity Groves extensively at craveDFW and on our radio program since we have one of the chef-owners Uno Immanivong on the program weekly. We feel that the Trinity Groves project is one of the most exciting things to happen in the Dallas restaurant scene in quite a while. The Fork Fight, which is the brainchild of Mark Brezenski, is a perfect way for you to actually meet the chefs and owners of each restaurant, and discover their cuisine so you can make informed decisions when these restaurants finally open their doors for business.
There are some tickets remaining for purchase at the sales website. Grab date and meet us this Thursday for what will be one of the more exciting matches so far as the chefs enter into round two of the bracket competition. Click here for tickets.
Remember, there are four courses per chef, and all are cocktail and wine paired. This makes the event a particularly great value.
I hear we may have Epicurious Emma send us a video with her pre-dinner predictions tomorrow, so watch for that. Jump for the menus. Continue reading
Filed under Steven Doyle
by Mary Szefcyk
Editor’s note: If you do not wish to read about the delicious goings on, please skip down to the last paragraph where you not only find out who wins this food battle, but you also will hear a tale of tattoos and Mexican wrestlers riding dragons.
Trinity Grove’s round one Fork Fight competition was a tremendous success last night. Omar Flores of Casa Rubia and Yaser Khalaf of Souk battled against each other creating four delightful innovative dishes for you to be the judge. Guests gathered eagerly anticipating a relaxing evening of food and wine while taking in the sounds of “DJ STRADIVARI The Violin Guy”. For one fixed price of $75 you enjoy an open bar, mingling with fellow foodies, bubblies, cocktails, and doing what you love most. Ticket holders luxuriate in a four course meal times two and that simply equals happiness. How many chances do you get to devour two of everything by two different talented chefs? I wish every meal on Earth could be served this way. Continue reading
Filed under Mary Szefcyk
