babar's Profile
Cheap Eats (Dallas)
Does anyone know if Dream Cafe still has the half-price main course with purchase of a beverage on Monday and Tuesday nights?
The taco place in the parking lot at Inwood and Maple is a good deal, too, and are open late.
Boba tea (Dallas)
Agreed, I really disliked the flavor of the powders at Fat Straws. Boba Latte is our favorite, although King's Noodle has stepped up the beverage offerings so we don't always make it across the street. The smoothies at Boba Latte are worth checking out, too, esp. since the OP's girlfriend doesn't like the pearls.
Taiwanese in Dallas
King's noodle is our favorite. Umeko and Genroku are both good for the Taiwanese dishes (I would not recommend the sushi or other Japanese dishes).
Soley! in Dallas (on Henderson)
We went last week and also had a great meal. The salads were great and I loved the fries in the steak frites. We also had the duck with sweet potato puree, which was great. The meat was tender and flavorful and was wonderful with the puree. The only downside was the mojito, which wasn't quite balanced right. Should have gone with the sangria, I guess! Definitely a great find for the price range, and very friendly service.
Two nights in Dallas - sushi
Nobu wasn't an Iron Chef. Iron Chef Morimoto did work at Nobu's restaurant in New York before opening his own restaurant in Philadelphia (which I enjoyed more than Nobu!)
Nobu is fine if you are looking for a fancy environment, but I have never found the servers to be particularly knowledgeable. I think you are better off visiting a place in Dallas that you can't experience somewhere else.
Two nights in Dallas - sushi
I am pretty sure Teppo and Tei Tei were sold before he started Tei An. I think the quality at Teppo has slipped a little since then, although it is still good.
I definitely second the recommendation for Tei An, although it definitely is focused on things besides sushi, so it may not be what the original poster wants.
Chocolates in Dallas
J Dorian is a great chocolatier up in Addison:
5312 Beltline Road
Dallas, Texas 75254
http://www.jdorian.com/
He varies the flavors seasonally, but usually has quite a good assortment. I've used boxes from their as gifts with a lot of success, even for chocolate snob friends.
I don't think Schakolad is strictly local, as they have locations across the US, but the hot chocolate at the location at the Shops at Legacy wasn't bad.
Looking for cha siu bao (hawaiian manapua) and noodle houses in DFW area
Not sure about manapua, but the Chinese bakery in Richardson next to First Chinese Barbecue and Boba Latte (Greenville and Polk) has char siu bao available to-go, but they are refrigerated. I haven't tried them, but the other stuff they make is really good so it should be worth a try. The ones Kirin Court has for dim sum are usually good.
First try at Chinese on Greenville in Richardson
King's Noodle - a few blocks south on Greenville at Polk, also has shaved ice with different toppings including beans. You can walk over and see the dishes with the toppings and pick what you like. They also have good food to try before dessert!
Abacus ** out of *****
Did you miss the part where lilymao said they went last year for RW and loved it? Comparing RW to RW is fair. Also, to Lewisvillehounder below, Casey was not involved with Abacus, only Tre. Obviously Kent Rathburn knows what he is doing and lilymao was venting a little, but this isn't the only post about Abacus not quite being where it once was lately, so I don't think you need to be so harsh. Also, calling someone snobbish for judging a restaurant based on a special low price meal seems exactly backwards.
For my money, I preferred Jasper's to Abacus.
[DFW] Best Tofu or Tofu Dish (vegan)
Twin's Tofu in Richardson has great Korean tofu stews. They have a veggie one, not sure if it is vegan - you might want to call ahead and make sure the broth is truly veggie, too.
MoMo Italian Specialties--Dallas
So, is this place related to the other Momo's? http://momospasta.com/
The menus look quite similar. How does the food compare?
frozen yogurt- DFW
Berry Berry in Addison at Belt Line and Midway is from that genre. I think it's pretty good, although I can't speak to other flavors beyond the original. They have a good selection of toppings, fruit usually seems reasonably fresh. Comfy chairs, too!
http://www.berryberryyogurt.com/
Nicoise salad in Dallas!!
This is very tasty! All the ingredients are tasty - it might actually be more exciting than the savory souffles.
San Antonio Eats
I'd say that Guenther house is walkable from Riverwalk. It is about 1 mile through some nicely restored old houses. Very pleasant Saturday or Sunday morning stroll if the weather is cooperating. And we loved the food and the setting of the house. Be prepared for a wait once you get there, though.
Hot chocolate [DFW]
The Cultured Cup has a great drinking chocolate, which they will make for you and you can take some home. La Duni has an excellent, rich, Mexican-style hot chocolate as well.
German food near DFW
We just went there, and I remember they had about 6-8 beers on tap, and a slightly larger number by bottle. Mostly the more popular German offerings, but I also remember Stella on tap, and one "seasonal" offering. Not as comprehensive as Bavarian Grill, so if you are looking for something in particular you'd better ask ahead.
Also, for the record, my wife (who is not at all German!) preferred the schnitzel at BG to the one at Jorg's, which was slathered in sauce. I'd also say the bratwurst was not as good as BG, and I missed the option of the Nurnburger sausages. Jorg's did have much better service, and was a cozier setting without being too cramped. Probably requires further investigation :)
Ethiopian/Korean (Dallas)
We like Lalibela on Forest for Ethiopean. Not upscale, but a great value and very tasty. I hadn't heard of Kereje, we'll have to check it out!
Italian restaurants that make their own pasta? (Dallas)
Have you tried Momo's? I am not sure that all the pasta is homemade, though, but it is a nice more casual place and they have some good dishes. I also think Massimiliano's in Plano on 15th makes a lot of their own pastas and is a little more casual - we've only tried it once, and actually liked the Italian Wedding Soup best, but that was just after they had opened.
Where to eat in Richardson?
We usually prefer Boba Latte for pearl tea, although it isn't quite as good as it used to be.
TONIGHT - Birthday dinner ideas for a really special person.
I'd see if York Street is open/available. Not quite as stuffy as some of the other fancy places, but very friendly and often has some unusual options.
I am done with restaurant week!!!
We also were at Nana for restaurant week, although it was our first visit. The service was friendly but slow, although I just let our server pick a wine.
Our disappointment was really with the food. The mango "lassi" appetizer was seriously oversalted, which really detracted from a beautifully arranged and creative idea. The shrimp cocktail, which was also indian-influenced, was quite good. Neither main course we tried was that great. The seared scallops were good in both the scallop and rib entree and the "surf and turf" with chicken, but the lentil ragout was rather bland and didn't enhance the scallops at all and the chicken was fairly ordinary. The mashed potatoes were quite good, and the ribs were tender and tasty. The worst dish of the night, though, was the passion fruit dessert, which had a supposed run meringue which turned out to be more of a froth/foam, and totally overwhelmed the passionfruit sorbet. OK, I am not always a huge rum fan, but this was not a good idea. The strawberry dessert was simple but good, and the peppercorns gave it a little more depth that was interesting. Overall, though, it didn't seem like a high enough success rate for us to want to come back. The view is quite nice, though.
We've had better restaurant week experiences elsewhere, but I think it is something you need to approach with some caution, some patience, and an understanding of the potential drawbacks. You can't get something for nothing, so you pay for the discounted food in several other ways.
Kona coffee beans in Dallas?
The Cultured Cup is definitely the place to go to buy good coffee and get good recommendations. They carry Kona and several other high quality brews, and usually have something available for sampling in the store. We love going there for the tea and chocolates as well!
Asian lunch in Richardson?
Genroku has good Taiwanese dishes, although I am not sure if they have clams. Their basil chicken is quite good! Jeng Chi is ok, but nothing that special IMHO.
[DFW} Sno cones near Downtown Dallas?
Ahh, this may be part of the problem - the girl who works there is not quite as good as the main guy. Not sure what the problem was with the watermelon, I have had it and enjoyed it, similar to a watermelon juice. Pineapple, tamarind, and mango are all good too when I have tried. But hey, if its not your thing, its not your thing.
Also, you can get additional cream added, which is along the lines of the condensed milk option. He has condensed milk on the menu, but when we asked he was out.
First time to Dallas (no car)
I think you can probably find good soondobu much more easily in NYC. I would recommend trying to check out some tex-mex - Mia's isn't too far away, or if you want something fancier you could hit someplace in West Village or Knox-Henderson. I am with you on the no-beef thing, but it really is what they do best here.
Korean Tofu - So Kong Dong Tofu House
Thanks for the recommendation! We tried it out last night. The tofu is really good, nice and silky. Not quite as large of a selection of side dishes, but I think my wife prefers this place to So Kong Dong. She likes the appetizer tofu, the flavor of the broth, and the rice. I think So Kong Dong's broth has a deeper flavor, including the flavor of the seafood, and I appreciate the fish as an appetizer, so I might still choose to go there. Obviously, more samples (and different dishes) need to be evaluated!
[DFW} Sno cones near Downtown Dallas?
The place is very good. Each cone is carefully crafted, with lots of syrup. The cream flavors are rich and delicious, the fresh fruit flavors seem almost like pure fruit, with a good strong flavor. I think we're addicted.
Korean Tofu - So Kong Dong Tofu House
My wife's Korean co-workers took her to this place, on Harry Hines just north of Walnut Creek, last week and she has been asking to go back ever since. I finally got to try it today, and it was definitely the best soondobu I've had in Dallas. Very flavorful broth, excellent side dishes (including a whole, cooked fish for each person) and decent rice. The place is a little hard to spot - it is in the Plaza Latina (?) on the east side of Harry Hines, but it is in the back on the right side. The sign is in Korean, except for the words Tofu House. Inside the decor is nice and clean, and the staff were friendly and spoke reasonable English (and Chinese, it turned out) and the menu is in Korean and English. In addition to a variety of tofu soups, they also have some BBQ, Bibimbap and arrowroot noodle dishes, along with a few other things. It may take me a while to try them out, though, since the tofu was so tasty. I had the seafood, my wife tried the soybean paste, which had a nice miso flavor to it, not too strong. They will also give you extra of the side dishes if you want, which was nice. It was all reasonably priced, too - $8 for the tofu. Plus, they are open 10 - 10 every day, so there is really no need for me to get the soondobu from Ko Mart anymore.
