48 Nights

Went to 48 nights last night. Made these reservations months ago, thinking it was the last seating for the last night. Apparently not. A couple of weeks ago they announced that they were adding another week AND will be doing a finale. hmpf. Oh, well. So glad I went anyway. The team from Parigi was in the kitchen and they made one heck of meal.

Here we go, course by course. The theme was "street food." The menu was all over the place so wine pairings we thought were going to be a challenge. We lucked out though and somehow managed to pick the right wine for each course.

First course. Pan seared foie gras with a bacon funnel cake, raspberry jam, and cotton candy.

The cotton candy add more color and fun than taste because the raspberry jam (which I think had some sweet onions in it) had more than enough sweetness. It was a small piece of foie gras but it was cooked well and added a nice texture to the dish. Really enjoyed the bacon funnel cake. The bacon flavor was quite subtle but definitely added to the dish. J brought an 02 Brut for this course. I'm not a huge champagne girl but it was a nice complement.

Second course.
House Smoked Sockeye Salmon with Maple-Soy Glaze, Crispy
Corn Tostada, Anthony’s Micro Mizuna, Cilantro, and Napa
Slaw Sides: Farms 5 Spice Refried Beans, Elote with Home
Grown Basil Butter and Jalapeno Salt

Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum. I could eat this every day. The beans and corn (elote) weren't really sides as they were all on top of the tostada and thank goodness because they made the dish. Sockeye salmon (especially smoked) tends to be a little fishy to me but the strong fish taste combined with the creaminess of the beans and sweetness of the corn made this my favorite course of the night. At the recommendation of a sommelier friend, L brought a hearty viognier (which name escapes me). We all agreed that we probably wouldn't drink this viognier at home because it didn't have that citrusy flavor we like in our viognier. It had a more buttery flavor and that turned out to be the perfect complement to the tostada!

Third Course
Chicken n’ a Dumplin’
Housemade Asian Dumpling stuffed with Chicken, Peas,
Carrots, Onions and Celery, Veloute Sauce


Ok, I LOVE chicken and dumplings. One of my favorite southern comfort foods. So I was really looking forward to this dish. It did not disappoint. Still scratching my head as to where "asian" came in to play. The dumpling did not really have that Asian flare to me. But it was soooo good. Imagine all the goodness of chicken and dumplings IN the dumpling itself. You got just the slightest bite of carrot, celery and onion in every bite. And the veloute sauce had cracked peppercorns that added the perfect amount of spice. I wanted seconds. and thirds. And definitely wanted something to sop the sauce up with. Would have licked my plate but didn't want to embarrass myself. J brought a Del Dotto Cab for this course. Bottle was signed by Mr. Del Dotto himself. Again, a perfect complement to the meal especially when you had a little bit of that pepper taste still in your mouth.

Fourth Course
Crispy Pani Puri
stuffed with Mr. Lemley’s Peach Chutney and Rocky’s
Watercress, Coconut Vinaigrette

eh. Just didn't wow me and I thought it was a tad bit too sweet so close to dessert. Did taste the coconut at all. Worst part was it was so small we couldn't justify opening another bottle for this course. :( Of course, considering my headache this morning, that's probably a very good thing.

Dessert

Sweet Street:
Cantaloupe-Prosecco Granita
Nutella Crepes,
Milk and Cookies

Ok, technically it was ONE cookie and ONE crepe. Not sure why they made those plural. But anywho... Cantaloupe Prosecco Granita was too cantloupey. I didn't want to end the meal with a melon taste in my mouth. Cookie was kinda store bought ordinary and the milk was, well, milk. Nutella crepe was good though. If I had designed this course, I would have had the nutella crepe and maybe just a grand marnier infused whipped cream on top. I brought a 2001 Chateau de Ste Helene Sauterne for this course. It was not so sweet so as to overwhelm the crepe.

Overall, an excellent dinner with excellent wine. Lots of laughter and good conversation. What more could you ask for?

Cheers!

Pizza Lounge

So I went to Pizza Lounge right across the street from Fair Park. Friend of a friend owns the place and we decided to check it out. There were 6 of us and we decided to get 3 pies. The guys ordered the Muchacho which was full of various peppers. Too hot for my taste but the guys really liked it. S ordered a chicken and jalepeno pizza. S likes a thinner crust so she was slightly disappointed. She liked the taste but found there was too much dough for her case. K and I ordered a pizza called the Dime Bag (appropriate name for location). It's a vegetarian pizza with spinach, broccolini and rappini (broccoli rabe) with mozzarella and provolone. K and I added some Jimmy's hot sausage to our pie and that was a wise decision on our part. I like a thicker pizza dough and this one tasted great and held up well with the toppings. One of the best pizzas I have had in a very long time.

We also ordered a "greek salad" and I really didn't like it. There was no lettuce, but instead white onions, purple onions, cucumbers, kalamata olives and tomatoes. I don't eat raw onions so I left a lot on the plate. The "salad" was also underdressed which made it kinda bland. K kept insisting that there was fennel in the salad but I couldn't see it (and ended up eating a raw onion slice to test if it was fennel instead). Then I realized there wasn't fennel in the salad but a couple of fennel seads. It was a little odd.

This would probably end up being my regular pizza joint but for the location. It's Fair Park and we had to avoid a homeless guy with a cart to get back to our car. But they do deliver. I wonder if they go as far as Lakewood. Hmmm. . .

Bistro N

I had lunch with my friends M & O this afternoon. M suggested Bistro N, the cafe in Nordstroms in Northpark, and I jumped at the opportunity. It's actually one of my favorite lunch spots. I've never had a bad meal there. I ordered my usual -- Nicoise Salmon Salad. In addition to the salmon, it has green beans, hard boiled eggs, potatoes, tomatos, onion and capers with a balsamic vinagrette. Pretty much all that was left was the raw purple onions (that I dont really like). O had the grilled vegetable salad with the soup du jour (a spicy new potato) and M had the chicken paillard salad. We all cleaned our plates. They also have some of the best iced tea in Dallas. yum-my.

After lunch I went to go see Inception. Two thumbs up!

Going to some pizza restaurant in Fair Park tonight. Should probably go find my pepper spray . . .

Cheers!

Bob's

Went to Bob's for a client dinner last night. Believe it or not, it was my first time there. You'd think my love for all things cow would mean I'd been there at least once in 9 years I've been back in Dallas. Anyway, it was soooooo good. I had a 9oz filet, medium rare with a baked potato. The filet was grilled to perfection and it was so flavorful. The baked potato was, well, a baked potato but they used real bacon bits which was much appreciated. And the carrot which accompanied the steak and potato was the perfect little bit of sweet.

We also ordered the onion rings which were disappointing. I appreciated that the server recommended that we order a half order because if we had ordered a whole order, I'd still be eating them now, 24 hours later. Really all the onion rings needed was a few more seconds in the fryer. They tasted fine but they were pretty limp. My client mentioned the issue to the server and she took them off our bill. Again, much appreciated.

Think I'm now going to be on the search for the best onion rings in Dallas. It's a noble quest although one my cholesterol won't care for. Baileys Prime claims they have them, but I wasn't convinced.

Restaurant Week is Coming!!!!

So far the plan is Fearings, Loft 610 and Baileys Prime Park Lane. That may change but that's where I have reservations thus far.