Taverna

We love Taverna, a local Italian eatery a couple of streets off of Knox-Henderson. The prices are great and so is the food! I generally love their pizzas, butternut squash gnocchi with crispy sage and their Paglia e Fieno, a Green and White pasta tossed with Chicken, Truffle Oil (YUM) & Cream Sauce. That last one can be heavy, so expect left overs!

The restaurant has a very open layout, but lends itself to romance and coziness via draping, lighting and well placed tables. It just feels right...gentlemen if you're looking for a laid back yet romantic date spot, you'll find both in this cozy locale. The outdoor seating on their patio remains open year around. In the winter, the patio is enclosed and heaters are installed which do a more than ample job. In the summer, the patio lends you to believe you're in a small town neighborhood sitting on a front porch, enjoying a slower pace of life.

We have generally had good service and always felt very welcome. They are also great with reservations...our table is always ready when we arrive, which is a refreshing change from another restaurant that we visited recently that will be blogged about soon. We went this weekend for Valentine's day with a reservation (thank goodness as the wait looked pretty horrible! I definitely felt bad for the guys that took dates their without reservations) and ate some seriously delicious food! Of course our table was ready when we arrived, but it was on the patio, which at times, could be a little chilly and busy. Maybe we should have specified inside? Our table was on the corner of the patio that you walked by to get into the restaurant...good for people watching, bad for not getting bang into by purses, etc. Our waiter seemed slightly perplexed and very slow, but honestly, that was the first time we'd had any issue.

No matter the event this restaurant always pulls through. In all seriousness, if you want a classy restaurant but don't want to drop $100, this is your place. Sure, as was pointed out by some friends the other day, you can spend $40 on a bottle of wine there...but you can do that anywhere, it doesn't mean you ACTUALLY do it, does it!? If you go in knowing you are there for good food, a glass of wine or two, and a great atmosphere...you can't go wrong. Parking is awful, however, so make note of the side street parking and places other than the small lot on site.

The Valentine's Day menu is what attracted us this weekend and it did not disappoint! We started with the lump crab cakes ($11.95) that were spectacular! It really was big chunks of crab, which I like better than the pureed/battered ones, in a yumo orange sauce with spinach. J even liked the spinach which is something, believe me! Then I had the butternut squash risotto with scallops ($23.95), and J had the heart-shaped veal and lobster ravioli ($21.50)...how romantic...i know! Now normally those prices are a little high for us, but it was valentines day after all! Their normal stuff is cheaper (e.g. pizzas are $10).

We rate Taverna a 4.5 out of 5 for food and a 4 out of 5 for twenty somethings.

Highlights:
- Polpettine Pizza $12 (Meatballs & Provolone Cheese)
- Great wine by the glass list
- Gnocchi
- Fun, albeit small, bar area
- Romantic setting...ooo lah lah!
www.tavernabylombardi.com

Eno's Pizza Tavern

Welcome to the Babb's first post! We've been meaning to talk about one of our new favorite places for a while now and are just now getting around to it. Sorry for the laziness!!

Eno's is not your typical pizza place, either in location or design, as it inspires flashbacks of a college dive with an upscale feel. Located in Bishop Arts District, it's a quaint neighborhood Tavern that comes alive on Friday and Saturday nights with live music from 8pm - Midnight. With a large bar area, bartenders that can make just about anything and make it well, over 22 micro-brew beers on tap, and a crowd as diverse as this neighborhood is old, you can't pass on Eno's. As they have alot to offer, however, I would recommend getting there before 8:30 on Friday's, as the place fills up quick and seating/standing around the bar can be tight.

The first time we went, we decided we had to try beer as it was known for all its beer selection, but that posed a problem for my husband as he only likes wine that tastes like koolaid...long story short, the bartender let him describe his tastes, try about 10 different beers and then Josh found his beer. A stout so strong and thick it was like drinking black coffee and eating a loaf of bread at the same time...who knew?!

The first item of note at Eno's is the pizza...don't get me wrong, we all love pizza, but this is just pizza on steroids! I'm not sure if it's the pizza oven they use, the truffle oil that can be put onto it or the vast array of cheeses they use but I promise you that the pizza at Eno's is worth the drive, wait and crowd! If you're not very hungry, I recommend a personal size pizza as they can be quite filling. If pizza isn't your thing or you've just come for the atmosphere, try their warm bread with truffle butter. In the words of my wonderful wife, "it will change your life!"

The MARGARITAS! You have to have their signature margarita. It's flipping fantastic! They use a guava necture, a bunch of tequila and a lime and that's it. Nothing else but pure goodness. The tequila is such high quality it doesn't need anything else to cover it up. Yum!

They claim to make the food that they serve and provide the drinks that they offer based off of their "local" ingredients and area availability. Keeping with this same "backyard" approach, Eno's caters to "twenty somethings" by providing a nonchalant atmosphere, beer tastings (for those of us that aren't quite certain what we like), great food at reasonable prices, music that makes sense, and college football on plasma's to please just about every one. Tables on the sidewalk outfront are great during the Spring and Summer months, and the Bishop Arts district is a great place to people watch.

One note that I have is the volume of music. Depending on the night Eno's music acts can be very low key and importantly, low volume, but some nights it's blast-your-ears-out loud. I wouldn't really recommend Eno's for a dressed up, romantic evening out as its possible you may not be able to hear each other very well after 10:00 pm. Don't quote me on this, but I think they also stop serving anything but pizza and appetizers (and drinks of course) after 10:00 or 10:30.

We give Eno's a 4.5 out of 5 for food and 5 out of 5 for twenty-something friendliness.
The only negative to this fine establishment is the large crowds that flock there on Friday and Saturday nights...then again, the large crowds are a testament to it's success! If you're looking for good music, great food, cold beer and creative cocktails then Eno's is for you.

Highlights:
- Live Music Friday & Saturday from 8pm to Midnight
- Pizza, like only Eno's can make it!
- Warm bread with Truffle Butter
- $5 Microbrew Beers - kept cold and on tap
- $5 Guava Nectar Margarita's - the best $5 margarita in Dallas!
- www.enospizza.com