Babe's Chicken Dinner House

Okay, for a lot of you, you've probably already been to Babe's. You are probably thinking, seriously? Been there, done that! Well, this post is for the rest of you guys that haven't made your way out to the burbs for some delicious fried comfort food!

There are three Babe's, what I'm told is the original is in Roanoke, then there are Carrolton and Garland versions. The locations in Carrolton and Garland offer your choice of one of seven meats - chicken-fried steak, chicken fingers, fried chicken, pot roast, fried catfish, hickory-smoked chicken or spare rib. The one in Roanoke just has the fried chicken and chicken-fried steak (or so I'm told as I've never actually been to Roanoke). The best part is the unlimited sides and biscuits.

We weren't even given a menu when we walked in...I guess we looked like regulars? Which scares me as an an all-you-can-eat place, maybe we need to go to the gym a little more often? Anyway, our very nice/young waitress explained our options to us first-timers. Basically you choose one of the aforementioned meats and then you get unlimited corn, green beans, mashed potatoes and biscuits.

We didn't have to wait long for our double order of chicken-fried steak to come out, but were given salad and biscuits as a first course anyway. The salad dressing was surprisingly very yummy. It was light with just the right amount of tang and acid. I think there might have been some honey mixed in the dressing? Even Josh commented on how good it was. The salad was literally just lettuce and dressing, nothing too fancy here!

I'll let J expound on the biscuits as he did eat at least FIVE....one mention I have is the honey was delicious. I don't believe in eating biscuits without honey, so I was happy they had tubs full at every table! The honey got us debating the difference between honeys. J doesn't believe there is any flavor difference between different types of honey and I told him that was like saying all wines tasted the same. Eerily that night, as we were watching the Food Network, Alton Brown's Good Eats was all about honey and totally proved me right! I win again! :)

Touching on the biscuits, as A so clearly outlined that I looooooved! They were amazing...I mean, life changingly, ridiculously awesome flakiness and goodness. The biscuits were really really good, and if you go to Babe's for nothing else, go there for the biscuits, seriously!

I thoroughly enjoyed the green beans and corn. The green beans were sitting in a delicious broth (beef I believe) and had been nicely roasted in some sort of heating element other than a microwave. The corn was super sweet and kind of creamy, perfect combo with the rest of the dinner. The mashed potatoes, however, were NOT good! They tasted like boxed potatoes. J will disagree, but I am very picky about how my potatoes taste. I knew they were going to be disappointing when they came out perfectly white with like black flakes of pepper. Tell tale signs of fake spuds. Yucky.

Ok, while I seriously love A...her mashed potatoe snobbiness has clouded her judgement here. The mashed potatoes with gravy combo were good. I mean, I won't hang my hat on them and claim their world famousness, but these were good. Combine them with the corn, the green beans and the chicken fried steak...the combo is very hard to beat. Don't listen to A, as I'm sure none of you are as hard on mashed potatoes as she is!

As I was eating my yummo chicken-fried, die of a heart attack or at least obesity, steak with mounds of savory gravy, I had the thought: I should be drinking a beer. This is beer-food. I didn't know if they served alcohol being it was in Carrolton and didn't know if the burbs allowed that kind of thing...but as we were leaving I saw a waitress walk away with some empty bottles, so I know they must. Another side note, apparently some of the staff performs. We had a waitress walking up and down the middle aisle singing and she was actually pretty good. I was nervous it would become the awkward, let me come sing to you, kind of performance, but luckily she stayed in the middle.

Taco Joint

If you know me at all, you know that one of my absolute favorite foods is the breakfast taco. I love the combination of tortilla, egg, cheese, potato and my favorite, chorizo. If I could eat a breakfast taco every morning and not gain a hundred pounds, I absolutely would!

I am always searching for the best breakfast taco and I believe I may have found it! The Taco Joint (by Big Baylor) is it! J and I decided to road trip it for some breakfast one morning after reading a review in D Magazine. It was started by two austin guys (and my second favorite breakfast taco is from Austin, so I knew it had to be good!). DMagazine says, "One thing we do not lack is taquerias. But breakfast tacos form their own special category, and they’re not so easy to find. Taco Joint in Old East Dallas has become our favorite. It comes from a couple of Austinites—breakfast tacos are a thing down there—who’ve brought the A-town specialty to Big D. Here’s where to get tacos filled with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, chorizo, and beans. They do a top-notch fajita and egg, as well as a hearty migas taco with eggs, cheese, tomatoes, chiles, onions, and tortilla strips for only $2.69. They also do a fine brisket taco, but they’re open for breakfast and lunch only, closing at 2 pm. It’s our biggest motivation to get out of bed in the morning."

J got the Great Gordo for $5.69, which is an enormous 12” flour tortilla stuffed with your choice
of bacon or sausage, eggs, potatoes, and loads of cheese. It was huge! I just got a chorizo, egg and potato taco as they looked pretty big as well. The main reason why I love this place is their chorizo. Most restaurants' chorizo is so greasy it drips out the bottom and you feel really guilty and slightly gross eating it (but you still do, because that wonderful hint of spiciness with your eggs and carbs of the tortilla and potatoes is just so good); Taco Joint's chorizo was spicy, light and absolutely no grease exited the bottom of my taco!

They also have a great salsa bar with a bunch of different kinds of salsa and a yummy jalapeno ranch. Just writing this makes me seriously hungry and I think I'll be making J get up at a reasonable hour tomorrow to drive with me to get some Taco Joint! Let me know if you want to join us :)

http://thetacojoint.com/
(214)826-TACO
911 N. Peak St.
Dallas, TX 75204

Fearing's

Well, we made it through Restaurant Week 2009! Our wallets are a little (okay, a lot) lighter and our tummies might be a little bigger, but it was so delicious we can't wait till next year!

Our first restaurant was Fearing's at the Ritz-Carlton. Making reservations was interesting. The day the list of restaurants came out, I figured out our schedules, and started calling. Fearing's didn't even answer their phone the day the list came out, so I left a message. The next day, when I still hadn't heard back (and was still dealing with The French Room, that story coming later) I stuck J on them. He called and told them we wanted to make reservations, but they said they were completely full with all the voicemails from the day before and didn't have any room. He informed them I'd left a message. They didn't believe him at first, but eventually they came around and gave us a 5:30 pm spot. He can be rather persuasive at times, hehe. Anyway, they ended up calling back later that evening and asked if we could do 6:00 pm as they didn't actually open until then. I have no idea who he talked to the first time who thought they could give us a reservation before they open, but that's neither here nor there I guess.

We went with our foodie friends, C & L. C is a big time chef who has even been to culinary school! They both love eating out and trying new places, so we knew it'd be fun to go and hear their opinions.

We were seated immediately after our free valet parking. The room was very bright and airy. It kind of felt like we were sitting on a patio. The seats were couches with kind of low seating, so L and I both sat on the cushions like we were 12.

The restaurant and bar have an amazing feel, with each room being different than the other and really each providing it's own experience. The room we were in was very bright, almost like eating outside, but complete with huge chandeliers, elegant table cloths, and a very well dressed staff. Everything about this place lets you know you are eating in a very nice restaurant, but nothing uncomfortably. You can eat here and feel at home...just a very nice home!

I was super excited when I saw there wine special with the Restaurant Week menu. It was 8 dollars a glass for Anna Belle (could be misspelling that one) Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon or $30 for a bottle. We decided to split the Cabernet between the four of us. It was delicious and really refreshing to have a choice at that price point!

That last point by A was a great one, so pay attention here! I don't care much for red wine, A says I just haven't "matured" my pallet enough...in other words, my strong love for sweet tea and koolaid are killing my ability to enjoy a good wine! However, if you go, ask for this wine as I loved it, and again I am NOT a huge red wine fan.

Time for a quick segue....we started this blog because of a horrible experience during restaurant week. The whole point is to support two local charities AND provide an opportunity for local residents to try and support our local restaurants at a price that is more affordable for the average Dallas resident. So, when a restaurant signs it self up to participate and then treat you like you are beneath them because you are a Restaurant Weeker, it really makes us mad. So we were very cognizant of our treatment by this year's restaurants and were very pleasantly surprised with all three.

Anyway, back on track! They also had options to order in addition or instead of their menu for supplemental cost. For starters they had a Southwestern Cesar or Dean’s Tortilla Soup. Fearing's is famous for their Tomato Bisque, in fact he even sells it in the jar. L and J both ordered that, C ordered the Crispy Barbecued Bluepoint Oysters (was a little bit more with the supplemental) and I got the Southwestern Cesar. I was hoping it'd be a spicy Cesar, but it was more of a BBQ ranch. Before we got our salads, the waiter brought out an amuse bouche...a Sweet Corn Vichyssoise.

As for the Dean’s Tortilla Soup...it was OK, but not amazing. It all depends on your taste buds, but for me it was just a tad too citrus flavored. It ended with more of a tortilla soup flavor, but it was missing some crunch from the chips and was a little on the light side for me. That being said, the flavor was good, it just depends on what you are after here.

For entree choices, they had a Chili Braised Short Ribs with Queso Fresco Corn Whipped Potatoes and Crispy Tobacco Onions, a Mesquite Grilled Wild Salmon Glazed with Peach Barbecue Sauce-Black-Eyed Peas and Living Watercress Salad, and lastly a "Mopped” Chicken Breast with Anson Mills Polenta, Deviled Egg and Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon/Blue Cheese Dressing.

L, J and I ordered the Short Ribs and Casey got the Salmon. I would have loved to try some of the supplemental options like Maple-Black Peppercorn Soaked Buffalo Tenderloin but it was already going to be an expensive evening! J always orders Short Ribs and then I always wish I had ordered them, so tonight I went ahead and ordered them too. I was kind of disappointed. They weren't as tender as I was hoping, but I still liked them to eat the whole thing. I definitely liked the mashed potatoes underneath.

While I love A to death...I believe she misunderstood the awesomeness of the short ribs, as I looooved them. I similarly loved the mashed potatoes as well, you cannot go wrong with these!

We did order a side of mac and cheese as well. (We told ourselves it was for you guys reading this!) It was delicous! It was a six-year aged cheddar with mushrooms. Even J liked the mushrooms and that is saying a lot! Definitely order this one if you go.

I totally agree with A on the mach and cheese, it's a great add on and well worth the $8.

We rate Fearings a 5.0 out of 5 for the food and a 5.0 out of 5 for twenty somethings. This is a restaurant that is totally oblivious of age. The waiters and host staff were very attentive and treated our table without regard to age and did not treat us any differently than their normal guests, even though we were eating off a lower priced restaurant week menu.

Highlights:
- Mac & Cheese
- C recommends the Chicken Fried Maine Lobster

- Website has a bunch of his biggest dishes' recipes (but sadly not the mac and cheese)

- Rattlesnake Bar, we'd like to go back and check out their bar menu
- Great red wine, ask for Anna Belle Cabernet Sauvignon

www.fearingsrestaurant.com
2121 Mckinney Ave
Dallas, TX 75201-1873
(214) 922-4848

Victor Tango's

We finally got to have a date night the other day and decided to do one of our favorite Dallas things...check out DMagazine's recommendations and try out something new. J had a seriously random craving for Chicken and Waffles (especially random as he'd never had that before) so we logged onto DMagazine and searched "Chicken and Waffles". Amazingly, they had a recommendation in their newest article The Best of Big D 2009. It's actually the cover of their article, so we felt like we had to go, so we headed to Knox-Henderson to Victor Tango's.

We were delighted to discover that we'd made it in time for their happy hour (5 to 7), which is basically 2 bucks off all their specialty drinks and wine. Their drink list is awesome! I tried the Victor Tango, which was basically a mix of a mojito and a spa-cucumber drink. J had the Lightning Bug, which tasted like an adult version of my mom's summertime tea. It was like sweet tea but with lemonade added. Yum!

When A describes the lightning bug, she does a good job but be aware of it's punch. It's got a great flavor and does indeed taste like iced tea, but this is tea with a twang and some kick. I loved it and could have gone for two, but decided as it was an early dinner I would stop at one.

The waitress informed us the plates were made to share, so we decided to get an appetizer, main dish and a side. She acted like that wasn't a lot to order and even left a menu with us in case we wanted to get more. We have no idea why she thought that as we couldn't even touch our side because we were so full!

We ordered the Stadium Pretzels with Beer Cheese Fondue for our starter and loved it. It came with two, full-sized pretzels covered in a light dusting of garlic powder and Parmesan and a ton of salt. We both had to wipe off a lot of the salt as it was kind of overwhelming. The cheese fondue was excellent. It was, according to J, "cheesy, gooey, goodness." It was 300 times better than any cheese dip you'd get with your normal pretzel and definitely appeased our cheesy craving. I want to go back to try the Crock of Warm Goat Cheese Dip (anything with the word Crock sounds great to me) and the Tempura Green Beans sometime in the near future.

The cheese in the dip was amazing, seriously! This is not your ordinary ballpark cheese, rather it was creamy and thick, with a hint of spice to it. I loved it and wish we had more bread or chips to dip it in!

Next up was the Chicken and Waffles. It was definitely big enough to share with six waffles and a piece of fried chicken on each. It was Delicious! The dish came with an extra side of maple syrup so you could add some more sweet goodness if you'd like. The best part to me was the gravy. It was a pancetta gravy that wasn't too heavy or too thick, but had a wonderful hint of bacon. The fried chicken was juicy and had a very light layer of fried batter on it. I didn't notice that the fried chicken batter was spicy until I tried it by itself. The spicy, gravy and syrup was an awesome combo. The waffles were good too. They were crispy and held up to the large amounts of gravy and syrup that we ladled upon them.

I have no idea why I had a craving for them, but luckily A obliged...they were well worth it! It was definitely a rich flavor and something that needed to be shared between us...but people, it was like fried chicken and gravy, combined with AMAZING waffles and syrup...something we wanted as kids, coming true as adults! Don't ask questions, just go with this!

I'd like to try the bacon wrapped shrimp with the white cheddar grits and the lollypop lamp chops next time too!

As a side we ordered the Crab, Mac & Jack Gratin with Pancetta (notice a bacon and cheese theme with us?). Anytime we see mac and cheese on a menu we almost always order it. We like our carbs and cheese! As I previously stated, by the time the side came out (it didn't come out with our main dish for some reason), we couldn't even eat it. When we tried it the next day, it was the perfect blend of seafood and cheese. The crab wasn't too overwhelming and the panko bread crumbs on top made a great crispy crust. It's a pretty large portion as well, could be split between two to four people.

I saw a lot of other tables order the french fries and roasted corn salad, so those must be good too!

We rate Victor Tango's a 4.0 out of 5 for the food and a 4.5 out of 5 for twenty somethings. This is a restaurant that is totally oblivious of age. If you want to go to the bar after work and blend in with an all ages crowd, this is really the place to be. Their dinner menu is quite large and this is NOT a boring place to eat. The food is unique and the space is easy on the eyes. The valet parking is a bit annoying, but welcome to Dallas. It's free, so it makes it easier. We had GREAT service, and would say that age is NO factor at this restaurant. To top it off, their drink menu is amazing, and while the happy hour is not much of a discount the drinks are great.

Highlights:
- GREAT APPETIZERS
- Sharing Menu
- Good location
- Chicken & Waffles
- Nice Bar Area

www.victortangos.com

3001 N Henderson Ave
Dallas, TX 75206
(214) 252-8595

KRLD Restaurant Week

Okay gang! Quick post, but Ijust wanted to remind you all about Dallas Restaurant Week with KRLD. This year they have 130 restaurants participating in Dallas and Fort Worth (FW hot spots Reata, Lonesome Dove and Grace are all in this year). Make your reservations now because they are already filling up. And word to the wise, if you have more than two people in your party be prepared to eat at 5:30 or 10:00 pm at the really popular places. We are going to check out The French Room and Fearing's this year (and will post promptly after we promise!) and are going to go back to Stephan Pyles again since it was SO incredible last time. We look forward to these weeks in August every year, and we are definitely excited again this year!

http://www.krld.com/pages/2561351.php

Here's how their website explains it...
Select from any of the over 120 restaurants and enjoy a fabulous three-course dinner for just $35 per person. For each prix fixe dinner purchased, participating restaurants will make a $7 donation to the North Texas Food Bank in Dallas and Lena Pope Home in Fort Worth to benefit families in need. Last year KRLD Restaurant Week raised more than $430,000 for the two charities. You can help by making your reservation and enjoying a delicious dinner out! Reservations Required. Ask your favorite participating restaurants for KRLD Restaurant Week Reservations. Limited seating. Beverages, tax, and gratuity not included.

About the Central Market Fourth CourseEach Fourth Course Certificate is good for one free Fourth Course and can be used during any of the 3 weeks that the restaurant is participating in KRLD Restaurant Week. It is available at Central Market until August 30, while supplies last, with purchase of $25 or more.