How much is too much? And I mean your dinner tab. Are you willing to pay $50 for a steak and then pay extra for your salad and sides? What about $15 dollars for a big bowl of pasta and garlic bread that will leave you satisfied for days. Or $43 for a three course, finely prepared meal with the kind of fine service that we all long for?

How much is too much? And I mean your dinner tab. Are you willing to pay $50 for a steak and then pay extra for your salad and sides? What about $15 dollars for a big bowl of pasta and garlic bread that will leave you satisfied for days. Or $43 for a three course, finely prepared meal with the kind of fine service that we all long for? We are blessed with plenty of restaurants to choose from in every price range. Lately we have had an influx of high-end, high-dollar establishments like Nine, Nobu, Craft and Trece. Can Dallas sustain all of the expensive restaurants? Did you know that Dallas has more restaurants per capita than New York City? Il Mulino died a slow death. There are rumors of other high-end restaurants struggling, and as the “trendy” move from place to place the dollars move with them. The Dallas landscape continues to change.

What are your favorite restaurants? Name a few in different price ranges.

Here are just a few of my favorites. More to come in future blogs!
Lola, The Restaurant on Fairmont is one of my favorite restaurants in town. You can get the best four course meal you will ever have for $50. And the wine and service are impeccable. For steaks, the consistency of Kirby’s on Greenville Avenue has delivered for years and years. With a neighborhood feel and good food they are one of my “old standbys.” Enjoy a soup or salad, which comes with the meal. Split a side or two. They are enough to share. I love Perry’s Steaks on Cedar Springs, too. You can’t go wrong with anything on their menu. I crave the tuna tower appetizer and often want to go to Perry’s just for their au gratin potatoes – which come with an entrée or as a side. Family owned and operated, Amore Italian, in Snyder Plaza is perfect for a low cost, high flavor experience. Great for take out or dine in, the little Italian restaurant has been serving smiles for generations. And finally, I am happy to report, Alessio’s on Bryan and Fitzugh. Alessio has been a part of Dallas’ restaurant scene for many years. A great host and wonderful chef, Alessio’s Italian is great. As a special treat, he has some of the best pizza around! He caters, too!

Whatever your dining price range, I believe every meal should make you happy. Your taste buds should be singing for days. Your mind should wander back to memories of bite after bite of pure bliss. What is on your mind?

Posted by Kathrine Glass at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When it comes to wine and what to order many people hit a road-block. Before I spent time learning the different varietals (examples cabernet savignon, chardonnay or merlot) and tasted these grapes I had a difficult time ordering the perfect wine for dinner. Here are a few tips that will make your food and wine experience more enjoyable.

1. Decide on a budget. You can find yourself in a lot of trouble once the waiter places a wine list in front of you and spending more that you'd like. Set your budget once you look over the wines and see the restaurant's pricing.

2. Ask for Help! If the restaurant has a wine steward or sommelier speak to them. (Some restaurants may not have a wine expert so ask the waiter what he recommends or what others order from their selection.)

3. Share with the waiter or wine expert everyones likes and dislikes. Do you like Red or White? When you drink wine is it from California (or the US) or do you like French, Italian or Australian? If you like Reds do you like full-body like cabernet savignon or syrah or something medium body like merlot or pinot noir. If you like Whites they can typically be classified into several categories like Oak, Buttery or Fruit-forward. If you ask for help the restaurant will usually help you find the right bottle!

For Valentine's Day we ate at N9ne Steakhouse and I told the sommelier my budget. A good sommelier (which he was) asked me and my wife many different questions on likes and dislikes. We ended up with a 2003 Neyers Syrah from Napa. Something I have never tried. It was great and made our evening more special.

I hope you have a great food and wine experience tonight or in the future and hope these tips help!

Please share your wine experiences that led to you or your party having a more enjoyable dinning experience.

Posted by Joe Weir at 07:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here is a recipe for roll-out cookies that is great for decorating. I make this recipe around Christmas, Halloween and Valentine's Day. It is very easy and tasty! Try this out and let me know your thoughts.

Roll-Out Cookies

1 lb Butter (I use Plugra butter for this recipe)
3 c. Sugar
4 large eggs
1 T. Vanilla
7 cups All-Purpose Flour
2 t. Baking Powder
1 & 1/2 t. Salt

directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350
allow butter to come to room temperature and then combine with sugar. Add eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. Add Vanilla. combine dry ingredients and add to wet in 3 increments.

divide dough in 2 parts and cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Roll out dough from 3/8 to 1/2 inch thickness and bake for 8-10 minutes in 350 oven.

Let cookies cool before you decorate.

Cookie Glaze
1 T. Water
1 T. Corn Syrup
1 cup powdered sugar

combine and glaze cookies. Add food coloring for different colors.

Posted by Joe Weir at 09:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

While I consider myself to have a discerning palate, I love an occasional trip to the drive-thru. I recently had a conversation with a few friends about their favorite fast food restaurants. Secrets revealed!

First of all, no body wanted to admit that they ate at THOSE types of places. After forcing the issue they admitted to loving McDonald’s, find it hard to pass by an Arby’s without getting a juicy roast beef sandwich and the real shocker – crave a once a year greasy treat that can only be had at Long John Silvers.

As for me, my favorite is Taco Bueno. Yes, I admit it. I am a junky and have been for many, many years. I have been known to drive miles out of my way just for a taco, burrito and a Mexi-dips and chips. I could eat there everyday without getting tired of it. My neighborhood recently was blessed with an opening of a new location, much closer than the one located 15 minutes away. I am thrilled! As soon as I saw it I pulled in, placed my traditional order and said a little prayer that other people in the neighborhood would happen on the hidden location like I had done and order, order, order!

The funny thing is that everybody enjoys a fast food meal although we don’t all admit it! We all do it every now and then. Everybody has his or her own boundaries about what is acceptable to eat, when it is acceptable and how often it can be done. I have a friend who swears that she doesn’t eat fast food – ever. Check on her after a night of a few cocktails and you will see her chowing down on some of the best Whataburger chicken fingers around. Another friend can eat fast food every day, and does! He never gains a pound, either. Yea, we all have our limits.

Tell us your fast food secrets. Do you have any favorite menu items? What about a crazy combo like McDonald’s French fries dipped in a vanilla shake? Have you been using fast food restaurants as part of your new year’s resolution to slim down? What calls out at you as you drive past one of those fancy neon signs?

Posted by Kathrine Glass at 03:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

So here it is my first blog on the Chef's School Drop-Out Food Blog on WFAA.com. My first entry is around my 35th birthday celebration. Read my review and then tell me your favorite birthday restaurant. Our next birthday is in February and I want to go somewhere you pick.

Last week I had my 35th birthday. With most of our birthday celebrations we call our friends together to poke fun at the birthday recipient and enjoy good food and wine. Every year we go back and forth on where we will dine. This year I picked JR's Steakhouse in Colleyville.
JR's Steakhouse is one of the newer (within the last 2 years) restaurants in the area specializing in steaks. It's located off Highway 121 in Colleyville. The bar and dining room have two different atmospheres. The bar is festive and energetic with a higher percentage of single dinners than most steakhouses in the metroplex. Of all the restaurant bars in the city this is one of my favorites. The dining room has a plain decor and lacks your typical boardroom and dark mahogany feeling. Certainly something different from your run-of-the-mill higher end steakhouse.

We sat down after an hour or so at the bar to a semi-private room. Our waiter Chris was prompt to get refills on any bar drinks and deliver the wine menu. The wine list is extensive but lacks unique bottles that jump off the page. There is a modest selection of California varietals to French Bordeaux. Many of the selections are reasonable in price for a high-end steakhouse. One selection was a bottle of 2004 Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel. This is a good wine that shows itself as the evening passes. This wine has a nice separation of sweet fruit and oak and is a good selection when you’re unsure of everyone's palate.

After the wine was settled we ordered a sampler of appetizers that included poached shrimp, calamari, filet of beef over polenta, crab cakes and bacon-wrapped lobster. The shrimp were large and perfectly cooked however the accoutrement of shrimp cocktail is less than desirable. The calamari was a table favorite but misses my mark. The skewered beef over polenta has a touch of blue cheese that adds a great balance to the sweet polenta. The crab cakes and bacon-wrapped lobster are musts for every visit.

After a round of lobster bisque that is pretty hard to beat and the Avocado Caesar we headed for the main action. STEAKS, STEAKS and more STEAKS.

9 out of the 12 in our party ordered beef (it's what's for dinner). The others ordered salmon with herbed mashed potatoes with an outstanding butter sauce with a hint of horseradish. If you're not in the mood for steak try the salmon.

The thing that is very unique about JR's steaks is the Jalapeno Hollandaise and mashed potatoes. Every steak coming from the kitchen receives a moderate portion of mashed potatoes topped with Jalapeno Hollandaise. It's a sweet and spicy rendition to your typical steak with a 1/2 lb of butter. Don't get me wrong I love a good steak with a ton of hot butter just like the next guy but JR's breaks that taste with a Texas kick. JR's has everything from the ever lean and tender filet to the full-of-flavor ribeye. I prefer the bone-in cowboy ribeye over the standard cut. Like the waiter always sells, it usually has a better flavor having the bone intact. I encourage you to give JR's a try maybe for your next birthday celebration.

At the end of the day it was a great birthday with dear friends! What more can a drop-out chef ask?

Remember to submit your birthday dinner recommendations for our upcoming February celebration. I look forward in responding to your recommendation.

Posted by Joe Weir at 04:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)