Monica's Nueva Cocina in Dallas

We decided to try out Monica's newest collaboration for lunch last Wednesday.  Monica's Nueva Cocina is located in the Ilume building on Cedar Springs.  This spot is nice and spacious and is now open for lunch and dinner.

Our waiter seated us, filled us in on some solid appetizer choices and brought us warm chips and salsa. Monica Greene greeted us at our table and welcomed us into her restaurant -which was such a nice touch of hospitality.

There are several lunch categories that you can choose from- sandwiches, tacos, soups/salads, and entree options.  We ordered the Mexican lasagna ( a long time favorite of mine) and a taco plate.  The lasagna was plated in a tomato coulis amd topped with green salsa.  If you haven't had Monica's lasagna yet- you are missing out. This dish consists of layers and layers of corn tortillas, roasted chicken, cheese, black beans and corn all topped off with a dollup of salsa verde.  The lunch portion is perfect and the flavors are amazing.

The tacos section invites you to pick and choose from several choices ranging from $2.5 - $3.5.  We chose the Calabazitas and the Saudero with a side of red rice.  The Calabazitas included summer squash, poblanos, tomatoes all topped in an avocado creme sauce.  The Saudero included brisket, onions, salsa and a sour cream sauce. Overall, the tacos were great and we only had to add a dash of salt to make the dish 100% satisfactory.

We enjoyed our lunch outing at Monica's and appreciate her contribution to the Dallas dining scene.

Woodshed in Fort Worth

We finally made the trek out to Fort Worth so that we could try Tim Love's newest hot spot- Woodshed. This restaurant is located on the Trinity River Trails and is open for lunch and dinner.  We arrived at noon on Saturday.  There was already a short wait so we headed over to bar for an ice cold beer ( they had PLENTY on tap).

The entire restaurant is spacious and all open air.  The patio area is huge and they had great live music to keep us entertained.  We felt like we were back in Austin.

Ten minutes later we were seated and approached by one of the friendliest waitresses we have ever had.  She explained how the menu was laid out and offered up some great suggestions.  We were in no rush, so we started with two appetizers.

We started with the crispy potato skins served with BBQ sauce and a garlic aioli dipping sauce.  The plate was heaping with these little delicious treats.  They had a nice smoked flavor and were crisp on the outside and warm and soft on the inside.  The two sauces really hit the spot.

Next, we wanted to try piquillo pepper small plate.  These peppers were stuffed with brisket and cotija cheese.  Served three to an order, these really packed a punch.  The brisket was tender and juicy and and the cheese offered a nice counter to the slightly spicy peppers.

At this point, we started to fill up so we decided to split the Woodshed burger.  The waitress mentioned that this was a menu favorite. Served with house made potato chips, this burger stands tall.   Smoked brisket layers the bottom, then the beef patty, next comes the sausage, and finally the white cheddar tops it all off! This is something that we would order again and again!

We absolutely loved Woodshed and are keeping our fingers crossed for a location in Dallas.  Until that time, we will be back in the fall!

Liberty Burger in Dallas

We have heard great reviews on Liberty Burger and before summer gets away from us, we wanted to try this place out.  Liberty Burger is located on the corner of Forrest and Inwood in a shopping center.  You might drive right by, but with one glance at the packed parking lot this place grabs your attention.  You are given a number once you enter and you stand in line to order at the counter.  Once your order is up, a server brings you your food. This system seemed to work quite well with the volumes of people they were serving.

We HAD to try the salted caramel custard shake.  The shake was creamy, chalked full of caramel and you could actually taste a hint of the salt.  They nailed the salty/sweet combination with this tasty treat!

Liberty Burger offers several very unique options and we decided to be adventurous.  We ordered the South of the Burger which came topped with re-fried beans, cheddar cheese, avocado slices, tortilla chips and pico de gallo.  For $7.50, this was packed full of flavor and definitely filled us both up!

We ordered a side of onion rings and french fries, too! The onion rings were huge and battered up in a buttermilk mixture.  They were crispy, crunchy and heavily breaded. These alone were worth going back for.  The french fries were shoe string style, but nothing extraordinary to report on there.

Liberty Burger is definitely worth a visit if you are in the neighborhood.  We enjoyed their creative twist on classic American favorites.