dCarlo

Did you know that Daniele Osteria recently had a name and a menu change? They are now renamed dCarlo. Of course we had to give it a try! When we first arrived, the dining room seemed quiet with only a couple of occupied tables. By the time we headed out, the place was pretty full.

We were greeted with warm focaccia bread sprinkled with Parmesan cheese served alongside a dipping plate of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Next, our waiter brought us a complimentary aperitivo. It consisted of mini pizzas topped with marinara sauce, artichokes, cheese and sprinkled with Italian parsley! What a perfect start for a true Italian dinner.


We ordered the veal scallopini, sauteed in a creamy mushroom sauce. This was served with grilled squash, carrots and zucchini. The veal was pounded thin and was extremely tender.

We also ordered the cheese tortellini that was tossed with pancetta, peas, mushrooms, shallots and a creamy sauce. This was a home run full of delicious and fresh ingredients.

We liked the newly renovated menu and the turn around of a Dallas classic. We'd like to come back and try it for lunch!

The Dish: The cheese tortellini is something we'd order again and again!

Ruggeri's

Dinner on Monday took us to Preston & Royal for a visit to Ruggeri's Restaurant.

The menu on line is different than in person: in person there are a lot more choices and the price points are different. The way this world works, it seems like you should keep up with that kind of thing...but when we saw the clientele, we totally got it.
The median age of the crowd was probably 67 - and that's with us significantly bringing down the average. That lady at the table next to us brought her date and her oxygen tank. No joke.
But, it looked like these folks were regulars - they were having chummy conversations with the waiters, something we always love to see. Plus, we know how great it is to have a gem right in your own neighborhood.

We kicked off dinner with the chopped salad. Complete with meats, cheeses, and hearts of palm (hearts of palm can just make a salad in our opinion), this salad was pretty hearty. It was slightly over dressed, but decent.


The real star of the show, however, was the Portabello Mushroom Ravioli. This place might have been a little ho-hum for our taste, except the ravioli was amazing. It was so good, that in the middle of the entree, we discussed a revisit. That's pretty high praise. The dish was served with three stuffed ravioli that were finished with a creamy Marsala wine sauce. We even ate the broccoli.

This picture doesn't do the dish justice...but it was darn good!

As an added bonus, Monday is half price wine night - glass or bottle (who would pick a glass?), so we definitely enjoyed that boon.
There were cute tables outside that looked like they could be fun if it wasn't a million humid degrees outside. Keep this place in mind for a laid back patio dinner come November.

The Dish: Portabello Mushroom Ravioli are a must!

Cafe on the Green - Four Seasons

We headed out of town Tuesday night to try a place that has been on our "list" for quite a while- Cafe on the Green at the Four Seasons. From the moment we arrived, we felt like we were on vacation. The restaurant is spacious, grand and overlooks the welcoming property pool and the green gardens. It was airy and light, a very nice spot for dining.

We were greeted with excellent service and seated in the atrium space. Over a glass of white wine, we decided to try something outside our normal appetizer comfort zone: we ordered the cheese plate with the caveat that we were allergic to goat cheese. It couldn't even touch the cheeses we were being served or we would die.

You have the option of choosing 2/3/5 cheeses. We went with a blue cheese, smokey cheddar and a brie. This plate beautiful plate came complete with blanched almonds, grapes, sweet raisin bread, honey and balsamic figs. It is a lingering appetizer that you can snack on for an hour while talking. We can't recommend it enough. It was a wonderful experience.

Next, we ordered the special salad of the eventing. This salad was plated with endive, blueberries, green apples, blue cheese and drizzled with a citrus vinaigrette.

The roasted poblano soup sounded intriguing, so we selected that for dinner as well. This was poured table side over a rice cake and queso fresco. The flavors in this soup were outstanding: a little sweet, a little firey, but very mild overall.

Of course, being huge fans of the carbohydrate, we couldn't pass up a couple of the sides! We opted for the "baked pasta monsieur" (macaroni and cheese) and the chile lime roasted corn. The corn was lite and fresh and truly tasted as if it had just been cut off of the cob. That kind of crispness, paired with the lime juice made it feel like summer. The cavatelli pasta was tossed in a Bechamel sauce and then dotted with bits of ham and finished off with an amazing Parmesan crust. Wow!

We really wanted to try some of their dessert options, but were too full to indulge! However, they brought us out this beautiful complimentary dessert plate. It had 6 different bite size delicacies from truffles to macaroons. We each tried a little bit of all of the choices. They were all wonderful!


Our service here was cheery and helpful! We encountered 4 different servers during the course of our evening and they were all delightful.

On the way out, we were each given these little boxes with cranberry walnut mini muffins for the morning.

Cafe on the Green at the Four Seasons was an "out of town" treat. We'll be back to try out brunch.

The Dish: The cheese plate was the highlight of our evening for sure!

Marquee Grill & Bar

Saturday evening we decided to try Marquee Grill & Bar in Highland Park Village. We arrived and checked in with the hostess who let us know that they were running behind and that we would be seated as soon as possible. We were encouraged to head upstairs and have a drink while we waited. We took that advice and ordered a round of cocktails.

Emily and I both tried the Scarf Dancer. This fancy drink was made with vodka, St. Germain, lemon juice and black currents. Garnished with lemon peel and mint, this is a tasty drink that is perfect for the summer! After waiting a full hour upstairs we decided to check in with the hostess again. A few minutes later we were finally seated.

We were immediately served warm french bread with a side of whipped butter topped with pink sea salt. Since we had quite a wait, the waiter comped us two appetizer's. It was a nice gesture, ad we certainly appreciated it!

Our first appetizer was the tuna tartar plated in the center of an avocado puree. The tuna was lightly sprinkled with toasted sesame panko and radish. The freshness of the dish made us feel like we were sitting at an exotic coastal spot.

Next, we tried the duck spring rolls. These were plated beautifully and paired with a chili dipping sauce. The sauce was the perfect compliment to the duck. At this point, we were glad we had waited.

#1 Salmon served on a bed of truffle potatoes, baby artichokes and tomatoes topped with a citrus sauce.

#2 Halibut served with gnocchi and spinach

#4 Petite filet in a rosemary wine sauce

Truffle Mashed Potatoes

Pepper Jack Grits

#4 Bone in pork chop served over mushroom risotto

We definitely cleared our plates Saturday night. This is our tribute to Chef Tre Wilcox - well done, sir!

We were beyond satisfied with our meals, and truly enjoyed our dining experience. This is a Dallas must- just make sure you have plenty of time. We promise it's worth the wait!

The Dish: too many to mention. This place is a culinary powerhouse.

The Commissary

I will preface this entry by saying that I went to The Commissary at 5:30 for dinner. Some call this a geriatric schedule. I call it - I have a baby and 5:30 is sometimes my dinnertime. *please note, I did not bring my baby to the bar - just my appetite.
My experience was wonderful; the staff was friendly and not exasperated to answer my menu questions. There were several work related Happy Hour events going on that looked like a lot of fun. There were swanky couches with fireplaces in the background outside that looked charming. I chose a booth/table combo inside because humidity and my hair don't usually mix.

The $8 valet may have struck me the wrong way, but the happy hour discounts on apps and wine made it a draw. So...I started with the Parmesan popcorn. Tillman's has been my favorite for ages because their popcorn has that little gift of truffle oil. Well, this heaping platter of popped goodness also had the truffle oil PLUS Parmesan - and I didn't have to shame myself in asking for seconds. Ha!


For dinner, there are many options, but the burger choices dominate the menu. My dining pal tried the California burger. No complaints there. She especially loved that you could choose your burger size. This is the 6oz.


I tried the beef short rib burger with collard greens. Oh my gosh! The photo below doesn't really do it justice. This was outstanding. I would order this again in a heartbeat. The skinny fries served alongside were also pretty decent & not at all what I was expecting.


I finished off my eating event with the Pistachio and Strawberry Financier. While not traditionally served, it was pretty darn good. Strawberry ice cream was at the end of a trail of pistachio mousse, & all of it was off set by a cookie bits.


Up next, i want to try "The Table". Click here for more info!

The dish: The Rib Burger is amazing!

Steve Fields Steak and Lobster Lounge

Last week we braved the storm and headed north to Plano. We typically don't travel outside of "the loop", but we had to try Steve Fields Steak and Lobster Lounge. We got off to a rough start with the hostess. We made a reservation, but due to the weather apocalypse we were a tad late (please note our exasperation with this situation). She notified us, in not quite polite enough of a tone, that our table had been let go. Luckily, our friend "the bar" had a few seats open, as well as some generous pours of Chardonnay. At this point, we were in love with the little lobster lights on the wall and the piano player with his eclectic selections (George Strait then right on in to Elton John). When we were seated 20 minutes later, there were plenty of available tables in the dining room. We're still stumped on why the 16 year old hostess hated us.

Luckily, our waiter made up for the hostess stand. He had enthusiasm for the menu and was very helpful and smiled a ton. We were immediately brought warm foccacia bread sprinkled with sea salt and rosemary complete with a side of butter and dipping oil. We liked that they provided us with bread accoutrement options.


For an appetizer, the house made potato chips and brie dipping sauce caught our eye. This was amazing. The chips were thin, salty, and crispy and the dipping sauce was creamy and warm. Our rough start was improving. We decided to order the lobster bisque and the macaroni and cheese for entree number one. The lobster bisque was wonderful. It came with a hefty serving of lobster meat in the center of the bowl. It was rich and flavorful! Next up, we enjoyed a side of macaroni and cheese! This was cheesy, creamy and served with a toasted panko crumbs.

Entree Number Two: the steak was served with a loaded baked potato, that is always a welcome addition to our plate. And while the steak wasn't magnificent, it was pretty solid. Probably a B- if we were to give it a grade.

We liked that they were not crabby about swapping sides. If you didn't want a loaded potato, you could add whatever you fancied.

So overall, if we lived closer to Steve Fields, we might drop in more frequently. We are glad that we went so that we could see if D Magazine really knew what they were talking about. Turns out, they were on the right track.

The dish: the lobster bisque! Definitely worth a try.

Company Cafe

Precious table adornment at Company Cafe

Sometimes you come across a new restaurant in your neighborhood that you are ecstatic to discover. You almost don't want to talk about it for fear of not finding a table the next time. That's our feeling about Company Cafe. This place is about to explode! Located on Greenville next to the best hummus place on earth (Sevan G&G Cafe), this is a cozy location that is quite a find.

There is valet parking (ugh, Dallas!), but the lot is so tiny, it's actually a relief to have someone else deal with it. The venue offers inside and outside seating - we chose outside. Cute wooden picnic tables, some with umbrellas, add adorable detail. We were there around eight and the breeze was nice, not a bug to be found.

The staff is so friendly and very willing to talk about their place; we got the lowdown and were on board with their theories and their ideas. We loved that things from the menu can be found locally. We loved that it was all fresh. But most of all, we loved the price points. Wine by the glass topped off at $7, a rare restaurant find these days. Best of all, the wine was good (we tried the Eve Chardonnay - highly recommend!).

We had our mind set on chicken and waffles, but there were a ton of items that tried to sway our vote.
We started with the loaded sweet potato fries. If you go to Company Cafe, you absolutely must order this. The fries were good on their own - the salt to fry ratio was magnificent. On top of those delicious fries: white cheddar, bacon, and green onions. It was an instant crowd pleaser.



The chicken and waffles were also out of this world. Word of mouth had ranked this dish as the best in Dallas. It didn't come with gravy, which might deter some c&w enthusiasts, but gravy has no place here. The delicate flavors would be overwhelmed and you would miss out on something spectacular. The waffle is gluten free, and it is prepared with jalapeno and bacon cooked into the batter. It is then topped with a pan fried chicken breast - so it's not grease overkill. Served alongside syrup, this trifecta of goodness cannot be improved.


The dessert case looked amazing, but there was no room in the inn at that point. We will definitely be back, though, and we will come prepared next time.

The Dish: loaded sweet potato fries will blow your mind!