Author Archives: Peyton Meersman

About Peyton Meersman

Peyton is a home grown southern girl with a West Coast heart and an East Coast vocabulary. When she’s not at work or graduate school, you can find her on a patio indulging in (read: stuffing her face with) bloody Mary’s and breakfast tacos. Instagram: @peytonmeersman

Antonio Ristorante – Tasting Tuesdays

If you’re looking for a new date night idea, or if you’re  constantly on the hunt for authentic Italian food (the Northern states have all the luck with that), boy do we have a treat for you.

Antonio Ristorante, nestled away in Addison Circle, will transport you to the Italian countryside with its food, wine, and atmosphere. Classically trained Chef Antonio hails from Calabria, Italy and brings a hint of French cuisine to his tables for their $20 Tasting Tuesdays. Guests are served three lightly-portioned courses and wine pairings for each course. Even better, they’ll send you home with a simple and authentic recipe to try out the dishes in your own kitchen.

Chef Antonio prepares the main dish in front of restaurant goers and explains the recipe over a microphone; a waiter then explains the wine pairing with the notes that are to be experienced. Reservations for upcoming Tasting Tuesdays can be made here.

All of Antonio Ristorante’s food is ordered often to ensure freshness. If a customer especially likes a certain dish, the Chef will take note of their email and phone number to let them know the next time they have that dish. They also offer a few wild game options for the adventurous. Wine bottle prices are 30% cheaper than at other Italian restaurants with bottles starting at $27 – which we all know means you can spend that extra money on more wine.

A new food special will be available soon, and it’s a doozy. Their #LateNightDateNight offers a free pizza with any wine bottle purchase. Coming next week (the week of 5/4) for your date night needs, Thursday through Sunday after 9pm!

Antonio Ristorante
Website
Facebook 
4985 Addison Circle (Addison)
(972)458-1010

Lunch Hours: Mon-Fri 11am-4pm
Dinner Hours:
Mon-Thurs 4pm-10pm
Fri 4pm-11pm
Sat 5pm-11pm
Sun 4pm-10pm

VINO-Palooza

Vino Palooza is a traveling wine and music festival that recently made a stop in both Fort Worth and Dallas this year. The Dallas event was held at Happiest Hour and featured wines from more than 20 different wineries as well as some beers and ciders.

J-Si Chavez from The Kidd Kraddick Morning Show hosted and several “Top 40” artists performed including Ryan Cabrera, Nash Overstreet of Hot Chelle Rae, and Ryan Key of Yellowcard, all in the name of helping local non-profit organizations. Snacks were provided, but the full Happiest Hour menu was available for those looking for substance.

The day couldn’t have been more pleasant at 75-ish degrees and sunny–everyone clearly enjoyed the wine, the music, and the atmosphere. This event is a must if you can grab a hold of tickets before they sell out!

 

VINO-Palooza
vino-palooza.com
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Chicken In The Front, Party In The Back

If you’re a fan of the Truck Yard atmosphere and grandma’s quality southern fare, then you’re in luck.

Quincy’s Chicken Shack is the newest family style, neighborhood picnic-esque restaurant to pop up in Coppell. Now, all you Dallas folk are thinking, “Coppell? That’s way too far just for some chicken…” but I assure you, it is well worth the drive. This fresh, family-friendly place will have you fed and on the way to your fried chicken coma in just 11 minutes. 

First, let’s talk atmosphere. Located right near Coppell Old Town Pavillion, the restaurant features an outdoor patio that’ll make your heart sing. Full bar, truck-turned-stage for live music, and string lights to make all your pictures Instagram gold. 

Speaking of the bar, Quincy has come up with some outstanding cocktails to go with your meal, and the southern theme is strong. Our favorites in our group were:

Mint Julep: bourbon, home grown mint syrup, soda water

Grandma’s Secret (personal favorite): sweet tea vodka, taverna, lemon, black tea

Shoofly Punch: Enchanted Rock peach vodka, peach puree, ginger liqueur, lemon, champagne, topped with a peach ring! This one is a southern spin on the French 75

Backyard Party: frozen lemonade spiked with your choice of citrus vodka/blueberry vodka/sweet tea vodka/ whiskey with mint

Dee’s Lunchbox: beer cocktail with white rum, orgeat, lemon, topped with IPA

Bottled Manhattan: a perfect manhattan made with Herman Marshall whiskey, vermouth, bitters, luxardo cherry

Tequila Mockingbird: Blanco Tequila, lemon, triple sec, watermelon juice

Now, let’s get to the food. The restaurant serves its offerings family style, so come prepared to share … or prepared for a fork fight.

First up is some black-eyed pea hummus to keep things light and fun. Then you have a choice of a fried chicken or a rotisserie chicken dinner basket for the table. Each one comes with cornbread, rotisserie potatoes and loaded potato dip, southern beans, and a seasonal side. What makes this chicken so darn good is that all of it’s cooked in the rotisserie, and then either served like that or flash fried for 3 and half minutes. 

Luckily, their lunch options aren’t all family style. Some lunch options they offer are a BBQ Chicken Sandwich, which is pulled chicken with Quincy’s root beer BBQ sauce, coleslaw, and rotisserie potatoes, and the Fried Chicken Sandwich, which is fried chicken tenders (available regular or Nashville Spicy) with garlic aioli, bread & butter pickles, coleslaw, and rotisserie potatoes. They also have a lunch salad, which features pulled rotisserie chicken on mixed greens topped with cowboy vinaigrette, green apple, corn, black-eyed pea hummus, and cornbread croutons. Lunch options will be available starting today, March 11th. 

If you’re still hungry after all that, they’ve got you covered. Desert is a bowl full of egg-free cookie dough (not today, salmonella!) and a seasonal handpie served with vanilla bean ice cream. 

Quincy’s Chicken Shack
QuincysChickenShack.com
Facebook
505 Houston Street (Coppell)
(469) 251-9080

  • Tues– Sat: Dinner only ; Sun & Mon: Closed
  • Tues – Thurs: 5pm–9pm, Bar open at 4
  • Fri – Sat: 5pm–10pm, Bar open at 4

Montes Wines – It’s a Family Thing

If ever you’ve felt like your wine needed a heartfelt backstory, Montes Alpha and Kaiken Ultra wineries have one for you.

Aurelio Montes Sr. and Aurelio Montes Jr. are the father and son of the century with their love for good wine as well as their heritage. The chilean duo not only have a namesake winery with a special commitment to the Chilean community, most notably a study scholarship given to the winery workers and their children alongside complimentary health and life insurance, but also like father, like son, Aurelio Montes Jr. followed in his father’s footsteps and opened up his own winery, Kaiken, in order to experiment with new terroirs and other winemaking practices such as biodynamics.
Fun fact: the Kaiken Ultra Winery was the second winery in the world to be awarded the Sustainable Certificate. Good for the community AND good for the earth? I don’t know what more you could want but they probably have it.

At Salum, a group of wine enthusiasts were treated to a tasting of wines from both wineries, as well as a paired luncheon. To be honest with you, I’m surprised that more people didn’t decide to get in on the action. I’d even heard through the grapevine that some people were looking for a New Jersey fake ID service because they weren’t old enough to travel or drink on their own, and they wanted to learn more about these wines, but it just wasn’t meant to be. All the more for us though I guess. As we tasted the wines, Montes Sr. and Montes Jr. explained the back story of each wine and how they vary between the two wineries.

Montes Alpha Chardonnay 2014
Alcohol – 13.9%
SRP – $19.90
Tasting notes: Shy in node expression.

Kaiken Ultra Chardonnay 2014
Alcohol – 14%
SRP – $20
Tasting notes: Bigger and deeper expression of oak and fruit.

Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Alcohol – 14%
SRP – $19.90
Tasting notes: Fruity expression with red berries, blackberries, chocolate, and mint.

Kaiken Ultra Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Alcohol – 14.8%
SRP – $20
Tasting notes: Tastes of strawberries with a round mouth and soft tannins.

Montes Alpha Malbec 2014
Alcohol – 14.5%
SRP – $19.90
Tasting notes: Leaner, spicier, edgier, rougher.

Kaiken Ultra Malbec 2014
Alcohol – 14.5%
SRP – $20
Tasting notes: Riper with a wide mouth, gentle tannins, and tastes of dark fruit.

Montes Outer Limits CGM 2015
Alcohol – 14.5%
SRP – $24.90
Tasting notes: Velvety texture. Montes Sr. described this as “a wine for the younger generations who want to drink something different than their parents.”

Kaiken Obertura Cabernet Franc 2014
Alcohol – 14.7%
SRP – $35
Tasting notes: Best paired with light meals, salads, cheese.

Montes Alpha M Red Wine 2012
Alcohol – 14.7%
SRP – $98
Tasting notes: A Bordeaux blend with a bouquet that comes along elegantly.

Kaiken Mai Malbec 2013
Alcohol – 14.8%
SRP – $70
Tasting notes: considered a real taste of Argentina.

Montes Taita Cabernet Sauvignon 2007/2009/2010
Alcohol – 15%
SRP – $249
Tasting notes: “Taita” describes the emotion of speaking of your father with devotion and admiration and he gives back his wisdom with loving care. This wine spends 18 months in barrels and then 4 years in bottles before being released.

Salmon and scallop crudo with Texas grapefruit, orange blossom oil, pea shoots, and parmesan crisps
Paired with the Montes Limited Selection Sauvignon Blanc 2016 and the Kaiken Terroir Series Torrontes 2016

Braised lamb, rosemary puree with plum gastrique
Paired with the Montes Purple Angel 2013 and the Kaiken Obertura 2014

Bittersweet chocolate and sticky date pudding with stewed red fruits and Mexican vanilla chantilly
Paired with the Montes Alpha M 2012


Montes Wines
monteswines.com
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Salum Restaurant
salumrestaurant.com
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4152 Cole Avenue (Uptown)

Super Chix in North Dallas

Move over, Chick-fil-A, there’s a new chick in town!

Super Chix is bringing flavor back to the traditional chicken sandwich. With the idea that simple is better, Super Chix marinates and hand-breads their chicken in-house daily. With locations in Dallas and Richardson (and soon to be Frisco location!), there’s no excuse to eat a sub-par chicken sandwich ever again. (Not that Chick-fil-A is sub-par … just in case the powers that be see this.  You NEVER want to piss off the CFA wizards.) 

The Super Chix menu features standard fried or grilled chicken sandwiches, as well as some new-to-the-scene, more creative plates … and yes, even salads.  Not to be missed is their extensive sauce selection. You can choose from six sauces–Mississippi Comeback, Alabama White, Nashville Hot, Cucumber Dill Ranch, Signature, and Honey Mustard … all delicious, 

Cordon Bleu Sandwich: swiss cheese, honey mustard, ham, and fried chicken. Served on a buttered potato roll.

Crispy Avocado Sandwich: Avocado half stuffed with Gouda cheese, breaded and fried, then topped with seasoning, garlic mayonnaise, lettuce leaf, and tomato. Served on a buttered potato roll. 

Blackened Cajun Chicken Sandwich: grilled chicken filet tossed in blackened seasoning, topped with garlic mayo, bacon, lettuce lead, tomato, and fried pickles. Served on a buttered potato roll. 

Fear not health-nuts, they also have delicious salads, such as the Southwest Chicken Salad, which features lettuce, tomato, avocado, grilled chicken, and tortilla strips.

As for drinks and desert? Well not only do they offer a bunch of craft sodas on tap, they also have a full custard bar with rotating weekly custard flavors. Find their custard menu here.

Super Chix
superchix.com
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Dallas Location: 14999 Preston Road, Suite 226 | 972-788-0660
Richardson Location: 1551 East Renner Road, Suite 830 | 469-466-1500

Open 11am to 10pm daily

True Food Kitchen – Truly Good Food

Eating healthy is hard. There are so many unhealthy options that are way easier (and let’s face it, way tastier) to fit into our busy schedules. Have no fear, friend! True Food Kitchen is making it easy and delicious to eat good-for-you food. This anti-inflammatory diet based restaurant has tons of options to help keep you on that health track … deliciously. The chef graciously explained to me that processed foods cause inflammation, which prevents the body from absorbing all the good nutrients it needs. This can lead to a plethora of unwanted things such as Alzheimer’s, rheumatoid arthritis, and even cancer. Because of this, True Food Kitchen doesn’t focus on calories. Instead, they focus on pure, simple, and delicious food that is hormone-free and antibiotic-free to help the body process nutrients better.

After a complimentary Corepower Yoga class, I tasted some of their brunch options, which are sure to give you the perfect kickstart to your day.

Garden Scramble: Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, organic eggs, and smoked gouda

Quinoa Johnny Cakes: banana and quinoa (these taste nothing like quinoa and everything like normal pancakes)

They also have Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins, Banana Espresso Muffins & Vegetable Salad on deck for you to nosh on.  They also offer vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options, all of which are on their regular menu!

True Food Kitchen also serves booze including beer, cider, wine, and cocktails.  Most cocktails are around $10. Because it’s always best to detox and retox at the same time …

True Food Kitchen

truefoodkitchen.com
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8383 Preston Center Plaza #100
214-377-3333

Yolk Media Event

There are people who like breakfast, and then there are people who LIVE for breakfast. I fall into the latter category and have been known to eat breakfast meals at any hour of the day. Eggs, bacon, avocado, fruit, pastries, waffles — I truly believe that you can satisfy any craving with breakfast food.

That said, I’m stoked to share my experience at the newest location of breakfast favorite, Yolk! The breakfast and lunch spot’s first-ever Dallas location was right next to Tei-An in the Arts District, but now they have an even more accessible location in Preston Center! This brightly colored, family-friendly, sit down restaurant serves a variety of sweet and savory breakfast plates as well as some standard lunch fare daily until 3pm. 

I know some of you are a may want some suggestions on what to order, so I went ahead and tasted all of their best sellers for you (it’s a rough job, I know). Here’s a quick rundown of some go-to favorites that you can’t go wrong with:

Eggs Benedict: classic, rich, savory. Always a solid choice with an english muffin, Canadian bacon, poached eggs, and a side of potatoes.

Chilaquiles with Chorizo: for your Spanish side. This option comes with house made corn tortilla chips, salsa verde, avocado, jack cheese, red onion, crema, and is topped with two eggs any style. Side note — this plate is also gluten free!

Chicken & Waffles: Oooh boy. As their top selling item, it’s easy to see why people can’t get enough. Bacon waffle topped with crispy fried boneless chicken breast and sausage gravy, served with a side of warm maple syrup. 

Citrus Blast Salad: for those who aren’t always in the breakfast mood. This refreshing salad has a little bit of everything–mixed greens, grilled chicken, apple, avocado, pecan, raisin, mandarin orange, dried cranberries, bleu cheese crumbles, and mango chardonnay vinaigrette.
Heads-up: this option only comes in one, large size, so either come hungry, share, or be prepared to take some home.

Patty Melt: substantial lunch choice. Fill-er-up with this char-broiled burger, gilled onions, American cheese on grilled rye with a side of onion chips.

Stop in for some yummy breakfast and lunch options between the hours of 6am and 3pm.

YOLK
eatyolk.com
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Preston Center: 8315 Westchester Drive, 469-351-0344
One Arts Plaza: 1722 Routh Street, 214-855-YOLK
Sundance Square Fort Worth: 305 Main Street, 817-730-4000
Many locations in Illinois and Indiana, also!

Pisco Portón Celebrates Pisco Sour Day

February 4th is the 14th annual Pisco Sour Day! Taste some classic sours as well as some intriguing new takes on the Peruvian cocktail at several locations including (but not limited to) Jettison, Armory De, Quarter Bar, La Duni Northpark, Bolsa, Cafe Salsera, and Victor Tangos.

(If you’ve been a reader for a while, you’ll know that Brian and Susie are both big fans of the distilled grape spirit.)

Can’t be asked to make it out tomorrow? Make your very own Classic Pisco Sour at home!

Pisco Portón’s Classic Pisco Sour
2oz Pisco Portón
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz simple syrup
1oz egg whites
Dash of Angostura bitters

Add all the ingredients in a blender. Blend on high for 15 seconds. Stop blender and add 5 cubes of ice, then pulse the blender 5 times. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with 3 drops of Angostura bitters.

Pisco Portón
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***Header photo borrowed from the badass @beautifulbooze. If you don’t follow her on Instagram, do it now!***