Dallas Eats, Part 2

We got a couple of recommendations for eats 

A good friend mentioned a taqueria right across the street from Bolsa's where she loves getting the barbacoa tacos.  

We ordered two barbacoa and one al pastor.  We found a spot to sit on the bench on the side of the building to enjoy the "appetizer" part of our meal.

I'd never had barbacoa before - and if you haven't either, it's beef head meat.  It's not bad, but was a little too fatty of a consistency for my taste.  

Now gimme some al pastor (pork).  Whatever that meat had been marinated in, is the stuff that makes angels sing.  You'll notice we didn't take a picture until after we'd nearly eaten all of it.  I don't feel bad about that at all - and neither would you if you were there.

A friend recommended Bolsa's which was right across the street but after looking at the menu, I was in the mood for something a little less urban gourmet chic.  We thought, hey, we can get pizza and pulled pork sandwiches just about anywhere.  I think it would have been a great meal but when you've got your heart set on spicy and exotic meaty things, well, it's hard to talk your stomach into anything else.  (At least, that's how my food cravings work.  There's absolutely no compromise.)

Bolsa is in a really cool old garage and it's a great-looking restaurant.  Upstairs is a millinery shop - wish I'd gone in! 

So we walked across to the other side of the street to Gloria's.  Gloria's has been in Dallas for close to 40 years and is known for its El Salvadorian cuisine.  This ain't Mexican.  This is Gloria's.  Get ready.

We got to the table and at first it felt like we'd gotten a table at just any Mexican cantina. Just forgive the writer her ignorance in advance...

Our waiter brought fresh chips and salsa to the table along with a little bowl of refried black beans.  Yummo.  We also asked for some fresh guacamole, too.  Notice how the light shone through the window from the heavens above to perfectly to accent the food.

W filled me in on how El Salvadorian was different from "Mexican" food - more tomato-based sauces and such.  You can see how much sunk in before I got completely sidetracked.  He ordered a flank steak something or other and I got the ceviche tostada.  Just because I can't remember the name doesn't mean it wasn't good - it was (insert adjective here)!!!  Words don't do it justice.  It came with tortillas to make a meat sandwich - or perhaps a steak taco...

I foolishly wondered if my ceviche tostada was going to live up to my expectations.  The scallops were marinated in lime juice, cointreau and tossed with herbs.

I couldn't get enough.  This was tart, decadent, fresh, flavorful, unforgettable.

I can't even begin to tell you a. how incredible this meal was b. how I can't stop dreaming about it c. and even a month later, I can still almost taste it.  It was fabulous.  


Don't even mention the fact that we'd already had a little sompn'-sompn' across the street mere minutes ago.  I don't want to hear it.  

So, after the gorge-fest unforgettable lunch experience, we rolled wandered back through the Bishop Arts District to another favorite stop during the trip:  The Soda Gallery.

For Jacksonians who remember the Fondren Beverage Emporium, the Soda Gallery is the same concept but I will say that the FBE had a much larger selection of both sodas and vintage candies. 

Of course the store was as kitschy cool as can be.  I could have recovered hung out in there for hours!

In the back part of the store, they had pop art!  And you've gotta check out the bathroom.

This was the funnest bathroom experience ever. Soda labels covered the walls and the floor was the brightly painted pattern - oh, I can't remember who designed it but it was also an Apples in Stereo album cover as well (one of my favorites).

They had lists on the wall of what was new and what flavors were being retired: RIP!

After exploring the store we made our selections and I was also excited to buy a bag of bottle caps they sold to add to my collection from FBE!

And challenged each other to a mean game of Chinese checkers.   

He beat me.

Dallas Eats, Part 1

W wanted to take me to a well-known section of the city called Oak Cliff.  Oak Cliff is a world unto itself and as W told me, the neighborhood has tried to secede from the city of Dallas (unsuccessfully) numerous times!  We visited the Bishop Arts District, ate lunch and did some window shopping.

We wandered around window shopping because much of the district is dark on Mondays.  W was craving beef panang so we stopped for lunch at Thai Chan (I think that's it - totally forgot to take a picture).  This was just the tip of the iceberg as far as food is concerned!

beef panang below (or what was left of it)

I got Mussoman with chicken.  Don't even remember what it was but it was incredible.  I mean, just look at the sauce!

It's nice to look at the pictures again and somewhat relive the experience.

Afterward we did a little window shopping because mostly everything is dark on Mondays; but we made mental notes about what we had to come back to see.

I'd say, the best find during the entire trip was spotting this store:

Dude, Sweet Chocolate was open for a few hours on Monday, much to our delight. 

We walked in to the lovely, funky shop and were immediately welcomed by voiced telling us we could try whatever might sound interesting!  Chocolate.  Twist my arm. 

Chef Katherine Clapner nabbed the much-deserved 2010 Best of Big D Best Chocolatier.  They also sell ice cream and other lovely things.  We didn't even get to that part, being sidetracked by the shelves of chocolate confections...and being full from lunch.  Damned delicious Thai food! 

 

Chef Katherine Clapner's background is as a pastry chef who turned a passion for decadent chocolate into the tastiest storefront ever.  Here's a blurb from a 2009 article in the Pegasus News:

"Clapner procures chocolate from Colombia, Venezuela, and Africa, to which she adds exotic flavors such as curry, paprika, bee pollen, and Thai ginger. She fabricates the creamy flavored centers using high-end ingredients such as butter from Lucky Layla Farms, then dips them in chocolate, creating small truffle-like chocolates which she sells in boxed collections...

With her use of Mexican, Moroccan, Indian, and Peruvian spices, her flavorings reflect the cuisines she's been exposed to at restaurants such as Stephan Pyles, where she previously worked."

I've never been a fan of dark chocolate, yet have had some European kinds and it changed my opinion.  Dude, Sweet Chocolate will rock your world, my friend.  It was a scream to hear them answer the phone, "Dude, sweet chocolate." 

Just look at the choices and the cool packaging.

There were sweets and savories of all shapes and sizes.  How in the world do you choose?  There's the chef in the background, working hard.  Must be a terrible job... 

The flavor combo may sound really weird to you, but the Cheesehead popcorn was my hands-down favorite.  It was white cheddar popcorn drizzled with caramel and white chocolate.  Yes, sounds funky but was ohmygoshshutupyouregonnaloveit!  That was the one thing I didn't actually buy at the time, promised myself I'd come back the next day and get it, but didn't after all regret. 

Some savories, like below, had sea salt and bleu cheese while others had varieties of mushrooms or various herbs.   Wow!  We tried the Albatros and it was very good.

We bought ourselves some Crack in a Box on recommendation and it is good though not my fav overall. 

This next one has my heart.  Rosebud is absolutely divine.  Lovely dark chocolate truffles with rose petal jam.  I can't even describe the experience.  Suffice it to say that once the dark chocolate spoils of our shopping excursion made it home, they didn't last long.  The only thing that didn't get touched was the box we got for our friend who was watching out kitties.  Consider yourself fortunate, Katie.  It might not have made it home to Jackson. 

There's officially a dark-chocolate-sized hole in my heart right now...

Go Rangers!

I'm not a sports person.  I won't watch it on TV.  It's kind of boring.

Our family was one of a Southern minority in that we did not grow up in a college or pro football allegiance house (Ok, so I watched the Saints win the Superbowl but that's different).  Truth be told, I could care less about football season.  Basketball.  Eh.  Don't care much about that either. 

Baseball?  Well, that's a different story.  The fun is in the live-action game.  Now that's where I get interested.  

I like hearing W's memories of going to see the Rangers play.  They'd take hot dogs, the prerequisite Dr. Pepper, sit on the grassy knoll and watch them win and lose.  Frankly, listening to W and his StepDad talk baseball is inspiring.  I had no idea there was that much that goes into the game - the whole science and particulars of it.  They also know their baseball history, too, throwing names around, batting averages and history-making plays, which is even more fascinating.

The Parents took us to a Sunday afternoon Rangers game at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.  It was my first pro game, although I'd been to the Memphis Chicks games and also when they turned into the AAA Redbirds.  W pointed out to me very early on, it's just not the same!  We had such a great time.  

The Rangers were playing the Boston Red Sox that day.  Pretty cool.  Teams I'd heard of! 

 

Below, another view of the stadium from our seats behind home plate.  Great job Mom & Dad Lee!  

They wetted down the dirt before the game began.

Initially, our seats were right in the blistering sun.  One of the volunteers told us the shade would hit us around 330p...seeing as it was an hour away, we moved up into the stands where the shade had already hit.  The stadium was beginning to fill up but it wasn't at full capacity because of the heat. 

 

The triple digit heat was stifling and our rear ends melted into the chairs.  Everyone were sweaty messes.  I can't imagine how miserable it must have been for the fellas in polyester uniforms on the ground...or for the vendors.  We were all in it together, that's for sure...If you're thinking what I'm thinking, then we're both glad the summer heat has turned a corner (even ever so slightly) into cooler autumn temps!

I will not be able to tell you a play by play or a who's who of this game.  I can tell you, there were balls, strike outs, home runs, plates stolen, 7th inning stretch and songs sung!  How's that?  

We had a great time watching the Rangers whip the Red Sox!

 

I'm glad I brought my super sonic zoom lens along - it helped get some good shots of the game and also served as binoculars, too.

 

Awww!  Someone proposed!

We also sang the Texas National Anthem...haha

It wasn't the highest scoring game but at least the Rangers played good defense.  Do I sound knowledgeable?

Somebody struck out.

 

 Gimme some Cotton Eye'd Joe!

Walter tells me this guy, Matzusaka, is a big deal pitcher.  Ok.  Cool.

This is what amazed me...how a human being can throw a ball so damn fast.

Rangers guy makin' it home.

 

During one of the pitches, a player swung and the bat broke in two.  Crazy!

 And...the moral of the story is...Rangers won!  

Wasn't that exciting??...thus the lightening bolts!

Yay!  We won!!  We're thrilled!  Now let's find some A/C pronto.

.

Afterwards, kids can wait the line that wraps around the stadium, to go run the bases just like the pros do.  I'm sure if you're a kid, the prospect would be unbeatable, even in that heat and kids probably think the adults are being wimps.  Yes and yes.

From the top of the stadium, you get a great view of what Dallas residents call "The Death Star" or rather, the brand-spanking new Cowboys stadium. 

Want to take a peek inside?  Open for VIP tours if you want to pay about $30 or the self-guided tour will be $12.  Seriously?  (Here's where I insert my ambivalence to football.)  And it really does look like a spaceship.

And, really, what's a terrific game day without finding ironic signage just for you, dear reader?

Get your hair done at Eunice's.  She's even got one of those new-fangled websites.  These days her hands are a bit shaky and she can't see real well, but she'll do a mighty fine job if you ain't too particular.  If you are, run next door for a little of what they call "damage control."