Hibiscus: A warm evening with friends

My loves. 

I do not know why it took us so long to go to Hibiscus. I always assumed (based on the name, the hype, and the stark exterior of the restaurant along busy and bustling Henderson Avenue filled with a high concentration of "the" restaurants, bars and clubs of Dallas) that it was cold, loud, haughty, and I assumed the menu featured artfully tiny plates. I frankly thought it was just too hip for me. I am pleased to announce that all of my assumption were unfounded and completely wrong. Actually, Hibiscus is the complete opposite of what I expected, and I am already planning our next evening at this little Dallas gem.

As soon as you walk through the door you are bathed in a warm amber light given off by the low lighting and the roaring fire in the heavy stone fireplace. The floors, tables, and seating are almost molasses in color as they glow under the lighting and invite you to snuggle up into your booth and enjoy the comforting food that your taste buds are tempted with by the waft of delicious flavors and spices emanating from the kitchen. There is a lively bar, but not too crowded, perfectly sized and oriented to easily order a drink and sit for a moment before you are led to your table. I am rather impressed with their timing. We arrived for our 7:15 reservation on a Saturday night, and we were in our cozy booth within 5 or 10 minutes of our arrival, just enough time to order drinks and exchange hugs with our friends.

Our waiter was perfectly attentive, but also perfectly absent. I am not sure if that makes sense, but it is almost as if he read our minds about when we were ready to order and when not to interrupt our conversation. He also knew his stuff; wine, menu, ingredients, tastes, prices, everything.

For an appetizer we ordered Burrata and Foccacia. Oh yummy! Warm, delicate foccacia sliced into three  bites per pieces sizes (perfect to share with the table), which you then topped with tomato jam and creamy cheese. I love how we got to choose how much jam and cheese, and how we got to assemble the dish a bit ourselves. I don't know why, but I think that is fun. We didn't notice the late arrival of our dish (combination of our chatting and the fact that it really wasn't very late in arrival), but our waiter did, and without a fuss, without a to-do, he placed the dish down and said, "Due to the delay, this dish is on the house."

As for the entrees, oh my goodness the entrees! They were amazing; ample in size, flavor, imagination, comfort and beauty. I can only speak fully to my entree, but the other entrees present (only for a short while, as we all cleaned our plates!) were: The Garlic Glazed Bistro Steak with duck fat fries and fontina fondue, The Scottish Salmon with shrimp, butternut squash agnolotti, swiss chard, and romesco sauce, and The Loin Chop on Polenta which was the evening special. Also as sides for the table we polished off the rightfully acclaimed Deep Dish Mac & Cheese and the Creamy Cauliflower with Bacon & Jalapeno. Although these dishes were all phenomenal, I am pretty sure that I won dinner. I ordered the BBQ Short-rib Chop with gnocchi and horseradish gremolata, and I loved every last bite. The gnocchi were perfectly fluffy and then lightly toasted to a delicious golden color and taste (probably in a saute pan of butter), I only wish there had only been more, there were really only about 5, and they disappeared too quickly, I didn't even let Bunker try one. The short-rib literally fell of the bone, no knife needed. The sauce was slightly sweet, slightly spicy, and entirely delicious. I would say that when you go to Hibiscus that you should have at least one person at the table order the short-rib, but that person might be as selfish as myself and not share, so you should go ahead and order your own!

Our dinner dates are amazing people, and wonderful new friends. We actually met 4 years ago, set up on a blind double-date by the parents of both boys (the parents are long time close friends). If life had gone a certain way, and we had moved to California, we might have been wonderful friends for years at this point. However, we ended up moving to the other side of the country, North Carolina, and we didn't speak again, even though both couples ended up moving back to Dallas in the past two years. We both would hear about each other's lives through the boy's parents, and we finally reconnected, not over something happy, but over life going in directions we never expected. After this dinner, it is clear that we will be life long friends, connected by a common sadness and a deeper understanding of life and love. I am so thankful they have come back into our lives.

From start to finish, a heart and belly warming evening.

I dropped it :(

Mom, please help...I dropped my toy :(

Hibiscus 
2927 N. Henderson Avenue
Dallas, Texas 75206

The Capital Grille: Not a Capital Experience

I really wish that this review was positive. I had every intention of writing a glowing review of this classic steakhouse, but by the end of the meal...really by 10 minutes into the meal...it was clear that my review would be negative. Bunker and I ate at The Capital Grille about four years ago. We loved the classy ambiance, every bite of food was scrumptious and perfectly prepared, and every interaction with the attentive waitstaff was unforced and pleasant. Therefore, at the end of a very long week for both of us, we wanted to treat ourselves to a delicious and filling meal in a rather cushy setting. Based on our previous experience, Capital Grille seemed like a safe bet. Sadly, although we paid a pretty penny for our meal, it was not worth much.

We arrived about five minutes early for our 8 pm reservation on Friday night, and it was incredibly crowded, which is always great to see. I am always a bit suspicious if I walk into a restaurant and it is basically empty. I do love the feel of this place. It is warm and inviting and has the aura of a private New York City dinner club, and as it is in The Crescent, a Dallas icon, it leads one to expect a classic and memorable dining experience.

The Bar:
So, we walked into the entrance and up to the host stand. After waiting for about five minutes for someone to greet us, the host told us that our table was being put together, but that we should go to the bar for a drink and he would come and retrieve us shortly. I was a hostess once, I understand that hosting is not the most fun job, and I also understand that you lie to diners, but you at least base that lie on a little truth. I wish this host had at least hinted to the fact that they were running behind, and that what he actually meant by "putting our table together" was that the people in our table were just now eating their entrees! Oh well, Bunker and I are never ones to turn down an opportunity for a drink in a bar, and I love this bar. It is dark, masculine, and romantic; like a study in some old English country house; a study used to study Brandy or Port rather than books and papers. Anyways, you should go to the bar, it is a delightfully warm and comforting experience with attentive and engaging bar tenders, but then, go somewhere else for dinner.

Finally, we arrive at the table:
About 40 minutes after our reservation time had come and passed, we were led to a cozy booth towards the back. Oh how I love booths! Things seemed to be starting off on a great note, and I was starving at this point. Edging our way to 9 pm, we finally saw our waiter, who seemed beyond frenzied, but tried to cover this with a sycophantic affect, something that just rubs me the wrong way. He tried to take away my glass of wine which still had quite a bit of wine left from the bar! He eventually knocked it over, luckily after the wine was mostly gone. We ordered a bottle of Cakebread Chardonnay, and he insisted we give him the corresponding number on the menu rather than the actual name, I guess did not know the wine list. About 20 minutes later he finally returned with the correct wine, but not the correct year, but we decided to just hang onto the bottle, lest we wait another 20 minutes for another bottle of wine! About 30 minutes after the wine arrived, he finally got the ice bucket that we asked for. He also seemed very offended when we dared to pour our own wine into our own empty glasses (glasses that had been empty for a while)! I guess he wasn't too offended, because after that he never poured our wine again, mostly because he hardly came by the table.

I will compliment the bread basket. The bread was warm, incredibly fresh and offered a variety of flavors and styles. We were given only a tiny slice of butter. Bunker and I are true believers in the fact that butter does make everything better, so that little slice of butter disappeared quickly.  Our waiter was emphatic that he would bring more butter right away. Well, we didn't see him again until our main courses arrived. So much for the butter.  

As for the food:
Bunker ordered both specials. For an appetizer he got the scallops wrapped in prosciutto with seasonal vegetables, and for his main course he got the lobster tail and sirloin. The scallops were rather dry and the vegetables were rather sad looking. The whole dish seemed like something from a Top Chef quick fire, where the idea is there for a potentially successful dish, but the chef ran out of time and just had to throw everything on the plate. It was crying for seasoning and a sauce to pull the disparate parts together. His entree was not bad at all, but also not great. When the bill came, it was clear that the waiter quoted a much lower price for this special. I do not think he did this intentionally, I think he was overwhelmed and was unable to give us his full attention.

My food was not great. I ordered the Filet Mignon, it is what I always order at steak restaurants, and I always order it Rare Plus. I learned this term years ago at Al Biernets, an iconic Dallas steakhouse. I used to always order my steak medium rare, but it was just a bit too done for my taste, and so I asked one night for medium rare, but closer to rare than medium. The waiter that evening told me how to order my steak from then on, and every time since then, I have ordered my steak rare plus, and every time it has been perfectly red  and warm in the center....key term being warm. So, I ordered my filet at Capital Grille rare plus, the waiter hesitated and I said, yes, I want my filet rare plus. When it finally came out, it looked beautiful on the outside, but then I cut into it, and it really looked completely raw, like how you would sear a tuna, black and blue. But I thought perhaps it was the lighting, and so I took a bite, and my goodness, a large part of the center was icy cold. Icy cold! So I very politely told the waiter that my filet was more raw than rare plus, and that I would like it cooked a bit more. He seemed obliging, and then returned with my steak after Bunker had pretty much finished his, he sat it down and asked "So let me know how you think it is done now?". Ouch! That was just rude. I know what rare plus is...and a cold raw steak is not rare plus. I will say that the steak was very good when it was returned, still red in the the center but warm.

As for the sides, what an after thought! We ordered creamed corn and mashed potatoes. They came out when my steak came back out after being refired, a good 20 minutes after our initial entrees were sat down.

I will say that the waiter knew we had been rather neglected the whole evening, and so he brought us two desserts for free. I wish restaurants would at least ask what desserts you wanted rather than just giving you what they have extras of in the kitchen. Neither Bunker nor I are huge dessert people anyways, so we didn't really even want them. But the waiter brought me their "famous" Coconut Cream Pie. It might have been great, but no amount of accolades will ever make me like anything with coconut in it. Bunker, my husband who doesn't really like sweets and really doesn't care for chocolate, was given the Chocolate Hazelnut Cake. So, we boxed up the chocolate cake and took it to my dad today, someone who does love sweets and chocolate!

In Conclusion:
Bunker and I honestly laughed about what a failure of a night it was at a few points in the meal. I will say that the support staff was on the ball, our water glasses were constantly filled to the brim. I think our waiter was in way over his head, and at some point, he should have asked for help. Instead, he left us feeling superfluous and almost like inconveniences to his evening. In a vibrant restaurant city like Dallas, with as many fabulous locally owned restaurant choices as you can imagine, a large number of those being steakhouses, a large chain like The Capital Grille might be superfluous, and it has certainly lost us as customers.  

The Porch: New American Food

It's recruiting time at work and as a result I had the pleasure of taking a few of our candidates for dinner at The Porch earlier this week. The Porch is located on Henderson Avenue just east of Central and serves updated comfort food dishes in a neighborhood bar type atmosphere. The bar is always inventing new cocktails based on seasonal items, so if you decide to come here for dinner, get there a little early and grab a drink. Last fall I tried their Hatch Chile Martini and was compelled by the combination of spicy chile, sweet lime and tequila. 

Now back to dinner. We decided to start off the meal with a couple of appetizers since we were all hungry. The Spinach Parmesan dip is served with fresh tortilla chips and is divine. I found that it was the appropriate balance of spinach and cheese and while certainly rich, it's not as heavy as many spinach dips can be. Our other appetizer was the Calamari and Rock Shrimp Fritto Misto which was served with sweet peppers and a lemon aioli sauce for dipping. The peppers had a slight bite and were a nice contrast to the sweetness of the aioli. It was a great start to things.

Every evening the chef decides what specials will be offered that day and they are displayed on a large backboard and referred to as "Big Board Specials". That night one of the Big Board offerings was Chicken Meatballs with Ricotta Gnocchi and Mushrooms in a White Wine Cream Sauce. I'll be honest, I was a little disappointed in the result. I have come to really enjoy chicken meatballs at other restaurants, and I found these to be dry, slightly tough and without a lot of flavor. The mushrooms didn't provide much flavor either, which was disappointing as I usually find mushrooms to be a great addition to any pasta with cream sauce. Finally, I guess I'm just an old fashioned potato gnocchi girl because I found the ricotta gnocchi to be too sweet and with a texture that was not to my liking. I don't think I would recommend this plate, it was too rich and lacked flavor all at once, which is hard to do.

My coworker ordered the brisket enchiladas and I must say they looked divine. Their appearance along with the fact that he cleaned his plate confirm that they were quite delicious. The brisket is finely shredded, wrapped in a corn tortilla and topped with red chile enchilada sauce. They definitely looked as though they would be worth trying next time. One of our recruits ordered the Country Club with the Tomato, Cucumber and Basil salad and it too looked amazing. The sandwich was served on hearty slices of white bread, perfectly toasted and filled with the delicious combination of smoked turkey, smoked ham, thick peppered bacon, cheddar, and provolone and the salad looked crisp and refreshing, a nice delicate contrast to the hearty sandwich. Our other recruit ordered the cheeseburger and it too looked delicious. At the conclusion of the meal I asked my companions for their verdict and all were pleased to confirm that they thoroughly enjoyed their meal. I guess I just made the wrong choice this time.

While parts of this most recent experience were disappointing, the atmosphere continued to impress and the service was impeccable. Based on what my dinner companions ordered, I think I will definitely try one of their choices next time and I'm confident I won't be disappointed and besides, there's always their cocktail menu. :)