Object of Desire

Dallas Chop House – Very Average

I was really stoked to go to the Dallas Chop House this last weekend. Chef Kenny Mills. replete in 10 Gallon hat,  was eager to show us his Himalayan salt lined beef aging cellar. That, sadly, was the highlight of the evening.

Chicken vegetable soup was very bland and uninteresting. My main course of ribeye, replete with four chili dry-rub was so salty to be almost inedible. The onion rings & steak fries were also buggered because of the insane amount of salt on them. The Maque  Choux corn melange was good, as were the pop-overs. But over-all the ridiculous amount of salt made many dishes inedible.

The owner (?) came over and worked the crowd, cruising thru asking if everything was OK. My fellow diners, being genteel folk, said it was all good, but I had to let him know that many dishes were ridiculously salty. He didn’t like this and moved on fast- he looked half-baked.

The deserts were ok. The carrot cake got the table in a lather, mostly, I feel, because they have not had a steamed pudding before. The creme brulée was fine but  nothing to write home about.

I am much more discriminating than most in that I eat out more than most. There are at least five steak houses in Dallas that are much better than this. Perry’s is my current favourite – although Patrys, Lawrys & Ocean Prime have to be right up there. For $175 for two including small amounts of wine it was a very expensive night out for very average quality and service.

Management’s behavior made me highly unlikely to visit again. Dallas has too many good steak houses to mess with places that do not revere the customer.  Here, for what it’s worth, is the beef aging cabinet.

Motown Night at El Ranchito

Hager Ranch

Spent an all too brief visit at The Hager Ranch, San Saba, TX. Flickr link here.

Hager Ranch, Feb 2010-134

Ft Worth Ave Work Prints Show

A bunch of local shooters have been photographing Ft. Worth Ave.  attempting to create a record of every block.  There are great plans afoot for this corridor and a need to capture it as it is now was realised. We hope to do it again in 10 years, 20 years etc etc. It should be a fun night.

Here some blurb…

Haley Henman Gallery hosts a two-day exhibit ‘Work Prints’ Commerce Street Bridge to Westmoreland Road; a Time Capsule.  It will feature the work of 20 local photographers who each focused on different properties – assigned by lottery – on Fort Worth Ave. Photographers include Les Hall, Kenda North, Howard Milner, Scott Jenke, Charles Reed, Joshua King, John O’Donnell, Ken Smith, Adam Fish, Kent Barker, Dan Piassick, Jeff Baker, Richard Doherty, Manuel Pacina, Larry Travis, Scott Keith, Robin Sachs, Eva Gordon, Mari Hidalgo, and David Lyles.

The opening reception is Fri., Feb. 26 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.; the exhibit will be open for viewing that Friday and Sat. the 27th. There will be a Mexican corn, nachos &  hot dog carts parked out front as well as appetizers from Buena Vista restaurant inside along with wine water & soft drinks.  A list of delicious local eateries will be available at the door for further exploration of this unique area of Dallas.

Photo by Eva Gordon

Haley Henman Gallery
2335 Hardwick St.
Dallas, TX 75208
(214) 749-1277

Make Perfectly Cooked Sous Vide Steaks On the Cheap

Make Perfectly Cooked Sous Vide Steaks On the Cheap

This Is What Happens When You Move To NOLA

My pal Robert. Fat Tuesday 2010, New Orleans.

Ask the Pilot – Salon.com

Wonderful writing by Patrick Smith on Salon.com. Gives us an insight into the emotions & fears of an airline pilot. I love this behind the scenes stuff…

Though perhaps that’s a good thing as well. We’re all afraid of flying on some level, and is that not perfectly healthy? And the pilot’s job, in essence, is the management of contingency. Fires, explosions, physics gone bad, all the nasty scenarios the simulator instructors love — they’re all there, coiled behind the instrument panel, waiting to spring in a game of comfortable, though never perfect, odds. And the pilot’s role is to spring right back. Do pilots worry about crashing? Of course. As a matter of practicality, they have to. It’s in their best interest, and yours too.

via Ask the Pilot – Salon.com.

Ferrari-owners dream garage grinds neighbors gears – latimes.com

Ferrari-owners dream garage grinds neighbors gears – latimes.com.

Gigapixel Image of Mission Motel, Dallas.

Click to see it in all the pixelocity….