Morgan_Weber

Bruce, have you tried Sylvia's? They have a good assortment.

how much do you want to spend?

Wife and I just moved into the Heights and are exploring the new neighborhood. We made our second visit to Alma Latina on Shepherd around 22nd street. Thus far we've tried the Enchiladas Suizas, Enchilades Verdes, Beef Enchiladas (fajita), Chile Relleno, and Quesadillas. All have been really good, with particular attention paid to the Chile Relleno. They serve breakfast all day long and I'm looking forward to the near future visit where I can try the Chilequilles. We're really excited to find this place within a few blocks of the house. Best, M

I'm with John. Pesce=snore. Reef for fine-ish dining and Tampico for gritty.

Thanks! Much appreciated.

Yeah, restaurants are probably the best option...g'luck

Nothing? There's nothing good to eat in Mississippi? Did I post this in the wrong section?

Whoah...good luck Chris. The best bet you might have is to crash the bars at Fearing's, Stephan Pyles, The Mansion on Turtle Creek, etc. Still, the best you'll do there probably amounts to just different takes on margaritas and what not. Dallas is kind of cocktail dry. Let us know if you find anything...

I'm going to be in Jackson, MS for two days in the middle of November. Obviously, Vicksburg is a quick jaunt down the road. I'm looking for places to eat. Suggestions? M

Alright folks. I'll see if I can remember what all we had. I have pictures that I can throw up here at later date. The night started with an amuse bouche of what I think was thinly sliced, cold pork tenderloin, wrapped around greens, with maybe an accompanying sauce to moisten things up a bit. Honestly though, I can't remember what all was with it. Also included were four squares of delicious, fried pork belly--near and dear to my heart. Course 1 was, what I can best describe as a caramelized onion strudel, presented how spring rolls might be typically presented at a nice restaurant (on end). With it were some bitter greens and sauce. Course 2 was a bacon tart with a lightly fried quail egg on top and aged balsamic--I think that is pretty accurate. Course 3 was Wahoo. I had never had Wahoo before and really dug the meaty texture. With it, were I think, maybe pickled mushrooms? All I remember about this dish was that it was awesome. Course 4 was Elysian Field Farms lamb. This lamb is from the same farm that Thomas Keller sources out to for The French Laundry and Per Se. It was cooked sous vide and was nicely rare. It was served with, I think, a sweet corn puree and possibly a fava bean puree. The texture of the lamb was unbelievable--extremely rich and flavorful. According to Tycer, the future of serving lamb from Elysian Field Farms at Textile is still up in the air because of the enormous food cost associated with it. If you do have the chance to partake, enjoy. It is pretty amazing stuff. Course 5 was all about the pumpkin. Hello Fall!! (My favorite season of the year) To call the main part of the dish something similar to the pumpkin equivalent of "molten chocolate cake" is a HUGE dumbing down of Plinio's talents, but I can't remember exactly what he called it. No offense is meant, but I'm working on what my feeble brain remembers, which is definitely a scary thing. It was served with a brown butter ice cream. Before we left, we were fortunate to go on a tour of Kraftsmen and the restaurant kitchen to say hello to the executive sous, Dax McAnear. As we returned, a plate had been brought to the table that contained shortbread, fudge, and a type of brittle. The shortbread was unlike any shortbread I've ever had. As I ate, it just seemed to explode into buttery awesomeness. Because Textile had not received its liquor license yet, we were able to take our own wine, which was nice. I have gotten word though that since our trip, they have indeed received it and the BYOB is a thing of the past. Another item to note: Arrive a little early and cozy up to the circa 18th Century "Dough Box-turned-bar" for a couple of pre-dinner cocktails from Mixologist Justin Burrows. He's doing some really interesting things--trying to expand people's minds on what the cocktail can be. He's a great compliment to Textile's forward-thinking menu. A little over a week since our meal and my mouth is still watering while recalling all that we ate. I think it was a freakin' brilliant move on Tycer's part to put the small, but intensely focused Textile in the same shared space that houses Kraftsmen. My opinion is that it could enable him to do some different things and take risks that couldn't normally be taken under different circumstances. My hope is that I'm not getting everyone's hopes up too high. This experience was obviously based on one trip, very, very soon after they opened and are of course, just my opinions. I will work on getting a copy of what we ACTUALLY ate from the degustation so I don't possibly offend anyone that was involved in cooking our meal. I'll post that errata with the pictures. Cheers. M edited to fix some of my sucky grammatical issues

My pleasure foodman. The menu that we had on Wednesday had a decent amount of a la carte items. Also offered for $85, was a 5-course degustation. The captain informed us that a 7-course was soon to be appearing, although it was not available that night. Also, it was BYOB because they hadn't gotten their liquor license yet. I think that was remedied yesterday though, so that was probably just a one-time thing. We started the meal with a tasty amuse bouche and ended it with some Kraftsmen shortbread, fudge, and brittle. It was a great way to end an evening.

We were delighted to secure a table last night at Textile for what we were told was the first full night of service. I think their soft opening for friends and family might have been on Tuesday. We went knowing that they were freshly opened and we were ready to overlook obvious opening jitters. Fortunately, and to our surprise, service at Textile mostly ran like a well-oiled machine. The dining room at Textile is a really cool blend of rustic hardware, French antiques and modern dining furniture, with of course, wonderful textiles of varying shades of whites/neutrals hanging from the ceilings. Our table had the chef’s 5-course tasting menu. Without getting into the minutiae of what that entailed, my final impression is that I cannot believe Houston finally has a restaurant that can compete on a national level. My feeling is that if Textile doesn’t improve one bit over last night’s experience and it remains exactly the same (which I’m sure they will work the minor kinks out—I’m mostly just being dramatic) it is the type of restaurant that would make itself a destination for food enthusiasts from across the country. Our meal was easily in the top five dining experiences that I have had. The flow of service was exceptional and not rushed in the least. All of our courses were thoughtfully prepared and presented, paying particular attention to balance in flavors and textures. It is obvious that Tycer is extremely sensitive to making sure the ingredients he uses are the best that are available and that everything which is paired with them enhances the flavor, not distort it. The bottom line is that in my opinion, Textile is running on a completely different level than other restaurants in Houston. It has been a long time since I left a restaurant of this caliber in our City already anticipating with great pleasure, our next visit. I really wish Tycer and McAnear the very best on a job, thus far, well done. More than that, I hope Houstonians “get” this place. It is definitely a destination I will brag about to anyone who says Houston is lagging behind on the national scene. My wife and I absolutely cannot wait to go back.

Just found a few 750ml bottles of Malacca in a tiny liquor store. I'm keeping a few for myself and figure I'll get rid of the rest. Message me if you're interested in procuring a bottle or two. M

Man, $288.00 at Amazon Free shipping...

Like Morgan, the idea of simplicity/automation is very appealing to me. Even if there are slightly higher operating costs involved, I think it would be worth it. I have a Weber Smoker, which gets the job done I suppose, but man...it is a pain to keep the temperature controlled. Keeping the fire going too, is no day of leisure. I might run down to Bass Pro Shops and pick one of these puppies up. My grandpa would probably roll over in his grave..."an electric smoker? not in my day..."

See, this is along the lines of what I was thinking. It seems like there is soooo much more control with the Bradley. I think it just makes more sense. I know some people live and die by tradition, but man, when it just seems like it makes so much obvious sense at such an easier conenience, I'm willing to give it a try. Is it worth the price jump to get the digital Bradley over the entry level one?

So I realize that even considering this equates to some sort of BBQ-ing sacrilege, but has a thread ever objectively covered the differences (good and bad) of using a traditional wood-burning smoker, versus a gas smoker, versus an electric smoker (ie. Bradley Smokers)? I grew up in South-Central Texas and I know that a majority of traditional BBQ-ers would shun a Bradley-type Smoker, but I am wondering if it is just because it is "new-fangled" technology? I do a considerable amount of BBQ-ing at home and I must say that after tending a fire throughout a night for an extra-long smoke on a brisket, can be a pain in the butt. Bradley's website claims that their wood 'bisquettes' smoke much cleaner and more concentrated than a fire--not to mention, less carcinogens (not that I care). Plus, one can keep the heat at an even temperature, which is no easy feat on a tradtional wood-burning smoker. Can anyone make a reasonable argument for a traditional wood-burning smoker over a Bradley? (and don't give me any bullshit about its not what the "top-joints" do). I'm looking for real reasons why I shouldn't click "buy now". I've got visions of smoking a brisket for as long as my heart desires, without tending a fire and checking temperatures every half hour.

To bump an old thread: While in New Orleans this last weekend at Tales of the Cocktail, we stopped by Dorignac's Grocery and to our surprise, several bottles of Suze sat on the top shelf. We bought three, but there were definitely more there. Just FYI, if anyone is interested. -Morgan

Oddly enough you could make a Blue Moon cocktail using the Creme de Violette. Here is a recipe. Also, Jamie Boudreau came up with a fizz that includes Creme de Violette. Its at the bottom of this post. Cheers. Morgan

What's the East Texas style? I believe I recall you mentioning you that before... ← Not all, but lot of places in Houston and East Texas, typically run by African-Americans (see Thelma's, Burn's, and now Pierson's. Oh and Mount Zion in Huntsville), start their ribs on the pit and finish them in foil, either on the pit or in a cooler. You don't get that nice crisp skin that you do at a Luling or Kreuz-type place, but they're usually really tender. When a person orders, lets say a sampler with sausage, brisket, and pork ribs, it is more than likely going to be served together with sauce covering everything. Usually the sauce is going to be tomato-based, but definitely on the sweeter side of things. Many times, they'll use brown sugar and/or molasses. Sometimes, but not all the time, places like Thelma's or Pierson's will also add what i call Christmas-type spices to their sauce like allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, and even coriander. For my taste, Thelma's goes a little overboard on these types of spices. Usually the beans have brisket trimmings or sausage in them and tend to air on the side of sweetness as well. The potato salad is usually bright yellow from mustard and is also a little on the sweet side. Sometimes sweet pickle relish is used in it. A side note on potato salad. We were in Austin a couple of weeks ago and went to Kreuz for lunch. I'll get into that in a later post, but I must say, their German Potatoes were awesome. They weren't mustard-based, but vinegar, salt, and pepper...maybe some herbs. I wish I had some right now.

Because I'm feeling ridiculously lazy on this day, hours before I leave for vacation, I'm just going to copy and paste my lunch experience of Pierson's & Co. BBQ, from an email I sent to jscarbor. "Ok, Pierson’s was awesome. Ribs and brisket were delicious. The pit guy said they use mesquite, which surprised me cause it didn’t overwhelm the meat. I really like their sauce too. Beans were great, they kinda reminded me of Burn’s. They seemed to have phoned it in on the potato salad and cole slaw, but that’s ok. She also let us try some peach cobbler which I liked a lot, as well as some rum-raisin bread pudding. Both were really good, but needed ice cream. She said that will be coming soon. They are ridiculously friendly and seem to genuinely care about their food. Thanks for the recommendation." I'm looking forward to more visits. Apparently they're pretty consistent. Sorry Kent, this is kind of an East Texas joint...

FWIW: A lil' something I wrote about the Darb a few months back on Drink Dogma. (shameless self-promotion...hehehehehe) ...It is a terrific drink.

Yeah. I'm always down for some cocktails and food. I'm in there weekly anyway. Say when, and if I'm in town, I'll be there. M

I'm really curious what people's opinions are of what "slack-cutting" means. Does it mean that they are not held to a standard of most other restaurants? Are Q places somehow deified? Does it mean that a smoky, poorly lit, uncomfortable place is going to have all that overlooked if it has good Q, or does that just not fit into the equation? Just as it doesn't seem to affect the rating if a Q place has few choices of food on the menu? Is it like comparing apples to oranges? What kind of slack are we talking about? ← HA! Awesome question...

or they all went to French Fry school after reading lots of bad reviews? ← Man that is funny. There are a whole host of places that I wish we could send to French Fry School.