Patina Green

Disclaimer-This blog post is going to be a little different from most of my previous posts.  I am going to be talking more about an item on the menu, rather than the restaurant itself.

Patina Green has claim to the best sandwich in Texas; at least according to the Food Network.  The network rated the restaurant's Ham and Cheese Sandwich as the best in Texas.  My wife has raved about this sandwich for over and year and has begged me to try it for some time, but I have never one to go out of my way to eat a sandwich.  She frequents Patina Green and almost always gets their highly acclaimed Ham and Cheese Sandwich.

Well, I finally let her talk me into eating this sandwich.  One bite of this sandwich was all it took to understand all the hype that surrounded it.  So what items make this sandwich so good?  It has ham, smoked cheddar cheese, jalapeno cheddar bread, and jalapeno peach jelly.  All of these items come from local producers in the North Texas area. 

Patina Green Ham and Cheese Sandwich

I am usually not a big fan of sandwiches, but I can tell you that I was very surprised by how amazing this sandwich actually is.  The ingredients blend into an unbelievably good sandwich.  The one item that I was skeptical about was the jalapeno peach jelly.  I love jalapenos and peaches, but I couldn't get my mind around how they would taste together.  The jelly has the sweet flavor of peaches, but also has a little kick from the jalapeno.  I obviously haven't tried every sandwich in Texas to verify that it is the best in Texas, but I can tell you that it is absolutely perfect. 

Patina Green's Ham and Cheese Sandwich
http://www.patinagreenhomeandmarket.com/real-food
Livin the Good Life Rating = 5

Al Biernat's

My wife waiting to be seated.   She is quite possibly the only person I know who would coordinate her cast and nail color.

When looking over the restaurants for DFW Restaurant Week, there were several menus that sounded great.  Picking the right place is a very stressful experience for foodies during Restaurant Week.  Looking at the list, I saw several highly touted local restaurants.  While perusing the list, I began to empathize with those that have to judge the Ms. America contest or a woman picking out the engagement ring of her dreams.  It is really hard to just pick one restaurant from the amazing choices in front of you.

It literally took us two weeks to decide which restaurant we wanted for our night out.  After a lot of back and forth, we finally decided on Al Biernat's.  I had not been to this restaurant in several years and my wife had never been, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to reacquaint myself with this local favorite.  In addition participating in restaurant week, this restaurant was recently chosen as one of D Magazine's 100 Best Restaurants in Dallas.

Delicious Bread Basket

One of the reason's that we chose Al Biernat's is because they had a pretty extensive menu compared to other restaurants participating in DFW Restaurant Week.  My wife and I both started with the Caesar Salad.  The salad had very crisp romaine lettuce, a very flavorful dressing, and just the right amount of Parmesan cheese.

Caesar Salad

For my entree, I chose the beef tenderloin with red potatoes and green beans.  The beef tenderloin was cooked to perfection and was extremely tender.  It was topped with a port wine foie gras sauce that was absolutely delicious.  The green beans were very fresh and the buttery potatoes were outstanding.  My wife ordered  the sliced Texas Premium Wagyu-Angus steak.  She was very happy with her choice of entrees and I enjoyed the bite that she gave me.  

Beef Tenderloin with Al's Favorite Potatoes and Green Beans

Sliced Texas Premium Wagyu Steak with Amelia's Farm Tomato Bruschetta

For our final course, I chose the "old fashioned" chocolate cake and my wife chose the carrot cake.  The chocolate cake was good, but the icing tasted remarkably similar to the Pepperidge Farm chocolate cake.  That isn't necessarily a bad thing, because I happen to relish that particular delicacy that can be found in the freezer section of your local supermarket.  My wife absolutely loved her carrot cake; so much so that she did not even offer to share a bite with me.  She claimed it was the best carrot cake she had ever tasted.  

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake

I really enjoyed this visit to Al Biernat's.  All three courses were delicious, but the main course was definitely the most memorable. The place was extremely packed and was very loud, but it did not detract from the dining experience.  The service was absolutely top notch, despite the large crowd.  Al Biernat's absolutely gets a thumbs up and I left feeling like I had made the right choice for Restaurant Week!

Al Biernat's
https://www.albiernats.com/
Livin The Good Life Rating= 4

Buffalo Bluez

Buffalo Bluez is restaurant that opened up in Plano earlier this year.  Executive Chef Sean Cahill's newest joint specializes in burgers, but also serves chicken sandwiches, chicken fried steak, wraps, wings, and a few other items.  This burger joint occupies a building that  previously housed a Jack In The Box.  When I journeyed here last weekend, I was under the misconception that a place with buffalo in it's name served buffalo burgers.  I asked the waitress if the burgers were buffalo, but she said that they were in fact beef.  Either way, I have been hearing good things about this place and couldn't wait to try the burgers.

Inside seating area 

I ordered the Buffalo in the Hen House Burger, which was a burger patty topped with melted cheese, bacon, and a fried egg.  The burger comes with fries, but I also ordered a side of onion rings.  The burger looked great and tasted even better.  It had a nice flavor to it and was very juicy.  The flavors of the egg, bacon, and cheese blended together nicely with the burger patty and bun.  The fries were house made and were very impressive.  They were some of the best fries I have had in quite some time.  The onion rings were very tasty as well.  The batter had a good crunch and the rings very evenly cooked.

Buffalo in the Hen House with house made fries

Onion Ringz

Buffalo Bluez certainly did not disappoint on this visit.  Since this place is only a short drive from my home and from work, I can definitely see myself going back here.  Even though you order at the counter, they do have waitresses that bring your food and get you refills.  The wait staff was very friendly and the service was very good.  The burgers, fries, and onion rings were all really good, but next time I will have to try one of the chicken sandwiches and a milkshake!  Buffalo Bluez is without a doubt one of the better burger joints I have tried in Collin County.

Buffalo Bluez
http://buffalobluez.com
Livin The Good Life Rating = 3

Neighborhood Services

The Livin The Good Life Wife and I recently celebrated our 7th anniversary.   Our main anniversary tradition is to treat ourselves to a "fancy" meal.  Being the wild and crazy suburbanites that we are, we decided it was once again time for us to venture South of 635 for some fine dining.  For this particular anniversary dinner, we decided to try Neighborhood Services.  This restaurant is a favorite of my in-laws and we have been meaning to try it for some time.  Recently D Magazine rated it the #1 restaurant in their 100 Best Restaurants in Dallas rankings.  I also want to apologize in advance for the horrible pictures.  The Livin The Good Life Wife apparently gets embarrassed when I use the flash to take pictures while we eat.  Since it was our anniversary dinner, I abided by her request to not use the flash.

We arrived right on time for our 7:30 reservations and were seated immediately.  The restaurant had a vibrant bar scene filled with people who didn't have reservations and every table was filled in the dining area.  I really wanted to try the fried asparagus for an appetizer, but my wife does not eat asparagus.  After discussing which appetizer we would share, we settled on the roasted green chile and jonah crab dip.  It turns out that we made an excellent choice.  The crab dip was one of the best crab dips I have ever had and the chips were crispy and lightly seasoned.  It also came with a charred tomato and cucumber salsa.  The salsa was good, but it could not hold a candle to the crab dip.

Green Chile and Jonah Crab Dip

Neither of us wanted to have a whole salad before the meal, so we split the Tennessee Bacon and Vital Farms Egg salad.  The spinach salad had bacon, candied walnuts, and a sherry vinaigrette.  A fried egg and crostini (toast) was served on top of it.  It was a very unusual combination of tastes, but it blended well.  We both enjoyed the salad, although it was hard to find the "salad" at first because the fried egg and crostini covered all of the spinach.

Tennessee Bacon and Vital Farms Egg Salad

For my meal, I got the pork chop, which was served on a bed of succotash.  My wife got one of the daily fish specials, which was swordfish and fingerling potatoes.  We also ordered a side of the Three Jack and Mac Casserole (aka mac n' cheese).  My pork chop was delicious and cooked to perfection.  The outside was charred, yet juicy and it had a great seasoning on it.  The succotash was somewhat disappointing.  I usually love blacked eyed peas, but they were undercooked for my taste and did not go well with the corn and green beans in the succotash.  My wife also enjoyed her swordfish.  She was kind enough to give me a bite and I was impressed with the taste.  We both thought the Three Jack and Mac Casserole was good, but it was very rich.  I don't think I could have eaten the whole thing myself.

Pork Chop and Succotash

Swordfish and fingerling potatoes

By the time we had finished our meal, we were both too full to sample any desserts.  I am not sure that I agree with D Magazine that Neighborhood Services is the best restaurant in Dallas, but I would definitely put it in my top 10.  The service was amazing, despite the fact that the place was packed to the gills.  We will return to Neighborhood services because there are many menu items that we both want to try.

Neighborhood Services
http://neighborhoodservicesdallas.wordpress.com/the-original/
Livin The Good Life Rating = 5

Three Squares

This seems to be the summer of new restaurants in Frisco.  Of course with the growth the city is experiencing, I guess you could probably say that for the last twelve years.  Some work colleagues and I were wanting to go eat lunch somewhere new, so we decided to try Three Squares.  The restaurant recently opened up on July 4th in the Forest Park Medical Center area, which is just a short distance from Frisco Square.

Interesting use of books

The space is decorated in a very contemporary design.  They also have a very large covered patio area that would have been a very nice place to sit, had it not been July.  They serve breakfast lunch and dinner, hence the name.  This is a very causal dining experience.  Customers order at the counter, get your own drinks, and find a seat while waiting for your order to arrive.  

Kettle Chips and Salsa

For starters, I ordered the chips and smoky salsa.  Although they have many sandwiches and other items, I was really in the mood for a burger.  I ordered the Plain Jane burger and tater tots. The kettle chips and salsa were fantastic, but it was odd eating something other than tortilla chips with salsa.  The burgers came on a bun that is branded with the Three Squares logo.  It had a great chargrilled flavor, but was a little dry for my taste.  The tater tots were very light and crispy. One coworker ordered the ABC burger and said it was really good.  Another ordered the Honey I'm Home ham sandwich and absolutely loved it.

Plane Jane burger and Tots

By the time I finished my meal, I did end up having some serious entrée envy.  As I went to get some more water, I saw an order of the Potato Chip Crusted Mahi Mahi on a bed of jalapeno cheddar grits.  That menu item will certainly be ordered during my next visit.  Three Squares also had some great  sounding breakfast menu items such as the s'mores French toast and the Todo's Burrito.  All of us were pleased with Three Squares and happy to have another lunch place to add to our lunch rotation.

Three Squares
http://threesquaresfrisco.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating = 3