Sugarbacon Proper Kitchen

There are some restaurants that have such catchy names that they seem to draw you to them.  Sugarbacon Proper Kitchen, in downtown McKinney, is one of those restaurants.  What is there not to love about sugar and bacon?  I think bacon is so amazing that it should be it's own food group!  Foodies in Collin County and particularly those in McKinney, have eagerly awaited this restaurant's opening.  This brainchild of former Jasper's GM Johnny Carros and Jon Thompson, former executive chef at Stampede 66, opened it's doors to the public in late June.

Bar at Sugarbacon

Naturally, the Sugarbacon appetizer was the first item I tried.  The restaurant's namesake did not disappoint and is an absolutely delectable little bite.  This appetizer consists of smoked Berkshire pork belly that is basted in ancho barbecue sauce and served atop a crostini with bread-and-butter pickles.  The Sugarbacon here is tender and the ancho barbecue sauce has outstanding flavor.

Sugarbacon

I have also been impressed with the few entrees and sandwiches that I have tried.  It seems that everyone is doing Shrimp and Grits these days, but Sugarbacon does it much better than most.  The shrimp were perfectly cooked, had a tasty glaze on them, and sat atop some very fine grits that had a cheesy flavor to them. 

Shrimp and Grits

Of the sandwiches that I have tried, the Pulled Berkshire Pork Sandwich is my favorite.  The pork was extremely tender, had great flavor, and was topped with the barbecue sauce and some terrific cole slaw.  As good as the sandwich was, the house cut fries certainly don't play second fiddle to the sandwiches.  I don't know how else to describe them other than simple, salted, and amazing.  I could have eaten baskets full of them.

Pulled Berkshire Pork Sandwich

The SB Burger was also fantastic, although somewhat messy.  The burger is made with wagyu beef that comes from local favorite, Local Yocal.  The beef itself was excellent, but the flavor really goes over the top when you add a slab of sugarbacon slathered in ancho sauce, cheddar, garlic mayo, and b+b pickles on a buttered bun.  I also sampled the Griddled Cheese Sandwich, which included mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes, and sunflower pesto spread.  The pesto was quite unique and really gave the sandwich a flavor that was unusual, yet pleasing.

SB Burger 

Griddled Cheese Sandwich 

I have only tried one dessert, but I would be doing you a disservice if I did not recommend it to you.  The Chocolate Hazelnut Icebox Pie is a killer dessert.  It was so good, that we actually ordered it again on our second visit and didn't even consider ordering anything else.  The chocolate is very rich, has a great texture, and is served atop what tasted like a shortbread crust and topped with whipped cream.

Chocolate Hazelnut Icebox Pie

It definitely appears that downtown McKinney has another tasty and quirky gem that is fit for foodies.  Everything we have tried so far has been top notch and the service has matched the food.  When I first moved to McKinney, there was only a handful of restaurants on the square and now there are several outstanding restaurants.  I would rank Sugarbacon right on up there with the best in the area!

Sugarbacon Proper Kitchen
http://sugarbacon.com/#/
Livin the Good Life=4

Knife

Between work and trips out of town, my wife and I didn't have time to celebrate our anniversary in July.  After checking our calendars and securing babysitting, we did finally have a belated anniversary dinner at John Tesar's new steakhouse, Knife.  Knife opened in May and has been receiving a lot of press lately.  You may or may not be following the feud between the very talented and sometimes controversial chef, Tesar, and food critic, Leslie Brenner.  Having sampled some of the restaurant's goods at a media event I attended, I was quite anxious to have dinner at Knife.  

Knife's Dry Aging Room

Soon after we arrived and ordered drinks, a relish tray arrived with a variety of fresh vegetables, beef jerky, and Green Goddess dressing.  Never being people to shun bacon, my wife and I started with the bacon tasting.  The bacon tasting consisted of five varieties of bacon served on a wooden board.   I enjoyed this unique experience and would have to say that the applewood smoked bacon was my favorite, but my wife preferred the Benton's bacon. We also enjoyed the cherry cured bacon and the bacon jam.

Bacon Tasting

As great as the bacon and relish tray was, I was here for the beef. There are so many cuts of beef available it was hard to choose which steak I wanted to try on my first visit to Knife.  After being somewhat indecisive,  I finally ordered the 44 Farms long bone ribeye (medium rare).  My bone-in ribeye was cooked to perfection, was extremely flavorful,  and very tender.  I shared some of this large steak with my wife and she loved it as well.  It was unquestionably one of the best steaks I have had in DFW.

44 Farms Long Bone Ribeye

My wife elected to order one of the "new school" steaks on the menu.  Not knowing a great deal about these steaks, she chose the chuck flap (medium rare).  When cooked, this steak is similar in appearance to a filet or a thick-cut sirloin.  My wife only took a couple of bites of this steak because she thought it had an awful flavor.  I took a couple of bites as well and found it almost inedible.  I am not sure if the cut of steak did not agree with our palate or if we just received a bad piece of meat.  As perfect as my ribeye was, the chuck flap was beyond disappointing.

Chuck Flap

For sides, we chose the onion rings and the avocado fries.  Both of these arrived several minutes after our steaks arrived, which was not ideal.  The tempura fried onion rings and the avocado fries both had a light batter that was very crispy and tasty.  I really liked the unique taste of the fried avocado, but I would have preferred them in smaller  slices.  A flavorful remoulade was served with the avocado fries and I thought it was a perfect complement to this dish.

Avocado Fries

Onion Rings

I will admit that I was more than stuffed after an appetizer, steak, and two sides, but I couldn't leave Knife without having dessert.  While at the media preview event, I sampled the dark chocolate dessert and fell in love with it.  Although several desserts sounded great, I felt compelled to get this dessert again.  This particular dessert is a flour-less chocolate cake with blonde, milk, and dark chocolate.  You also get to choose a flavor of ice cream to go with it and I chose the dark chocolate.  The dessert was just as amazing as I remembered and I savored every bite. 

Dark Chocolate

My first official trip to Knife was mostly a good experience.  All of the food was great, with the exception of the chuck flap.  Our waitress was very attentive and was very informative when we asked questions regarding the menu, but I wished that we would have received our sides at the same time as we received our steaks.  The dining room is very appealing to the eye, but the chair I had could have used a little higher back to make it more comfortable for men that are 6'5" like myself.  The tables at knife are large and perfect for sharing large plates with your dining partners, but their length makes it hard to carry on conversations.  Despite a few minor glitches on this visit, I think Knife is a very nice addition to the Dallas steakhouse scene and it's menu is unlike any other steakhouse in DFW.  I believe that Tesar has another winner in Knife!

Knife
http://www.knifedallas.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating=4

Table 10

I usually don't post about places that I just have a quick snack or an appetizer.  Sometimes a restaurant has an appetizer that is just too good not share with the world.  Table 10, another Emeril Lagasse restaurant in Vegas, is one of those places.  

Table 10 is one of the few places I have found in Vegas that actually has a Happy Hour menu that includes snacks.  I have hung out, watched games, and snacked at Table 10 the last three trips I have taken to the city.  I enjoyed the place so much that I thought I should introduce my wife to my favorite place to snack and watch games.  Now they have several appetizers/snacks that are good, but there is one that stands out as possibly my favorite snack of all time.    

Bar and Kitchen Area at Table 10

The Candied North Country Farm Bacon is one of the best foods I have ever put in my mouth.  The bacon slices are fairly thick and served five to an order.  The dish is somewhat sweet, but is also somewhat spicy.  Although the bacon is good by itself, it is also served with maple syrup that just adds to the greatness of the snack.  I consider myself a connoisseur of bacon and the Candied North Country Farm Bacon at Table 10 is the best bacon I have ever had.

Candied North Country Farm Bacon…the ultimate honor for a pig!

We actually snacked here three days in a row to watch some of the games that I had money on.  One day, we also tried the cheese plate, which included three types of cheese, honey, jam, apple slices, and crackers.  The cheese platter was great and my wife absolutely loved it, but we both agreed it paled in comparison to the candied bacon.

Cheese Plate

One of these days, I am actually going to eat lunch or dinner at Table 10.  They have several menu items that I want to try.  In the meantime, I will always have the beautiful memories of the amazing, wonderful, and beautiful Candied North Country Farm Bacon.

Table 10
http://www.emerilsrestaurants.com/table-10
Livin the Good Life Rating = 4