Whiskey Cake

Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar is one of my favorite restaurants in Collin County.  Since my wife is also a big fan, she is always willing to dine there any time that I ask.  I have dined at Whiskey Cake for lunch and dinner several times, but I had never had the pleasure of trying out their brunch menu until last week.  Their brunch menu is only available on weekends and one day we finally decided to pack up the kids and take the short drive to Plano.

Vermont Cheddar and Jalapeño Drop Biscuits

We arrived shortly after their 10 a.m. opening and were seated after only a short wait.  Luckily, Whiskey Cake is a kid-friendly place and we were able to order the kids breakfasts while we looked over the brunch menu.  When we placed the order for the kids pancakes, we also ordered a breakfast appetizer of Vermont Cheddar and Jalapeno Drop Biscuits.  They are served five to an order and each is topped with a slice of jalapeno and served with a bowl of sausage gravy.  They arrived within just a few minutes and were quickly devoured by my wife and myself.  We both agreed that it was a very unique and delicious twist on the traditional biscuits and gravy.

Kid's Pancake Breakfast

For my entree, I ordered the Chicken and Waffle.  The waffle actually had two pieces of bacon cooked into the batter and was topped with some excellent chicken tenders, eggs, and more of the sausage gravy that I liked so much.  Everything on the plate was absolutely amazing and I couldn't have been more pleased with my breakfast.  My wife ordered the Griddle Stack, which were pancakes topped with caramelized apples, maple syrup, almonds, and whipped cream.  She said it tasted like pancakes and an apple pie had a delicious baby.  In fact, I wasn't even able to snap a picture of her meal because she started eating it too quickly.  

Chicken and Waffles

Both of my kids cleaned their plates and my youngest even helped her mom finish off her whipped cream.  It seemed that everyone in my family enjoyed brunch on this day.  The only regret I had was that we were all too full to have a piece of their namesake dessert; whiskey cake.  This dessert is worth the trip alone, but I was very content and could not eat another bite of anything on this morning.

My youngest daughter finishing off her mom's whipped cream

Whiskey Cake's brunch menu lived up to our expectations.  The quality of food was top notch, much like their lunch and dinner menu.  The food was outstanding on this visit and we were very pleased with our service.  As we left, we noticed that the restaurant was packed and there were close to thirty people waiting to be seated.  Apparently we were not the only ones that had decided to do brunch at Whiskey Cake on this day.  Go give this place a try for brunch and arrive early if you don't like waiting.

Whiskey Cake (Picture taken on a previous visit)

Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar
http://www.whiskey-cake.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating = 4

Gather

Brunch may be my favorite meal.  Eating brunch is like getting the best of both breakfast and lunch.  The only problem with brunch, is the fact that a fat kid like me feels that they have to eat an entire breakfast portion and an entire lunch portion.  If they also have dessert, then I am really hurting by the time it is done.  I had been told that Gather, in downtown McKinney, serves a mighty fine brunch.  My family and my in-laws decided to "gather" at Gather for brunch following our church service last Sunday.  

Dining Room at Gather

Gather only serves Sunday brunch.  During the rest of the week, it hosts events such as weddings, showers, rehearsal dinners, etc.  We arrived a few minutes after 11:00 and were seated immediately.  After ordering coffee, I helped myself to the brunch buffet.  They had several items on the buffet that looked quite tasty and I regretted that I did not have enough room on my plate to get a little of everything on the first trip.  

Selfie of the girls while the men were in line.

With my first plate, I helped myself to some eggs, biscuits and gravy, bacon, chicken fried steak, and some chicken enchiladas.  The eggs were pretty basic, but everything else was absolutely wonderful.  The bacon was extremely crispy, the biscuits had great texture, the chicken fried steak had been fried in a tasty batter, and the gravy was very good with just the right amount of pepper.  The best item I tried on my first trip was the chicken enchilada.  It was one of the best I have ever had and was cooked with a top notch tomatillo sauce.

My first plate included eggs, biscuits and gravy, chicken fried steak, bacon, and an excellent enchilada.

During my second trip, I had to get more enchiladas and chicken fried steak, but I also got mashed potatoes, Eggs Benedict, and a large portion of the Pecan French toast casserole.  Again, everything on this plate was amazing.  The best thing on this plate, besides the chicken enchiladas, was the Pecan French toast casserole.  It was very rich, but the ingredients mixed together perfectly.  

Dessert plate with dessert bars, pineapple muffin, Pecan French toast casserole, and a Key Lime tart

Next, I had to try the dessert bar.  They had several choices and, once again, I tried to get a little bit of everything.  The pineapple muffin and dessert bars were terrific, but they fell well short of the greatness of the key lime tart.  The key lime tart got an A+ in my book and was the perfect ending to the meal.  I was too full to try the pecan pie, but my wife and mother-in-law said it was terrific.  

I ate so much for brunch, that I actually was still full seven hours later.  My family loved this place too.  I did not hear complaints from anyone and my wife loved the beautiful setting of the dining room.  After trying some lackluster restaurants lately, we were very pleased with our dining experience at Gather and anxiously await our next visit.

Gather
http://gathermckinney.com/brunch-menu/
Livin the Good Life Rating = 4

Bread Winners

This past weekend, my mother came to visit and watch my oldest daughter perform in her first dance recital.  After picking her up from Love Field, we met my wife and kids for breakfast.  Our breakfast destination of choice on this day was Bread Winners in Plano.  Bread Winners is a place where we used to dine several times a year, but hadn't visited recently.  It had been well over a year since our last visit, and we decided that was way too long.  In addition to the Plano location, they also have three locations in Dallas.  One of the reasons we like this place so much is because they have excellent house coffee and a nice selection of breakfast breads that are given to each table while guests await their orders.

Enjoying some patio dining with my mom.

Complimentary selection of breakfast breads

There are several breakfast items that I really like at Bread Winners, but two of my favorites are the breakfast burrito and the chicken fried steak and eggs.  The breakfast burrito is affectionately called the "big as yo face" burrito by my wife and easily ways over a pound.  That is a lot of eggs, potatoes, chorizo, and cheese rolled in a tortilla.  This menu item is not for the faint of heart or people who suffer from IBS.  Since I wasn't terribly hungry, I chose the Farmhouse tacos and breakfast potatoes.  The farmhouse tacos are made with eggs, cheddar cheese, potatoes, onions, and jalapeno bacon.  It was heavy on the cheese and was absolutely delicious, but the breakfast potatoes were not as good as the usually were.  My wife got the migas and my mother got the basic breakfast.  Both really enjoyed their meals as well.

Farmhouse Tacos

Migas

Although most of the places I review on this blog are places I am trying for the first time, it is also nice to visit old favorites as well.  I have never had a bad meal at Bread Winners, and this visit was no exception.  We had a very nice morning to eat on the patio and the service was great.  I give Bread Winners a 4 on my 5-point scale.  We will not wait another year before our next visit!

Bread Winners
http://www.breadwinnerscafe.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating =4

Nick and Sam's Grill

Recently my wife’s entire family met on a Saturday morning for a group session with a photographer.  The photographer was evidently an artist inspired by rust and decay, because she had us meet her in a very sketchy area of South Dallas.  It turned out that my fear of this photo session was legitimate, but misplaced.  My fears were realized when I heard my wife utter the phrase "time for an outfit change."  We all survived the session with four young children who don’t follow directions very well and canines on chains that were serenading us. 

Bar area with daily specials written on chalk board

Large mural next to entrance

Following this photo session, we decided to do brunch with the entire family.  After discussing a few places, my in-laws chose Nick and Sam’s Grill in Uptown.  I was relieved that we were going to get to leave the hood and go to the land of yuppies.  We arrived at the restaurant right when the opened and they quickly sat our party of eleven.

Both my daughter and her cousin could not be bothered to get off their devices.

I have been to Nick and Sam’s steakhouse, but this was my first time to dine at Nick and Sam’s Grill.  I started off ordering coffee, while other members of the party ordered anything from chocolate milk to mimosas.  We also got a couple of orders of the Guacamole Blocks, served with tortilla chips.  The wait staff also brought out complimentary blueberry bread.  I was very impressed with the chips and guacamole.  The blueberry bread was also very good and had a hint of cinnamon to it.

Guacamole block and chips

For my brunch entrée, I ordered the biscuits and gravy with a side of bacon.  My wife ordered the Breakfast BELT (Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, & Tomato), which was served with guacamole on an English muffin.  Several other members of the party ordered BELTs, while other ordered pancakes or short ribs served on a bed of eggs and potatoes.

Blueberry Bread

My biscuits and gravy were fantastic.  The biscuits on this day were made with Gruyere cheese and smothered with sausage gravy.  I honestly cannot remember when I have had better biscuits and gravy.  The scrambled eggs and potatoes weren’t bad either.  Although I know I didn’t need the extra calories, I am glad I ordered the side of bacon.  It was very flavorful and had distinct maple taste to it. 

Jalapeno cheddar biscuits and gravy, scramble eggs, bacon, and potatoes

BELT and fries

The majority of our party seemed very pleased with our brunch.  There was even some discussion of meeting back at Nick and Sam’s Grill after church the following day.  Even though it is about a thirty-minute drive from my home, I would definitely go back here for brunch if I were in the area.  This was a great place for brunch and I give it an 3 on my 5-point scale.  We apparently were very lucky that we arrived as early as we did, because every table was full and there was a crowd of about thirty people waiting outside when we left about 11:30.

Nick and Sam’s Grill

2816 Fairmount St.,

Dallas, TX 75201

http://www.nick-samsgrill.com/home.htm

Livin The Good Life Rating=8

Patrons waiting outside as we were leaving