The Slow Bone

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, this is a barbecue restaurant and not an illicit film from the 80s.  The Slow Bone is the new barbecue restaurant opened by Jack Perkins, owner of Maple & Motor.  This restaurant was supposed to open in February, but the opening was delayed until April 16th.  Having recently fallen in love with Maple & Motor, I put this place at the top of my list of restaurants that I wanted to try.  The idea of a barbecue restaurant came to Mr. Perkins after he took the prize for Best Brisket at Meat Fight 2012, which was a contest that a dozen of the best chefs and cooks in Dallas competed in to see who made the best BBQ.

The Trophy Case

This past weekend, I made my way down to the Design District and met my brother at The Slow Bone.  My brother, who we will call Judas for the sake of this blog, actually ate at The Slow Bone on opening day.  As soon as you enter the restaurant, there is a cafeteria style line where you can choose your meats, hot sides, cold sides, and bread (either corn bread or hush puppies).  I ordered the brisket, the St. Louis style ribs, and the "Old Time" Sausage.  For sides, I got beans, fried okra, and hush puppies.  The brisket and ribs were absolutely fantastic.  Lots of bark on the brisket and the ribs had a fantastic rub that was sweet, with a hint of spicy.  The sausage wasn't particularly impressive, but it wasn't bad either.  It just paled in comparison to the brisket and ribs.  The beans and hush puppies were good, but the fried okra was perfect.  It was some of the best fried okra I have ever had.  My brother also let me try a piece of his pork loin, which was good as well.  To aid in digestion, I got the apple-mint iced tea, which was very refreshing.

My tray

My brother's tray.  He has never been one to waste stomach space on such trivial things as vegetables.

I will be going back to The Slow Bone to eat.  Although disappointed with the sausage and the barbecue sauce (which wasn't needed for the brisket and ribs), the brisket, ribs, and okra will have me coming back.  The Slow Bone gets a 8 on my 10-point scale.  I would not consider this place a top tier barbecue joint like Pecan Lodge, but it was still very good.  Right now, I would prefer to go to the Slow Bone because the lines are much shorter (at least for now).  Before I left, I made sure I got a pound of brisket and a half-rack of ribs to go so I could enjoy some good barbecue for the rest of the week.

The Slow Bone

https://www.facebook.com/TheSlowBone
Livin The Good Life Rating=4

Grimaldi's, Fun, and Family at Watters Creek

Grimaldi's patio viewed from the "duck park".

Watters Creek, in Allen, Texas, is one of our favorite weekend hangouts.  There are several good places to eat in the shopping center and my wife enjoys spending money at several of the stores here.  If there is anything she likes more than spending her money, it is spending my money.  She usually doesn’t like shopping with me, because she compares shopping with me to be like hunting with the game warden.  So if she goes shopping, I will walk around, find a park bench and read on my Kindle iPhone Ap, or watch my oldest daughter play in the park area.

My mom and daughter enjoying time together at Grimaldi's

My 8 month old declined the pizza in favor of a cracker.

We dine in this area more frequently than any other, due largely to the close proximity to our humble abode.  Of all the restaurants at Watters Creek, our absolute favorite is Grimaldi’s.  It is unquestionably the best pizza I have had in the Texas.  The only pizza place that I like better than Grimaldi's is a place called Lombardi’s in New York.  At Grimaldi’s, their pizzas are cooked in a coal-fired brick oven.  The extra carcinogens really add to the flavor of the pizza.  The salads are fantastic as well.  The Caesar salad here is one of the best in the Metroplex.  My mother was in town this past weekend and we thought it would be a perfect day to introduce her to our favorite pizza place.  There was not a piece of salad or a crumb of pizza left when we finished.  

Great Caesar Salad with Extra Parmesan

1/2 Pepperoni with fresh basil and 1/2 ham

My oldest daughter also enjoys playing in the park area, riding the duck statues, and feeding the real ducks.  She is not a big fan of pizza, but she will always sit quietly if we promise her she can go see the ducks when we are finished.  I am not above bribery to keep a kid quiet at the restaurant.  When we arrived at the park area, we were pleasantly surprised to see that there were about 15 baby ducks swimming in the creek with their moms.  It was hard to pry my daughter away from the ducks on this particular visit.

"Duck Creek"

My oldest daughter watching the ducks.

Lots of baby duck on this visit

Our favorite way to end a family trip to Watters Creek, is by going to get gelato at Paciugo.  I don’t usually eat ice cream or gelato, but when I do, this place is numero uno on my list.  My wife loves the wedding cake flavored gelato, my daughter likes vanilla, and I love the dark chocolate and the tiramisu flavored gelato.  If you visit Watters Creek, I highly recommend a visit to both Grimaldi’s and Paciugo.

The best gelato place 

Too many choices!

A special treat for a well-behaved young lady

Grimaldi’s

http://www.grimaldispizzeria.com/

Livin the Good Life Rating=5

Tillman's Roadhouse

Date night with the wife

April is a month that brings us April Fools Day, Tax Day, the start of the Major League Baseball Season, the Boston Marathon, and my wife’s birthday.  In my wife’s family they don’t just celebrate birthdays, they celebrate birth months.  At least that is the excuse my wife has given me for her getting her way for an entire month.  Since this was her birth month, I let her choose where we went to eat this past weekend.  My mother was in town this weekend, so we had free babysitting when we went out to dinner with my brother and sister-in-law. 

Decor inside Tillman's

For this culinary excursion, my wife chose to eat at Tillman’s Roadhouse in the Bishop Arts District of Oak Cliff (they have also opened a second location in Fort Worth).  My only previous visit to the Bishop Arts District had been to eat at Lockhart Smokehouse.  While there previously, we noticed several other restaurants in this cultural hotbed.  After our first trip here, we knew we wanted to go back at some point and try some other places.

My wife's Prickly Pear Margarita

We arrived right on time for our reservations and were seated immediately.  We had to  make reservations for 6:00 pm because the next available reservation was at 9:30, which was past my wife’s bedtime.  While looking over the menu, we decided to order the trio of fries for an appetizer.  The trio included Parmesan Kennebec fries, chili dusted purple Peruvian fries, and smoked salt sweet fries.  They were served with house made ketchup and horseradish pickle mayo.  They were all delicious, but the chili dusted purple Peruvians were my favorite.

Trio of Fries

I had a hard time choosing an entrée because there were several delicious-sounding choices.  After going back and forth, I finally chose the chicken fried steak, served with garlic mashed potatoes, poblano gravy, and green beans.  They asked me how I wanted it cooked, which is something I have never been asked before when ordering anything fried.  I would later find out that the reason they asked me is because they were tenderloin medallions rather than the typical cube steak or round steak that most chicken fried steak is made with.  I ordered mine medium and also added a side of the mac n’ cheese.

Chicken Fried Steak, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Green Beans

Mac n' Cheese with bacon and scallions

My wife ordered the shrimp and grits, my brother ordered the post oak smoked baby back ribs, and my sister-in-law ordered the lobster tamales.  The chicken fried steak was spectacular, but very different from any other I have had.  The breading was perfectly seasoned and the thick medallions were cooked to perfection.  The green beans and mashed potatoes were very good, but the mac n’ cheese was somewhat of a disappointment.  Although it had bacon and scallions, it was rather bland. 

Shrimp and Grits

My wife enjoyed her shrimp and grits, but ever the traditionalist, did not like the Southwestern flair they added to the taste of the dish.  My sister-in law said her lobster tamales were great too.  The one dish that caused me to have entrée envy, was my brother’s baby back ribs.  After he caught me staring longingly at his plate, he finally gave me one to try.  It was very tender and perfectly seasoned.

Post Oak Smoked Baby Back Ribs

Our best decision of the night, was to order the tableside s’mores for dessert.  They were not only fun for us to prepare, but they were delicious.  The maple and chicory marshmallows blended together perfectly with the cinnamon graham crackers and the chocolate.  The orange marshmallows seemed out of place, but the other flavors more than made up for it.

The group enjoying tableside s'mores

Tillman’s Roadhouse will be added to our restaurant rotations.  I give this restaurant a solid 8 on my 10-point scale.  It was a small restaurant that was jam packed when we left.  Next time we go, we will make reservations at least a week in advance so we don’t have to eat with the blue hairs or the vampires. 

Tillman’s Roadhouse

http://www.tillmansroadhouse.com/home.html

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