11 January 4 - 10, 2024 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents W hat separates one bite of food from the thousands of others in a year? Something that hits your pause button mid- chew. A sigh. Maybe a little groan. You sit back in your chair to sa- vor it for a moment. Does it involve a big build-up, a bit of pomp? Or do you find your best bites come when least expected? Or maybe a great bite is nostalgic, taking you back to a place that’s otherwise impossible to return to. We tussle with this idea almost every day and have pulled together an overview of the best things we ate this year, with a little help from local chefs too. “The best bite in the city, for my mind, is the Tamale Bite at Taco y Vino. My wife and I go there and they are a must,” says chef Tony Archibald of Quarter Acre. “The matzo ball soup at Beverley’s has been, and remains, a constant go-to for me,” says Via Triozzi chef and owner Leigh Hutchinson. “I really like everything that they put out, to be honest. (...) Besides the matzo ball soup, their French onion soup, their burger (with those French fries!) and their pastrami sandwich at brunch are things I often think about.” Luke Rogers at Beckley 1115 says his favorite bite of this past year was the chopped cheese from the street food pop-up Picadera Dominican. Grace Koo, chef at Teriyaki 4 U, loves the fresh, simple and authentic larb at Ly Food Market. Atmosphere, space and service are also often important for a good meal. “To me, what makes something the best is definitely flavor, but also the ambiance surrounding it,” Hutchinson says. “I could be served the most umami-packed, life- altering dish, but if there doesn’t seem to be any passion or heart behind it or if service is subpar, no thanks.” Below are some of the best bites of the year from our freelancers and our food edi- tor, listed alphabetically by restaurant. Tuetanos Ayahuasca, 334 W. Jefferson Blvd. I heard about Ayahuasca while eating a jicama taco at a Dia de Los Muertos dinner at Yellow Rosa Cantina. Light and bright with hits of heat and a pure harmony of textures, this taco appetizer was only about two bites — 10 too few. It’d be a best bite if it were on a permanent menu. At the time, I complimented owner Joel Roland on the dish, and he responded with something to the effect of “You should go to Ayahusaca,” his friend’s restaurant in Oak Cliff. There the flaming tuetanos — two split beef bones full of roasted marrow topped with chimichurri — stole the show. They make restrained use of fatty, rich marrow; the meat butter is scooped out of the bones, spread on a warm tortilla and then topped with tender bits of rib-eye steak. This dish, which is lit just before being set on the table, ties the mystical space and experience together. –Lauren Drewes Daniels Creste Sunday Gravy Barsotti’s Fine Food and Liqueurs, 4208 Oak Lawn Ave. Luckily for Dallas, the Sunday gravy survived Carbone’s transformation to Barsotti’s. This pasta dish nails your Nonna’s sauce that simmered all day on the Chambers stove. The trio of pork, beef and sausage — in perfect ratio and quantity — in a rich tomato sauce ladled over creste pasta is the perfect nostalgic bite. If only Barsotti’s sold this sauce in to-go containers. Wait … they do! –Hank Vaughn Prime Rib Brass Ram, 2130 Commerce St. Prime rib is old-school class. But since it takes hours to roast to perfection, many steakhouses offer it only as a special. But at Brass Ram, prime rib is the star of the show every night. The meat is cured with salt and pepper for 24 hours, then it gets a smear of beef fat and butter before being seared to perfection. Ordering it cooked any more than medium is a travesty. The glistening ruby beef on a plate with a side of horseradish and Yorkshire pudding — you will want for nothing else. –Chris Wolfgang Rosé Udon Noodles Cafe HwaSan, 2001 Coit Road, Plano Korean brunch spot Cafe HwaSan has been open for a year or so, but only recently did we dig into a bowl of the signature rosé udon noodles. Thick, chewy noodles are dunked into a pink sauce before being American-ified with shredded cheese, sausage and bacon and served with a side of buttered toast. The mesmerizing noodle pulls are a prelude to the ethereal balance of flavors that characterizes this dish. Pair it with a creamed hojicha tea or the brunch spot’s signature waffle-pressed croissants. It’s hard to be disappointed. –Anisha Holla Amarena Dark Choclate Truffle CocoAndre, Online and Olmo Market (start- ing mid-January) First for the bad news: CocoAndre has closed its storefront in Oak Cliff. But (BUT!) it’s transitioning to an online shop and will also sell its confections at Olmo Market beginning Jan. 9. Check the social media pages for updates and get ready to load up on Amarena Dark Chocolate Truffles, where a silky smooth dark chocolate shell coddles one Italian cherry swimming in Kirsh liqueur. –Lauren Drewes Daniels Tandoori Chicken Taco The Dream Tacos, 8245 Preston Road, Plano The Dream Tacos, an internationally in- spired taco joint, opened its doors in Plano in 2023, and the tandoori chicken taco is certainly dream-worthy. The taco starts with a fried tortilla base and is topped with yet more fried chicken. Finished off with a white wine tandoori sauce, the dish is a perfect balance between sweet, savory and tangy: a testament to the extensive culinary experience of chef and owner Chetra Chau. –Anisha Holla Toro Tostada Bite El Carlos Elegante, 1400 N. Riverfront Blvd. If there’s a food trend we’d like to see more of, it’s the one-hitter. Several restau- rants have taken a swing at the concept, a small one or two-bite creation that is a rel- atively inexpensive peek into the chef’s creative mind. At El Carlos Elgante the best of the offerings might be the toro to- stada, a rich square of fatty tuna wearing a minuscule avocado crown, topped with gooseberry and pickled roe, all nestled on a tostada perhaps an inch in diameter. It’s fatty and decadent and equal to the toro from your favorite sushi restaurant. –Chris Wolfgang Affogato Sundae The Fifth, 2701 Custer Parkway, Richardson Why aren’t there affogatos stands on every street corner? The combination of booze (optional, but preferred), coffee and ice cream is a whole Pinterest mood board. To boot, The Fifth has a lovely covered patio with a stone fireplace that is perfect for an affogato sundae on a chilly day. The cold- brewed coffee is served on the side to slowly pour over ice cream (procured from its neighbor, Sweet Firefly) and a house-baked flourless brownie that is topped with candied pumpkin seeds and a caramel cream sauce. Your Instagram reel will be screaming. Also, don’t sleep on the sandwiches; everything here is made from scratch, and the bread is sourced from La Casita. Sandwiches and affogatos by the fireplace — what are we waiting for? –Lauren Drewes Daniels Lechon Kabayan Filipino Store, Lewisville and Dallas locations Lechon resembles a large pork roll that is reminiscent of porchetta in preparation and appearance if not flavor. The dish has two main components: rich succulent chunks of suckling pig — previously roasted with lemongrass, garlic, onions and tamarind — and crispy and crackly pork skin full of salty and meaty umami greatness that we’re still thinking about months later. Traditionally, leftovers from this special occasion item are used to make lechon slaw, but how can there ever be left- overs? – Hank Vaughn >> p12 t Dish BITE ME As we put 2023 to bed, we reflect on our most memorable bites of the year, from ravioli to larb, octopus to fish and chips. BY LAUREN DREWES DANIELS, ANISHA HOLLA, AAREN PRODY, HANK VAUGHN AND CHRIS WOLFGANG Kathy Tran Hank Vaughn Lauren Drewes Daniels Left: The classic prime rib from Brass Ram; Lower left: the flaming tuetanos or beef bones with chimicurri from Ayahuasca; Above: the Lechon, a pork and rice dish at Kabayan Filipino Store.
