Twisted Tortilla

The anticipation of the grand opening of yet another Mexican restaurant in North Texas was at an all time high this last month as I anxiously waited for the Twisted Tortilla to open their doors. The big question, was this just another Tex Mex joint or authentic Mexican that I have come to miss from Southern California.

Now that the wait is over I have my answer, the Twisted Tortilla is kind of like Chipotle with a full bar and a variety of unique appetizers and specialty dishes. I would say definitely not Tex Mex evn though they serve queso. I guess their name says it all, fresh-mex-grill.

I marched right past the line up front and sat at the bar in the back of the restaurant. While waiting for some friends, I started with a frozen sangria margarita and have to say it was quite good. Not great or I would have ordered another instead of switching it up. When my friends arrived, they ordered the queso. If you love salty cheese, this will fit the bill.

Next up was the Killer Taquitos($6.39). filled with roasted brisket, mashed potatoes, cheddar and c ream cheese, green onions and jalepenos, these sort of rocked my senses. They were even better dipped in the habanero salsa from the fresh salsa bar or the avocado cream sauce.

I finished my meal with the Slam'n Salmon Rolls(pictured). Once again this dish exceeded my expectations. They were quite flavorful fulled with fresh salmon, baby spinach and then deep fried in a flour tortilla. The menu said they came with a creamy ginger salsa sauce(never saw this), but once again the house habenero salsa was a great addition.

My friends had the Talapia Tacos and a Rice Bowl with the brisket. I cant speak for them, but they were not complaining about a lack of flavor.

If I had one knock on this place it would be the service. It is hard to perfect service the first week of any opening, but there were a couple obvious gaps that will need to be filled before I place this at the top of my eating out list. For example, they have a full service bar without an attendant. At least one that you see more than once every 15 minutes. I also ordered a Jack and Diet coke and was given a glass of Jack and asked to go to the fountain machine to get diet Pepsi to top off my drink. Once again, totally fixable and the server was very friendly and made the experience fun by recommending dishes and inviting us back for happy hour and great food.

The Dive- Bar and Grill

The Dive- Bar and Grill is a great restaurant. They've got good food and great service. For appetizers, my Dad had the BBQ Chicken HoeCakes(Hand-pulled BBQ Chicken on a cornmeal HoeCake with candied Jalapeno Aioli, fresh Cilantro and Red Onion slivers.) and he explained them as "Slightly spicy and delicious..." All  I have to say is they aren't for everyone, my Mom and I didn't really like the HoeCake. Other than that the meat and veggies were great! As far as Main Courses go, my Dad and I split the Big Beef French Dip(Pepper- crusted sliced Sirloin mounded on a baguette with provolone cheese and aus jus served with our hand cut fries.) This sandwich could use some improving, I did not like the baguette... It was crusted with onions, not my personal favorite, but as for the aus jus and meat, delicious. And last but not least Dessert, I had the Creme Brulee, it was great! It had some fresh berries on top with a sprig of mint. Perfection at it best. So if you like a meal with some spice and bit of sweetness this is the place to go.

Social 121

After driving by this place for almost a year every day on my commute home from work, I finally got the chance to give it a try when Groupon posted a 50% discount offer. I wandered in on a Friday night with my wife and shocked to find the place almost empty. With a great location and a chic atmosphere, I was really surprised to have the place all to ourselves.


After perusing the menu for a few minutes I was at a loss as to which direction to go...a couple appetizers or the full meal. I definitely made the right choice with the Salmon(pictured). It was the most amazing salmon dish I can remember devouring in my lifetime. Every bite was more delicious than the last. My wife Dawn had shrimp tacos with just the right amount of spice. I would say we enjoyed the perfect meal for our introduction to Social 121 and will be back to try all those great appetizers such as Kentucky Glazed Pork Belly, Crispy Duck Wontons or Braised Short Rib Pot Stickers.

RA Sushi

RA Sushi in Plano is a winner. These sticky rice balls are covered with spicy tuna and have an incredible spicy dipping sauce that had me licking the plate when I was done. They have a ton of half price items during happy hour from 4-7 daily. I highly recommend the happy hour menu as a great way to try many of the specialty food and beverage items available at RA. Who can pass up $2 Sake and $2 salmon, tuna and yellowtail.Prices on the happy hour menu range from $2-7.

Which Wich?

I will do my best to explain Which Wich to you. Let me start by saying my family had 4 different sandwiches all of which were great. This chain has a very interesting concept or twist on the regular old sandwich.

Your experience starts with you scanning a wall of sandwich bags. You choose one of 11 bags and a red sharpie and then start making selections to customize your sandwich(wich for short). The bags are divided by types of sandwiches. They are Turkey, Ham and Pork, Beef, Chicken, Seafood, Vegetarian, Italian, Comforts, Classics and Breakfast wich's. There is one more wich called the Wicked. It includes five meats, three cheeses and is the signature sandwich of Which Wich. I did not have the appetite to even try it. Each of the categories listed above have 5 selections each making 50 different wich combinations all of which you can customize. They come on wheat or white and all come toasted.You mark up your bag, pay for it and get your bag back a few minutes later with a hot toasty sub inside.

My wife Dawn had the Turkey Pastrami with all the fixins and it was delicious. I could have easily been convinced it was real pastrami and not turkey. My son had a grilled cheese sandwich off the kids menu. He enjoyed it, but had a bite of his sisters meatball wich and said he was never going with grilled cheese again. I tried the meatball and it was very tasty on crispy wheat bread. I chose the Chicken Parma with marinara and parmesan. It was delicious and melted in my mouth. The picture above shows my son Austin taking the last bite of that meatball sandwich.

I definitely recommend Which Wich for a sandwich experience the whole family will enjoy. The variety of menu selections will always keep things interesting. I look forward to trying the "Buffalo Shrimp" or the "Thank you Turkey' with stuffing and cranberry sauce. I give Which Wich 8 out of 10 stars for menu variety and family appeal.

Ginger

Ginger has to be the best Thai Spicy Noodles I have tasted in some time. I discovered this place while working today east of Downtown Dallas on Mockingbird. Apparently this is the second location for this restaurant and I can see why. The Menu is amazing and has a combination of traditional Thai appetizers, soups, salads, curries, rice and stir fried dishes. The house specialty is noodle and seafood dishes. The menu was complete with pictures that made my mouth water.

The inside of the restaurant was recently renovated and very inviting. New tables, linens and very shiny silverware. I was there about 1pm and there were 15 -20 people taking up about half the tables. They definitely had a local following for such a new location. They still had temporary signs up outside.

I decided on the Spicy Noodles (Pad Kee Mao). I ordered them with a spiciness of 7 on a scale of 1-10. This may be a mistake for most people. I fortunately like to sweat while I eat, because that is what I did for about 20 minutes when my food arrived. This dish included rice noodles stir fried with chili, garlic, tomato, bell pepper, onion and sweet basil. As I worked through my dish wiping the sweat off my face and blowing my runny nose a few times, I had to ask for a refill on my Thai Iced Tea. It was excellent by the way.

It was a quick lunch, so I had no time for dessert or appetizers. I can tell you I will be returning to try them both in the near future. I look forward to a curry dish, I saw a few of those come out of the kitchen.

I am going to rate this experience very high for a couple reasons. First, the dish I had was unbelievable. Second, I overheard two adjacent tables raving about their salads and curry dishes. When people are that vocal about food, it must be good. It was very quick and the service I had was amazing. I give Ginger 10 stars out of 10., A perfect score for Thai and I predict this second location is the start of many more if they continue to turn out experiences like I had today.

Martinez Mexican Restuarant

My quest for quality Mexican food in Texas continued on Tuesday with a visit to Martinez Mexican Restaurant in Mesquite. I was travelling with my boss and some peers this day, so it turned into a Mexican business lunch.

We were seated as soon as we entered the restaurant and the aromas of fresh tortilla chips could be taken in as we were seated. At first glance the menu appeared much like most Mexican Food menus I have seen. Lunch specials, combination plates, fajitas, burritos tacos, Chicken Fried Steak??? There is was again. Why do all Mexican Food restaurants in Texas serve Chicken Fried Steak. For a boy from Socal, this is just plain weird. Give me a few more months and maybe I will have the cajones to order it, smothered in chili and cheese and whatever else Texans think is normal fare.

Before we ordered I took a trip to the restroom to wash my hands and stumbled upon a lady making fresh tortillas(pictured). They smelled so good and we all got a chance to taste them with our meal. They were so soft and delicious served warm.

I decided on the Chicken Enchiladas smothered in green chile sauce(pictured). This is one of my favorite Mexican dishes and I order it more often than not at Mexican restaurants. I have to say that it was a great meal for the price. It was very filling and both the rice and the beans were fabulous. The beans are where most restaurants in Texas seem to go wrong and Martinez Restaurant nailed the beans. They were great. One thing I did not mention was the chips and salsa that showed up on our table prior to ordering our meal. They were light and crispy and they gave everyone at the table their own salsa dipping bowl. I have never seen this. Usually when you have a group, you have to fight for the one salsa bowl or eat the chips dry bacuse it is empty and you can't find a waiter. I thought this was a nice touch. It certainly prevents the urge to double dip!

I rank this Mexican Experience pretty high. There was nothing special about the seating or ambiance, but the great tasting food and excellent service were what stood out in my mind. There was tremendous value in the menu and the selection would satisfy almost anyone. I give Martinez Restaurant 9 stars out of 10 for value, selection, convenience and authenticity.