(From May 2012)

Restaurants used to pair duck’s robustness against a sweet orange or cherry sauce, but to- day’s chefs are more inventive; here, the slightly sweet, bright tartness of rhubarb combined with a hearty brown sauce to elevate duck breast to enormously good effect. Wild rice and endive on the side complemented the combo further. Similarly rewarding were flavorful sweetbreads with a light, crisp breading. Appetizers of curry crawfish soup (served lukewarm) and a disappointingly flavorless onion-Brie tart couldn’t compete with the main courses in this convincingly authentic French bistro. Beer & wine.

Leave a Review

(From February 2012)

Lean metallic chairs and tables, blue neon lights, and a crown of flat-screen TVs atop the bar give this restaurant an uptown, urban air. We loved the leaning tower of a sandwich they call the BBQ Pork ’n’ Slaw. A great combination of flavors: tangy, creamy slaw; sweet barbecue; and spicy pepperjack. The Blackened Catfish Tacos also paired up some unique ingredients: Cajun catfish, lime slaw, and jalapeño mayonnaise. So original, so delish. The dishes with Mexican crema were too dry for us, but we went totally bananas over the Totally Bananas Monkey Skewers—decadent bites of fried cheesecake and caramelized bananas, skewered and drizzled with chocolate and caramel. Now, that’s the kind of dessert we daydream about. Bar.

Leave a Review

(From July 2011)

Whether you’re feeding a large family or stocking your freezer with meals for one, Casseroles to Go, a cute little wink of a kitchen, has what you need. The Southwest Vegetable Tortilla Bake has black and fat-free refried beans, bell peppers, cheddar, and Monterey jack, all cooked up in a dark rum sauce. Their Ritzy Chicken layers chicken, mushroom soup, sour cream, and water chestnuts in a Ritz-Cracker-and-poppy-seed crust. They even offer Weight Watchers options and breakfast casseroles. Don’t forget the sides—baked corn, loaded mashed potatoes, frozen strawberry salad—or dessert (brownies, pound cake). Order online and pick up or get a weekly delivery. 

Leave a Review

(From May 2011)

Guenther really shines at breakfast. Whether you opt for biscuits (always a good choice, especially as part of the breakfast platter with fruit and bacon), waffles, or pancakes, the kitchen delivers, thanks, no doubt, to the freshly made mixes from the neighboring Pioneer Flour Mill. The shaded outdoor dining patio is the best choice in the spring, though you can’t go wrong with the airy, antique dining room, bedecked with hanging plants. If you arrive after 8:30 or 9 on a weekend, expect to wait for a table, and beware Sunday’s post-church rush. At lunch, the menu offers more choices, with a dependable array of soups, salads, and even a few Mexican dishes. We have never regretted ordering the spinach salad with bacon and a chipotle-flavored dressing.

Leave a Review

(From June 2012)

The same instinctive memory Proust had for his beloved madeleines, we have for the comfort food here, which hasn’t changed in forty or so years. Talk about retro: the chicken tetrazzini, with its gooey cheese and tender spaghetti, took us back to high school days. The turnip greens and zucchini muffins are just the same too, but the black-eyed pea salad has gotten a little kicky with the addition of jalapeños. You simply must end a meal like this with a slice of coconut cake slathered in fluffy icing.

Leave a Review

(From December 2010) If really great food brings you to tears of joy, take a whole box of tissues to this place. You’ll peruse vintage photos hanging on clotheslines, wonder about the old screen doors lining the walls, and sip tea from mason jars. Nothing is ordinary—chicken-fried steak is a tender ribeye with a dazzling bacon cream gravy; a spicy buffalo chicken sandwich balances lip-tingling fire with a slaw of celery root, pear, and Gor-gonzola; and the creamy jalapeño–cheddar cheese grits are heaven-sent. The olive oil cake is a triumph, moist and slightly grainy with a sweet-tart punch of balsamic strawberries. Where’s our hankie?

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010, 5:05 pm
carla says:
Wonderful! So good!!!

Leave a Review

(From March 2012)

As we sat on a comfy banquette in this green frame house in Oak Cliff, we perused the quirky, Southern-leaning menu and hooked up with its most expensive item: a $15 ribeye swathed with sautéed peppers, onions, and provolone cheese and nestled on a bed of aggressively flavorful chile-cumin grits. After such a filling entrée, we nonetheless found room for a house-made “baby” cranberry pie with a big pillow of whipped cream. Bar.

Leave a Review

(From May 2012)

Depending on the time of day or night, you may find service upstairs, downstairs, and even outside this red-brick former convent. But wherever you’re seated, there’s something comfortable, familiar, and familial about the Lib. We continue to delight (after several decades of experience) in the edited simplicity, careful attention to flavor and texture, and all-round dependability of the kitchen and staff and their “serious food.” We started our lunch (after a hearty slice of the house bread) with grilled slices of potato and garlic sauce, then launched into a special of mole chicken enchiladas, rich and perfectly balanced with white Mexican rice and black beans. From the “basics” menu, roast lamb topped with arugula on whole-wheat toast exemplifies the approach. Bar.

Leave a Review

(From July 2011)

Out front of the former car repair shop is a 1931 Ford Model A, and inside are signs and remnants of service stations past. The menu continues the automotive theme with Tune Ups (appetizers), Hot Rods (hot dogs), and more. Leave your diet at home and enjoy the excess. The Junk Yard Dog was a battered, deep-fried frank topped with chili, spicy sauce, jalapeños, mustard, and onions. A quirky specialty, Dip Sticks proved to be strips of chicken-fried, applewood-smoked bacon on a luscious chicken breast sandwich with sliced tomatoes, lettuce, and sauce. Piled on a sourdough bun, it made a four-inch-tall handful. Bar. 

Leave a Review

(From February 2012)

We wonder if anyone ever orders the Raisin Bran at this temple of breakfast, especially when the menu boasts a fabulous Frisbee-size ham steak plattered up with two eggs, buttery grits, and toast. Seriously, it’s daunting to finish. The cinnamon rolls are also legendary; there’s even one that feeds 40 to 50 people (for $74.99). The tilting floors are gone, but the service is still the friendliest in town.

Leave a Review