Dallas Y'all

Trip date: March 2023

I hadn't been to Dallas since the early aughts, and that was was for an overnight work trip when I use to pitch potential clients for a startup tech company I worked for. So when the bestie said she would be heading to East Texas to visit her family, and we realized Amtrak runs between Mineola (where her parents live) and Dallas, I suggested a quick weekend/meet up.

I had a direct SEA->DFW Alaska Air flight and got to check out the newly opened American Express Centurion Lounge in SeaTac. It is so spacious and lovely; you can read a good review here. You can see it if you look up when in the central terminal as they built a 2nd story and it is perched like a loft! Excellent addition to the local airport lounges!

Because of flight schedules I flew down a day early and spent my first night at the Hilton Arts Hotel. It's a beautiful hotel and even without getting an upgrade based on my Gold status, I had a huge and very pretty corner room.

I was feeling lazy and tired so I decided to have drinks and dinner in the hotel restaurant Ellie's. I can say the martinis and tacos were both great!

The next morning I checked into The Joule Hotel, where Forest and I also had a big beautiful corner room. Before she arrived I walked to the Sixth Floor Museum since she'd already been in the past. It was an easy walk since Dallas is flat as a pancake! 

The museum is located on the 6th floor of what was the Texas School Book Depository, the location from where Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed President Kennedy from one of the windows. It does a great job of laying out the history of the Kennedy presidency, the political worries of the time, and of course how the tragic day of November 22, 1963 unfolded.

It was very odd to me to look out the same window, and down onto the road running through Dealey Plaza where Kennedy was killed. Thousands of people drive past the exact spot daily as it is a major thoroughfare in Dallas.  

I spent some time walking around the plaza afterwards, and to the JFK cenotaph which is just a few blocks away. Nearby is also the oldest remaining log cabin in this area, built in the 1840s by settlers to Dallas. 

I walked back to the Joule and met Forest at their casual restaurant, CBD. We had a great lunch here, so much so that we ate there twice in our 4 days! After lunch (the first time) one of the front desk people offered to take us across the street to see the sculpture Eye up close. The Joule owns the piece and it was fun to be given access to the grass right in front (closed to the public even though we saw folks squeeze through the fence).

During our stay we also visited the Dallas Museum of Art. They have some impressive collections from all over the world, especially Latin American, but I think my favorites were the Design and Decorative Art collections and the Postwar Art collections. 

But most of the time in Dallas was spent catching up with my friend over lots of food and drinks. Here's the report...

Drinking:

We read that the views of Dallas were great from the rooftop bar of Hide in Knox Park. Not only was there nothing to get excited about as far as the view goes, but my cocktail was so bad I actually couldn't drink it. We left and went next door to HG Sply Co and had some very good margaritas and delicious nachos. A much better rooftop and views of the Dallas skyline in the distance.

The best rooftop bar by far was Waterproof at the Statler Hotel. WOW! It is a stunning location, right in the middle of the city, with a cool Miami vibe. To be honest we just had a couple of margaritas served in plastic cups but I loved the surroundings here so much!

The French Room Bar at the Adolphus Hotel was a wonderful surprise. I just wanted to check out the hotel as it is quite historic and a real beauty! But then I saw the cocktail bar so we went in and had a couple. Gorgeous modern glassware, very interesting ingredients, fancy atmosphere... basically an A+ for me.

Casablanca is absolutely beautiful, but I thought the drinks were just ok. We didn't eat here but they have a full menu and the neighborhood of Bishop Arts seems very cute.

Midnight Rambler gets the most press of Dallas' cocktail bars, and as it is located in the Joule we had no problem finding it! Best to make reservations as it is very popular. When you check in you will be led downstairs where there are some good tunes and cocktails waiting. 

We were seated at the bar and had a great time with the bartender who walked us through the very fun menu of creative cocktails and also shared a lot of info about the different areas of Dallas and other places to check out. 

Las Almas Rotas was high on my list and did not disappoint. Except, be warned, it is a bit of a haul to get to. This self-described shrine to the spirits of Mexico carries smaller, lesser known agave spirits. We had a few cocktails, I had a wonderful flight, and we also had some tasty bites. Fantastic spot!!

I was also very excited to try out Neon Kitten for some Japanese inspired drinks and bites. This bar is in the Deep Ellum neighborhood which many people told us not to go to on account of being dangerous. It was busy with barhoppers and cruisers, but we didn't feel unsafe at all. Not sure if this area is just getting a bad rap or if it was warranted, YMMV.

We ordered some Japanese tater tots and fried chicken bites and paired them with some pretty good Japanese spirit forward cocktails. 

In the back of Neon Kitten is Blackbird Society, their Japanese inspired speakeasy. It's very tiny and very cute. You should definitely reserve if you want to check it out.

Eating: 

We had a fun and delicious brunch at Ellen's in Dallas' downtown. This is the place to go to for old school southern comfort food. Almost all the tables seat 8-10 as the spot attracts a lot of families. And it's busy but they turn the tables pretty quick; we waited on the patio with drinks until our table was ready. 

Our pimento cheese was excellent and I loved my chicken fried steak with sides!

As previously mentioned, we ate at CBD in the Joule twice! The first time I had a delicious fried chicken salad and the second time I really enjoyed their burger. Great spot even if you aren't staying at the hotel.

We also had tacos for lunch at Salsa Limon one afternoon. This is fast and cheap and delicious! It was pretty much all locals on their lunch break when we were there. Also my margarita was the size of my head. Good stuff!

James Beard nominated Restaurant Beatrice is a little piece of Louisiana over in the Bishops Arts area. It's small and super pretty with linen tablecloths and fleur-de-lys wallpaper. Everything on the menu sounded amazing, I wish we could have ordered more to try! But my duck confit with truffled potato cracklins and housemade Luxardo cherry gastric was fantastic. Highly recommend.

The Joule hosted us for dinner one evening at Sassetta, which is their modern Italian restaurant. We had lovely cocktails to start and salads that were probably better to share than take solo as they were huge! My main of lobster spaghetti with pistachio and herbs was very luxurious!

Before leaving Texas, I took Amtrak down to visit Forest's parents in Mineola. Amtrak seems to consider schedules optional down here, the train was quite late both going and returning to Dallas, so keep that in mind if you have other things planned. But it was relaxing and cheap and the station in Mineola has a super cute museum on the history of the railroad in Texas. 

*Although we were hosted by The Joule Hotel, all opinions are my own*

All photos of Dallas here.

Eat Me, Drink Me; Portland

Trip date: August 2018

I like to take trains. I like to check out the scene in Portland from time to time. I like my friend Aaron who lives in Los Angeles. So when Aaron suggested we meet in the middle of the west coast for some eating and drinking I started packing my bags!

I had a very relaxing, if hazy, ride down to Portland on a Friday morning. The PNW had been socked in with smoke from the summer wildfires and it made for an eerie and slightly wheezy few weeks. As I did a bit of work from the observation car, I was happy to see the skies clearing as we headed south.

I had been too busy to pack a lunch which was a very bad move. There is nothing at Seattle's King Street Station to buy and the train has some pretty crappy food. Luckily I had a thermos of rosé with me. Breakfast of champions! I love sitting in the observation car on this train, when they have volunteers from the Park Service giving info about the areas we pass through. This day's lecture included the story of DB Cooper. 

My train arrived a few hours before Aaron's flight so I took an Uber to Pok Pok for lunch. This old favorite never disappoints. The front desk guy nicely stored my suitcase while I enjoyed a makrut lime infused gin and tonic, crazy spicy duck larb, and of course the signature chicken wings. And when my gin and tonic couldn't cut the heat, the bartender expertly sent me a thick mango juice which did the trick.

Our Airbnb was just 3-blocks away and was a cute little 2 bedroom cottage behind a larger house. It wasn't perfect, with the bathroom downstairs and both bedrooms up, but for our short stay it was the perfect location in the Richmond area.

Aaron arrived and we headed to Palomar, opened last year by bartender Ricky Gomez, formerly of the Teardrop Lounge. Ricky has long been one of my favorite bartenders, his drinks were always spot on and he has always been a gracious and interesting host. His new bar is just like that! We only had time for one, but I would love to go for a few rounds next time I'm in town, during lunch when I can try the food too!

Aaron and I were meeting friends of his at Castagna for dinner. We were very excited as Chef Justin Woodward has worked for some of the world's best restaurants and has received so many awards!

Ultimately, the dinner was fine but a little disappointing considering the expense. My dinner companions didn't like the space, although I did. But the two things that stood out were 1) when I made the reservations, 2 months in advance, I made note that my friend doesn't eat pork or shellfish. Each of the dishes that contained those were just swapped out with vegetarian options for him. Boring. 2) None of the dishes were very memorable save for the crab/cucumber dish and the muffin/foie gras dish. But on a positive note the service and wine pours were great.

Aaron and I had nightcaps at another new bar, Deadshot. It's heavy on bitter drinks and on this Friday night was very light on customers. Our drinks were good but it was hard to get a vibe on the place.

Saturday morning we headed to another new spot, Canard, for breakfast. From the folks at Le Pigeon, this spot knows how to guild a lily. We had a fantastic brunch of pastrami wrapped veal paté, the most perfectly executed omelet I've ever seen, and what the chef's refer to as "QuackStack"- the most delicious dish of pancakes with duck gravy, Tabasco onions, and a fried duck egg. There is an option to add foie gras.

All this was had with some great breakfast cocktails. I highly recommend a meal or three here!

Our afternoon was spent trying to walk all that amazing brunch off. Over the bridge we went to downtown where we stumbled upon Union Barber. Aaron got a buzz and we both were given free glasses of bourbon. So civilized.

Next up we did a little shopping at Powell's Books before continuing our walk up to Nob Hill. I hadn't been in this area before and it is adorable! Tons of shops, cafes, restaurants, etc. We found a really unique shop called The Meadow which specializes in just salts, bitters, and chocolates. Brilliant! From here we randomly stopped into Southland for their 3pm Happy Hour before finishing our walk at the Aria Distillery so I could buy a new Bull in China mixing vessel.

Phew! We were ready for our 1st dinner. Yes, I said 1st. Travelling with Aaron involves a bit of competitive eating, and he had two dinners set for us. I added in two cocktail bars. We travel well together!

We showed up at Nimblefish, which is getting hot press everywhere, right before opening and were seated at the sushi bar. Exceptionally good sushi at very good prices. We both loved it!

Time for a drink! We headed north to Expatriate which I had heard a lot about and was excited to check out. I won't go into it, but let's just say the bartender was a dick and was talking shit about some Seattle bars even though he knew I knew the folks working there. Bad manners, ok drinks.

 Dinner #2 at Tusk was also fantastic! Everything was delicious and they had a special lamb shank on the menu which was amazing. Also a super fun atmosphere. Highly recommend!

Not to be outdone by Aaron's two dinners, we headed to Angelface for nightcaps. As we had been asking various bartenders for recommendations on where to go during the weekend, this one seemed to generate love or hate responses. But we both loved it!

It's a tiny space, with a lovely horseshoe bar. There are no menus, you just tell them what you want or what type of spirits you like. I honestly can't remember what they made me as it had been a long day but we had great service and our drinks were delicious. Another recommendation for you!

The next morning, while Aaron headed to his friend's house for brunch, I went to the newly reopened Kachka. This Russian restaurant has become the darling of Portland in recent years, so they expanded the restaurant to a new location and turned the old one into a more casual eatery.

I get the hype! I had such a delicious lunch here. Interesting cocktails, wonderful food with traditional roots without being afraid to improve. Like my pelmeni sauteed in brown butter and topped with sour cream (instead of being boiled traditionally) or the pickle juice shots. Get there!

I met Aaron at Clyde Common, which is always on my to-go list and serves cocktails on Sunday afternoons. Mutual friend and aquavit slinger Jacob joined and we had a good catch up. And then it was time to say goodbye. 

This time I had my Uber make a quick stop for a salad and some canned rosé for my train ride home.
As Amtrak made its way north, we re-entered the wildfire smoke. The sunset that night was an ominous orange because of it.

It was a quick trip to hang out with my friend but it's always good to get down to Portland. And we have a longer trip up our sleeves...and I ate salad for a week after!

All photos from Portland here.

Portland Again, And Again

Trip dates: July 2013 & September 2015

The last time Forest came to Seattle we took a quick overnight to Portland; that was July 2013. We went down on Amtrak on a weekday, which is a treat as you don't have to deal with the weekend crowds at the restaurants and bars. The Starlight line offers great views from its pretty floor to ceiling windowed cars. We brought pre-batched Sazeracs on for breakfast. That's how we roll.

We checked into the Ace Hotel, my first time, and laughed out loud at the massive amounts of hipster vibe that enveloped us. Oh Portland.

First up, lunch at Kenny & Zukes. Pastrami of course. Then a little stroll around the area and a lovely punch at Clyde Common in place of afternoon tea.

When it was time for a cocktail we headed to Hele Pele where delicious tiki drinks were lit on fire with abandon.

Then we had an absolutely wonderful dinner at Le Pigeon. I'd been before but it had been a while and I was so happy to have another fantastic meal there. And I was happy that the foie gras profiteroles were still on the dessert menu!

We finished off our night at Teardrop Lounge which, since it was a weeknight, was just normally busy instead of jam packed! The drinks here never fail to impress. Almost 10 years and going strong!

The next morning we headed to Tasty & Alder for a boozy brunch. Again, no wait, no crowds, ahhhh weekdays!

A little tax free shopping, there are lots of great places around 12th Ave including Canoe,  a quick pack of the bags and we headed back north on the train. A lovely overnight.

Sept. 2015 I headed back down to Portland, honored to be invited to attend friends Jessica and Eric's wedding. My friend Lorraine came with and we made a fun weekend of it.

Amtrak down again, why would anyone drive? We stopped at Tat's on the way to the station and picked up... pastrami sandwiches! It's obviously a theme. A sandwich and smuggled-aboard rosé made for a very enjoyable picnic and ride.

The hotel prices in Portland have gone bonkers. In the past, besides the Ace Hotel, I've stayed at various Kimpton Hotels which are my favorite. This time when I went to book, the Ace was sold out and the Kimptons were over $300 a night. In Portland! I booked us at the Marriott City Center which has a fantastic location and perfectly fine, if a bit boring, rooms.

Lorraine and I went out to explore, she had read about this Scandinavian place called Maurice. Let me just say that this is one of the cutest spots I have seen! We were there mid afternoon and had a great cup of iced coffee and a pastry snack. Great find!

After a bit of shopping we stumbled upon The Green Room while leaving Canoe (obviously this shop is an "always stop at"). We decided it was time for a cocktail in this pretty green hued bar, and chose from their menu of low-octane drinks. It is just downstairs, and owned, by Multnomah Whiskey Library (where we had reservations later that night).

The bar tender turned us on to another newish spot just down the street called Shift Drinks. All the drinks here are pre-batched, the space is huge so on busy weekends you can still get a craft cocktail but without the wait that normally accompanies it.

Next up we had a wonderful dinner at Gruner. I had been meaning to go for such a long time as it was on everyone's recommendation list. Sadly it is now closed but I'm happy I got to dine there!

We wrapped our night at Portland's newest gem, MWL. Believe the hype. This "members only" whiskey den is like being in Charlie's Chocolate Factory, replace chocolate with booze. Members are able to make reservations for themselves and/or their friends. If you aren't a member and you don't know one you can queue up for an available table, they open at 4pm and there will already be a line when you arrive. Or you can try to purchase a Hall Pass through their website. It will cost you a non refundable $25 fee and you have to reserve at least 48 hours prior, but it gets you up the stairs. And you want up those stairs!

I have a very lovely friend who arranged reservations for us, you know who you are- thank you again! We were seated and presented with a lovely complimentary taste of The Feathery Blended Malt Scotch Whisky. A nice way to settle in.

After speaking to us about our interests, our waiter Jordan created a lineup of single batch bourbons and ryes. We had a great time (I mean, how could you not?) of tasting and comparing styles and flavors in this super gorgeous space.

After our tasting we had Manhattans made tableside. And before we left they gave us a wonderful curaçao as a parting taste. A+ for inventory, cocktails, and service!!

The next morning we grabbed a Car2Go and set off for Workshop Vintage. Besides turning us on to Shift Drinks, our bartender the night before at The Green Room had told us this is where we would find the gorgeous mixing glasses made by Bull in China that they used there.

Beautiful glass vessels procured we headed to lunch at Paadee Thai, a suggestion by our bartender at Shift Drinks. He heard us talking about Pok Pok wings and had informed us that there was more than one wing game in town. The wings here are different, and delicious. The menu and service both outstanding. I'd highly recommend it if you are looking for some new (traditional) takes on Northern Thai food. I'll be back for sure. And nice job Portland bartenders at playing the share-your-knowledge- game!

While leaving The Green Room the day before I spied an interesting looking sushi shop next door. Upon checking it out closer it turned out to be a cheese restaurant serving "omakase" style cheese offerings. We headed to Chizu for a little after lunch snack and were thoroughly charmed! They had some wonderful cheeses, many I had never had, and offered both wine and sake as pairings! Brilliant.

It was the evening of the wedding I was here for so I got myself cleaned up, grabbed the street car, and headed to the Eco Trust Building. An absolutely wonderful place for an event! Eric and Jessica had their ceremony on the roof deck, a beautiful setting on this sunny and clear Portland summer day.

After the "I do"s, a lovely dinner, some mixing and mingling, I left to meet Lorraine and two other friends Dave and Debbie at Hele Pele (link above) for some rumminess. After we were tikid'up we headed to the newish Pepe le Moko. We didn't have reservations so there was a bit of a wait, luckily it is next door/underneath Clyde Common so we didn't have to go far to pass the time.

When we went down the stairs to bar I felt like I had entered an underground bomb shelter. The light was very low and the space felt bare except for the bar and the booths. The menu is a bit of a throw back to the cold war era as well, and the drinks arrived on cute little trays like they might have at a soda fountain. They are best known for bringing back the Grasshopper, granted it is their version and has Fernet, but there are Amaretto Sours, Long Island Ice Teas, and Martinis as well. Our parent's drinks, I mean our drinks, were excellent and we all had a great time!

And just like so many last mornings in Portland, the next one was spent having brunch at Tasty and Alder. This time the wait was an hour, we passed it by having wonderful coffee across the street at Heart, before enjoying breakfast cocktails and some seriously good eats. Breakfast cocktails, say it with me.

All aboard Amtrak for the pretty ride home! Portland, if we keep to this schedule I'll see you in 2017!

Lorraine's got a good Portland list also, check it out!

Photos here.

Keep It Weird Portland

We haven't been to Portland for 2 years (and I never got around to posting about it), a shame really as it's so close and just a short and relaxing train ride away.  Since finding out my brother, his wife and son live there, we'll be visiting more often. Pulling out of the station at 5:30pm on a Friday night, with a picnic of home-assembled ham, gruyere, egg, & pickle baguette sandwiches along with pre-batched martinis makes for a nice trip. And even though my wallet went missing in the 2 hours, somewhere between the grocery store and the train station, it's not Portland's fault so I'm not focused on it. (Update: I found it back at home)

We pass through various cities & towns, places that somehow look better from this side of the train stations. The conductor just informed us that we are pulling into Vancouver. He called it "the 'Couve", keeping it weird and we're not even there yet.

It's just a quick cab from the Portland Amtrak station to the Kimpton Vintage Plaza, where we are taking advantage of a discounted Ride the Rails rate. Once we are checked in we walk over to the Pearl District to check out the newly opened Riffle NW.

We were there to say hi to a friend and to have a few cocktails, but next time we are in town it's on my list for dinner. The menu was loaded with delicious sounding seafood (sea urchin & quail egg shot!) and gussied up staples (manchego & bacon grilled cheese).

Finding the Teardrop Lounge packed we decided on a repeat visit to Clyde Common, which resulted in delicious cocktails (one barrel aged natch), running into a friend from Seattle and meeting a new and very talented Portland bartender. And all with in walking distance of the hotel.

The next morning we met my brother and his wife at Veritable Quandary which we hadn't been to before but they've been serving up brunch, lunch, happy hour and dinner since 1971. It was very good and had a cute deck for outside seating.

My brother lives in the Ladd's Addition neighborhood so we strolled across the Hawthorn Bridge to his hood, enjoying all the gorgeous houses, rose gardens and American Elm trees.

Nearby there is a whole slew of distilleries setting up shop so we decided to check out a few of them. Back in the day, we had visited the well known House Spirits. This time we visited Eastside Distilling, which looks almost like a take-out window and makes a surprisingly good bourbon. For $5 you get tastes of their infused rums, the bourbon and a mini cocktail.

A bit further along we stopped into the almost warehouse-sized New Deal Distillery. They have more vodka products than I like but the Gin #1 was really interesting. Almost a cross between a genever and an old Tom gin. New Deal also allows dogs, so my brother's Whippet didn't have to stay out in the rain.

After all those little sips we needed a snack, Pok Pok to the rescue. We only had a short wait at the Whiskey Soda Lounge, enough time for some fried, crunchy pig ears, and then we were seated and served the famous Pok Pok wings. How many orders of wings do they go through a day? Who doesn't order these wings? When can I have them again? All questions that need to be answered.We also watched them put whole salt crusted fish on the BBQ. Yummmmm.

We had a wonderful family dinner that night at Beast. Our visit there 2 years ago for brunch had been excellent and this was no different. Our six courses included a chilled spinach veloute with smoked Arctic char roe, individual charcuterie plates of items like steak tartare with quail egg toast and foie gras bon bon's, a gorgeous brined piece of pork loin with crispy artichokes, a summer salad with fava beans and fried lemons, cheeses and a cherry trifle for dessert. All beautifully paired with wines. I've been twice now and I'd go again, any time!

Before leaving the next morning, we checked out the fairly new Metrovino for brunch. It was good and had some nice riff's on the norms, including a chicken fried quail and waffles. And as we've done in the past we made a stop at Kenny & Zukes to get a snack for the train...

Our Amtrak home was on the Coast Starlight which makes it's way over 2 days from LA to Seattle. We got very lucky, I hear, as our train not only was on-time but we pulled into Seattle early. We spent most of the time sitting in the observation car listening to two rangers from the Klondike Goldrush National Historical Park give an on-going lecture about everything we were passing. It was such a pretty day, and they were so engaging, it was a really nice trip home.

 

Portland pictures here

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Location:Amtrak