After a conversation today that tended to mull over palate pleasers, I decided to compose a list of the best and the worst dining adventures I had this year in Dallas. I specify Dallas because I don’t want to include my dining adventures in Hawaii about two months ago or from my South Padre trip this past summer. I’m listing here the standouts and lowpoints that I recall, but my memory might be fuzzy on the specifics. So here we go:
The Best: Steve Fields’ Steak and Lobster Lounge (Plano) Zea WoodFire Grill (Plano) Luna de Noche (Plano) Geisha (Plano) Rafain (North Dallas) Paparazzi’s (Richardson) Sawadika Thai Zone (Richardson) Aboca’s (Richardson) Picasso’s (Plano)
The Worst: Silver Fox Steakhouse (Richardson) The Keg (Plano) Bob’s Steak and Chop House (Plano) Kirby’s Prime Steakhouse (Plano) Dakota’s Steakhouse (Downtown Dallas)
I marked my first golf course visit during my Hawaiian vacation at the Ko’Olina Golf Resort in Oahu, a premier golf course in Kapolei and well known to host the Senior and Ladies PGA. While my golfing companions had a more critical opinion of the course’s difficulty (tournament level) and “beyond-my-pay-grade” green fees, I suppose it was an acceptable first golf outing. I didn’t play golf, mind you, but I got to drive the GPS-outfitted golf carts around the pretty manicured turf. What I really looked forward to was dining at Roy’s Ko’Olina location.
Ko’Olina Golf Club
92-1220 Aliinui Drive
Kapolei, HI 96707
(808) 676-7697
What a thrill to see resort dining at a golf course renowned for hosting some of the PGA’s best. Roy’s Ko’Olina proved itself worthy of winning the hearts and tastes of the champions it catered to. Roy’s lunch menu entertained from the outset: from the Wowie Salad, to the beautifully optioned salmon bento box, from the classic big beefy burger and to the tempura beef frank (big gasp!), all were big hits. While a dining companion’s burger came still runny and bloody despite requests for medium doneness, the service was acceptable for lunch (although the staff could still use more polish and lessons in attentiveness). Another disappointment was the news that the sushi bar was unmanned during lunch hours, so we could not sample some of the inventive creations we’ve heard about Roy’s. The beautiful panoramic view of the Ko’Olina golf course from Roy’s covered patios however made the lunch experience pleasant and our party of four came away much satisfied (with an extra tempura hot dog ordered for to-go). I look forward to trying out Roy’s in Plano after this dining adventure.
Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center
2301 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96815
(808) 924-5001
Our party of four stopped in for lunch at this Waikiki location. Wonderful salads, impressive burgers and sandwich options, and decent soups. There appeared to be some unique options on this location’s menu to capture Hawaii’s tropical flavor. Service seemed attentive and responsive. The open-air setting, while a little warm, was still comfortable; the patio seems always crowded at this spot. But people come here for the desserts, and the Factory repeatedly shines in this area. The Chocolate Raspberry Truffle was a chocoholic’s guilty pleasure, and the Pumpkin Pecan proved to be a delightful surprise. Only the plain cheesecake options seemed to be lacking as we pressed our server to supply us one dressed in a fruity topping. Huge slices of cheesecake meant that even our party couldn’t finish it all–the Factory was kind enough to pack them in separate cartons so that we could indulge our sweet teeth in the privacy of our hotel rooms. Glad to see that this spot is maintaining high standards for the chain.
Waikiki Gateway Hotel
2070 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96815-2048
(808) 955-6333
Nicely uniformed staff ushered us to captain’s chairs ringing our table for our dinner at Nick’s. Internet reviews indicated that Nick’s was a “fine dining” destination, and so far the atmosphere did not disappoint. The single table decor however had suffered some bruising and breakage, but nobody in the establishment had made any effort to replace the faltering flower. Our party of four quickly assessed the menu and found few standouts. We proceeded to order escargot, calamari and coconut shrimp for starters. Immediately we noticed some lag time in the delivery of our appetizers, but at least the bread and the wonderful butter spread filled in the void.
When the staff finally made the presentation, the escargot was the biggest disappointment, reportedly tasteless despite its garlic butter bath. Four coconut shrimp were nicely coated in coconut, but the reddish sauce accompanying it looked and tasted suspiciously like ketchup, until the mango relish was discovered under a bed of sprouts. The calamari seemed greasy but not chewy and the dips were original: jalapeno aioli, a spicy concoction and a regular cocktail/marinara sauce.
The salad options failed to impress: Nick’s Classic salad did not garner any rave reviews, but it was the side caesar option ordered at the last minute that drew the biggest disappointment. The dressing was uncharacteristically sweet, a hint vinegary; it was promptly rejected and sent back to the kitchen.
After another long wait, our entrees were wheeled out on a cart, looking pretty. Like the Nick’s Classic before it, the Seafood Mix Grill failed to elicit any excitement, even though the salmon was grilled perfectly with no hint of dryness or toughness. Of the two filet mignons ordered, one was well done (a far mark from the medium rare that was requested) and the second filet appeared medium well, shy of the medium requested. The well done steak was replaced with another but came back blood red rare, still not quite the medium rare expected but at least more edible. It was obvious that beef was NOT one of this restaurant’s strengths. The only exceptional dish of the evening seemed to be swordfish which proved moist and tasty, deliciously grilled and garnished with roasted garlic, onions and dried tomatoes.
Overall, a rather pricy gamble on seafood, but not worth the risk to try anything else.
3801 W President George Bush Highway
Plano, TX 75075
(469) 467-3944
When you hear of “steak and sushi” in the Dallas dining scene, hibachi/sushi bar palaces jump to mind…full of loud noisy parties, flashing knives and unintimidating (i.e. “safe”) concoctions meant to woo and dazzle the Texas diner who is typically challenged–dare I say, ignorant–when it comes to ethnic food.
DH and I visited the newly opened Geisha for lunch. Their menu had the typical dining options such as bento boxes and nigiri/tempura combos. We began with a bowl of miso, seaweed salad and edamame (hardly adventurous choices). Seaweed salad was the standout in the appetizer portion of the meal. Moving on, I ordered the salmon bento box, while DH selected a more exotic plate: a spider roll partnered with a trio of handrolls. Kudos to Geisha for a nicely optioned bento box; I enjoyed the fried dumplings immensely–and unlike some other Japanese lunch spots, the teriyaki sauce on the salmon came light and mildly sweet. The salmon itself was cooked perfectly–not too rare and not too dry.
DH approved of their handroll sampler plate; he scarfed up the fried crab rolls and worked diligently through the handrolls (one of which was spicy). But the star of the hour came when we selected a chef’s special dubbed the White Dragon Roll. It arrived at our table, elegantly dressed in a swirl of sauces, and lightly tempura batter-fried. DH nominated it the best roll anywhere, succeeding the reigning long-time champ, Volcano Roll. This entry alone guaranteed that we will be returning to Geisha to sample their other chef’s specialties. Good eats!
