When I started my new job, I spent a few days in Dallas and was able to spend the evening with my sister and Eric. When I told her I was coming, the first thing she asked was, "where do you want to eat?!?" I love my sister :) The first night, we went to Abacus and oof, ate so much I went into an immediate food coma. The second night, Chef Eric cooked his yummy Sinigang soup, which I tried to recreate and home and will post in the coming days.
Abacus is run by Chef Kent Rathbun and this restaurant has earned a slew of accolades including Bon Appetite's Best Tasting Menu. The atmosphere consists of a black and red decor and was surprisingly busy on a Tuesday night with plenty of tables of business dinners. Appetizers, side dishes and entrees were all delicious!
Tempura Calamari with a sweet thai sauce. There were also tempura fried scallions and mushrooms. This was surprisingly delicious and highly recommended.
Creamy Black Truffle Risotto - This absolutely kicks major butt. Sometimes you don't really taste the "truffle" but this risotto, perfect combo of creamy/cheesy goodness mixed with that hit of truffle. Um, if I didn't consume my entire entree, this would have been gone in a flash!
Pomme Frites w/White Truffle Oil - Good but not spectacular. Didn't really taste the truffle and when taste the truffle risotto before this, every other side dish just doesn't compare.
Applesmoked Bacon "Mac & Cheese" - This was my least favorite side dish. Nothing spectacular and didn't really taste any different than other mac and cheeses.
Duck w/blackberry sauce - The online menu doesn't show this but the duck was pretty fantastic. There were plenty of medium cooked duck and I would take a bite with a bit of blackberry sauce.
Eric tried the seared venison and I'm not exactly sure what my sister had. Thinking it was fish but I had a bite and I remember it being quite tasty. Per my last experience w/venison I didn't have any of Eric's venison so not sure if they were good or not - he said they were.
Overall, I give this place a 4.5 out of 5. Decor was good and we got to sit in a little booth. It did get pretty loud at times. Food was good and the waiter wasn't too pushy. We left feeling pretty great after eating such a good meal.
Showing posts with label dallas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dallas. Show all posts
April 27, 2010
January 05, 2010
Restaurant Review: Hibiscus (Dallas)
For my birthday, my sister and brother in law treated me to dinner at Hibiscus in Dallas. It was pretty fantastic! I think of it more as a steakhouse/seafood/american restaurant. From the outside, it looks like this tiny little restaurant but inside, it's quaint with a wood/rustic decor and actually very big (the restaurant is incredibly deep/long with about four different sitting areas).
We were seated promptly but right next to a bar so that was a tad annoying with folks coming, going, standing, talking and waiters walking by all the time.
Here's what we chowed on for appetizer:
Baked Dungeness Crab Dip which was really good and really cheesy. Perfect for a cold night. We read Yelp reviews prior and several people recommended this dish.
And for the main course:
Roasted Liberty Farms Duck Breast with grilled sweet corn and a bing cherry sauce. This was cooked medium and it was perfect. It had the crispy skin with just a tad sliver of the fat underneath and the meat was cooked very well. Eat it together with a bing cherry and it was pretty tasty. I wasn't a huge fan of the grilled corn - not a ton of sweetness or flavor but I think its because the cherry sauce overpowered it.
Prime Short Rib with potato puree in a zinfandel sauce. Eric had this dish and when it came out, there was a unison cry of "ooooooh." It comes out on the bone and was huge. I had a piece and it was pretty darn good. Some thought it was better than the duck. He said the meat was very tender.
Crispy Skate Wing with potatoes, pancetta, spinach and lump crab blanc. My dad had this dish and it was pretty darn cool asthetic wise and delicious! We didn't know what Skate was but the waiter explained its in the same family of the Stingray and has the texture and taste of crab. The meat comes in the shape of a wing thus the name. I had to wikipedia this sucker of course. Apparently Skate is similar to stingrays but their movements on the ocean floor are much more abrupt that they look like they are skating. It also looks like a big bat with tentacles - bleh! They have a slow growth rate, are at risk for being overfished so think about that next time you see it on the menu!
Pan Roasted Sea Bass with spaghetti squash and roasted tomatoes in a lemon vinagrette. My mom loves fish and really, you really go wrong with chilean sea bass. It was cooked perfectly and good - and more importantly, it was a big piece so you aren't left feeling a little bit hungry like so many other places. However, when at new restaurants, I typically stray away from sea bass since I always know it will be good and people don't really cook it any differently (sear or poached) - and I'm always up for trying new dishes I can't get anywhere else.
Overall, I give this place a 4 out of 5. Food was pretty fantastic but the seating was a little annoying and valet was a downside. Valet was outside and this station served three restaurants so it was situated a little down from the entrance meaning that on a cold night, it makes for a very brisk 5 minutes while waiting for your car! If I'm back in Dallas, I'd definitely come back here.
We were seated promptly but right next to a bar so that was a tad annoying with folks coming, going, standing, talking and waiters walking by all the time.
Here's what we chowed on for appetizer:
Baked Dungeness Crab Dip which was really good and really cheesy. Perfect for a cold night. We read Yelp reviews prior and several people recommended this dish.
And for the main course:
Roasted Liberty Farms Duck Breast with grilled sweet corn and a bing cherry sauce. This was cooked medium and it was perfect. It had the crispy skin with just a tad sliver of the fat underneath and the meat was cooked very well. Eat it together with a bing cherry and it was pretty tasty. I wasn't a huge fan of the grilled corn - not a ton of sweetness or flavor but I think its because the cherry sauce overpowered it.
Prime Short Rib with potato puree in a zinfandel sauce. Eric had this dish and when it came out, there was a unison cry of "ooooooh." It comes out on the bone and was huge. I had a piece and it was pretty darn good. Some thought it was better than the duck. He said the meat was very tender.
Crispy Skate Wing with potatoes, pancetta, spinach and lump crab blanc. My dad had this dish and it was pretty darn cool asthetic wise and delicious! We didn't know what Skate was but the waiter explained its in the same family of the Stingray and has the texture and taste of crab. The meat comes in the shape of a wing thus the name. I had to wikipedia this sucker of course. Apparently Skate is similar to stingrays but their movements on the ocean floor are much more abrupt that they look like they are skating. It also looks like a big bat with tentacles - bleh! They have a slow growth rate, are at risk for being overfished so think about that next time you see it on the menu!
Pan Roasted Sea Bass with spaghetti squash and roasted tomatoes in a lemon vinagrette. My mom loves fish and really, you really go wrong with chilean sea bass. It was cooked perfectly and good - and more importantly, it was a big piece so you aren't left feeling a little bit hungry like so many other places. However, when at new restaurants, I typically stray away from sea bass since I always know it will be good and people don't really cook it any differently (sear or poached) - and I'm always up for trying new dishes I can't get anywhere else.
Overall, I give this place a 4 out of 5. Food was pretty fantastic but the seating was a little annoying and valet was a downside. Valet was outside and this station served three restaurants so it was situated a little down from the entrance meaning that on a cold night, it makes for a very brisk 5 minutes while waiting for your car! If I'm back in Dallas, I'd definitely come back here.
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