DFWTexEx

We may need a separate thread on Michelin star guesses and then results. We went to Georgie for a special occasion last week. It's on the short list for a star now that it has been revamped from a steakhouse to a true chef driven restaurant (chef has French Laundry experience). We had the tasting menu with wine pairings. It was not cheap. But, it was very, very good. Of the 8 courses, only one was a miss. The waiter recognized that we didn't care for it and the chef sent out something else (agnolotti, which was spectacular). We had one standard wine pairing and one reserve pairing. The reserve pairing was $120 more than the standard and not really worth it. We would do the tasting menu again with a standard pairing. Service was just perfect. The room was beautiful and much livelier than I expected, with a nice bar scene (cocktails are in the $25 range, so you know). They tried to sit us at the worst table in the house, essentially at the host stand. We politely asked for another table and they accommodated us with a much nicer table. We'd like to go back. Recommend!

El Ideas. Great, creative food (Michelin *), lots of interaction with the kitchen, bring your own wine.

I remember their old school way of cooking a turkey. Thanksgiving meal for our family was served at noon. The prayer was literally at noon, not minute after. We ate, relaxed, had dessert. And then people left or stayed to watch the Cowboys at 3. So, mom and dad would wake up at some crazy time, like 4 am and put the turkey in the oven to cook forever, with a little basting when they remembered. No brining, no fancy wine soaked cloths, salt and pepper only. It's the opposite of what we are told to do now. But, in the end, they made the best, juiciest turkey I have ever had. Dad passed away this February and I guess I will have to make the turkey this year.

Quick and early thoughts on Dallas. 3 stars: None Maybe 2 stars: Lucia, Purepecha, Tatsu Maybe 1 star: Uchi, Tei-An, Georgia, Monarch, Petra & The Beast, Fearings Green star: Beatrice Bib: Revolver Taco

My favorite films and TV shows are the ones where you don't notice the filmmaking when you are watching it. It's seamless and real and you just feel immersed. Later, when you think about what you saw, you get the holy shit moment of what the director, the script, the editing, the score, the actors, camera work, etc. all did to make it great. This season of the Bear is the opposite of that. I can sense the chatty script, the cuts, the back flashes, the forward flashes, hell, even the sideways flashes, the cameos, the music, etc.; each filmmaking element just hits me in the face. I am not saying it's bad. Clearly, this is a great show. But, the magic is gone.

This is a big loss for us. Pretty much there from day 1. We celebrated there, closed a huge business deal there, hung out with neighbors just eating oysters and sometimes just sat at the bar for what I still think is the best burger in town. Their half price wines on Friday was the best deal in town. We went last night for our final meal: packed house and an excellent meal, as always. They are closing down at the top of their game. But, I understand.

Rodney’s Oyster House in Yaletown.

Reasonable Price + Convenience (non-stops, lots of flight choices, etc.) + some advantage for loyalty. I live in Dallas. I don't do Southwest because of the seat situation. So, it's American for me and I don't have the complaints that others do. I am treated well and have good experiences for the most part. I can fly almost anywhere non-stop. I can't imaging having to fly a discount airline. It's just not consideration. I do the math sometimes and it is never significantly cheaper when you add in convenience as a cost.

My turn. My 81 year dad (the greatest guy I know) was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme (very aggressive brain cancer) in July. In June, he had been very active and the picture of health, so this came fast and strong. At the time, we were told it was stage 4 and only palliative care (radiation and chemo) was ordered, along with some PT. In addition to his PCP and treatment team, I consulted informally with doctor friends and we all agreed on this plan. It was all we could do. The radiation has been completed and the chemo will be completed in a week or so. I don't expect there will be much more to do (as I was told early on). BUT, I owe it to my mom to at least ask. We are in touch with MD Anderson. They want to expedite his next MRI (which will not be easy for him) and come to Houston for a consultation. We are in the Valley and this would be a hard trip for him. And, we don't really know what benefit there will be, if any. Maybe some help with the symptoms and quality of life and maybe we would get a couple more months. There is no cure. Should he join a trial if he is eligible? Right now, he is unsteady and can't walk around on his own. His cognitive stuff is awkward but ok. He is not in pain, has a good appetite and is in good spirits. We take him out for "adventures" (dinner, shopping etc.) and we sit around as a family around the pool and laugh and sing. We are enjoying every day with him and he is too. Do we disrupt all that for a something that we don't know? We definitely will not do anything that would put him in pain or cause any bad side effects. We were also told to consider some sort of head gear that he would wear 24/7...we are not doing that. Choosing not to do anything else after the treatments end will just put him in God's hands. I don't post much on here (although I have been around since the hookem.com days) and I don't think I have ever posted anything this personal. I really don't know why I am posting, but maybe somebody has something that will help us think about all this. Or maybe just for prayers. Hook 'em

Bumping this. Any lawyers / CPAs out there that do 1031 work? I am only familiar with the basics and may need some help.

This is a common question about Virgin Voyages because of the adults only experience and how they market the scene on board. From what I can tell, the cruise is mostly straight, monogamous vanilla but the upside down pineapple crowd is comfortable as are the LGBT+ folks. But, who knows what folks do after a few Aperols?

My friend and neighbor opened up some old stuff last night for his wife’s birthday. I should have done better with the pics. The Buena Vista is 1978 and the BV is 1980. Each was perfect. My favorite was the Buena Vista that was silky but still had good fruit (plus Buena Vista was the first winery in California we visited so it’s special to me). His collection of California reds is spectacular.

After years of being anti-cruise, we bit the bullet in the post pandemic "what the hell" world. We will be doing a Virgin Voyages cruise out of Barcelona this fall. Virgin's attempt to disrupt the industry worked on us. There is none of the traditional stuff (no formal nights, buffets, fixed seated meals...). It's adults only and adult themes are part of the deal. It's not for the squeamish, socially conservative crowd. All the specialty restaurants look good and are included. The clubs look stylish too, plus there is an overnight stop in Ibiza. We'll see hot it goes.

I bought an eBag laptop backpack about 6 years ago when I started taking overseas business trips. The thing looks as sharp as it did when it was brand new and has functioned perfectly. It's smallish because I use it as my personal bag so it fits in the seat in front of seat in front of me, but they have different sizes. I am recommending because of the great quality and design.

We live in the area too. If you follow them on Facebook, they announce same day table availability pretty regularly. I ate there on the 2nd day they were open. We ate there 3 times last year. It's better now. At the top of the game. My only complaint is that they no longer offer a small salumi plate, only the large one, which is way too much for 2 people and would take the place of all other appetizers, which I won't do.

@wild_turkey I'm an AA guy and mostly stick to their cards (Plus a card for Chase rewards), especially now with how AA loyalty points work. Do you know anything about how often you can be eligible signup bonuses on their cards? I had a Barclay's for a while and closed it last year after I got the bonus. I still have a CITI World Elite.

What's the feeling about the best Peking duck in Dallas (or surrounding area)? Is there any place that carves at the table?

There are several that I make. Some fresh and some cooked. But, this is my favorite easy one. And, yes, it's roasted and it's fabulous. I take a several tomatoes cut in half, rough chop an onion or two (there should be more tomato than onion), a couple of serranos, and a couple cloves of garlic. Toss in a sheet pan with a bit of oil and lots of salt. Make sure the cut sides of the tomatoes are facing up. Roast on high heat until everything has a good char but there are still juices. Put in food processor and start to blend. Add cilantro and some lime juice. Taste for salt. Perfect.

Excellence Playa Mujeres is great. But I enjoyed Secrets Maroma Beach better overall. Both are blown away by Secrets Moxche Playa del Carmen. It just opened last year and it’s awesome. Great food, awesome pools (including a huge sand entry lagoon) and great staff. Beach is ok. If you want to level up, do Impressions Moxche. We are checking out Impressions Moxche for a birthday in July. All these places are adults only.

Huatulco is stunning. We went for the first time last November and loved it. We stayed at a resort, but did get out some. Contact Oswaldo Rojas at Gran Turismo Huatulco for transfers and tours. At the very least, do the private bay tour with him. There are several beautiful secluded bays in the area. You will go to some spectacular beaches that are pretty much not accessible except by boat. You can snorkel and swim and then end up at a restaurant under a palapa on the beach with cold beers and fresh seafood. It will be a good day. He can also take you inland to see waterfalls and coffee plantations. The whole area is a protected natural space. They do a great job with water reclamation, building restrictions and all that. It is very progressively green. It's a small town of only 25,000 or so people with only a couple of traffic lights. It is very peaceful place with an incredible, Hawaii like coast. The town itself is small and charming too. We want to go back. The downside is that you will be there in the hot, rainy season. So, bring bug spray!

Well, we pulled the trigger. I have gone on 3 Carnival cruises (2 with my grandmother when she retired, 1 for a work event). All 3 were fun in their own way, but nothing I would ever do again. We have resisted cruising for 25 years. Virgin has changed the equation. We dug into what they are doing and became intrigued. It's adults only. This not only means no endless games of Marco Polo in the pools, but the entire experience is geared to adults: adult humor, adult language, cocktail forward, no Broadway shows, adult and sex friendly shows. The ice cream bar is called "lick me till I scream". While the cruises are "vanilla" and mostly populated by straight couples and straight singles (they have solo cabins), the experience is tailored to be very welcoming for everyone (LGBT, all gender identifications, curious, etc.), including the upside pineapple lifestyle crowd. Apparently, it is not for the socially conservative. This all sounds perfect for us (same sex couple). The food is set up around specialty restaurants that seem to be very good (all included with no extra charge) with no formal dining hall or buffets. There are no old fashioned "activities" (although there is drag bingo), no silly art auctions or photographers on board, and you have to sorta find your way through the day with all the fun stuff they are doing around the ship and at night, the clubs rock. The staff is paid well and is very happy to provide good service. This is all from reviews I have read. We are doing a Mediterranean cruise out of Barcelona September (including a night in Ibiza). I'll report back then. They are sailing out of Florida now for Caribbean cruises.

Yes, I tried it twice and there is no reason to go back even though it is really convenient. Ordinary at best. No reason to go there. Crown Deli makes a better old fashioned burger, just south on Hampton. You are also pretty close to Wingfield's and Boulevardier (best upscale burger in town).

We are doing dry January + eating better + being more active. So far so good. I can't see drinking until a nice big red with steak on Valentine's day. I love how much better I am sleeping and how good I feel when I wake up. We are social drinkers through the year, drinking some wine with most meals and cocktails when we go out. But, like everyone else, the number of events, birthdays (including mine), and other celebrations in Q4 is just off the charts so it got to be too much. By the time Jan 1 came, I was ready to hit pause. I haven't missed it at all, except for the social part of it. But, since more than half the people I know and hang out with are also on dry January, it hasn't been terrible.

We had Jellyfish installed in December. For holidays, game days, special stuff, the system is awesome and we are really pleased. The track they install is so subtle and painted to match the house trim. We have a 1913 house in a historic district and I was nervous about how it would fit in or if would cause landmark commission issues. You can’t even tell they are there. Love it. No need to install lights on our high pitched roof again! I need to figure out how to select only certain lights to create a more subdued accent scene for every day used. Their accent preprogrammed setup is too much. Hue is terrific for interior lighting but this is a different thing.

Sounds like a botched theft. Someone cut into the habitat and thought they could just scoop up this wild animal. These things may not big leopards, but they eat small prey. I wonder if there is blood on the scene. As far as the neighborhood, there are some gems in that area (Beckley Club Estates with the roaming peacocks is lovely), but right around the Zoo is rough, for now. The new Southern Gateway Park, to be built on a deck over I35 (think Klyde Warren) right at the zoo is already transforming the area. If you hate gentrification, look away. If you've got a couple of million to buy some land, go for it, but you are way too late for anything close.