48 NIGHTS | DALLAS

I've been on a Dallas kick as of late, but I'm honestly just so impressed with what activities have been going on this summer!

Last night a girlfriend and I went to 48 Nights over in the Bishop Arts/Kessler Park area and it was FABULOUS! The owners of Bolsa and Smoke partnered with SYLVAN | THIRTY to raise awareness and funding for the Mass Care Task Force; an organization that helps increase North Texas’ level of disaster preparedness. The restaurant will be open only for six months (ends July 27th so email them if you want to try and get in...they said last night there may still be a few openings even though their website says sold out). There are two seatings for dinner at 6:30 & 8:30 on Mondays and Tuesdays of each week and they're located in a small building called SYLVAN | THIRTY. The atmosphere is eclectic; think grandma's house meets Austin. There's approx 30 seats at communal tables. Before the seating there is a 30 minute happy hour, essentially. If you don't want to get stuck at a table with duds, as we did, beat the rush and find some cute, young and fun people to share a table with!

It's $75 for this prix-fixe meal but that doesn't include tip so don't forget to bring cash. Their goal is to raise $1,000 per night for the cause. Last night they told us they exceeded their goal which is always wonderful to hear! Don't forget it's BYOW...as the duds at our table did! The chef each night is surprise up until you walk into the restaurant, but their menu does get posted online before the event so you can use their wine pairing recommendations.

Eating for a cause. A win-win in my book!

http://www.48nights.com/

I took these pics on my iPhone and lightened as much I could! They don't give Chef David Uygur, formerly of Lola and soon-to-be of Lucia in Bishop Arts if I heard it all correctly last night, any justice!

JUST OPENED: Torchy's Tacos, Dallas

Austinite's know and love Torchy's and lucky for us Dallasite's they've decided to branch up to the Big D. Taco joints, especially those in Airstream's, seem to do especially well down in Austin. Up here we don't seem to get the cool Airstream-vibe, rather the traditional restaurant in a shopping center, but not complaining since Dallas finally is getting its fair share of taco joints! Other local favs since we're on the subject: Taco Joint, Fuel City, Rusty Taco, Urban Taco...the list goes on but we're always on the lookout for the best around so keep 'em coming!

Torchy's Tacos, opened today in Preston Forest Shopping Center so check them out!  An added bonus, they have Dublin Dr. Pepper on tap! Located next to Potbelly.
http://torchystacos.com/

Intermix: Big W for Spring/Summer '10

I haven't been this impressed by their merch in it feels like 2 years! So thank you Intermix buyers for getting it right this season...certainly makes window shopping via the World Wide Web more interesting and perhaps a purchase or two in the mix! Here's a few of my favs. I've seen most of these in store and they're just as wonderful as they look in the pics! Again, excellent job!

L to R:
Rebecca Minkoff - Foldover Crossbody Messgner (brown) $395

Jenny Bird - Leather Ruched Clutch (nude) $360

Equipment - 2 Pocket Sleeveless Sig Silk Shirt (blush) $168

Josephine - Rosegold Cotton Lurex Pointelle Cardi $295

ALC - Chiffon Hook & Eye Cami $235

Elizabeth and James - Two Pocket Artist Shirt (chambray) $225
Eugenia Kim - Max Mini Fedora (ivory) $285
Oliver Peoples - Zooey Sunglasses $350

Something Else - Peace Print Scarf $78

Current Elliott - Trouser Roll Shorts (white) $180 

For WOmen Only: CARGO

Cargo pants for women is one thing...mainly because they aren't disgustingly baggy, but somewhat form fitting. Cargo pants on men is still a big fat NO and hopefully that trend will not come back anytime soon; I'm not ready at all for it's return and don't know if I EVER will be! Ekks :)

Off The Beaten Path in D

In the interest of keeping things lively and not visiting the same bar-scene every weekend, here's a few options for other entertainment around Dallas this summer.

Dallas Arboretum
8525 Garland Road
Dallas, Texas 75218
http://www.dallasarboretum.org/concerts.html
Twilight Tuesdays:
Feature the best of Big Band, Jazz and the Rat Pack
Tuesday evenings from April 13 - May 25 (over for this year already)
Cool Thursdays:
Feature a wide assortment of music from Country to Rock and Roll
Thursdays (Spring/Summer) April 15 - July 29
Thursdays (Fall) September 16 - October 28
Price:
Member $8 | Non-Member $16 | Price breaks for groups over 20

Belmont Hotel
901 Fort Worth Avenue
Dallas, TX 75208
http://www.belmontdallas.com/happening/special-events.aspx
Barefoot at the Belmont:
This poolside concert and movies series goes from May-August and is free! Typically held on Thursdays, but check out their calender because pretty much Thrus-Sun has something going on including pool parties hosted by local DJs.
http://www.belmontdallas.com/PDF/BelmontMay.pdf

Lee Harvey's
1807 Gould Street
Dallas, TX 75215
http://leeharveys.com/pages/about.html
Divey inside, but the huge open outside lawn is great for big groups looking for something different than the Uptown scene! Think gravel, pit bulls and Harley's and that sums it up! Fridays and Saturdays are great spent here with free concerts almost every weekend. They also have fun other incentives to go here, like their Happy Hour beginning at 3pm Mon-Fri (wells and domestic all $2.50), and Dog Day/HH on Sundays starting at 1pm...needless to say dogs are always invited to "Flea Harvey's"!

Adairs Saloon
2624 Commerce St
Dallas, TX 75226
http://www.adairssaloon.com/
Free concert most week nights and weekends. Down in Deep Ellum, which doesn't get frequented enough these days! Great burgers, cheap drinks, a little divey, but this is the "Off The Beaten Path" list!

Restaurant Alert: The Common Table Opening in Lola's Space

Taking over Lola's former house off Fairmount will be a tavern-style restaurant called The Common Table. I'm channeling a Neighborhood Services-type of vibe. It opens this week and I'm sure will be successful considering who's involved. In the sense of time, lets just say the people linked to TCT have had connections to The Ivy (London), Loft 610, Nick & Sam's, Nick & Sam's Grill, and the soon-to-open Marquee Club in HPV.


The Common Table
2917 Fairmount Street
Dallas, TX 75201
http://thecommontable.com/ (website stillin the works)

Trashy = Cool...and I'm Speaking Purely in Polish Lingo!

It makes me laugh out loud when I try, and see others trying out, new colors that in years past would have been considered social suicide, now cool. But in the interest of cyclical fashion trends those crazy nail polish colors have made their comeback to the cool kids crowd so get on board quick!

That Chanel Jade was all the rage this past Summer/Fall, but we're now moving into more vibrant electric marine hues (sidenote: I'm still on board with neons because lets face it, they can always accentuate a great tan!). For a shade in between muted and electric, try Essie's Turquoise & Caicos! Sephora's Teal We Meet Again is great find for a smoking-hot summer weekend!

I honestly like the idea of translating this marine hue on the eyes, obvi not in unison with the nail polish for fear of being too matchy-matchy, but on another day, yes! Chanel has a jade eyeliner that's darker than the polish and would look fab this summer!

The "Double Double" Comes to Dallas!

We've all head the rumors that the famous California-based chain is moving into this great state, but until now it's all been hearsay. The latest is that In-N-Out has opened a distribution center in the Dallas-area to accommodate the new openings; the first in areas surrounding Dallas. I think it will be interesting if it catches on like it has in Cali. I mean, we do have quite a few local spots that have pretty high fan-fare....Jack's Burger House, Angry Dog, Maple & Motor, Goff's, Kellers, Twisted Root, Who's Who, Chip's, Jake's, and although not as QSR or Dallas original as those previous mentioned I can not help but mention that Houston's has the all-time best (hickory) burger in Dallas since we're on the subject of best burgs in D!

Look for the first of the In-N-Outs in Texas in the Firewheel Town Center in Garland and apparently start looking forward to 5 more in the Dallas-area...the next rumored to be near Jerry's World which sounds like a great place, actually! Strange In-N-Out hasn't updated their site for these "Grand Openings"??

Articles:
http://sidedish.dmagazine.com/2010/05/24/in-n-out-burger-comes-to-dallas-details-developing/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/26/in-n-out-to-texas-burger_n_591188.html
http://www.in-n-out.com/pdf/locations_printable.pdf