What the hell is this?
As a New Yorker, great Italian cuisine is as important to me as eliminating evildoers is to Bush. The move from Manhattan to Dallas at first was extremely depressing, not because I did not appreciate the overwhelming amount of soccer moms running me off the road in their oversized Suburbans, but because I found it impossible to get a decent Sardinian meal, or as Texans say, I-TALIAN food. Until the recent arrival of Il Mulino, I thought I would never again taste a decent gnocchetti or tiramisu. I could not sleep for nights, haunted by my love for veal scaloppina. But soon my semi-erotic fantasies of veal scaloppina were satisfied by this sexy relaxed Sardinian restaurante that brings upon an ‘out of Dallas’ experience. Arcodoro & Pomodoro Ristoranti Italiani is now consolidated under one roof in Uptown (2708 Routh St.) You don’t pop bottles with Jay-Z at the bar, but it’s chill and serves up some of the most potent Fruittinis (vodka soaked in seasonal fruit for five days then chilled and served in a martini glass.) Yeeeaaaaaaah buddy!!! If Mother Nature permits, a lovely patio awaits your arrival. Efisio and Francesco Farris bring a rustic and aromatic cuisine of Italy’s ancient Island Sardinia. The Farris brothers made sure that no expense was spared when designing their menu and decor. From their woodburning oven, they deliver a rightly thin, delicately tossed margherita pizza made with fresh buffalo mozzarella flown in from Italy, with tomatoes and fresh basil. This is how pizza is supposed to be made! They offer a delightful carpaccio allôolio tartufato e versure al salto, which is thin slices of raw beef filet mignon, with sauteed baby greens and truffle oil. Their stinco di vitella logudorese, split veal shank braised in a cannonau wine reduction, served with risotto Milanese, is one best in the city. Arcodoro Pomodoro is a relaxing night out on the town. Efisio and Francesco gave Dallas what it needed: an authentic Italian restaurant. All Dallas needs now is some decent Chinese food.
Well, who would have guessed that a place called Jaden’s wouldn’t last. Yeah, I’m talking about the place that is located on the access road off of 75 right past Knox-Henderson that we all thought about going to once or twice. Well, regarding the new tenant, Metro Grill, I can only recommend to keep on thinkin’. Well maybe that’s a bit harsh, but the honest-to-God truth of the matter is that I can’t see myself ever going back there again. Metro presents itself as a nicely decorated sports bar/restaurant, adorned with dark wood paneled walls and high ceilings which seem to tie the place together nicely. The Metro is divided into two different sections: There is the bar on one side and the dining room on the other. We originally wanted to sit in the bar area but it seemed to be a bit of a mess, not to mention that not a single person was in there, not even the bartender. So, we decided to sit in the dining room, which seemed to be pretty nice, with four huge TVs right smack in the middle of the room, all programmed to different games. After refusing to turn them all to the Mav’s game, our pimple-faced 18-year-old waiter took our drink orders and got to pour what seemed to be his first beers. What a mess, but after allowing them to settle for 10 minutes or so, we eventually did end up with the perfect pour. Unfortunately, I cannot condone such ineptitude. The best part of the meal, or rather the only part of the meal that stood out, was the sesame chicken styled Buffalo wings we had as an appetizer. You know you’re walking on thin ice when that’s all you got. Everything else we ordered, as well as everything else on the menu is embarrassingly plain and uninventive. Even Chili’s goes out on a limb every once in a while and tries to conceive a new salsa-verde Mongolian schnitzel or something of that nature, if anything just to reassure its patrons that if they do indeed ever feel like venturing out of the ordinary, they would be able to do so. At Metro, all we have to work with ranges from the burger to chicken fried steak to fish sandwich. Sure, there is absolutely nothing bad about the food, but nothing memorable either except for those wings, an afterthought not worthwhile the disappointment of visiting this insipid locale. Now, you say to yourself there is nothing wrong with eating an average burger here and there, but this is what separates this place apart from every other mom and pop diner: the prices. Somehow, the guys in charge thought they could extract quasi-gourmet food prices for their everyday lackluster meals. You’re not leaving that place without a $20 to $25 tab, and we weren’t even boozing it that hard. All I can say is, shame on them, and next time I want diner food I’ll venture across 75 and treat myself to some Denny’s. H&A, fair, balanced, telling you how it is.
Harrison Polsky and Alexander Schmidt can be reached at [email protected].
