#37 Southern Eats

One of my favorite things about Winter Break is having extra time to spend with friends from different parts of life.  The first week of the my break was meeting up with some friends at new to me restaurants, both of which feature Southern cuisine, one of my favorites.

My first adventure in Southern eats was Tupelo Honey at The Star in Frisco, celebrating Christmas with Anita & Mitzi.  

We started with appetizers: fried green tomatoes, fried pickles, and biscuits with blueberry jam.  Yes, they were all amazing!  The tomatoes were some of the best I've ever had; definitely the thickest.  And the blueberry jam on the biscuits . . . I would have ordered it a second time for dessert if I hadn't been distracted by the banana pudding.  

For my meal, I went with one of my all-time favorites . . .  chicken and waffles, but with a twist.  Mac and cheese was baked into the waffles.  Yes, you read that correctly - mac and cheese waffles, and yes, you are right, it was delicious.  And it made for a fantastic lunch the next day.

I couldn't leave without trying the banana pudding; luckily they serve these mini versions of their desserts which is all I needed.

A couple of days later, I found myself at Roots Southern Table in my hometown of Farmers Branch, with two of my oldest friends, Kim and Becky.  If the name of this restaurant sounds familiar, that's no surprise.  It's been featured in D Magazine, Texas Monthly, the Dallas Observer, and oh, yeah, the New York Times as one of their top restaurants in 2021 . . . in America!  And yes, it is all that and more.  It's a different Southern eating experience than Tupelo Honey and just as yummy!  We skipped the appetizers and went straight for their signature dish - Duck-Fat Fried Chicken served family style with biscuits.  If you're wondering if Duck-Fat Fried Chicken is any good, the answer is a resounding yes.  It was unbelievably delicious.  And even more delicious the next day for breakfast. The meat was cooked to juicy perfection and the skin was crisp and full of flavor.  Since it felt weird to get a platter of chicken without any sides, we decided to try the Gruyere Potatoes as well.

We ended dinner with the Orange Juice Cake, the perfect size for three people to share.  Our server said it was the most popular dessert and I believe it.  Had it been acceptable behavior, I probably would have picked up the bowl and drank the orange sauce that the warm warm butter cake was doused in.

If you're a fan of Southern eats, then I can't recommend either of these establishments enough.  The food is fabulous and the service was amazing at both places.  If you're going to try Roots, you definitely need a reservation and it wouldn't hurt to have one for Tupelo Honey either.

Cheers to good food and even better times with amazing friends!

#36 Campo Verde

Last Christmas, Anita & I tried to visit Campo Verde, but the timing just didn't work out for us.  Our goal was to make it happen for Christmas 2021 and my #50by50.  If you're not familiar with Campo Verde in Arlington, it's been around for almost 40 years.  It is Tex-Mex and American food, but the food is not what you go for.  A trip to Campo Verde is all about the Christmas experience.  They start decorating in October and leave everything up through March.  And the decorations are intense!  Tinsel and lights and all sorts of Christmas goodness all over the place.  Clark Griswold would love Campo Verde!  

Campo Verde is a holiday tradition in North Texas and it gets bigger every year.  They don't take reservations and it's likely you'll have quite a wait; we waited almost 2 hours on a Sunday afternoon.  Be sure to go when you have plenty of time and you aren't hungry before you even get there.  It's not the most amazing food, but it is definitely a experience you will want to add to your bucket list.