The Truck Yard on Lower Greenville!

Here’s your unreadable sign.

Just walk in. Try to bike in?, it’ll be on display.

Truck bed patio seating!

Sanford’s son gave it up!

The trucks at the Truck Yard.

The main line for CHEESESTEAKS!!!

What?!?! No line?

If yo’re unsure, go get you a couple of these in the main building!

Beer here!!!

The acoustic guitar lined patio stage!

The “Tree House”.

From the Tree Patio (house).

Eagle eye on the trucks shutting it down.

Liquor bottle chandelier!!!

Ice chest bar stools.

Unclear? “Eat safe. Use condiments.”

The Truck Yard on lower Greenville here in Dallas is definitely one of my favorite new additions!  I can’t wait for the weather to get nice so that the stage outside is always booked!  As far as parking?  If you don’t think you can park there, don’t park there!  I got a ticket for parking in the huge empty lot next to them that was riddled with tire tracks where hundred have parked before. Still, no pavement.  My bad.

As far as the menu, it’s always changing because they change out the food trucks on a weekly basis.  When I went, there was a Mexican, Italian, and Greek truck.  If you’re ever unsure which truck to visit, just go into the main building and order a cheesesteak (or live dangerously and choose a truck you pansy!).  They drop the meat on the grill right in front of you and chop it as it cooks.  They ask you what type of cheese you want on it, and I usually choose the kind that doesn’t destroy my bowels.  🙂  Once you get it, don’t be afraid to use the condiments provided when you get it and on the counter on the other side of the door as you leave the grill line.

The patio was super cool.  I felt like I was in a redneck museum!  There were truck beds made into patio tables, igloo bar stools, liquor bottle chandeliers, old school picnic furniture, old coke machines, DIRT, a stage lined with acoustic guitars, and a tree house!  Actually, I’d call it a tree patio since there weren’t walls and a roof, and it wasn’t built IN the tree like I tried to as a kid (everything fell down including me).  Still, not to rain on their parade.  It’s a tree house that has tree house cocktails as well!  Go get some!

Also, they DO have wait staff working the floor.  Unfortunately, it’ s not always easy to distinguish them from the rest of us.  A couple of times I asked, “Excuse me.  Can you get me a beer?”  I then got a look that didn’t really sit well.  I can interpret it here, but that would take a few pages.

Beer?  Of course they have the regular selections, but they ALSO keep the Texas selections available!  You know, the more you support local, the richer our city becomes? (As I point at you with my politician’s thumb).

Anyways, I’ll put the website links below.  Keep it real!

The Truck Yard website!

The Truck Yard Food Truck Calendar!

 

Acme Food and Beverage at McKinney and Monticello! (CLOSED!)

 

Alright.  This place is in a bit of a jinxed location, because places tend to open here and close soon after.  I didn’t want to write about it because a few of the places I have written about have went out of business.  😦  Still, who’s to believe that an unpopular blog like mine could cause such a thing.  That’s like believing in witchcraft, magic, voodoo, or superstitions! …  Okay, I believe in all those things a little bit, but I’m pretty sure that my powers in all those areas are pretty weak, so here goes…

My favorite thing to eat here was the ribs.  They were sizable, inexpensive, and very juicy.  Then I realized that I should always order the flatbread of the day.  The bartender suggested I add bacon to it.  It was delicious!  The crust was nice and crisp, and all the veggies seemed to be fresh and super healthy (not that I’m going for that).  The wings were very good as well.  I think they were served with coleslaw that had thin crispy potato strips in it!  I love the ambiance of the place as well.  I’m pretty sure they’re about to change the name to Acme Neighborhood Lounge if they haven’t already.  They’re gonna try and let go of the fine dining feel and morph more into the bar scene and maybe even stay open until two every night.  That’s good for me, cuz that’s my hood!  Personally, I think the best way to do this is to add a few flat screens to the place.  The TV at the main bar is in an awkward location that causes me to turn completely away from my food, drinks, and friends.  Still, that’s an easy fix.  The staff here are super nice and love what they’re doing.  I can even tell the kitchen loves what they’re doing as well.  The food is tasty and presented very well.

Anyways, please check this place out if my voodoo hasn’t destroyed them yet.  I want them around forever, so I have more to choose from in my neck of the woods (whoever made that saying up???).  They have local beers on tap as well as a nice selection of creative cocktails.  Also, they’re patio is super nice and very big.  I’ll try to cast a positive spell on their success tonight.

The LOT at Gaston and E. Grand Ave./Garland Road!

Here’s your sign.

Crispy baked kale.

Luscher’s red hot mini dogs.

Meatloaf sandwich.

The LOT burger.

The dining room.

Nice fireplace and lounge area near the front.

The main bar.

Side patio.

Play area for kids.

Play area for adults.

Dining area over what once was a swimming pool.

Not sure what this is. Ghost bar? 🙂

I truly love what they did here at the Lot in East Dallas.  It was once known as the Backyard Beach Bar for many years where there was a swimming pool and a few volleyball courts.  I had fun going there to prove that older people could still play volleyball.  Granted.  I did seek out the drunkest team available so the “Dirty Thirties” could win.  Anyways, enough about me, on to the Lot!  My friends and I went on opening day in February of 2013.  It was Monday, and they were super busy!  So busy, in fact, that they ran out of the two items I chose from their menu online before even going, so I MUST go back to try them.  If you’re curious, I wanted the wagyu beef tongue sandwich with a fried egg and the bison bleu cheese buffalo meat balls.  Still, what I ended up getting was very satisfying.  We started off with the crispy baked kale and the red hot mini dogs.  They were both good.  I’m curious how they seasoned the kale to make it taste so good.  For dinner I had the turkey meatloaf sandwich, and my friend had the LOT burger.  I saved the second half of my sandwich for later because I hate eating until painfully full, and I didn’t want to waste such a delicious juicy sandwich.  My friend’s LOT burger had smokey ham, cheddar, white onion, crisp lettuce, and red chile smear.  He finished it all.  What a pig!…  or it was a good sandwich.  We also shared the hand-cut fries.  They tasted really fresh and were seasoned perfectly.  I didn’t get a picture of it, because we attacked it before I thought about grabbing my camera.  😦

After dinner, we ordered their healthy juice drinks.  One had carrots, orange, and ginger, and the other had beets, orange, and ginger.  Well, I guess forgot I don’t like beets!  The rum we had them add (for $2 more) made it better, though.  I drank it all for a nice healthy buzz.

Outside, although the swimming pool and volleyball courts are missing, they have a huge dining area resting atop where the pool was, and they have a play area for kids and one for adults (bags/cornhole etc.) where the volleyball courts once were.  It also looks like there will be an outside bar when the weather gets nice.

Overall, I like the new dining room and appreciate all the hard work they did in renovating.  It looks and feels great.  Their Chef is very good and pleasantly creative.  I’m glad they have vegan options for my weird friends, as well.  I’m gonna miss the swimming pool I never swam in, but I will actually miss the volleyball courts.  It looks like it’d be easy to bring them back, though.  They will soon expand the back area to connect with the Sante Fe Trail, and I’m sure this will bring them more traffic.  Sweaty runners and bikers get hungry and thirsty just as much (if not more) as us cave dwellers.  I hope they do well because I would love to have this place as an option to go to whenever I’d like.  I like what’s going on here.

Check out the link below for the rest of their menu.

*cough*bring back volleyball*cough

The Lot website and menu.

J. Black’s on Henderson! (CLOSED)

Here’s your sign.

Front patio.

Side patio.

HD action over the bar!

Lounge area.

Lounge area.

Tables on the back wall.

Calamari.

Half priced pizza on Tuesday!!!

We got really lucky on the night we visited J. Black’s.  We were just driving around and randomly chose this place.  I said, “Let’s just go there.  I’m too hungry to think.”  It was Tuesday, and they have half-priced pizza and $3 select drafts on that day!  Score!!!  I think I got the Rahr Whiskey Warmer.  Plus it was kinda slow, so we had awesome service.  I didn’t know if our server was a manager, server, bartender, or all the above, because he was all over the place.  Behind the bar, on the floor, making drinks, running food, adjusting other server checks, etc.  Whatever the case, he was bombtastic.  I hate that they were kinda slow, but I loved it too.  It was nice and laid back.

For an appetizer we got calamari.  It was great!  It came with greens, parmesan, cocktail and tarter sauce.  As soon as we were done, we got our half priced pizza.  We were gonna get the crab an portobello pizza but ended up getting the omnivore that was recommended by our server/manager/bartender/owner/carpenter dude.  He said that he thinks seafood is odd on a pizza… to him.  He said it’s good but odd.  I like odd. I’m gonna try it next time.  Anyways, we got the omnivore.  It had Jimmy’s Italian sausage, pepperoni, salami, ranch bacon, mushrooms, pepperoncini, and feta.  It was nice.  The crust was thin and crispy, and it was meaty.  Very flavorful!  The half priced pizza deal strayed me from perusing the rest of the menu, but after we were done, I realized they had lollipop lamb chops!  I love lamb!  Sooooo……  next time I’m getting the weird pizza and lamb.  No need for a menu.  Just ring that in please…  And crab cakes.

Off the subject, I LOVE that they played some old school Michael Jackson.  I think it was Girlfriend or P.Y.T.  I was in heaven.  Also, the seats were super comfy, and there was a LOT of … HD TVs!  😉  I highly recommend this place during their slow times.  I’ve heard less impressive stories during their peak hours on the weekend.  To be honest, that’s the case at any restaurant or bar.  It’s just common sense.  We all strive for perfection, but we’re only human.  Sometimes we fumble.

J. Black’s Menu

J. Black’s website

Matt’s Rancho Martinez near Skillman and Live Oak!

Matt’s Tex Mex

Image of the dining room taken from outside after closing.

Free chips and salsa!

shrimp cocktail

Slow smoked brisket and sausage served with tortillas.

The delicious farm-raised catfish!

New Tex-Mex restaurant in Lakewood?  Yep.  I had to try it.  I kinda felt like a traitor since La Calle Doce is nearly right across the street.  Anyways, I’m glad I did.  My dishes were so good!  I got an appetizer called “smoked Bob and sausage” that had slow smoked brisket and sausage laid over a bed of queso and served with sour cream, guacamole, and tortillas.  I loved it.  I tried it with the warm flour tortillas but enjoyed it more on top of a chip.  I piled each chip with all I could and probably embarrassed myself with how messy I got, but I just avoided looking around so I could keep pigging out without feeling embarrassed.  My friend got the shrimp cocktail for his meal.  I tried it.  It was nice.  Lightly spiced with avocado, baby shrimp, Mexican cocktail sauce, and crackers.  For my meal, I had a meal.  😉  I had the farm raised catfish laid over a bed of rice and served with grilled veggies and “drunken” beans.  The spices on everything were perfect.  Usually I force myself to eat all my vegetables, but it was not “forcing” this time.  I enjoyed my veggies.

The patio was pretty cool.  They had glass paneled garage doors behind the bar that opened up so that guests can sit at the outside bar and be served by the indoor bartenders!  They had four HD televisions that faced the patio from the inside so that the patio patrons could enjoy their favorite sports event.  Of course, they had patio tables as well for full service.

Anyways, the food was good, and the service was fast.  Sorry I didn’t try the obvious original Tex-Mex dishes, but I like to be a little different than the rest.  Check it out!

Matt’s Rancho Martinez menus

Velvet Taco at Knox/Henderson and Central(75)!

back patio

VELVET TACO

The number 9 and 18! 😉

The wall menu

dining area

front patio across from Victor Tangos! 🙂

Alright.  So this is my first takeout post!  I really wanted to do one, and Velvet Taco immediately came to mind.  By takeout, I mean no servers, but they do have a dining room and beer.  These aren’t street vendor tacos, though, even though I love those as well.  These tacos are made with quality ingredients and seemingly by a Chef.  Also, just because they don’t have servers doesn’t mean to pretend the tip jar isn’t there.  Throw something in.  You’ll feel better.

I had two tacos.  I was satisfied, but three would’ve filled me up.  I only ordered two this time, because one of my tacos was a bit pricy, but I HAD to try it.  It was the maine lobster.  It was good, but if I would’ve expected the lobster to be cold, I would’ve enjoyed it more.  Good flavor, just shocked by the temperature.  The shredded pork taco I had was excellent!  It made me moan (just a little bit okay).  It had bleu cheese crumbs and avocado cream on it!  They may not have a bar or servers, but there is a beautiful wall with shelves of healthy beverages, but on the bottom?…  Beer!  Good beer at that!  If you’re not a boozer like me, then they have creamsickle tea that gets refills like the sodas.  I also highly recommend the rotisserie corn “elote style”.  Just get it.  You’ll like it if you like corn.  If you like chicken, it looks like they slow cook it rotisserie style.  You’ll see the whole birds rotating.  A chicken taco is next on my list.  I didn’t see the those birds until after I ordered.  😦

They do have two little patios, if that’s what you’re looking for.  If you’re looking for some HD action, get it to go or for “takeout”.  😉  Anyways, I just had to say HD for no reason.  Check this place out. Their food is great.

Velvet Taco website

Velvet Taco menu…  even though I took a pretty good picture of it for you.  😉

Cellarman’s American Pub in Sherman, TX!

I know.  I know.  It’s not in Dallas!  I promise this won’t happen again, but I HAD to share this ridiculously large loaded baked potato that I had at Cellarman’s in Sherman (my hometown).  It’s only one hour north, guys.  Please don’t abandon me because my blog strayed away from Dallas.  Please just look at the picture, and you’ll see why I strayed.  It was stuffed with butter, sour cream, bacon, chives, red onion, mushrooms, jalapeños, cheddar, mozzarella, monterey jack, and chili!  They have a lot of other things I’d like to talk about, but I’d like to stay loyal to Dallas.  You can check out their menu through the link below.

Their website: Cellarman’s American Pub in Sherman, TX

Their menu:  PUB MENU

Lemon Bar and Grill on Henderson! (CLOSED!!!)

Jalapeno shrimp scampi over angel hair pasta with spinach.

Chicken panini with coleslaw… Tasty, but actual panini probably coming soon!

This place finally re-opened as the Lemon Bar, and I’m a bit excited about this.  Another cool restaurant in my hood!  I love having more options nearby.  This building was known as Cuba Libre for many years but went out of business.  Another place opened soon after and tanked after about six months.  Now we have the new location of the Lemon Bar!
As far as food goes, I thought everything was really good considering I was told at the door that this was their second week in a “soft opening”.  She said most places do one day of a soft opening, but they wanna get as many imperfections out of the way as possible.  I love it.  Anyways, my jalapeño shrimp scampi over angel hair pasta was fabulous.  I’m still thinking about it the day after.  Check out my picture of it.  It looks pretty awesome, I must admit.  Actually, I was surprised I ate it all, because I had just had dinner at Victor Tangos an hour before.  I ordered it thinking I’d get a to-go box soon after!  Not so much. My friend had the chicken panini with coleslaw as his choice of side.  It wasn’t on panini bread or pressed in a panini maker, but it still tasted very good!  Granted.  They are in their “soft opening.”  I can’t wait to come back to get that same non-panini as an actual panini.  It was good.  I think it’d be easier if they just changed the name, but that’s just me.  It was a good sandwich.
As far as the rest of the place, they got HD HD HD and more HD!!!  :-). Ha.  I think I just like repeating HD in all my posts.  Obviously, it’s not a rare thing.  Upstairs, they have a small room perfect for clubbing on the weekend or gettin’ yo dance on!  Not really my scene anymore, but I’m willing to go with a friend so we can be wallflowers until the liquid courage kicks in and pictures are taken of me dancing with hot ladies half my age that I’ll never remember.
… Sorry.
Um, they have a small patio as well.  I hope they can expand it before patio weather comes back!  Check out their website below.  That’s all folks!

http://www.thelemonbar.net/Dallas_Location/Dallas.html

La Calle Doce at Skillman and Oram!

I went to La Calle Doce Mexican Seafood for their lunch specials.  Go figure!  My first lunch special post!  It’s probably because I’m not a big fan of daywalking.  So, I decided to take one for the team and do this for “you people.”  By “you people,” I mean normal.  Also, I took another one for the team and did this for the “not lactose intolerant.”  The food coma afterwards was worth it!  I got the sour cream chicken enchilada that came with beans and rice all for $7.95!  Delicious.  My buddy ordered the first special off the board for $5.95.  I think they were crispy chicken flautas with beans and rice.  He gave me a taste.  Really good stuff.  It’s funny that the cheaper special comes with a cup of chicken tortilla soup!  It’s okay, I incorporated the complimentary chips and salsa into my meal again.  My pictures aren’t too exciting, but the entrees look awesome on their website.  Lunch was good and cheap, but I MUST come back for dinner.

Oh!  Apparently, this place burned down recently (probably just the inside), and it took them eight months to rebuild.  It looks completely different.  They moved the bar closer to the front door.  Great idea!  Also, they have a private dining area, dining upstairs, and two patios!  Anyways, check out their link below.  Good stuff.

http://www.lacalledoce-dallas.com/menu-lunch.php

The Old Monk on Knox/Henderson!

The Old Monk.

LOOK FOR THIS WALL!!!

The bar and dining area.

The uncovered patio.

The covered patio.

Fish and Chips, no chips, sub potato salad. I’m allowed.

The calamari.

They won awards, y’all!

I love the Old Monk!  I’ve noticed that I tend to visit places with a strong earthy (woodsy?) presence.  This pub has a covered AND uncovered patio and a nice, cozy, dark interior.  They even have a dart board and guess what?  HD action!!!  I’ve had the mussels here, and they’ve always been bombtastic!  I love the cheese board because you get to choose from a nice variety of cheeses, and it actually comes on a board!  My favorite burger is the Monk burger.  I substitute out the cheddar blend with the stilton cheese.  I know.  Most places hate substitutions, but I know what I like, and the waitress didn’t make a face, so I felt safe.

Anyways, on this visit, I got the fish and chips, but instead of chips, I got the German style potato salad.  Nice and warm with a bit of vinegar.  I know.  Another substitution.  Please forgive me.  My friend asked me, “If you’re gonna do a food blog, should you be doing substitutions?”  I yelled, “I DO WHAT I WANT!!!”  I mean, really, it’s my blog.  MINE!!!  Sorry for yelling again.  Okay, inner peace.  My friend got calamari.  I love calamari, but not everyone does it well.  Some people go too chunky, too greasy, or too much breading, but they do it just right with a zesty marinara sauce.  Okay, this post is getting too long.  I tend to ramble on when I like what I’m….  short and sweet!

http://www.oldmonkdallas.com/

Here’s their menu.  http://www.oldmonkdallas.com/foodmenu.html