Eating Dallas: Sherlock's

Just curious. Why would an English pub have tortas and quesadillas on its menu? Well I skipped right over the abundance of Mexican dishes offered by Sherlock's and headed right to the English Pub staple -- Fish & Chips.

And for this bland soulless pub, the Fish & Chips didn't dissappoint. They were bland and flavorless. The dish came with two pieces of fish and an abundance of generic chain restaurant french fries. Again, why would an English pub put Lowry's seasoning on their freedom fries?

Well the first fish actually wasn't bad. The batter was crisp albeit with little flavor. But the fish was flacky and acceptable. However the second piece was mushy and a bit slimy. And the tartar sauce is cleary from a jar.

If you're getting drunk on your cougar hunt at Sherlock's, the fish and chips are acceptable. But if you crave them, go to The Old Monk.

C+

9100 N Central Expy, Dallas

Netflix Review: Cashback

"Like an otter's pocket."

I'm taking a break from reviewing dreadful American teen sex comedies and switching to dreadful English college space/time manipulation comedies. Well, that's probably a bad adjective. Cashback isn't dreadful -- just tedious.

Cashback is the story of a art schooler Ben Willis. He breaks up with his long time girlfriend and finds he can no longer sleep. I think we can all relate to that. So, with the extra 8 hours he has every day, he takes an overnight job at a grocery store. It is here that he learns that he can stop time. And here is where the movie is the most believable. Because when he stops time, he disrobes the women shopping at the grocery store and draws their naked forms. If this were a Jim Carrey or Adam Sandler type movie they would use the extra time to work on the big account or do something sweet for their unappreciative wife/gf. But really, if the average 20 year old had this power -- off come the drawers.

Unfortunately this film can't decide if it wants to be The Office in a grocery store or a contemplative commentary on life using the sci-fi motif of time stoppage. And while that sounds like a combo-platter that should be right in my wheel-house, it comes up short. The laughs are few and the time stoppage is used only to get the chicks naked. I guess I'm getting old, because I need more than just that. I need some cuddling too.

• 19 breasts
• 2 old guy farts
• 1 soccer ball to the face
• 1 life altering naked Swedish exchange student.
• grocery item fu
• actual kung fu

King Wally says check it out.

C+

TSoS Test Kitchen: Rosemary Chicken

I thought this looked so pretty I had to take a picture. This is really not a The Summer of Steve Test Kitchen Item. I've made rosemary chicken dozens of times. But I have always baked it since, until recently, I didn't have a grill.


Here's the final dish with spinach pasta in a vodka sauce.

For the chicken, mix several cloves of chopped garlic, olive oil, rosemary, lemon zest, ginger and a little lemon juice with 2 whole breasts. Marinate for an hour or so. Grill until done. Pretty simple and pretty good.

The vodka sauce is from the Sept 2007 issue of Food and Wine. Unfortunately it is not available online at this time.

Eating Dallas: Big D Dogs

Man I really wanted to love this place. The idea of a neighborhood hot dog stand makes me happy. But, unfortunately, I may have to stick with the dogs at Burger House.

In order to properly judge the place I ordered two dogs, my usual (onions and mustard only) and one of their specialty dogs -- The Greenville Ave Dog (Shiner chili, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro). The first punch in the nuts was that these 2 dogs totaled just shy of $10. That's with no soda, no beer, no fries, no nothing -- just 2 dogs.

I started off with my usual and I knew something was wrong with the very first bite. The dog was mushy. No teeth are necessary to eat this dog. You can just mush it up with your tongue. And the flavor was way too similar to Vienna sausage with little smokey flavor at all. The dog by which I judge all Dogs is the Sabrett . A staple of the dog cart of the NYC, it is the best dog in the world and has a rich smokey flavor..

The Greenville dog was much, much better. The dog itself was the same. But the toppings really made a difference. The chili was flavorful and the fresh jalapenos and cilantro really brightened an already good dish. But I couldn't help but think that this would be just as good on a flavorless poached chicken breast.

They also serve a variety of french fries (garlic, chili, cheese ...) and shakes. Neither of which I tried. However I do plan to give this place another chance and at least try the fries. I really do want to like the place. It's open late on the weekends for the post bar crowd. That might be the time to go for not only the dogs but also the show.

C

3611 A Greenville Ave Dallas, TX75206

Two Buddhist Monks Walk Into A Fry's...

Seriously. I saw this very thing today while I was walking up to the Fry's in Plano. I wish I had had my camera. Although I'm sure if I had taken a picture it would have permanently put me into some kind of karmic limbo. Which just happens to be my favorite Phish album.

The Horror, The Horror

Lucky for me all of womanhood has chosen to keep their vaginas away from me.

My New Hero

I just spent much of the past day reading the Dallas Food website. I don't know who this guy is, but he's clearly my gastronomic soul mate. The bulk of his reviews are BBQ, Mexican and Chicken Fried Steak -- the Holy Trifecta of Texas cuisine. Thanks to him and Trent, I know to go to Mac's BBQ for some of the best in Dallas. And I am so making a trip to both Ozona and The AllGood for CFS.

Junior's Right

The Ticket's Craig "Junior" Miller once declared August the worst month of them all. It is the hottest month. Or at least it is the month when the heat really gets to me. We've had it easy this year. But we should finally see our first 100° day this week.

But what really sucks about August is that it's when the shortening of the days becomes palpable. You see, today was the first time I could tell the days have gotten noticeably shorter. For the last couple of months I can leave my house right after Community Quick Hits (6:52pm) and take a 2 hour bike ride up the White Rock Trail and back and get home with some daylight left. But today, not so much.

Pick the Caption

Chick-Fil-A

What is the deal with Chick-Fil-A? Every time I go there the drive thru line is backed up into the street. And it doesn't matter which Chick-Fil-A I go to or when I go. Is it the waffle-fries? They are the tastiest of all fast food fries. (I get bonus points for alliteration). It's a fine establishment. Don't get me wrong. I'm just curious as to why it's always packed. I suspect some sort of islamofacist money laundering. But I haven't worked it all out what with the Weekly World News shutting down.

Your Next American Idol

Sorry. I won't be able to post much today since I'll be at the American Idol tryouts out at Texas Stadium. I will be performing my rendition of "Wind Beneath my Wings". Wish me luck.