A Burger Is Just a Burger: Keller's Drive-In on Northwest Highway

Keller's Drive-In - 3*s

I finally made it to Keller's for a burger and.. no beer. Since I was driving. We try to be responsible like that. Keller's has been on my list of places I really wanted to try. First of all, I thought the idea of a drive-in was AWESOME. Second of all, I read they had some deliciously greasy burgers. I don't know about you, but that sounded appealing to me. I happened to be in an area right next to Keller's the other day, so I said 'cool!' and got myself a cheeseburger and tater tots before I headed home. It was all very cheap. I'm not sure exactly, but I think the cheeseburger was $2.15 and the tater tots were $1.25. My pictures didn't turn out very well, because I wasn't that focused. The atmosphere is that of a drive-in. Basically. Was that loquacious enough for you? There were actually some couches outside and some people sitting on them. Other than that, there was some overhead covering to park your car under while you place your order.

 

Read on about the food..

Missing the WOW factor: Cupcakes from Trailercakes are ok

Trailercakes - 3*s

I was psyched about going to this rummage sale at The Gypsy Wagon that happened the weekend of Friday, August 19. Let's be honest. I was more excited about the cupcakes from Trailercakes that they would be selling during the sale. An article in the Dallas Observer's "Side Dish" blog made the Peanut Butter and Jelly cupcake sound ethereal. I admit it. I was planning to try it at the Food Truck Festival. But I thought back to these cupcakes and thought.. meh. I do have to say the trailer, or food truck, they had out at the Food Truck Fetsival was very cute. It was silver, had bubbles painted on it, and there was a bubble machine outside the truck. I give them credit for their packaging.

On that note, I have to say the best thing about these cupcakes was their packaging (and I give them credit for that). They were absolutely adorable. The Slap Your Mother Chocolate cupcake had a piece of chocolate stuck in the frosting, the Strawberry Fields cupcake had a mini poptart (I think?), and the Cookie Monster cupcake had an oreo. I also appreciated the small sizes. As much as I love food, I'd prefer that my body not announce that fact. I bought 3 for $4. Really a pretty good price. They also gave me new ones when I smashed mine on the floor. No charge. Awesome!

Ok I admit it. These pictures make me salivate a little.

Food Truck Festival... Fail.

An article in the Dallas Morning News  this morning by Katherine Unmuth motivated me to get off my ass and write something about the DFW Food Truck Festival I attended last night. Those writers do post their articles quickly..

I will agree (with Ms. Unmuth) that there is a food truck revolution happening in Dallas. It is also quite a recent one. The way it seems to work in Dallas is that people stalk the food trucks on twitter and drive out to their locations, which vary quite a bit, for lunch or dinner. Of course, the part of town will have an effect on the traffic. A visit to Gandolpho's, which I reviewed earlier here http://bananadallas.blogspot.com/2011/08/gandolfos-new-york-delicatessen-mobile.html#more, in the industrial part of town had hardly any customers in attendance. On the other hand, a visit to Nammi at Flora and McKinney had a good amount of people. In places like New York or Austin, they just seem to be floating around. People go to them when they see them rather than following their twitter feeds. Perhaps if our food truck community gets large enough, we will get to that point.

After glancing at an article by Scott Reitz about how crowded this festival would be, and how bad parking would be, I was planning to get there early. I think he posted it on the Dallas Observer, I found the post from twitter, but I don't see it any more. He suggested arriving at 5 PM, that most of the trucks should be setting up by then. However, my state of mind interfered. I had run off to this Chocolate Conference that morning with no coffee. I had the idea the chocolate would give me energy. But that so didn't work. I need more caffeine than that. By the time I got home, I was beyond stuffed and exhausted. I had a cup of espresso and was trying to wait till I had more energy. I also wanted to wait till I was a little less stuffed before we left. We got into the lot with the food trucks around 6:45 PM.

I know it was the first of it's kind, and I was later than I should have been, but the lines were ridiculous, the heat was ridiculous, and I just thought it was a miserable time. My friend Zeena wanted grilled cheese from Ruthie's Rolling Cafe, so that's where we started. We waited on line for a little while and filled out pieces of paper to select the kind of grilled cheese we desired. I chose San Francisco sourdough bread, sharp cheddar, mozzarella, bacon, roasted tomatoes, and pesto. However.. I actually never got to try this sandwich. I thought after we got to the cashier, we would get our food. But no. They informed us there would be a 30 minute wait for our orders. Ok fine. More than an hour later, we were still waiting. At this point, we decided to cancel our orders and get our money back. I, on the other hand, exchanged my order for a t-shirt since I thought it was adorable.

I do think their mascot is adorable!

Velvet Taco on Knox-Henderson

Velvet Taco - 3 *s


After meeting a date at The Pearl Cup, we happened to be strolling down Henderson when my bright eye noticed the  Velvet Taco I had read so much about. The reviewers seem to be in a tizzy about this place. There was even a review about how many reviewers are writing about it. They're not quite reviews, just buildup and excitement about the coming of this place to Dallas. Velvet Taco only opened last Thursday, according to the Manager we spoke with, so it's been open a little over a week.

Perhaps all the excitement is due to the  name. Maybe Texans just can't contain themselves when they hear there's a fusion taco place coming their way. Then again, it's more likely that the buildup has something to do with the co-owners of the joint.

Mark Brezinski, one of the co-owners, also founded Tin Star, Pei Wei, and Bengal Coast. He was also involved with Genghis Grill, a place I was always quite fond of. Marks' partner is a group called Front Burner Restaurants. They own Twin Peaks, Whiskey Cake, Red Dog Right, and The Ranch. John Franke, the man responsible for the recipes at Velvet Taco, is the corporate chef of Front Burner Restaurants.¹

I'm not a huge taco fan, so I'm not going to be one going for the traditional al pastor pork tacos. Not that I'm sure their pulled pork tacos are prepared in the al pastor style. Yes, somehow I even end up reading too much about the styles of food I'm not a fan of.. maybe I still hold out hope for tacos. I do like quesadillas. Anyways, the non-traditional aspect of this place is part of what appealed to me.

Keeping on par with that line of thought, I ordered the Ahi Poke (Raw) with ginger-soy vinaigrette, avocado, watermelon radish, picked Fresno peppers, sesame seeds, and pea tendrils, all inside a lettuce shell. When I ordered it, I didn't realize the taco would come in a lettuce shell, but I thought that was awesome. I'm a big fan of things that make my meals healthier and don't decrease the deliciousness factor. In fact, I actually prefer the taste of a lettuce shell to every taco I've ever had. Then again, maybe that's just me. I'm also a fan of raw tuna (or salmon, and so on..) so I quite enjoyed my taco. I was worried about it being a bit spicy, so I asked. The woman at the cash register said it wouldn't be, and that was the case. My taco didn't have an especially amazing preparation of raw tuna, but it was enjoyable.

Mine on the left, his on the right

My date got the Grilled Adobe Shrimp taco with applewood bacon, roasted corn & avocado pico de gallo, epazote (a Mexican herb), and sriracha aioli. This taco came in a homemade corn tortilla. The sriracha aioli would make me hesitant (whereas my brother drenches all his food with it), but I had a bite and it actually wasn't all that spicy. The corn tortilla was pretty good, and homemade is certainly an improvement over any place that buys them pre-made. The taco overall was pretty good. Edible and whatnot. However, it wasn't anything that really blew me away.

For my concluding remarks on the tacos, the main event, I enjoyed my tuna taco, but honestly, it doesn't seem like one that would be difficult to make at home. I give them credit for serving some more interesting versions. I'd come back for a taco. I certainly wouldn't waste my time ordering the shrimp taco. The reviews I've read seem to rant and rave about the Cornmeal Fried Oysters  taco. I have a feeling it would be standard, but you could try it if you're in the area.