Pho Bac

When I told my dad we wanted Pho, he suggested here. 

I've never been here, to be honest.  So this is my 1st visit.  (photo from Yelp)

The place seems to be always packed.  That's because many have dubbed that this is the most authentic Vietnamese food in town.  

I got the lemon tea, which was more like lemonade with a hint of tea.  It was too sweet for my liking. 

I got the Tai Kobe, which is Beef Kobe style.  That said, this is small size, and you see it comes with alot of food.  There's vermicelli at the bottom, there's beef slices, scallions, and of course you can add your own sprouts, mints and jalapeño pepper too.  You mix it all up and it's a very full-bodied dish. 

Since they are pretty busy here, coming here on the earlier side of lunch works.  The parking lot does have lots of spots, but they do get packed quick.  So bring patience. 

 

Pho Bac

153 N. Plano Rd

Richardson, TX 75081

972-231-9205 

Dallas Grilled Cheese Co.

This is a new place to us.

Who knew that there are so many variation to Grilled Cheese.

Got a Mango Shaken Tea - never had a shaken tea before, but it taste like tea with bubbles from the shaking. 

I got the Brie and Bacon, because that combo sounded great.  Don't be fooled, it is actually alot of food. They diced the bacon (plural) and the cheese-y goodness.  But it was rich.  And of course, I opted for sweet potato waffle fries, that totally put me over. It was yummy, don't get me wrong, just a lot of food.

Beyond the sandwiches they have wings, bruschetta, fries galore, salad, soup too.  So all your comfort food is all here. 

The place is in part of a shopping center, and don't worry, there's plenty parking in front of stores, or at the garage - which is free.  So don't worry about that.

Dallas Grilled Cheese Co. 

5319 Mockingbird

# 120

Dallas, TX 75206

469-620-2121

https://dallasgrilledcheese.co/

 

Cafe Brazil

When I'm in Dallas, I like to come here for breakfast. 

Not going to lie, great memories of coming here after 2am for breakfast.  Of course, now, it's just a basic breakfast. 

Of course, I love the coffee bar.  They have 6 brew ready to go.  Feel free to mix and match.  Of course, that challenge is the proportion of what you put in the mug.  So if you have concocted something spectacular, it's hard to recreate.  But for coffee lovers, this is great!

Of course, as part of the hydration squad, we also have OJ and water with the coffee.  Start your morning right!

My fave that I can't get elsewhere in Houston, Fruit Pancrepe.  They have a mix of fruit, not just your strawberries or banana - which they have there, but there's also pineapple, grapefruit, and puree of fruit and sauces.  It's great for dipping the crepe.  I love that every bite of crepe + fruit + sauce was just yummy goodness. 

Don't worry, I got a side of bacon for some protein just for good measure.  See! A well balanced breakfast. 

Cafe Brazil

6420 N. Central Expressway

Dallas, TX 75206

214-691-7791

https://cafebrazil.com/

 

Waygood Coffee

Went to Waygood for an afternoon hang. 

Ordered a Sea Salt Banana Matcha.  Just sounded interesting so figured, why not.  Honestly, the sea salt just made the banana (and vanilla) less sweet and the matcha less bitter.  The balance was struck well here.  Not too sweet, salty or bitter.  The whole thing tasted smooth mixed together.  I wouldn't mind getting that again. 

Waygood Coffee

3819 Kirby Dr

Houston, TX 77098

https://www.waygoodcompany.com/

 

Freshly Squeeze by Eliyah

When a young entrepreneur starting up a business I have to show my support.

Eliyah picked a good market to be at.  The day was hot, and lemonade is just the ticket to quench some thirsts. 

For 32oz, it's iced-cold, you can just have the original flavor, or add various kind of flavoring that they have to offer.  And not to mention, the lemonade wasn't too tart or zingy but you do see them making them onsite as you order.  Her crew includes mom and dad, so this has turned to a family business.  Way to go, girl!  Talk about a lemonade stand going big!

Freshly Squeezed by Eliyah 

https://www.instagram.com/freshlysqueezedbyeliyah/
 

Cobel Liege Waffles

So I've been seeing this IG accounts on my feed for some time, and lucky that they were at a market right by me.   I had to make a trip up there to check them out. 

To those who are unfamiliar, liege waffles are from Belgium, they use a yeast brioche batter than the runny batter.  So it's texture are not the same, and you can tell the difference when you cut into it.  It feels chewier, and has more elasticity to it.  Not in a bad way, just more than a regular waffle would. 

First off, they have 3 types of base waffles, Cinnamon, Chocolate, and Original (which is plain).  Then you have different types of toppings.  (L) Banana, Strawberries with hazelnut drizzle, Blueberries, Strawberries, Cinnamon Bun, Biscoff, and minis.  

All made to order. 

Of course, I have to get something yummy. 

The Biscoff is actually pretty good it has cookie butter drizzle on the top of a plain and the flavors between the cookie butter and the cookie crumbles are a nice combo. 

Of course, I most looked forward to the Banana Strawberry with hazelnut combo.  I would say that I do appreciate the whole thing is not as sweet as I had pictured it to be, which as much as a Sweet Tooth that I am, I don't do overly sweet and this hits the mark just right.  Which is much appreciated. 

You can catch them at various markets around town.  For most up-to-date locations, follow them IG. 

Cobel Liege Waffles

https://cobelwaffles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/cobelwaffles

 

Latuli

Went out for a girls night dinner and came to Latuli.

Apparently, the name of the restaurant derived from the first 2 letters of each of the chef's children's name, that's pretty clever. 

First up: Bread, because no one will say no to bread.  We have yeast roll and cornbread from a pan.  It comes with jalapeño jelly and whipped butter with salt, I'm loving the butter and salt combo.  Gimme!

Then we ordered the Double Dip (thanks internet for recommending it).  Left is red fish dip, right side is Pimento dip with housemade chips for 'dipping'.  The red fish dip is not strong at all, pretty mild and the chips carried it well.  Pimento cheese, well, who doesn't enjoy them?!

Got some veggies for good measure, got some charred broccolini.  The red stuff on top is not bacon but drunken dried cherries with granola for texture. 

Not pictured, Batata Brava - puffed sweet potato with chili creme fraiche, love that combo.  Definitely worth getting. 

For entree, we split the Wild Boar Ragu - because no one ever said no to Ragu pasta.  The pork flavor is heavy but good.  Mixed very well with the dollop of ricotta on top.  Not very 'saucey', but the flavors works for what it needed to do.

For dessert, we got the cobbler which came in its own pan.  It's spiced peach cobbler that comes with a scoop of in-house vanilla ice cream.  The cold and warm combo gets me every time.  

Overall, the meal is delicious.  The space has really high ceiling, which I was worried that sound carries, but it worked out fine.  Reservation here is a must.  We've seen folks trying to walk-in and the wait is no joke.  So save yourself some grief, book ahead.  The valet, however, left very little to be desired.  First off, the crew is small, and not equipped to handle the crowd of this size.  Second, the parking lot the property has is small at best, but the space house much more people than there's parking space for.  So the valet crew park the cars to another lot, not one lot over but at least 2.  We saw our valet person walked in the dark to 2 lots over.  Meanwhile, the center in front and in the back both have significant space.  I'm surprised that the restauranteurs aren't striking deal arrangements with either, if not both centers to pay for the spaces say after 6pm or something.  The wait time for car retrieval was ridiculous between shortage of drivers and how far the cars are.  That definitely dampened our experience there.  Maybe I'll try lunch again some day, but definitely will not be dinner. 

Latuli

8900 Gaylord Dr

Houston, TX 77024

https://www.latuli.com/