The Best Donut in the World.

Fort Worth residents have a healthy choice of donut options. Boastful it may be, but I consider myself a connoisseur of the delicacy even though I can no longer can eat them.

The idea for this post comes from reading a Facebook "wall" (thanks Catherine) which had mentioned a trip to Krispy Kreme.

When the Krispy Kreme opened in Arlington, 10 years ago, my wife, son and I were there on opening day. I like them, I like their freshness, and I like the atmosphere of the place, but after time for reflection, I still prefer the Dunkin' Donut (currently reviving in DFW). In Center City Philadelphia, there is a Dunkin' Donut store every other block, far outnumbering Starbucks or any other food franchise. I have always liked the Dunkin Donuts coffee, too. But as to there donut, I think it has a little more body and is less sugary sweet.

In Fort Worth, if I have my choice. I'll take Paul's off Magnolia. The mid-cities has a new Dunkin Donuts, and in Grapevine, there was a drive thru donut store for years on Grapevine Highway that had the biggest and best donuts in DFW (is it still there?). Meadowbrook has a good donut shop on Meadowbrook Blvd. near Eastern Hills High School, and there are strip shopping center donut shops everywhere in DFW which usually serve good donuts.

What is it about this little wheel of deep fried dough that has moved some many people to stake their living on making and selling them? We don't have pie stores on every block. Maybe it's because one can have so many varieties. Maybe it's their compactness and ease of assembly. There is something about sharing them that is enjoyable for both giver and receiver. The donut has the right combination of ease of transport, eat-at-your-leisure, who-needs-health-food goodness, that makes them a perfect gift.

My favorite is the cinnamon-sugar cake donut, with a pint of chocolate milk.

Have a favorite donut shop?

Editor's Note: to donut-shop searchers in Fort Worth. Please read the comments below for more donut options.  Also in the right column you can "search this blog" for many other donut options. Just type "donuts" in the blank space.

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La Piazza, Fort Worth's Best Italian?

St. Valentine's Day brought F&FW a nice run of fine-dining reviews, including reviews of Grace, Bistro Louise, and now La Piazza restaurants. Thank you Sunni, Jake, and, for this post, Becca/East. Becca was accompanied by husband, Brinton.
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On Valentine's Day we decided to try something new. La Piazza is tucked away in a back corner of University Park Village and has been there since 1991.

Entrance:
The entrance is located through the courtyard and the regulars know the parking is located behind the building. So, no need to know you are in an outdoor shopping mall.

Dress code:
My husband was told that there is a dress code when he made the reservation. No tie is required but they ask that men wear a jacket. It is not a stuffy place but it was very nice and the dress code helps with the atmosphere.
(editor's comment: I would go for that reason alone, and might as well require the tie, too.)

Menu:
There was a fixed price menu for Valentine's Day. We both ordered the salad, which was perfectly cold with crisp, fresh lettuce, tomatoes, onion and capers. The salad dressing was a creamy garlic and was delicious. I ordered the veal with green peppercorn sauce and Brinton ordered the sole with lemon butter sauce. I was thrilled with my dish, the veal was tender and the sauce perfect. Brinton said that his sole was good but should have had more than a drizzle of sauce because it was so good. Both entrees were served with sides of roast potato and spinach. For desert I ordered the cheesecake -- good, Brinton ordered the melting chocolate cake -- heavenly.

The service was great and the atmosphere inviting. We will definitely go back.

La Piazza
1600 S University Dr # 601
Fort Worth, TX 76107
(817) 334-0000

Bistro Louise Valentines Day Dinner

Yesterday was Valentine's Day... filled with love, chocolate, and (for some) fantastic meals...

And after reading a post about Romantic Dinners at Eat This Fort Worth, I felt obligated to test out one of the restaurants on my fiance, as I was sure she wouldn't mind.

So I made reservations at 8:45 PM at Bistro Louise, a highly recommended French/Italian/Spanish Bistro...

I'll give you a quick review and then break down each course... Overall the food was fantastic. Definitely something that I had questioned I'd taste in Fort Worth. The mix of styles in the limited Valentine's day menu offered very very very bold flavors. The service was less than par as I believe they oversold their "by reservation" seats, not counting on people wanting to dine for longer hours.

Now onto the details...

The first course was a sweet-onion tart topped with red-wine onions and a shooter of warm zucchini and basil soup. The tart tasted as advertised, topped with confectioners sugar. The zucchini and basil shooter came in a tall shot glass, served warm. It was one of the best tasting, simple things we had the whole night.

The second course found us with Hawaiian Kona Kampachi Shashimi with Thai Guacamole and another dish composing of prosciutto wrapped plums with Asian greens, goat cheese, and a champagne vinaigrette. Both choices we definitely wished we had more of. The shashimi was incredibly thin sliced, not much meat, but the Thai guac (guac + wasabi was what I gathered) and red chile sauce definitely gave the whole dish a zing that was welcomed. There needed to be more Kona Kampachi as you could barely see it on your plate in the low lighting. On the other hand, the grilled plums wrapped in prosciutto was a very warm and welcoming taste. I'm a *huge* fan of goat cheese and the vinaigrette gave a nice bite to the salad. Both excellent dishes.

The third course was a tough decision, with the selections not lending to a clear winner. Becca shot for the saffron pappardelle with veal ragout, grilled quail and a breast of guinea hen. While I chose the lemon sole with tempura lobster, chanterelle sauce and lobster mashed potatoes. The pappardelle with ragout and game birds had a very heavy sage taste. Earthy, homey, and borderline spicey. Probably my favorite of the two main course dishes. The lemon sole had a buttery, lobster taste. Given the lobster mashed potatoes and tempura lobster bite, I figured the sauce would be a buttery delite, but not necessarily a lobster tasted all the way around. I'm not quite sure where the "lemon" came in with the sole, but it was still a rich and savory dish. The plating was a little rushed, as when you're serving sauces, you can easily observe the mistakes. Not a huge issue, but I like the sauces on the dish and not on the edges of the plate.

For the desert course, it was hard to pass up the Bistro Louise's strawberry craquelin, as strawberries are my favorite fruit, but there was something about the other choice that led me it's direction. Profiteroles with coffee and pistachio ice creams, port-cherry sauce and hot-fudge sauce. While waiting for this last section, we ordered coffee and waited... and waited... and waited until our cups were filled with a bitter tasting burnt coffee. The saving grace was the pistachio ice cream, though small in amount, it was a nice sweet treat.

And finally, the service. One word: oversold. We had reservations at 8:45PM and upon arrival, we waited another half hour before we were seated. So much for "reservations". The woman at the bar was a hostess, not a bartender as who know's where the *real* bartender was. She served us a "vintage" 2008 Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. The meals were oddly paced as the first two took some time to come out while the last dishes, including the desert were push into our faces just after removing our previous course plates. There were several people *after* us who were waiting for their table for well over a half hour. Not to mention I was told on the phone, by Louise herself, that I had a special table secluded in a corner... which apparently means a small, two person table near a post along the bus boy route... It felt as if they over sold their reservations for the night... and that with the crowded tables and fumbling service staff, it could have been more special.

So overall... the $261.20 price tag (including wine and tip) was slightly hefty, but well worth it. It's nice to be able to treat my fiance to a wonderful Valentine's Day dinner, where we get to dress up and fine dine.
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Editor's note: My thanks to Jake for the post.
He can be found at: http://www.thoughtstoblog.com/