Yogurtland. Montgomery Plaza. Perfect frozen yogurt.

Marian's been out of town this week so I've been going out in the evening for an ice cream or frozen yogurt -- and most nights I've been going to Yogurtland at Montgomery Plaza on 7th Street.

I can't say one of the frozen yogurt places is better than another -- Yogurtland, Yogolait, Menchies, Pinkberry, Frogberry -- they're all good. But I do like self-serve, which Yogurtland has. Yogurtland serves about ten flavors of frozen yogurt and plenty of fresh fruit toppings. I always choose the tart-plain flavor because I like the contrast with the sweet fruit toppings. I also add a few crushed walnuts for crunch.

I like the buzz of the Montgomery Plaza, at least in the drive-through area, and Yogurtland is a good addition.

I never would have dreamed that I would choose this new frozen yogurt over old fashioned ice cream, but I have and I will.

Unless I'm at the beach.

Yogurtland link.

.

Taco Cabana. Renovation. I went by to investigate.

Last week the Fort Worth Taco Cabanas had a kind of grand re-opening. Restaurants had been renovated and the menu updated -- so I decided to try it out. Here's a summary of my visit.

The renovation. Great job. Loved the two-toned wood tables and chairs, brushed steel on counter spaces, and lighting. One HDTV. Very comfortable, clean, and easy on the eye.

The menu. "Out" are those really bad pictures of Tex Mex platters. "In" is simplified ordering. It's got kind of a Chipotle look to it instead of old Burger King.

All that is good.

The food itself. I ordered the two fajita lunch for $6.50. The tortillas are made on-site and delicious, the fajita beef was tasty and good but something is lost when it is not sizzling from a pan. I had assumed beans and rice would be served with the fajitas but chips accompanied them instead. That was disappointing. Then again, I could have actually read the menu. The salsa and condiments island is good, clean, and well stocked. I have always liked their salsa island. Fresh cilantro helps.

A little serving of rice or a small bowl of charro beans would have made the meal much better and not added much to their cost. Two moderately portioned fajitas with a handful of chips for $6.50 is not a bad deal but probably not enough to make it my lunch spot of choice.

One other change to the Taco Cabana method is the roving server. Ordering is done at the counter but a server brings the meal to the table and asks if more drinks and chips are needed. I liked it except the girl, even given her friendliness, came back four or five times during a twenty minute meal. I know one man's helpfulness is another man's annoying helpfulness, but this seemed overdone to me. Yes, we did leave a small tip.

Free offer: Taco Cabana is offering free chicken fajita tacos on Tuesday, August 3, from 4-9 pm., and half-priced nachos and $1.50 margaritas during happy hour. (one free taco per customer, in-restaurant only)

There are about a half-dozen Taco Cabanas in the Fort Worth area. I visited the one on I-35 around Seminary. Here’s a link:  http://www.tacocabana.com/locator/
---------------------------------------------
Update two weeks later:
Editor's note: I went back a second time and asked for the dinner which included rice and beans, same price, and it was excellent. Great value. I will go back.

Groupon and Habenero's Mexican

Marian and I made our virgin voyage into Groupon coupons tonight.  She paid $12.50 for a $25 dining coupon to be used at Habenero's Fresh Mexican Cantina. The coupon purchase and use was seamless. We printed the coupon and presented it to the waitress when were seated. It worked perfectly.

That is the end of this evening's good report.

What can I say good about Habenero's Fresh Mexican Cantina? First, it's more in the sports-bar-meets-Mexican-food category. Big space, lots of TV's and large bar area. I liked that part.

As far as the food, I ordered the taco dinner and the taco's shredded beef was plentiful in portion and very tasty. But the flour tortilla tasted like it had been just pulled from the package in the fridge. It was tasteless and cold. Beans and rice come with the dinners and they weren't bad, but neither the rice or the beans were served hot. Lukewarm black beans are just not very tasty.

The guacamole. I have always assumed that guacamole was made from avocados. I guess I was wrong. I'm not sure what we were served, it was green and it had a little tang to it. But it was god-awful. The serve-yourself chips were very greasy and the hot sauce tasted more like shrimp-cocktail sauce. The occasional green and red tortilla chip mixed in with the other chips only confirms to me that the emphasis is on style not substance. Why ruin a good tortilla chip with food coloring?

I have an idea for the Habenero's people, and I'm being serious about this: if you're going to use Groupon as a promo service to get people to try your restaurants, serve the fresh food your website advertises.

Marian and I like to try new places and enjoyed the evening in spite of not caring for the food. Maybe they just had a bad night. The 50% off Groupon helped.

Habenero's: http://www.habanerosfreshmex.com/

...

Sundance Square to be Backdrop for ESPN Superbowl Coverage

It appears that congratulations is due Downtown Fort Worth and Sundance Square for being selected as hosts for the 80 hours of ESPN Super Bowl Broadcasting. Here's the report from KRLD:

The Cowboys Stadium won’t be the only North Texas landmark getting a lot of camera time for the upcoming Super Bowl.  Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncreif is expected to announce this morning that ESPN has chosen Sundance Square to be the backdrop for all of it’s Super Bowl week coverage.  80 hours of coverage will be broadcast internationally on the network from the Sundance Square shopping and entertainment district.  The well-known Chisolm Trail mural will be prominently featured from January 31st up to game day on February 6th.  Business owners in Sundance Square are cheering, because although it’ll probably be pretty cold, the attention of the outdoor studio is expected to bring a lot of people into their shops and restaurants. Many other cities have been chosen to host various events surrounding the big game, including Dallas and Irving.  Planning is now in the final stages, because Super Bowl 45 is only 200 days away.

KRLD link: http://bit.ly/dyYzR7

The Best Websites for Bargain Hunters.

 
This is not me -->

I'm not a big shopper. One of the side benefits of the internet is that I no longer have to set foot in a shopping mall, which to me, is a kind of hell with sky-lights. Nowadays, everything I need that malls have can be purchased on-line.

Nor can I say that I am a committed bargain hunter, I don't remember ever using a coupon, though I understand why people do. I think I'm more of a loyalty shopper, but like everyone, I like to find a good deal -- which includes a low price.

The Kiplinger Newsletter people had a very helpful summary of "Best Deal" websites that I spent a good deal of time looking at yesterday.

Sites on lowest price, like Dealio.com, which compares prices on 30 million products from 100,000 merchants. And coupon sites, like RetailMeNot who offers coupons from more than 40,000 stores and a community where you can get tips and deal info from others. Then there were the "hot deals" sites like DealsOfAmerica, which updates deals every hour. The Kiplinger article also listed gift card sites, rebate sites, and of course iphone and Droid app suggestions.

Anyway, if you are interested in bargain hunting, I enjoyed the information and found it useful: Kiplinger.com

Food related -- I thought this hand espresso maker looked pretty cool for $18. Found here: http://bit.ly/c9JdcL

(Maybe I should add that I do not have any connection, financial or otherwise, with any of the websites or products.)