Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Dear Stephan Pyles: All is forgiven.

A month or so ago, Johnny and I had a (gasp!) less than stellar experience at my favorite restaurant in Dallas, Stephan Pyles.  So I wrote them an email.  They asked me to give them another chance.  So I did.  

I was rewarded with a chef's tasting menu.  And this is why all is forgiven...

To start:  Passionfruit margaritas (??? Mojitos?  Refreshers?  Sorry, it's a little fuzzy.  Hooray for vino!)


These were absolutely delicious.  Sweet, fruity, a bit tangy, with a pretty significant punch in the nose of spice.

(Johnny makes something like this.  Cans of Jumex are your friends, kids.  Mix them with a little mezcal, muddled cucumber, and chili powder.  A pretty good recipe is here.  Just add mango or passionfruit juice.)


Next up:  A trio of ceviches, starting with the Charred Octopus "Diablo" with caviar.


For Lent, Johnny and I have challenged ourselves to be Vegetarian.  But because every vegetarian with tastebuds has The Sushi Exception, we're really Pescatarian.  For the Octopus Diablo, the waiter informed us that the chef usually puts chorizo in the dish.  Which I can completely imagine.   It was very, very Spanish. This dish consisted of octopus, black caviar, and (these are guesses here) roasted red bell peppers, and saffron (?).  The flavor was distinctly Spanish, and this was probably my favorite of the trio.

(The second ceviche was Salmon Veracruzano with Capers, Green Olives and JalapeƱos.  Sorry, forgot to take a photo.  Too busy eating.  )

The third ceviche was a Royal Red Shrimp Michelada with Cucumber and Dos XX.


Shrimp, cucumber, and beer.  How can you go wrong with this one?

The answer is, YOU CAN'T.

Every texture and every flavor played off each other beautifully in this ceviche.  The slightly hoppy/bitter beer foam contrasted with the sweet, delicate bite of the shrimp.  Tiny diced cucumber pieces picked up the flavor with a snappy crunch.  It all went together perfectly.


The next item in the tasting menu was Compressed D'Anjou pears, Canela Pear Butter, Aerated Local Blue Cheese, and Charred Purple Kale.


Let me preface this part of my review by saying, I HATE PEARS.  I hate pears with a burning passion that I usually only reserve for certain former state governors-turned-President, and licorice. I hate them so bad.  For me, eating a pear is like chewing on dirt mixed with glass.  I hate them SO.  BAD.

That being said, when I go to a fine dining establishment that I KNOW is total greatness, I will purposefully order something that I don't like (Duck goulash, for example, at Charlie Palmer at The Joule--which WOWED me...), just to see if the chef will change my mind.  

This dish completely changed my mind about pears.  For about ten minutes, anyway.  Which is a lot.

The pears in this dish were not gritty at all.  In fact, they were almost like slices of baked, cinnamony apples freshly extracted from a delicious apple pie.  Without the crust.  Which is just filler, anyway.

The kale was crispy, crunchy, lighter than air, and not at all bitter.  It positively disintegrated in my mouth with each bite.

The best part of this dish, and I MUST HAVE THIS RECIPE, was the tiny cup of pear cider that was on the side. Full-bodied, sweet, cidery, and i could have sworn I was drinking a caramel apple.  Or pear.


Dish #3 was a Tamale Tart, Nova Scotia Halibut, Roast Garlic Custard, Crab, and Smoked Tomato Sauce.


I was on my third glass of wine by this time (Hooray for wine pairings!), but I do remember the halibut being almost buttery, perfectly cooked, and having an almost candylike crust from the perfect sear on top.  Crab is never not amazing, and having it on top of a perfectly creamy custard on a tamale crust just makes it better.   I would definitely get this again if given the opportunity.

Dish #4 was the Georges Bank Scallop, Heart of Palm, Mango Leather, and Black Bean Tacu Tacu.


What is tacu tacu, you may ask?  You can find a recipe here.  (It's a black bean cake.)

Along with pears, I'm usually not a huge fan of scallops.  Cooked ones, anyway.  Scallops are SO hard to cook correctly, and 30 seconds of extra cooking time will yield a rubbery hockey puck.

The scallops in this dish were perfectly cooked.  (I think the heart of palm had a bit of scallop inside, if I'm not mistaken.)  The heart of palm was a bit woody, but that's not a dealbreaker.  The tacu tacu was probably my favorite part of this dish.  Crunchy on the outside, smooshy and tender on the inside, perfectly seasoned, and the flavor of the mango leather played off of it perfectly.  A definite home run.

And now to my favorite dish (actually, my favorite thing in a dish) of the entire evening:


Scottish Ocean Trout, Almond Stuffed Squash Blossom, Sunflower (sprouts?)

This is the best thing EVER, and they need to add it to the menu PRONTO.

The trout was perfectly seared, with an almost candylike crust.  Smoky and delicious, with the sprouts providing a snappy, light foil to the fish's smoky taste.

Atop the fish sat my favorite thing that I have ever had at this restaurant (except for the chicken fried venison WHICH THEY NEED TO BRING BACK).  Sitting atop this fish was a squash blossom stuffed with almond butter (?), dipped in tempura batter, and deep fried.  It was like squash blossom candy.  It was amazing.  The whipped filling tasted like butter or cream cheese mixed with almonds, incredibly fluffy, just sweet enough, and contrasted with the crunch of the tempura batter perfectly.   I need this recipe.  Our waiter tried one and agrees that it needs to be added to the menu.  For the love of Vishnu,  Please add this to the menu, Stephan Pyles people!

For dessert, I had this:


Banana Semifreddo, Blackberry Cremeux, Salted Caramel, Pecan Praline



Oh, sorry, did I forget to mention I came here for my birthday?


Everything was delicious.   EVERYTHING.  Stephan Pyles is my favorite restaurant for a reason.  The food is always perfect, and the service I received on my last visit was nothing short of stellar.  The ONE time that the service was not perfect, and I said something to management, I was expecting MAYBE an apology.  But the restaurant management went completely above and beyond any expectations I might have had, and this is why I will be a returning patron for as long as they are around.

Bravo, Stephan Pyles!

(Now if I could just get that squash blossom recipe...?)



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