Eat Healthy

Where busy Dallasites go for no-hassle healthy meals that taste great

Healthy eating takes commitment. You need time to plan, time to go to the grocery store, and time to prep and prepare your meals. But, as we like to say, heroes outsource.

Dallas has a new wave of better-for-you dining options, and standbys like Eatzi’s and Central Market offer pre-packaged options geared toward calorie-counters or carb-watchers. But we also need operations that specialize in preparing healthy and delicious meals for us to eat at home or on the go.

For that we turn to these services and storefronts, which offer good-tasting, portion-controlled meals for Dallasites who want to maintain their healthy lifestyles but still want to enjoy what they eat.

Gourmaleo
This meal delivery service launched in April 2013 for those who want to adopt the Paleo diet but don’t have time to think about the details. The Paleo diet is less about calorie counting and more about only eating foods available prior to the start of the agricultural revolution, such as lean proteins, vegetables, fruits, nuts and other healthy fats. The menu changes weekly; sample dishes include mini lemon poppyseed waffles for breakfast and cranberry sage pecan smothered chicken for dinner.

My Fit Foods
The longest-running business on this list, Houston-born My Fit Foods focuses on meals with lean protein, low-glycemic carbohydrates and healthy fats. They follow the 40-40-20 rule — 40 percent protein, 40 percent carbs, 20 percent fat — for a daily average meal plan. You can do a three- or 21-day challenge, order online, or simply stop in to shop the fridge for options such as Americano steak and eggs, chicken and sausage gumbo, or Asian flat iron steak. The nutritional info is listed on the package, so there’s no guesswork. Five locations in Dallas, plus branches in Las Colinas, Plano and Southlake, make it easy to find one wherever you are.

My Private Chef
Chef Holly Muller handed over the reins to Skye Davis five months ago, but the philosophy — high protein and fiber, low sodium and sugar — remains. To ease into the meal delivery program, you can order 10 meals for $100 and go up from there. Changes since Davis took over include more vegetables and organic meats and fewer starches. Favorites include grilled Parmesan chicken with zucchini and spaghetti squash, turkey sausage breakfast wraps, and BBQ meatballs with sweet potato fries. Items are delivered frozen to your doorstep once a week. You can pay extra for a fitness plan.

Simply Fit Meals
Simply Fit Meals makes all meals in-house, with low-glycemic carbs; lean meats; and 100 percent natural, local and organic ingredients. There are no added preservatives or sweeteners, and you can choose from yummy comfort foods like cranberry apple chicken salad, chicken Parmesan, and ham and cheddar frittata, knowing the exact nutritional value of each. Simply Fit Meals offers delivery within 10 miles of its stores, which are located in Plano, Dallas, Forth Worth, Allen and Frisco; another is coming soon to West Village in Uptown. Don’t forget to get a house account and build up those reward points.

Snap Kitchen
A fairly new healthy option in Dallas and Addison, Snap offers an impressive, portion-controlled menu that includes all the necessary nutritional information. You can pick up pre-ordered items, have it delivered or come in to browse at the store. Snap caters to all kinds of regimens: gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, Paleo, carb-conscious, non-dairy and more. Favorites include the bison burger, turkey meatloaf, spinach and goat cheese scramble, and Chai cashew milkshake. Also pick up fresh-squeezed juices.

Snap Kitchen offers foodies a chance to eat great, healthy food regardless of their dietary restrictions.

Photo by Julie Soefer

Snap Kitchen offers foodies a chance to eat great, healthy food regardless of their dietary restrictions.

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Joie de vivre

New Bishop Arts bistro brings French elan to historic Oak Cliff home

Photo courtesy of Trapèze/Peter Novotny

Trapèze is serving French fare in a laid-back bohemian yet deeply thought-out atmosphere.

Transforming historic Oak Cliff homes into dining destinations is an art, and a duo known for their Deep Ellum hot spots has a new work on display: Trapèze, a French bohemian bar and bistro, that has quietly opened at 240 W. 8th St. in a repurposed bungalow on the west end of the Bishop Arts District.

Owners Peter Novotny and Dan Murry, who operate Ruins on Commerce and Armoury D.E. on Elm Street, told CultureMap in February that they envisioned Trapèze as “an old-fashioned bohemian artist’s enclave.”

Now in the soft opening phase eight months later, they say, by "drawing inspiration from the old French bohemian bars and cabarets,” they've accomplished their goal of creating "a place where people can enjoy a great meal and drinks, listen to some music, and just lose track of time a little.”

Trapèze has been welcoming guests discreetly the last couple weekends, as they complete a few finishing touches both to the building — they are excited about the near-complete patio — and to the food: “We have a limited but very solid menu available now, and should have the full menu, brunch and all, ready very soon,” Novotny says.

A grand opening date is still in the works.

Novotny has said that inspiration for Trapèze came from Oak Cliff’s historical French influence. Bishop Arts once was home to the French utopian community La Reunion, which settled in the mid 1800s. The neighborhood pays homage to these roots at its annual Bastille on Bishop celebration.

“We’re trying to do a tribute to the French history of Oak Cliff and Bishop Arts, and our goal is to capture the things we love about regional French cuisine and culture,” Novotny said earlier this year.

trapeze Designed by local artists at Decotron, the front-porch sign at Trapèze offers a taste of what's inside. Photo courtesy Trapèze/Peter Novotny

Novotny and Murry hired New York-bred chef Jeremy Spector to direct Trapèze’s culinary program. He’s worked in famous kitchens such as Balthazar and Gramercy Tavern and has owned and operated restaurants in NYC. The owners have told CultureMap that Spector's menu represents different regions of France, along with flavors inspired by France’s once-vast colonial empire, including Moroccan cuisine.

The bar menu is full of classic French and New Orleans-esque cocktails made with French spirits and liqueurs like absinthe and chartreuse; an extensive list of cognacs; French Caribbean-rooted Rhum Agricoles (or Agricole rums), and French and “French-adjacent” cider and beer.

The house that is now a restaurant underwent a massive revamp, which lasted months due in part to weather-related delays. To make matters more challenging, Trapeze is located in a conservation district, which means construction had to be done in a specific way that would preserve the home’s original look.

“It’s basically a complete renovation,” Novotny says. “They had to rebuild the entire structure. The whole exterior is all new.”

The new sign out front reads Bien Mangé, Bien Bu, which translates roughly to good food, good drink. Made by the sculptural artists at Decotron, an Elm Street-based signage fabrication company, it creates curb appeal and offers a preview of the attention to detail, whimsy, fine craftsmanship, and French flavor found inside.

Hours have been slightly fluid. At this time Trapèze is open 4 pm-"late" Wednesday-Thursday and 4 pm-2 am Friday-Sunday. Updated days and hours will be posted on Instagram along with information about live music performers, they say.

bar food drink craft cocktails french food live music bishop arts restaurants