Snocone News

Dallas' Oak Cliff neighborhood nets truly authentic snocone stand

Summer is snocone time.

Photo courtesy of iStock

Oak Cliff gets an authentic New Orleans-style snowball stand with NOLA Snoballs, opening at 345 W. Jefferson Blvd., in the former, short-lived Carnival Barkers Ice Cream space.

Owner is Maureen Ehrlicher, a New Orleans native who's been doing pop-ups for the last year, as well as a temporary stand at a prominent spot at Texas Discovery Gardens.

"I was lucky to know the director of Texas Discovery Gardens because our daughters went to school together," Ehrlicher says. "We were talking one night and I said that I really wanted to start the stand, and he suggested we do it at the Gardens during the State Fair of Texas."

So she debuted the stand in 2016. "I set up in the lobby, and then on busy days and weekends, we'd go out on the front porch," she says.

It went well, and she's gone back for spring break and holidays; she's also done a couple private events as well as Bishop Arts' Bastille Day celebration.

Her signature is a chocolate snocone that's so creamy, it's like ice cream.

"New Orleans-style snocones are known for being creamy," she says. "With regular snocones, you combine ice with concentrate and simple syrup, but with the New Orleans style, you add evaporated milk into the syrup. We do the big seller from New Orleans, which is chocolate made with Hershey's chocolate syrup. You don't see it often around here."

Opening day is July 1, from 1-9 pm; regular hours will be 2-9 pm Tuesday-Sunday, and closed on Mondays.

Maureen and her husband David are true O.C. locals, having lived in the Winnetka Heights neighborhood for more than 25 years. Maureen is also known for her cakes, and as her neighbors testify, she's an avid collector with "the coolest and most impressive Pez collection in Oak Cliff and possibly the entire state," some of which will be on display at the shop.

Her storefront is actually half a space, which she is sharing with Electric Eye, a tattoo shop.

"Their entrance is in the back and my entrance is on Jefferson Boulevard," she says. "It's changing so much now, I'm glad to be a part of it."

ice-cream desserts

Omakase News

Downtown Dallas restaurant Sauvage expands with new dining twist

Sauvage

A downtown Dallas restaurant famous for its multi-course tasting experience is letting its hair down: Sauvage, the high-end mom-and-pop restaurant near the Statler Dallas hotel, has a new dining option that gives a smaller, more casual taste.

The restaurant opened in September with a set menu featuring 16 to 18 courses — wild game, seafood, vegetables, and dessert — all cooked via grill and smoker.

While 16 courses might sound like a lot, the courses are mostly small bites. However, owners Casey and Amy LaRue received feedback from diners wanting a smaller option.

"We were getting a ton of messages from guests who want to stop by just to try one dish, a bite, or a specific pairing without committing to the full tasting — so we built something for exactly that," Casey says.

They've introduced a new three-course "Cocktails & Bites hour" featuring three dishes, each paired with its own cocktail, served from 5–6 pm on weekdays.

Last week’s menu consisted of:

dry-aged red snapper crudo with La Chinola Way, a cocktail featuring passionfruit, mezcal, lime, and ginger
foie gras & truffle on house-baked croissant with Pendennis Club, a gin sour with apricot liqueur bitters
jerk-spiced shrimp with Clarified Paper Plane, a bourbon cocktail with Aperol, Amaro Nonino, and lemon juice

The new offering continues their pattern of pairing courses with cocktails rather than wine — an approach they've embraced since opening. "Limiting pairings to wine can get boring — it so often ends up being one expensive red after another," Casey says.

You can make a reservation on Tock, or just walk in and grab a seat.

Caviar
They've also added a new version of their classic menu: no caviar.

"Some love having caviar integrated into the menu, but others prefer to skip it, whether for taste or dietary reasons, but still want the full value of the experience," Casey says. "With such a small counter, this put us in a strange position: do we give everyone caviar whether they want it or not, or do we remove it entirely and lose a core part of our menu?"

Thus, a new menu without caviar, priced at $195, with an optional caviar course available for those who want it for $245.

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