This Week in Gluttony

These are the 7 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Cool off in the afternoon at the Omni Dallas Hotel.

Photo courtesy of Omni Dallas Hotel

Like a perfectly paired wine dinner, this week is spaced out beautifully. And when your week includes the potential for free popsicles, how bad can things really be?

Tuesday, July 25

Patz & Hall Wine Dinner at Sevy's Grill
One of California’s most highly regarded wineries, Patz & Hall, is coming to town to share its collection with Dallas diners. In fact, this is the second dinner because the first one (that happened earlier in the week) sold out. Courses include beet cured hamachi, Eric's fennel sausage, port-glazed lamb chop, and white and dark chocolate panna cotta. Tickets are $95, and the evening begins with a reception at 6:30 pm.

Wednesday, July 26

Ice Pops at Omni Dallas Hotel
Enjoy a frozen treat in this Dallas hotel's lobby from 2-4 pm. Guests and hotel visitors can cool off with complimentary, housemade, fresh-fruit ice pops. Featured flavors include ginger peach, watermelon lemonade, and pineapple-mango jalapeño. Ice pops are available on a first-come, first-serve basis, so arriving sooner rather than later is ideal for securing your afternoon treat.

Thursday, July 27

Farm to Shed Dinner at Dallas Farmers Market
This month's dinner features cocktails from Be Mixed a special happy before the meal hosted by Noble Rey Brewing. The menu has a plethora of dishes including Texas crab, ricotta salata, and duck egg. Tickets are $70 and doors open at 7 pm.

Nothin' But Cheddar Class at Scardello Artisan Cheese
Cheddar. Where does it come from? What is it? How is it made? Get answers to all these vexing questions and taste the results in this delicious class. And, of course, the cheeses are paired with wine. Tickets go fast and are $40. The event begins at 7 pm.

Saturday, July 29

Fifth Birthday Celebration at Lakewood Brewing Co.
This beloved Dallas brewery is celebrating another birthday with live music by Signed Out and Lincoln Durham, food trucks, and the delicious drinks that keep them in business year after year. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door, and the fun starts at 5 pm.

Lowest G Cools Down the Big D on Greenville Avenue
Lowest Greenville Collective is hosting a block party fundraiser from Belmont Avenue to Ross Avenue to raise money and/or donations of fans, window units, and portable air conditioning units to help low-income, disabled, and senior citizens. Guests are asked to check in at the table located at Blind Butcher anytime during the day. Wristbands are given to people who donate a fan, AC unit, or $20 and up so that they can enjoy specials from 24 businesses that are members of the Lowest Greenville Collective, as well as an after party at Truck Yard from 8-9 pm. After party attendees can enjoy specials on Shiner Bock beer and access to free live music. A buck from every Shiner Bock purchased will also go to the cause.

Sunday, July 30

BeerBQ Summer Party at Flying Saucer Addison
This annual affair features top Texas breweries such as 512, Saint Arnold, Real Ale, Rahr, and more. With flights and burger specials, rare beer releases, and an ugly tank top contest with a $100 gift card prize, there's something for everyone to love. The event starts at 11 am and live music starts at 2 pm. Admission is free.

dinner craft-beer sustainability event-planner wine breweries

Hummus News

New Mediterranean restaurant in McKinney spotlights Greek and Lebanese

Ilio's

Chicken shawarma plate at Ilio's Greek & Lebanese

A new Mediterranean restaurant starring two cuisines has debuted in McKinney: Called Ilio’s Greek & Lebanese Restaurant, it's now open at 210 N. Custer Rd. #130, with a collection of Middle Eastern favorites like gyros, shawarma, kebabs, hummus, falafel, and pita wraps.

The restaurant, which opened in mid-May in a center on the newer west side of McKinney, is from a pair of restauraunt veterans, Anas Abu-Ziad, nicknamed "Ziad," and Talal Hammad, who owned a similarly-themed and similarly-named concept in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Managing the front of the house is Ziad's affable wife Jessica Gardener, whose doting customer service has quickly made her a diner favorite.

"The idea with combining Greek and Lebanese was to make the restaurant inviting to everyone," Gardener says.

Baton Rouge has a reputation for good Greek and Lebanese food, even boasting a few restaurants that feature "Greek & Lebanese" as part of their name. Those two cuisines are slightly less common in Dallas, where the Middle-Eastern restaurant scene has been dominated mostly by Turkish and Syrian places.

Ilio's, which was the ancient Greek name for the city of Troy and is a popular moniker for Greek restaurants across the U.S., specializes in sizzling grilled kebobs, which are available in chicken, beef, shrimp, and kafta, the Lebanese favorite consisting of ground meat — often a combination of beef and lamb, with spices, onions, and herbs — molded into a long cylinder.

Greek dishes include dolmas (stuffed grape leaves with rice), spinach pie, and lamb shank — all dishes that can appear on many Middle Eastern menus but are most closely allied with Greek cuisine. That includes moussaka, the homey casserole dish made with eggplant, meat sauce, and bechamel — although Ilio's version is deconstructed, which is easier for restaurants to execute than the traditional layered version favored by home cooks.

Hummus comes in three options: traditional, Mediterranean, and Sultan, topped with chunks of meat. Other Mediterranean classic dishes include chicken shawarma, gyro plates, falafel, and fried halloumi cheese.

Most dishes come in under $15 and the restaurant is also BYOB.

There are extra-healthy dishes including salads, lentil soup, and pita wraps, made with pita that's a little softer and less doughy than many pitas in town. And there's also a fusion twist that's very Texas: a "Greek quesadilla" with your choice of grilled meat stacked between pita bread.

greek cuisine lebanese cuisine mckinney mediterranean restaurant middle eastern favorites openings