Foodies Under 30 Unite

12 signs of the new Dallas foodie revolution

The Truck Yard on Lower Greenville is a bellwether item that separates the youngfoodie from the old.
Truck Yard/Facebook
Ramen is the dish that, by simply ordering it, confirms a New Foodie's hipness.
Photo courtesy of Tanoshii
Yesterday's Caesar has become today's kale.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins
The one single ingredient that defines a generation.
BBQDroid.org
Tacos are a major food group in the New Foodie diet.
Fuel City/Facebook

Dallas has two kinds of foodies, and if you were searching for a bellwether to distinguish between the two, it would be the opening of Truck Yard, the Austin-esque food truck park on Lower Greenville, the most surprising foodie neighborhood in Dallas.

Since it opened barely a week ago, the Truck Yard has been hailed by some as possibly the hottest hangout in the city; has earned nearly 6,000 "likes" on Facebook; and has drawn a crowd of fans eager to hang out, have some beers and maybe a snack.

But not everyone has been enchanted. Dallas Morning News posted a cranky screed about the truck yard, complaining that the ice cream stand was hard to find and decreeing it "not awesome."

We totally sympathize. We don't "get" why sitting outside on a picnic bench is "cool" when we'd rather be ensconced on a leather banquette, fighting off waiters who recognize Who We Are and feebly try to give us the VIP treatment.

It's a generational thing. There is the Belo-style foodie, a.k.a. the Old Foodie, aged 55 and up. They may be a dying breed, but they're still out there, reading news off dead trees and hungry as ever to find the cool new thing (as long as it doesn't, god forbid, involve sitting on a stool that has no padding).

And then there is the New Foodie. The one that's under 30, ready to line up for anyplace that has tacos or BBQ or doughnuts or pizza or burgers or food trucks. Especially food trucks.

Here's our cheat sheet to help differentiate what's important to these two distinct groups.

Old Foodie vs. New Foodie

1. Ingredient. The devil-may-care indulgence that defines their generation.

Old: foie gras
New: bacon

2. Destination. Where they go (or went) to see and be seen.

Old: Star Canyon
New: Truck Yard

3. Patron saint. The person whose creed became their creed.

Old: Julia Child
New: Anthony Bourdain

4. Ethnic find. Ordering this dish makes them in-the-know.

Old: Sushi
New: Pho

5. Salad. Young or old, everyone needs greens.

Old: Caesar
New: Kale

6. Cocktail. This category is complicated by the current trendy embrace of vintage drinks.

Old: Old-fashioned
New: Old-fashioned

7. Nostalgia item. What they seek out when they want to revisit their carefree youth.

Old: King Ranch casserole
New: Mac and cheese

8. Hipster trend. The item that, by simply ordering it, confirms their hotness.

Old: Arugula
New: Ramen

9. Pilgrimage. The place they go to make their foodie bones.

Old: Napa Valley
New: Austin's Franklin BBQ

10. Must-have gear. The gadget or item that confers foodie savvy.

Old: Rabbit wine openers
New: Monogrammed beer growler

11. Signature activity. Where they rub shoulders with their fellow foodies.

Old: Pot lucks
New: Festivals such as TacoCon, Untapped, MeatFight

12. Guilty pleasure. Some things never change.

Old foodie: Whataburger
New foodie: Whataburger

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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.

downtown