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Dallas celeb chef eatery makes NY Times list of 50 exciting restaurants

Fried chicken from Roots Southern Table.

Photo courtesy of Roots Southern Table

Dallas' celebrity chef Tiffany Derry is basking in the national spotlight: The New York Times selected her new restaurant, Roots Southern Table, as one of the 50 American restaurants it's "most excited about right now."

Published Monday, October 11, the list spotlights "the 50 most vibrant and delicious restaurants in 2021 . . . They’re not ranked, but together they reflect the rich mosaic of American dining," the article states.

It's rendered in alphabetical order and extends from Sofra Bakery and Cafe in Cambridge, Massachusetts, all the way to Paju in Seattle.

Four other Texas restaurants also made the list:

Birdie's, a natural wine bar and cafe in Austin
Fish Lonja, Mexican seafood restaurant in San Antonio
Blood Bros. BBQ, a creative barbecue joint in Houston
Sylvia's, a taqueria in Brownsville

The list includes short profiles of each restaurant, with nods to special dishes.

Times food reporter Priya Krishna hails the Louisiana-influenced Southern food chef Derry is serving at Roots Southern Table, writing "If eating [Derry's] cornbread with smoked butter is like a warm embrace, the duck-fat fried chicken — which should certainly be ordered with a side of duck-fat-fried potatoes — is the equivalent of a bear hug."

Krishna also covers Fish Lonja, praising San Antonio chef Alejandro Paredes for his creative approach to Mexican seafood. Citing dishes such as shrimp aguachile and a shrimp-and-chorizo quesadilla, Krishna writes that the restaurant's food "tastes so fresh, you might wonder if San Antonio is a coastal town."

Writer Brett Anderson profiles Houston's Bood Bros., stating, "The daily changing menu at this strip mall barbecue restaurant in a Houston suburb is a product of the seemingly endless ideas for cooking Texas barbecue whirling through the brains of the owners and staff. One day, brisket burnt-end steam buns and smoked chicken karaage. The next, char siu pork banh mi and Thai green curry boudin balls."

Anderson also praises Birdie's chef Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel’s "bright, graceful food" that includes steak tartare, roasted eggplant, and vanilla soft serve, describing the wine bar as "the leading edge of what makes eating great in this booming town."

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Escargot News

New all-day French bistro in downtown Rockwall is all from scratch

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Belle View Bistro Rockwall

An all-day French bistro has made its debut in Rockwall: Called Belle Vie Bistro, it’s a new mom-and-pop in the charming historic downtown district, at 112 E. Rusk St., the former home of The Fatted Calf restaurant, where it opened its doors on November 12.

Belle Vie is from Luis and Iliana Marquez, a hard-working couple who also own Los Marquez, a popular taco--themed food-truck-turned-restaurant in Rockwall they first debuted in 2019. In May, the couple took over the former Fat Chicken space to open a brick and mortar location of Los Marquez, where they serve well-made Mexican food like tacos, burritos, and quesadillas, but also burgers & fries. They open for breakfast with breakfast tacos, and run a daily lunch special, often creative, always popular, such as birria ramen with choice of beef or lamb for $11.

But the couple had a bigger vision of creating a place where chef Luis could stretch and showcase his skills.

"Luis has a lot of culinary experience, and it’s something that he’s been putting aside,” Iliana says. “We were just waiting on the perfect time to bring this to life.”

"This is something exciting and new for us, it’s something that we always wanted to make,” Luis says.

Like Los Marquez, Belle Vie is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, serving classics like French onion soup, moules frites, escargot, and duck confit. There are also comforting and American dishes like spinach-artichoke dip, crab cakes, and fish & chips.

Lunch features Cobb salad, a French dip, and chicken & Brie panini, while an extended breakfast -- which runs from 7 am to 4 pm — includes pancakes, waffles, eggs benedict, beignets French toast, and crepes, plus pastries and breads made from scratch.

Mural on the wall at Belle Vie Bistro RockwallFacebook

The bakery counter is a delight, with eclairs, croissants, scones, fruit tarts, and cake slices in flavors like carrot cake and white chocolate raspberry. There's also a serious coffee program with espresso drinks such as lattes.

"We pride ourselves on making everything from scratch," the duo says. "Our bread—whether for sandwiches, paninis, hamburgers or anything listed on our menu is made fresh just for us by our incredibly talented pastry chef and baker. The same care goes into our pastries and desserts ensuring every bite is special and crafted with love."

The dining room is warm and cozy with dark wood chairs and plush booths and a full-wall mural depicting a street in Paris. They also have a full bar, with cocktails and beer on tap. Prices are reasonable, ranging from $9 for a Belgian waffle during breakfast to $45 for prime ribeye at dinner.

For now, they're not taking reservations — it's first come, first serve.

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