Drinking Diaries

Chef Tiffany Derry and barman Rocco Milano shake up their menus at PrivateSocial

Private Social has introduced new bites for happy hour, Monday-Friday, 5-7 pm.Listen to live music on the patio on Wednesdays during happy hour.
Photo courtesy of Private Social
Barman Rocco Milano has revamped the cocktail menu to include plenty offall-worthy drinks.
Photo courtesy of Barter
A few of the 14 cocktails Milano introduced for Private|Social's fall menu.
Photo courtesy of Private Social
Chef about town Tiffany Derry opened Private Social in 2011.
Photo by David Woo

It’s been a little more than a year since Tiffany Derry opened up Private Social on McKinney Avenue, and in that time she has demonstrated that Top Chef viewers didn’t get it wrong.

The modern American menu at PS is split between shared plates (Social) and more traditional dining (Private). With the weather finally getting a little colder, Derry and barman Rocco Milano have updated the menu and cocktails with more seasonally appropriate dishes.

New shared plates include Korean BBQ short ribs with sweet and spicy pickled cucumbers, lamb meatballs with marinara and goat cheese on crusted bread, and the fanciest chili cheese dog you’ve ever seen.

Barman Milano has embraced the colder months with two beer cocktails that feel like fall, plus twists on classics like the Gin-Ger Mule, his take on a Moscow Mule.

Milano has embraced the colder months with two beer cocktails that feel like fall: The Dominican Drifter has añejo rum, apple liqueur, allspice rum, lemon juice and Widmer Drifter Pale Ale. Fall Into A Glass (yep, that’s the name) is gin, hum spirit, lemon juice and Franconia Hefeweizen.

There are also twists on classics like the Gin-Ger Mule, in which gin replaces the vodka in a Moscow Mule, and the Polish 57, which is a French 75 with Zubrowka Polish Bison Grass vodka instead of the traditional gin to go with Champagne, lemon juice and orange zest.

Milano uses house-made bitters in his Skyrim Sazerac — named after the video game — featuring Germain-Robin craft method brandy, aforementioned bitters and an absinthe rinse, as well as in the Velvet Love Monkey, a Scotch cocktail with Monkey Shoulder Blended Scotch, Velvet Falernum and bitters.

Milano said that he has worked to create drinks for all palates, from the rich Italian Old-Fashioned with Jim Beam, orange zest, lemon zest, vermouth and dehydrated Campari, to the light and effervescent Pear Collins with Tito’s, fresh lemon juice, roasted pear concentrate, house-made hops, hibiscus-cherry bitters and club soda. All 14 specialty cocktails are $10.

The Social side is hosting happy hour Monday-Friday, 5-7 pm, with half-price beer, wine by the glass, specialty cocktails and Social menu items. Local musicians perform Wednesdays on the patio.

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Saucy Summer

Loro Asian Smokehouse bottles fan-favorite sauces for summer in Dallas

Photo courtesy of Hai Hospitality

This lively salsa can now dress up dishes at home.

You can't bottle famed Texas pitmaster Aaron Franklin's meat-smoking skills, but you can bottle the sauce at Loro, his popular Asian Smokehouse founded with Uchi chef Tyson Cole. Three of the restaurant's signature sauces will be available for a limited time this summer, starting June 21 and ending July 5.

A press release promises "bold, smoke-kissed flavors" on offer during the restaurant's "Saucy Summer" event. Guests can pick them up from all Loro locations across Texas. In Dallas, that means 1812 North Haskell Ave. in East Dallas and 14999 Montfort Dr. in Addison. There are also locations in Austin and Houston.

Fans of Loro probably already know these flavors from dipping wonton chips and slathering fried chicken sandwiches.

Loro Hot Sauce Loro's smoked hot sauce and chicken are a perfect match.Photo courtesy of Hai Hospitality

The three sauces for sale are:

Tamarind BBQ: A sweet sauce that's "a little wild" thanks to spicy and fruity flavors. Ingredients include tamarind, honey, soy, pineapple, Thai sriracha, mesquite, and nam tok seasoning — usually a mix of lime, chili flakes, and other standard seasonings like salt and sugar. This one is recommended for brisket, grilled chicken, or brushing ribs in the last five minutes of cooking.
Loro Hot Sauce: Described as "buttery" and "chili-forward." It's also made with Thai sriracha and augmented with dried Thai chili flakes, vinegar, butter, and tallow. The recipe was made with eggs, tacos, fried rice, wings, sandwiches, and spicy spreads in mind.
Green Chili Salsa and Marinade: Be careful with this spicy sauce, which has a "sneaky heat." The overall tone is bright and herbal thanks to green tomato, cilantro, garlic, lime, and ginger, with soybean paste and Thai chili adding oomph. This sauce is great for marinating chicken or shrimp, but it can also be poured right on top of tacos and rice bowls or used to finish veggies and grilled fish.

Each sauce sells for $8, but shoppers can bundle three of them for $20.

Purchases can be made for dine-in or takeout via Toast. Deliveries are available via Door Dash and Uber Eats while the promotion is running. To stay on top of stock, only a certain number of sauces will be sold each day.

Loro Tamarind BBQ Sauce Sauce-lovers can bundle all three sauces for variety.Photo courtesy of Hai Hospitality

Whether or not guests purchase a sauce, they can use the code SAUCYSUMMER to take $10 off to-go orders placed July 3 and 4.

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Drinking Diaries

Chef Tiffany Derry and barman Rocco Milano shake up their menus at PrivateSocial

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