We’ve received a bunch of great reader questions recently, and we want to address some of them right now. But first, a quick programming note to say that you, too, can send in any food question you have, and we’ll do our best to get you an answer. Just use the Ask Eat Drink D-FW form, which you can find on our website. No food question is too big or small.
Now, let’s dive into some fun food Q&A.
Gluten-free struggles
Q: Why is it so hard to find restaurants that have a great gluten-free selection? I’ve been in cities (like Rome) and towns (like Banff) that do it beautifully: fresh baked rolls, fancy pastries, french fries in a dedicated fryer, pasta, chicken strips, ice cream cones, sushi with tempura. So why do so few DFW restaurants offer a good selection? — Lorie, Plano
I always love it when friends of mine visit Italy and come back stunned by the breadth of gluten-free options available in a country known for carbs. The U.S. feels surprisingly behind when it comes to accommodating a gluten-free diet. We’ve come a long way in recent years, but there’s still a way to go.
The answer to your question, I think, is that it comes down to supply and demand. Restaurants have to be really choosy about what they spend time and money on, and if only a handful of people order the gluten-free option every week, a restaurant is probably not going to focus its attention on that part of the menu. It’s also difficult for restaurants, especially smaller ones, to be outfitted to safely make gluten-free items while avoiding any possible cross-contamination, which is why many opt for using frozen or commercially made products.
Here is a list of gluten-free restaurants I put together in 2022 for people looking for more gluten-free options. You probably know of many of these if you live in the area and don’t eat gluten, but hopefully you’ll find a new place on here to try.
Covering more of the suburbs
Q: Why not feature more restaurants outside of the city of Dallas, such as larger suburbs, once in a while? You only do if they have an outpost of an original that is downtown. — K., Coppell
There’s no doubt we could do more when it comes to covering food in the suburbs. I’m perpetually haunted by the thought of all the great stories I’ll never know of or get to cover. The short answer to your question is that it’s a matter of resources. We’re a team of three covering food in a region that is home to more than 8 million people. We try to cover as much as we can in and outside of Dallas, but the reality is that there will always be more than we can get to.
If there is a restaurant or food story you think we should be writing about, please let us know! We love to hear from readers about what they’d like to see us cover. You can email us at eatdrink@dallasnews.com.
A restaurant resurrection
Q: (1) If you could bring back any restaurant in the history of D-FW, which one and why? (2) What type of restaurant/cuisine is D-FW lacking that you want to see more? — Jamil, East Dallas
What great questions. A restaurant I would love to see for myself is Ports O’ Call, the legendary tiki bar and restaurant that opened on the 37th floor of the downtown Dallas Sheraton Hotel in the 1960s. Now I don’t think I would want to bring this restaurant back (questionable treatment of cultural culinary traditions), but the place sounds like it was an absolute trip. Apparently it had an entrance designed to look like you were boarding a schooner, four themed dining rooms, and a menu inspired by Macao, Tahiti, Singapore, and Saigon.
When I think of restaurants I would actually want to bring back, though, two immediately come to mind — The Grape and Khao Noodle Shop. Oh to sit at a cozy little table on The Grape’s patio again with a bowl of mushroom soup, or to perch on a stool at Khao with a bowl of mee katee and a plate of sakoo. I miss them both.
As for a type of cuisine I’d love to see more of here, my answer, without hesitation, is Sonoran food. I’m an Arizona native and grew up eating truly incredible food from Sonora. I don’t have anything against Tex-Mex, but for me, nothing holds a candle to the tangy mesquite-charred carne asada, paper-thin flour tortillas, nopales, and frijoles charros of my childhood. I’d love to see more of that in North Texas.
In search of good chicken wings
Q: Where are the best chicken wings in Dallas? I have lived here for 4 years and have not found great wings. — John, Uptown
I called in help for this one as I am not an experienced chicken wing eater. Something about the effort vs. reward ratio is off for me. So, I turned to someone who I knew would have helpful feedback for you — my fellow food reporter Sarah Blaskovich.
Blaskovich said a lot of people in North Texas naturally go to the big chains like Buffalo Wild Wings, Addison-based Wingstop, or Dallas-based Korean fried chicken franchise Bonchon. She goes a different route when scoping out wings.
“I like to keep it small and local by visiting Brick & Bones (in Rowlett and Deep Ellum) or Mike’s Chicken (with two locations in Dallas). If it’s late, Cosmo’s in East Dallas has wings on its 11 p.m.-and-later menu — and you can’t go wrong here for food or fun. No. 1 Plus Chicken (Carrollton, Dallas, and Richardson) is another good option,” she said.
If you know Blaskovich, you know she’s always up to date on new restaurant openings and she has one to share with you: “If you’re craving an original recipe, the company that claims to have invented Buffalo wings, Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, is expanding into Texas. It’s coming soon in Arlington.”
Have a food question? Submit it using the form on our website, and it might be answered in an online story, on social media, or on our Eat Drink D-FW podcast.