Our Food Critic Is Thankful for a Lot This Thanksgiving, and Not Just Food

This may come as a shock to many of you, but Thanksgiving really isn’t my favorite holiday. I can almost hear forks crashing into plates as you all reach for your phones to write your angry missives, so let me explain.

Yes, Thanksgiving is a food-centric holiday, which should be right up my alley as a food critic. By and large, I think Thanksgiving fare is great, and I particularly adore people’s takes on food histories, rooted into the way dad or grandma or Aunt Betty made a certain dish.

I think where Thanksgiving went astray for me was watching my ex-wife’s family take their food traditions to the militant extreme. Tempers would flare at the slightest deviation from a recipe that existed only in imperfect memories, men demanded food be scheduled and served around the Cowboys game, and every year, my former father-in-law had to endure constant reminders about the time he accidentally threw out the turkey giblets in 1986 and ruined not just the gravy but, allegedly, the entire holiday. They were so focused on creating the perfect feast that they lost sight of the true meaning of the day. All the stress and loud noise made me most thankful for everything to wrap up so I could go home to peace and quiet.

I'm much more tolerant of Thanksgiving these days. (And twice divorced, so maybe the two are related?) What I most enjoy about Thanksgiving is taking the time to reflect on all that we have, which is something that oftentimes gets lost in the cooking, the family obligations and the general stresses of the holidays. For starters, there's a lot of good going on in Dallas' restaurant scene.

Here's a look back on some good bites I've had this year and the bigger things restaurants are doing that we should all be thankful for.

Pork Lollipops at Rye

And employers who try to do right by their staff.
One evening at Rye, my girlfriend and I couldn't help but snap a picture of the quintet of pork lollipops. I thought back to Rye’s announcement at the first of the year that they were adding a three percent surcharge to guest checks to help cover staff benefits. While I still think the petty surcharges need to go away in favor of what-you-see-is-what-you-pay menu pricing, I applaud Walkabout Hospitality, the parent company of Rye and Apothecary, for trying to do right by their staff.

The staff truly did seem to be enjoying themselves, and when I chatted up the bartender next door at Apothecary over a nightcap, he said the employee benefits had brought more continuity to the team.

Earlier this fall, I joined some friends for dinner at Gorji’s, where chef-owner Mansour Gorji has completely done away with tipping since 2016, choosing instead to pay his small staff a living wage. Other restaurants have dabbled with the idea, but Gorji's continues to hold fast to the concept and is the only one in Dallas to do so.

Plenty of restaurant owners treat their employees well. But for Gorgji and Rye, these big steps to change old ways of compensation in the service industry are something we hope will inspire more restaurants.

Iced and Hot Lattes at La La Land Kind Cafe

And restaurants giving young people a second chance.

I’m starting to develop a healthy infatuation with lattes from La La Land Kind Cafe. Yeah, the coffee is great, as are the patios, but the ego-boosting affirmations handed out by staff may be a drug more addictive than caffeine.

Behind the scenes, La La Land is more than just a cafe. Francois Reihani, CEO of the company that now counts 11 locations in Texas and California, started the venture as an avenue to provide jobs and career skills to youth after they have aged out of the foster care system.

Over at Cafe Momentum, teens who have been a part of the justice system are given fair-paying jobs as well as crucial mentorships that teach them life skills, leadership and, of course, how to work in a restaurant. Additionally, it’s a genuinely good restaurant with great food to boot.

The service industry has long been a job opportunity for everyone, but La La Land and Cafe Momentum are providing opportunities and second chances to those who need them most.

New Wednesday hours at Cattleack

And restaurants that continue to bet on themselves.

Six years ago, Andrew Castelan quit his accounting job to pursue barbecue, and got a job working for Todd and Misty David at Cattleack Barbecue. Earlier this year Castelan and his wife Natalie bought the business from the Davids, who will still stay on to work at the restaurant. Castelan remains committed to serving killer brisket, but recently, he made his first policy change by adding Wednesday hours to the lunch-only schedule. Cattleack is also open the first Saturday and Sunday of each month, so getting your hands on some of the best barbecue in Dallas has gotten a little easier.

In East Dallas, we’ve been watching with anticipation as pastry chef Diana Zamora gets her long-awaited pastry shop, Nena Postreria, up and running. Zamora has been operating Nena Pastreria as a pop-up concept for several years, and we can’t wait for the brick-and-mortar location so we can indulge in her Mexican and Central American-influenced desserts. Zamora is financing the project and launched a GoFundMe campaign to help complete construction. If someone ponies up $25,000, Zamora will tattoo their name on her body.

We love the ambition shown by small, locally owned spots like Cattleack, Nena Postreria and dozens of other ventures around the city. Running a restaurant is unbelievably challenging and costly, and there's a lot of investor money flowing through Dallas-Fort Worth. The downside to taking an investor’s money, however, is the investor’s desire to see that money grow, which can stifle creativity in favor of a safe but less thrilling concept.

When local restaurants find a way to fund themselves and bet on their own success, everyone wins. We’re most thankful for those chefs and operators who take big risks, with the hopes that their passions will pay off.