48 Nights to taste and help

Our guests enjoyed a completely outstanding dinner at Smoke for the most recent "The Dinner Club with Jim White" special event.

Owner Christopher Jeffers and manager Ray Evans were great hosts. Thanks to our friends from Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits for bringing such great wines. It was a global affair, with wines from Italy, France, Spain, Argentina, and California, paired with Chef Tim Byres incredible down-home southern cooking. It is smokin'!

Chris, Tim, and their partner Chris Zielke (who holds down the fort at sister Oak Cliff Restaurant Bolsa) have started a very cool project called "48 Nights" to raise money for charity. The premise is fun. A "pop up restaurant" in an old taqueria on Sylvan Avenue (near Smoke) where guest chefs prepare a great dinner every week, and proceeds are donated to the Mass Care Task Force, which helps provide relief to victims in case of disaster. The goal is to donate $1000 from each of the 48 nights. Interested diners pay $75 per person for one of two seatings on a Monday or Tuesday night. Reservations can be booked at www.48nights.com. But here's the fun part: You don't know who the chef will be! Marc Cassel from Park just hosted a dinner. Stephan Pyles, Bruno Davaillon from the Mansion on Turtle Creek and Sharon Hage from York Street have all signed up to do dinners. And, several other big name chefs are being approached. There's great wine, great food and a great cause to help. What are you waiting for? This may be the most fun wining and dining concept to ever hit Dallas. Kudos to the Smoke and Bolsa brain trust for coming up with this.

Savor Dallas is on the way Friday and Saturday, with an expanded Arts District Wine Stroll, and another over the top International Grand Tasting. This year all the events on Saturday take place at the newly renovated Sheraton Dallas Hotel. The place is great and dedicated wine and food lovers will love the setting for the walk around tasting. Of course, the Riedel Stemware is back for all tasting events at Savor Dallas--including the Arts District Wine Stroll and special wine seminars. And, the very popular commemorative Savor Dallas stem will be handed out Saturday night at the International Grand Tasting for folks to take home with them. This will be the sixth in a series of collectible Reidel glasses that Savor Dallas has presented to its guest. Some people have the complete set. Also this year, the Travelocity.com spokes-Gnome will be on-hand to have his picture snapped with you both Friday and Saturday. Go to the Savor Dallas Facebook page to register to win a special prize including two tickets to the International Grand Tasting and a chance to "Take Home the Gnome" for a week. He's a great house-guest. He has been spending time with my wife Vicki and me, cooling his heels in between travel engagements, getting ready for the party and fun at Savor Dallas. BTW, he is a vegetarian. Get tickets to Savor Dallas online at www.SavorDallas.com. Tickets for all events will be available at the door both days.

Tre Wilcox is conducting cooking classes at Loft 610. His next class is on Southwestern Cooking, Sunday March 21, from 1 til 5 p.m. The whole culinary team is involved including Executive Sous Chef Jermaine Brown, Sous Chef Jason Skinner, and Pastry Chef Kara Blair. The cost is $350 per person to secure a spot contact nomi.marcos@loft610.com. Call 972-377-250 for more info. www.loft610.com.

55 Degrees in Plano has some new events starting this month. On March 23rd they'll be presenting "A Tale of Tuscany" at 7 pm. The evening will focus on 6 wines from Tuscany and features a cheese and meat flight to pair with the wines. The cost is $25 per person, plus tax and tip. You can book your space for this limited seating event by going to their website www.55degreesplano.com.

Smokin' Good Time Coming up at Smoke

Big time wining and dining with Chef Tim Byres

Just ask anyone who has been to the hip and happening Belmont Hotel and you'll likely hear from a fan of Smoke. Tim Byres--formerly executive chef at Stephan Pyles, executive sous chef at the Mansion, and his own restaurant Standard--
certainly knows his way around the kitchen and loves to make great things happen with hardwood and smoke. You have an opportunity to get first-hand experience and a great wine dinner to boot if you join me on Thursday February 25th for the next "Dinner Club with Jim White" special event at Smoke.

Look at this great menu that chef has put together with a selection of outstanding wines from around the world that our friends at Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits has provided:

Cheese Croquette with Grilled Romaine and Tejano Chili Sauce
Villa Rogole Prosecco, N/V
~
Beet Carpaccio with Watercress and Smoked Ricotta Cheese
La Croisade Pinot Noir 2007
~
Pit Smoked Ham with Fresh Honeycomb and Mustard
Cacho Tempranillo 2006
~
Mesquite Grilled Fish, Sweet and Smoky Collards and Leeks
~
Pit Roasted Cabritto with Masa and Tamarind Goats Milk Cejeta
Los Cowboys Malbec 2008
~
Coffee Cured Brisket, Pit Roasted Rib and Smoked Paprika Link
Angels Landing Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
~
Warm Sour Cherry Buckle, Lemon Curd and White Chocolate

I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. Join us if you can. Just call Smoke for a reservation, 214-393-4141, but hurry! Seating is limited. Only 40 seats available and the price is great--just $60 per person (plus tax and gratuity. SMOKE is located in the Belmont Hotel Dallas at 901 Fort Worth Avenue. Dallas, Texas. 75208 (my hometown of Oak Cliff--go Bisons!) just about 3 minutes from downtown Dallas. This will be a great dinner.

A GREAT new seminar has been added to Savor Dallas on March 6th. Savor Dallas and NOKA Chocolate present an indulgent journey into the world of NOKA Chocolate paired with a top flight array of premium wines. Wines to be tasted include Newton Unfiltered Chardonnay, MacMurray Ranch Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, and Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. This intensive tasting experience will focus on the delights of world famous NOKA Chocolate, including single-estate dark chocolate truffles and chocolate, and reveal the magic of pairing wines with these different tastes. Saturday March 6, 3 p.m. at Sheraton Dallas Hotel. Tickets are $40. Get them at www.SavorDallas.com or call 214.366.0555.

Of course, this is just part of the Saturday morning and afternoon series of wine tasting seminars offered by Savor Dallas. There's a great wine panel that kicks off the day at 11 a.m. featuring premium wines and insights from Dr. Richard Becker, Becker Vineyards, Seth Box, Moët Hennessy USA, Jim Collins, Frei Brothers Winery, John Concannon, Concannon Vineyards, and Bart O'Brien, O'Brien Estate. You'll learn about a wines from Texas, Sonoma, Napa, Livermore, and more. Michael Flynn, Director of Wine and Beverages for the world-famous Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek moderates the panel.

At 1:30, you can be "a winemaker for a day" (or at least an hour), if you participate in the wildly popular "Puzzle" Blending Seminar" conducted by Newton Vineyard senior brand ambassador Deborah Dean. The Newton Blending Seminar is a study in the selections that may influence a blending of "The Puzzle"; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. A unique opportunity to understand the philosophy behind this Icon wine.

These seminars are limited to 50 seats and usually fill up quickly. Go to the Savor Dallas website, www.SavorDallas.com, for more information and click on Tasting Seminars.

Cheers! Jim

Wining and dining during the "Great Blizzard of '10"

Mostly indoors in our Case!

Fortunately, our power was only out for a few hours--unlike others who are still in the dark, as we speak, several days after Mother Nature dumped 12.5" of snow on the Metroplex. We had a great lunch at Bolsa on Wednesday before the weather turned, and then a wine lunch with importer Chuck Weintraub and his client Stephan Asseo owner of L'Aventure in Paso Robles at Salum as the blizzard ensued, but otherwise it was meals at home. Fortunately we had a few things in the pantry, because our wonderful Lakewood Whole Foods was without power and closed! Eerie! But only for a few hours until they got a generator truck in place. Our friend above, is the happiest, hippest snowman ever. He makes up in style what he lacks in size. He was gearing up for Savor Dallas, March 5-6, as the snow started to melt. He doesn't sweat the dress code when it comes to his favorite wining and dining experience. Depending on the event, the weekend attire is casual to cocktail. (Think of it as dressing to go out for dinner at a nice restaurant with a friend or with some friends to go to a party.) Nor, is Mr. Frosty concerned about tasting from the proper stemware at the Arts District Wine Stroll, the Reserve Tasting, or the International Grand Tasting. Riedel Crystal stemware is featured at all tasting events throughout the weekend at Savor Dallas. Get tickets and the complete weekend schedule at www.SavorDallas.com. After you party at Savor Dallas, plan to stay at the beautiful Sheraton Dallas Hotel. Just ask for the special "Savor Dallas" room rate of just $89 per night, available both Friday March 5th and Friday March 6th. Nothing like enjoying some great wine and food and then riding the elevator home! Talk about responsible consumption!



Our next big "Dinner Club with Jim White" event is coming up February 25th at the very cool Smoke in Oak Cliff. Chef Tim Byres has put together a fabulous four-course meal to show off his love of, well, smoke! Give him some hardwood and he is certainly going to put it to its best use. That would be creating and serving some delectable taste treats like he has planned for our February 25th outing. Highlights of his southern smokehouse menu include Pit Smoked Ham with Fresh Honeycomb and Mustard; Mesquite Grilled Fish with sweet and smoky collards and leeks; Pit Roasted Cabrito with Masa and Tamarind Goats Milk Cejeta; Coffee Cured Brisket, Pit Roasted Rib and Smoked Paprika Link. For dessert, how about some Warm Sour Cherry Buckle with Lemon Curd and White Chocolate? Yummy! Our good friends at Centennial Fine Wine And Spirits are providing some great wines to pair with Tim's menu, including: 2007 La Croisade Pinot Noir, 2006 Cacho Tempranillo, 2008 Los Cowboys Malbec, and 2007 Angels Landing Cabernet Sauvignon. Great pairings with Chef Byres' Smoke! Reservations will go quickly for this limited attendance dinner--only 40 seats available, at the remarkable price of just $60 person. Join us at the beautiful Belmont Hotel--just 3 minutes from downtown Dallas on Thursday February 25th. Call 214-393-4141 for reservations. This one is SMOKIN'!!!!!

Cheers! Jim

Touring Savor Dallas

Annual wine and food party is labor of love
Savor Dallas returns March 5-6

Over the years, so many people have asked me to describe Savor Dallas. It's a thrill that people care enough to ask. Vicki Briley-White (my lovely wife and co-founder of Savor Dallas) and I have discussed it ad naseum over many glasses of fine, decanted wine. For us, it's homage to the great, and hard working, chefs and restaurateurs of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. We put it together to help showcase them. We know, too, that we want it to be a collection of the top wines and spirits in the world. That's why Vicki works fastidiously to keep the entry point for wines poured at Savor Dallas over $15 retail. You'd be surprised how many wine events around the country don't control this. We prefer quality over quantity. Our friends tell us Savor Dallas is the best wine and food event they've ever been to. But you know friends. Thankfully, we've heard that from media types and from a number of the "new friends" we've made through the years who keep coming back, and bringing their friends to our event. Mostly, it's a great way to get together, have some fun and introduce people to the beautiful cultural facilities in the Arts District, and to raise the bar on wine and food appreciation. We work hard to make the event smooth and enjoyable for all who attend. We love Savor Dallas, because it gives us a chance to do a little bit of good in the community and be around so many like-minded lovers of wine and food. Maybe the best thing for me to do is take you on a quick tour of Savor Dallas 2010; invite you to come join us; and ask you to give us some feedback on your experience. That way, I can add your viewpoint to the mix, in case anybody asks me next year to describe Savor Dallas. Since the big party is cranking up in New Orleans, if I may, I would like to introduce our tour with the legendary phrase (and our wish for you at Savor Dallas):
Laissez Les Bon Temps Roulez (Let the good times roll!)

Big fun and big flavor return to Big D with the Sixth Annual Savor Dallas weekend, March 5th and 6th. The "International Experience of Wine, Food, Spirits and the Arts" features star chefs and great wines in beautiful locations throughout the Dallas Arts District (the largest contiguous urban arts district in America). Overall, more than 65 top chefs and artisanal food producers, and over 400 premium wines, spirits and imported beers from around the world are featured throughout the weekend.

Savor Dallas kicks off on Friday March 5th, with the popular "Arts District Wine Stroll", which allows people to "drink-in" the arts, while enjoying great wines inside the cultural jewels of Dallas, including the Dallas Museum of Art in Seventeen Seventeen Restaurant, The Nasher Sculpture Center, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, the Winspear Opera House and the Wyly Theatre from 5 until 7 p.m.

An exciting array of premium wine tasting seminars start the Savor Dallas activities at the beautifully renovated Sheraton Dallas Hotel on Saturday March 6th, beginning at 11 a.m. You'll have a chance to meet winemakers attending Savor Dallas, become a "winemaker" yourself (for a day) with the "Puzzle blending seminar", or take home beautiful hand-blown Riedel Crystal stemware from the "Riedel and Noka Chocolate Seminar".

Beginning at 5, the limited attendance "Reserve Tasting" features über premium wines, Champagnes and spirits for discriminating tastes only! The celebrated "International Grand Tasting" from 7 until 10 p.m. is a tasters' paradise. Many of the top Dallas-Fort Worth restaurants and chefs serve samples of their signature cuisine. Each guest is provided a commemorative Savor Dallas Riedel stem for tasting and to take home. It's the perfect way to enjoy and appreciate the exciting array of wines and spirits offered.

"The Savor Dallas Shuttle" will be running again to the "International Grand Tasting" from restaurant locations in Plano, Allen, North Dallas, Grapevine and Arlington. This FREE service from Savor Dallas (with purchase of ticket to "International Grand Tasting") provides a luxury ride downtown and back, and helps promote responsible consumption and eco-alternatives. Something that's important to us and our Shuttle sponsor Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits. Get all the details on the "Savor Dallas Shuttle" here. (http://www.savordallas.com/shuttle.htm).

The "International Grand Tasting" also features a silent auction offering a 3 liter bottle of Chateau Latour worth over $2500, and a six liter of bottle of Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon just to name a few of the exciting rare wine items up for grabs. In addition, great wine escapes to Sonoma and exciting trips to the Caribbean are offered. All proceeds from the auction benefit the North Texas Food Bank.

Be on the lookout for the Travelocity.com Gnome who will be making an appearance at Savor Dallas both days. You'll have a chance to have your picture made with the handsome star. Say fromage!

Tickets are available for individual events or an "All Access Weekend Pass" is offered. Get details and tickets at www.SavorDallas.com. A special "Savor Dallas room rate" is available for the weekend at the Sheraton Dallas. This is a great deal, just $89 per night, and it's offered for both Friday and Saturday night of Savor Dallas. The Sheraton Dallas has just completed a ninety-one million dollar renovation, including all the guest rooms. It's a beautiful showcase. Get details on the room specials and book your rooms for Savor Dallas here. (http://www.savordallas.com/hotelinfo.htm).

Come see us! à votre santé! Cheers!

Remembering Darryl Beeson "The Wine Guy"

Cheers, old friend! Here's to you.

Darryl Beeson, 54, passed away Friday. Almost everyone in the restaurant business in Dallas, and the wine business in general, knew Darryl. He was a wine educator, writer, former sommelier and cellar master. We worked together very closely for several years. We were also friends. He had a knack for that. People liked Darryl. I'd like to share a few recollections .

(Darryl with Ravenswood founder Joel Peterson)

Mr. Beeson's Class--and a class act
by Jim White

The first time I ever met Darryl Beeson he seemed very professorial. Maybe it was his tweed jacket, vest, bow tie, horn rimmed glasses and Adolphe Menjou mustache. Or, perhaps it was his thorough awareness of "things" and his tendency to conduct "mini-seminars" on them. He could talk about everything from sports and current events to broadcasting or social-scene gossip. But it was his encyclopedic knowledge of wine that impressed me as I got to know him. He was producing Jody Dean's midday talk show in the winter of 1994 when I returned to Dallas to become KRLD's morning news anchor. I was also charged with developing a "Restaurant Show". Something operations director Michael Spears had been quite keen on while we were still in Chicago plotting our return to Big D. Darryl was to be my producer for the program, slated to start in the spring of 1995. I was quite intimidated by the prospect of hosting a program devoted to cooking and wine. I did very little of the former, although I could hold my own with the latter. But since Spears knew I had a love of these things and travel, cultivated by radio stints in San Francisco, numerous forays to Europe, and about a year of being in the dining circle of a Chicago restaurant critic, he insisted I could do it. It was Darryl who helped smooth what seemed like a rocky road ahead to me. And a damn steep learning curve--it was a daunting assignment just getting to know who the players were in the Dallas and Texas restaurant biz after several years out of town.

Darryl was the sommelier at the beautiful French Room in the Adolphus Hotel at the time and was moonlighting part-time at "Newsradio 1080". He seemed to know everyone in town. And, boy did he do a great job of making a fine wine program come alive. He was a service master and had a natural talent for regaling his wine customers with stories and anecdotes about the widest range of wines, vineyards and winery personalities I have ever heard. Always upbeat. Always entertaining. He was a showman with a tastevin. When he moved his "act" to the Mansion on Turtle Creek--kind of a Jay Leno moves to prime time, but with better results transition--he also became increasingly adept at keeping the staff on their toes about VIP customers who were joining them in the storied dining room. After checking the guest list one evening and seeing "Francis Ford requests special wine". He asked a fresh-faced hostess, "Do you mean Francis Ford Coppola?"

Darryl's job on the "KRLD Restaurant Show with Jim White" was producer and "Wine Guy". He handled both roles with panache. More "absent minded professor" as a producer--sometimes keeping program rundowns and guest phone numbers on crumpled notebook paper, the backs of napkins, or matchbook covers. He still managed to get outstanding guests like Julia Child and Wolfgang Puck booked and on the air. When wine royalty like Robert Mondavi and his wife Margrit were in-studio the proverbial red carpet was always apparent. He catered lunch for Fess Parker's appearance with us and made sure we had the theme from Davy Crockett to play during the show. He loved his time to shine on the air during his "Wine Guy" segments, which often featured luminaries like Robert Parker, Hugh Johnson, or Clive Coates. His efforts helped us get a nomination for a James Beard Award in 1999 as "Best Radio Show on Food".

In almost nine years of working together on the radio show and online projects, Darryl introduced me to so many wonderful and talented people (many of whom became friends): wine legend Tony LaBarba, favorite son restaurateur Matt Martinez, Jr., cheese maker extraordinaire Paula Lambert, Gus Katsigris, who founded the El Centro culinary program, culinarian Renie Steves, a chef you may have heard of, Dean Fearing, and the list goes on. Darryl even helped me orchestrate a most unorthodox proposal to my dearly beloved Vicki at the French Room with a cigar band for a ring and a bottle of Thunderbird for the toast. It worked! (But I had to deliver the real goods before any vows were exchanged).

Through ups and downs, "technical difficulties", and road shows from divergent destinations like the State Fair of Texas, a cruise ship in Alaska and Dijon, France, trusted producer and friend Darryl was always there to hold down the fort, and keep those guests coming. He often told me he was content to play the "second banana" role on the program (in the spirit of Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon). Somehow he turned it into Bananas Foster (or Beeson).

For the last several years Darryl taught a rigorously academic wine program, and I'm told, before his untimely departure, he was ready to return to teaching these classes and a weekly commute between Dallas and Houston to conduct them. Always the professor. Always the people person. A gentle soul and a gifted spirit. The wine service in Heaven is now 5 star. Look out, Mr. LaBarba and Mr. Mondavi. Darryl's coming with a bottle of '59 Lafite and a joke he wants to tell you.

Join us for an impromptu FREE wine tasting

Taste more of the "Great Wines of Savor Dallas" this weekend.

The delightfully food friendly wines from Sonoma's MacMurray Ranch are the stars of the show this weekend as we continue our great showcase of some of the best wines (and soon spirits too) coming to Savor Dallas March 5th and 6th. www.SavorDallas.com.

Our good friends at Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits are hosting complimentary tastings of three delicious MacMurray Ranch wines today and tomorrow. I'll be stopping by several of the locations, so I hope I get to see you and say hello--and taste with you! Here's the deal:

On Friday, January 29th from 5-7 PM and Saturday, January 30th from 2-4 PM the following stores will be hosting a special complimentary tasting featuring wine from the MacMurray Ranch portfolio. Items to be tasted include: MacMurray Ranch Sonoma Coast Pinot Gris, MacMurray Ranch Central Coast Pinot Noir and the MacMurray Ranch Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. MacMurray Ranch was purchased from the Porter family by famed actor Fred MacMurray in 1941. Fred raised his family on the ranch, and for 50 years the MacMurray Ranch was nurtured under his hand. MacMurray Ranch is quickly becoming known for producing world-class Pinot Noir. Whether from the Russian River Valley or Sonoma Coast appellations their Pinot Noirs express the legacy of the land from which they are produced. The hillside and valley vineyards of MacMurray Ranch offer a rich diversity of soil providing a unique expression of terroir. Susan Doyle, the winemaker, has learned to coax the character from land and vine. "You have to wait for the flavor," she says of the famously finicky Pinot Noir grape.

In-store Tasting locations at the fine Centennial locations:

•6312 La Vista Drive, Dallas.................
214-821-6294
Directions

•1613 W. Northwest Highway, Dallas... 972-506-8193
Directions

•6805 W. Northwest Highway, Dallas... 214-368-4162
Directions

•8123 Preston Road, Dallas.................. 214-361-6697
Directions

•8007 Walnut Hill Lane, Dallas............. 214-361-0929
Directions

•5709 W. Lovers Lane, Dallas.............. 214-352-4161
Directions

•15055 Inwood Road, Addison............ 972-239-5891
Directions

Thanks to the intrepid souls who braved the monsoon and stopped by to taste Quintessa Estate with us last night at The Grill on the Alley. Randy Wooldridge with Quintessa conducted a fascinating tasting of Quintessa barrel samples from 2008 along side the 2005 and 2006 Quintessa Estate wines. Outstanding! Thanks for Executive Chef Daniel Winans for the great food, and to GM James Shull, sommelier Paul Doherty and the great service staff for a great job. A special "Dinner Club with Jim White" event happens every month thanks to our partnership with KRLD 1080 and Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits. Stay tuned for more details and your invitation to join us for a GREAT wine dinner in February.

Savor Dallas and Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits promote responsible consumption by bringing back the popular "Savor Dallas Shuttle" to the International Grand Tasting on Saturday March 6th. This FREE transportation (with purchase of ticket to the International Grand Tasting) gives you the chance to ride downtown in style and back to your car safely. Or, if you want your commute to be "up the elevator to your room", Savor Dallas' official host hotel, the Sheraton Dallas Hotel (site of the wine tasting seminars, Reserve Tasting and International Grand Tasting on March 6th) is offering fabulous room rates for both Friday and Saturday during the wine and food lovers' weekend. Get all the details at the Savor Dallas website and be sure to ask for the "Savor Dallas special" if you call the Sheraton Dallas for reservations.

Happy trails. Cheers! Jim

Sample great wines from Savor Dallas

Friends of Savor Dallas
Can enjoy great complimentary wine tastings every week!


Taste some of the great "Wines of Savor Dallas" during the upcoming weeks at selected Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits locations. You're invited to stop by for these FREE tastings--no reservations needed. This week, on Friday, January 22nd from 5-7 PM and Saturday, January 23rd from 2-4 PM the following Centennial stores will be hosting a special complimentary tasting featuring wine from the Louis M. Martini portfolio. Items to be tasted include: Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Louis M. Martini Sonoma Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and the Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Chardonnay. Mike Martini, the winemaker of Louis M. Martini, believes that these wines express the best characteristics of Cabernet and Chardonnay by highlighting the personality of the special places where the grapes are grown. He believes that great winemaking begins with great vineyards and he wants the land to speak through the wines to produce balanced, engaging, and memorable wines. Stop by any of these Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits locations in Dallas:

In-store Tasting locations:

·6312 La Vista Drive, Dallas...................214-821-6294

·1613 W. Northwest Highway, Dallas......972-506-8193

·6805 W. Northwest Highway, Dallas......214-368-4162

·8123 Preston Road, Dallas.....................214-361-6697

·8007 Walnut Hill Lane, Dallas.................214-361-0929

·5709 W. Lovers Lane, Dallas..................214-352-4161

·15055 Inwood Road, Addison.................972-239-5891

Savor Dallas March 5-6 Get tickets now at www.SavorDallas.com

Wining and dining "news you can use"---

The Capital Grille presents a special "Comfort Foods with a Gourmet Twist" four-course menu for only $49 per person now through February 28th. Get details and reservations online or phone 214-303-0500.

Canary Mediterranean Steak and Seafood presents a three-course dinner paired with three wines on Monday January 25th. $59 plus tax and gratuity. Call 972-503-7080 for reservations.

Pappas Bros Steakhouse offers four-courses and Plumpjack Winery on Friday January 29th. Winemaker Tony Biagi is featured. $175 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Call 214-366-2000 for reservations.

Nana in the Hilton Anatole presents a Chivas Regal Scotch Tasting on Friday, January 29th, from 6 until 8 pm. $50 per person includes a sampling of Chivas 12, 18 and 25 year old Scotch Whiskies paired with "cuisine bites" from Chef Anthony Bombaci. Limited to 40 guests. Call 214-761-7470 for reservations.

Chef Avner Samuel has another Aurora cooking class and lunch coming up January 30th. Four-course and wine pairing are $95 per person. Call 214-528-9400.

Take a trip with Tre! Chef Tre Wilcox from Loft 610 (and "Top Chef" fame) invites you to join him "on vacation" March 8 through 10 in Marble Falls, Texas at beautiful Villas of the Hills. This is your chance to get to know Tre and cook with him. He'll be preparing sumptuous five-course dinners with wines both nights. It's a short vacation, but he's a busy guy. Check it out online (www.villasofthehills.com) or call 512-755-5412.


Happy wining and dining! Cheers! Jim