CoffeeStudyTalk

I’ve been here 5 times in past 2 years but never stayed more than a few hours.  I remedied that and stayed 2 nights to catch up with how Los Angeles is doing.  Overall it has the same vibe as when I remember it from a decade ago. Day 1 - Arrived LAX - Hilton Hotel Day 2 - Santa Monica , El Segundo Day 3 - The Grove, Departure LAX Day 1 - Flight In to LAX and stayed at Hilton LAX Had some drinks and chilled. Day 2 - Santa Monica after Starbucks Breakfast and Dinner at Kagura Sushi Starbucks for breakfast.  Then Santa Monica and finished off at Kagura for dinner.  Fun, cruising about. Then Santa Monica Place & Pier Kagura in El Segundo for dinner.  Umai! More beer.  Enjoying the Lobby.  Kinda nice actually. Day 3 - Flight home Went to Century Blvd McDonald’s for breakfast.  Then ice tea at The Grove as well as a light lunch and said bye to LA.

My first $100 bottle of wine.  And I was impressed.  The Barnett Vineyard 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon was my first real experience of a Napa Valley Red and I’m hooked. What I liked was how balanced it tasted with fruit forward flavors and a perfect dryness that reminds me of some good sake. I’ll reserve these special experiences for worthy celebrations and this was a New Year’s treat to ring in 2023. In hindsight, this was a wine that you’re supposed to wait and enjoy a decade later.  It was still delicious, but as I learn more about wines, I’ll start rotating and leaving these special bottles for future occasions.

Fiction is my favorite shop for the best espresso drinks in all of DFW.  This is a tall order and after trying 30 shops I can’t find any better. The espresso has a hint of butter that you cannot actually taste but just sense it’s there.  The taste is more like dark chocolate so it’s going to be my baseline when comparing other shops.  I’ve become accustomed to ordering both the espresso and another drink so I can evaluate both.

Another excellent taco shop is El Gordo’s south of intersection of I-75 and 380.  It’s not as heavy a portion as Del Sur, but very nicely balanced. Between the two, I’d go with Del Sur, but this place is also excellent and it’ll be hard for me to go back to Fuzzy’s or Torchie’s after discovering these amazing places. I’ll give this spot 8 out of 10.  Very decent tacos.

Yelp has rave reviews for Del Sur Taco in McKinney, Texas so I wanted to check it out and the reviews were spot on.  This place is amazing! Compared to what you can find in North Texas, Del Sur is awesome.  Prices are reasonable considering what they provide. Worth a visit.  I ranking it above El Gordo’s with 8.5 of 10. Another round of Barbacoa and Cochinita Pibil.

I found a new coffee shop called Eiland that roasts its own beans and I’m impressed the espresso was decent.  It had some bitter, but much better than most of the shops so far in Dallas.

More bulk buys.  Some Bourdeaux and Cabernet-Merlot mixes.  Let’s see how they fare as I’ve been impressed by the Garnache, GSM’s and hopeful for Bourdeaux. My wine rack is full at 24 bottles.  Not that difficult with the inexpensive but delicious wine options at Trader Joe’s. Update - 7/13/23 - Fonbadet Bourdeaux is good The Fonbadet Bourdeaux is good!  I’m quite pleased and will bulk buy this along with the La Sonrieta Grenache.  Rounding it out with GSM’s.

It’s a nice concept with a coffee shop in an old house.  Staycation in Richardson Dallas Texas was on my list and it’s acceptable.  It’s acceptable as they do far better than the coffee in North Texas, but not quite as good as those nearer downtown Dallas. I tried an Espresso that was sour indicating it was under extracted, but still better than over extracted bitter shots that North Texas is infamous for. The Cortado was a little better as the milk masked the sourness of the Espresso. Overall, 6 of 10 Espresso rating so I’d imagine the Cappuccino would be comparable. I’d drive further to Houndstooth if you’re seeking good espresso. It’s still a nice coffee shop overall.