Velvety Goodness: Velvet Taco

I joined Haley and Sara for a Warehouse Sale in Dallas’ Design District last Friday, and at Sara’s suggestion, we decided first to visit Velvet Taco off Knox/Henderson for dinner, since no girl should shop on an empty stomach.  Haley and I had never been, so we were especially excited because we’d both heard great things. Also, who doesn’t love tacos?

The first (and best) thing I noticed about Velvet Taco was the variety.  As I poured over the huge menu on the wall, I saw as many as 20 different types of tacos.  There were a ton of ethnic cuisines represented on the menu, spanning a huge breadth of flavors from classic Indian and Mediterranean fare to Thai curries.  They had every kind of meat you could want, as well as seafood and vegetarian options for the non-meat eaters or fish taco lovers. 

Haley and I both opted for the Rotisserie chicken taco with herbed goat cheese, lettuce, tomato, smoked bacon, avocado, and basil crema in a corn tortilla.  We also ordered a side of Rotisserie corn, "elote-style", which was piled high with queso fresco, asadero, Valentina, crema, and lime.  The taco had the right balance of chicken to goat cheese and bacon, both of which are flavors that can overtake a dish if it’s too heavy handed.  The corn tortilla was just slightly crispy, which made for a nice bit of texture alongside the basil crema and avocado.  The elote-style corn was especially delicious, creamy yet crunchy with a dash of acidity from the lime. 

Sara ordered two tacos, both in lettuce wraps instead of corn tortillas: the Ahi poke with ginger-soy vinaigrette, avocado, golden beets, pickled fresnos, sesame seeds, and pea tendrils, and a Roast Pulled Pork with Thai basil, grilled pineapple-habanero salsa, and a spiked BBQ sauce. I snagged a bite of the Pulled Pork taco and it was delicious, though extremely spicy due to the habanero salsa. 

We all ordered frozen margaritas, which were nice and strong and pretty inexpensive at only $5.00 a pop.  The tacos range in price from $4.00 to $7.00, so you can get a couple of tacos and a margarita for around $14.00.  Well worth it considering the quality of the food and the overall pleasant atmosphere.

Velvet Taco is a casual dining experience with an “order at the counter” system.  If it’s crowded like it was on Friday night, you may have to wait a few minutes to order, but the line moves quickly and the cashier and food runners are pretty on top of their game.  The only drawback is finding seating. On a crowded evening, you may end up standing awkwardly in a pretty small space waiting to pounce on empty seats like a cougar on the prowl, but it’s not such an inconvenience that it should be a deterrent from going.  Velvet Taco is definitely worth a trip if you like creative takes on the classic Mexican dish. 

Velvet Taco

Jamaican, Mon! at The Island Spot

The Island Spot had been at the top of Haley’s Adventure list for a while now. So, we finally made some time to fit a little Jamaican into our schedules. The Island Spot is a tiny restaurant in a strip center in Carrollton that doesn’t lend itself to any excitement when you see it driving by. Honestly, we grew up in Carrollton and it’s been there for several years, but it just recently jumped onto our radar.

We walked in and grabbed a table – it wasn’t very busy. Upon surveying the place, we noted all the cute island decorations, the full bar, the Reggae jams and the chalk boards decorated with $2 Tuesdays drink specials. Too bad it was Wednesday! Oh well – mental note for the future. We started off our meals with some fried plantains. They were crispy, chewy, soft, sweet, starchy– everything you’d expect and want. Kind of like a banana French fry of sorts.

Then we ordered our meals. We already knew we needed to get the oxtail and the jerk chicken; it was just a matter of who gets what. I went with the jerk chicken and Haley went with the oxtail. We can be diplomatic, plus it’s not like we aren’t going to share anyway. I let the person waiting on us decide what sides I should get with my jerk chicken and he recommended fries. Who says no to fries? My plate came out with 3 pieces of perfectly crispy and spiced chicken (2 legs and a thigh) and a HEAP of crinkle fries that were so crispy and seasoned that we both couldn’t stop shoveling them into our mouths. The chicken was very spicy and piping hot. The meat was so juicy and came right off the bone, and the skin was crispy all over. I am typically not a huge dark meat fan, but this chicken was so well cooked that it rivaled Babe’s smoked chicken, our current chicken champ.

Haley’s “Uncle Rupert's Oxtails” came with about 5 pieces of braised oxtails in this super rich and flavorful sauce. She ordered saffron rice and spinach for her sides. The spinach reminded her of grandma’s which I take as a good sign and the rice was fine. The oxtails themselves were obviously the star here. They were meaty and fatty and just so flavorful. The meat came clean off the bone here too. Clearly, The Island Spot knows how to cook some meat. We were very impressed.

We were way too stuffed for any kind of dessert but we did linger a bit and jam to some more Reggae music. Overall, The Island Spot really impressed us. We definitely agree with the Dallas Observer on the “Best Jerk Chicken in Dallas” award. This is a spot we will be returning to in the near future for 3 reasons: $2 Tuesdays, First Fridays Live Reggae Music, and really well done food for a great price.

http://www.theislandspot.net/