El Greco -- an update

I had a great dinner at El Greco about two months ago; you can read that previous post here. A couple of weeks ago, El Greco participated in Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares show on FOX, where the rather belligerent Ramsay comes to "rescue" a failing restaurant. He spends time in the restaurant, yells a bunch, makes some changes, and leaves -- all in the name of television ratings, I am sure. Or at least so I am told that's how it goes, as I have never watched the show. (I couldn't take all the yelling and insults he hurls on Hell's Kitchen.)

My dining companion wanted some good healthy Mediterranean food for lunch, so it was off to El Greco. Apparently we were the first diners for Saturday lunch, arriving a bit past 11:30 am.  We were immediately greeted and told to sit wherever we wished. As we sat, I could hear some yelling in the kitchen; something about "put the meat in the oven" and I could hear the word "dumbass" but don't know the exact context. I could hear the overtones of yelling or some sort of grumbling at least one other time during our meal. (I am fairly certain these were coming from the chef.)

Our greeter/server came right over, welcomed us, and introduced himself as Dustin. We started chatting about the newly designed menu, and he gave us a few tidbits about their experience. He said it was grueling, but he felt worth it in the end. The owner and chef, Jake, had actually applied to the show over 3 years ago on a whim, but didn't hear anything until 8 months ago. FOX sent a camera crew out, and they took a bit of test footage of the kitchen, and then back to what I presume would be the show's producers. Once El Greco was officially chosen for the makeover, each person who works for the restaurant had to fill out a 14 page questionnaire. The restaurant also had to sign a contract agreeing to abide by the new menu items. Previous customer favorites, like dolmas, were removed, and can no longer be served, and I believe he said they used to do catering, which currently they cannot do. No word on how long these freezes are in effect.

I really like the new look of the menus, very streamlined and clean; the previous was a bit cluttered. (At this writing, the old menu is still up on their website.)

The interior decor doesn't seem all that different, though there are now Greek statue head profiles painted on the walls, and everything is in white and blue. 

I ordered the lamb pita sandwich, and my friend the Greek salad with grilled shrimp. Unfortunately, Dustin came back to say the lamb wasn't ready yet. So I went with the gyro.

Once you got past the shrimp, there wasn't a whole lot to the salad. My friend, who has watched the show, said that Gordon is all about downsizing the portions and that seemed pretty evident with her salad. Also, she asked for no onions, and it did come with them, My gyro was okay...the meat a bit dry, and a little more bread than meat. When Dustin came to clear our plates, he asked how things were, and I told him it was on the dry side. He did apologize (again) for the lamb not being ready, as that was one of his favorites.

Overall, the menu looks decent, not that different than the old, with the exception of two new hummus appetizers, a chipotle and Hatch (New Mexico green) chile.  We were told they were proving to be very popular, but the thought of a green chile hummus in a Greek restaurant makes me cringe, sorry! Our server was great, but I'd say the jury's still out on the food changes at El Greco. The show is supposed to air in October.

Bits and Bites

Of note: 

Events

-- In my August 30th posting, I wrote of an upcoming benefit dinner hosted by A Torrid Affair on September 26th. Proceeds will benefit the Dell Children's Medical Center, and here's a link to the menu, with thanks to Michael Menley of A Torrid Affair for passing it along in weblink form! :)
-- Do you really really like coffee, or are just starting to get into your morning java, and want to learn more? Houndstooth Coffee  will be offering a class, beginning Sunday, September 25th for 3 sessions. 
-- Austin Restaurant Week  is coming, Sept 25 - 28 and Oct 2 - 5. Sixty-four of Austin's finest will offer prie fix (and affordable) menus, with two-course offerings at lunch, and three-course at dinner. Eat up!

Openings
-- eleven plates and wine will be opening in Davenport Village on 360 on September 25th. They'll be open for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. Owners Mike and Kelly Swartz own the Austin Melting Pot restaurants, and they consider their new venture to be "upscale casual".
-- Juiceland  is the new name for the Daily Juice and Juice Box juice joints. There's an expanded menu too, with more salads, cleanses, detoxifiers, and of course juice and smoothies.

El Alma

I attended a media tasting last night of the new El Alma (the former El Chile) at Barton Springs and Dawson Road, headed up by Executive Chef Alma Alcocer. We were seated in the upstairs terrace patio area, which, given the late summer heat, was still quite comfortable, and you don't really hear the noise from the street. The white-washed walls and how it's built into the hillside evoke an image of Greece!

It started with the Guacamole al Chipotle, on the right, and the Ceviche on the left. I really liked the sunflower seeds on the guac, and while ceviche isn't usually my first love, this was done with black drum, and was nicely prepared with pickled onion, and not at all "overcooked."

Next was Sopecitos with beef, which was delicious! It's not a regular menu item, but it's worth getting if you see it on their specials. The masa cake was nicely done, not overly dry or heavy.

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Then the Gringas quesadillas with mushrooms and caramelized onions, with a nice sauce, that if memory serves, I think was chipotle.

Followed by the crab cakes, also a non-regular menu item. They were pure crab with whole corn kernels on the inside (no filler!), with a heavy tortilla breading on the outside, served with remoulade and pickled onions.

And a pork taco al pastor that had nice flavor.

Finishing with a bite of Tequila Lemon Cream Cake!

I have it on good authority that the duck relleno is fantastic, so I know what I will be ordering from the entree menu when I return! Nice to have another quality establishment in the neighborhood!

Recent Eats

So here are a couple places that I've eaten recently, and clearly haven't made the time to write full posts!  

Had lunch at the Whip In, the combo Indian food/bar/convenience store spot on the southbound frontage road of IH-35 between Woodland and Oltorf. I seem to remember it from years ago when it was still mostly convenience store. Now, when you walk in, you're immediately faced with a somewhat jumbled chalkboard menu. As you keep walking straight back, you have some bar stools at the counter, and the store merchandise and refrigerated cases behind you when sitting.

After studying the board, and hearing they were out of samosas (problem with the fryer, I think), I picked the Travis Heights sandwich -- samosa-style potatoes, peas, carrots, cilantro chutney, and provolone cheese grilled in naan bread, and my friend had the curried ratatouille.

All in all, not bad. Mine could have used more of the chutney, or something to jazz it up a bit. Would be interested to try some of their meat dishes. They do get creativity points for their menu, a fusion of Indian and American cuisines, with things from biryanis to South Asian Frito Pie. And they source locally! 

A last minute meet-up with a friend found us at Red House Pizzeria on a Friday night. We walked in through the bar area, which was packed, but across the covered patio and into the restaurant portion found no waiting. GREAT happy hour specials, which were available in the restaurant -- a few different drinks at half or reduced price, and the appetizers were half price. 


We both started with the house punch cocktail, and then shared the garlic bread, meatballs, Greek salad, and Gorgonzola and bacon pizza. The meatball description says they have a touch of truffle oil, which I couldn't taste at all.

The pizza was a little underdone for my liking. I had one leftover piece that I ate for lunch the next day, which I heated it in the toaster oven, and the crust did get nice and crispy.

Certainly decent food, great happy hour prices, and a very friendly, efficient waiter, named Ross. Would I go back though? 


And then brunch this weekend at the very popular 24 Diner. Fortunately, it was only about a 15 minute wait (after being told 45 min), and we were seated in the back room, which was a hair quieter than the main room. 

Three of us split the heirloom tomato salad, which was delicious.

I had the French toast with vanilla cream and blueberries, with sides of egg and sausage. Yum! 

One friend had the ham and Gruyere frittata, and the other the hash, all very tasty. We had wanted to split a milkshake for dessert, but were too full! 

Bits and Bites

-- The Next Food Network Star will be holding a casting THIS Saturday, at the Hyatt Regency at 208 Barton Springs Road, from 9a - 1p. Could this be YOU? See the link for application and requirements.

-- On Thursday, September 8, dine at Tarka and a portion of the proceeds benefits Dine Out for the Cure, and on September 13, it will benefit Dining for Life.

-- The Blanton Museum of Art will be hosting a talk by cookbook author Patricia Quintana, "Moles: The Aromas and Flavors of Mexico" on September 13th at 6 pm.

-- Savory Spice Shop is opening a second location in Austin on September 15th, this one in the Arboretum, next to Con Olio (the olive oil shop). More info to be had on their Facebook page.

-- J Mueller BBQ will open their new trailer on September 26th at 1502 S. 1st Street. At present, their webpage doesn't have any info on it, but hopefully, the menu will soon appear! Very excited for this one, as it will be close to my house!