Don Mario's ~ Arlington, Texas ***CLOSED***

Latest visit: Apr 2015

First visit: Dec 2012

One of the official RJG grandmothers, a colorful lady who lived a full life (87 years young) and was once a Vaudeville star, was born (1902) and raised in Palestine and got hitched in Arlington in 1918 to a 35 year old dapper from Rhode Island, also a Vaudevillian star (times were 'a different then) - who I would have called grandpa... if I ever met him that is. So I guess in a way, I was destined to go to an Arlington based restaurant with a past in Palestine. Who knew?

But the real magnet for the RJG was the mere mention in a Bud Kennedy column of Don Mario's possessing a generations old recipe for New Mexico green chile! Now that's the kind of food item that is worth driving across town for. So we got the old Beverly Hillbillies jalopy loaded up, and with Mrs. RJG and her Ma' (aka Chula) in tow, we journeyed down south for some good Mexican grub.

According to what I've read, this location has just about guaranteed an immediate departure for all who think commerce will thrive here. Don Mario's didn't do much to enhance the place, sort of leaving its 1980s steakhouse appearance alone. I think it's a wise move. The decor is sort of "interesting" in that way old restaurants can be. It looks like the hybrid of 10 different places. But they have a full bar, and it's quite well stocked. In fact, the RJG was very impressed with their craft brew selection - certainly way above par for a Mexican restaurant. While on this topic, I decided to try their frozen margarita instead. Mistake. I didn't care for the mixture, and it certainly lacked potency. But that's about the only thing that went wrong on this visit. So on the next visit I will obviously imbibe in a beer. Or two.

Onto the food we go... the chips were somewhat typical restaurant tortilla chips, not really good enough to be without a salsa. They provide a standard tomato, cilantro and onion based red sauce that has a good flavor but no kick. But... ah yes, they do have a spicy one if you ask. Out comes a pretty mean looking green sauce, made from fresh chiles. It's definitely got some fire in it. And now suddenly even the red tastes splendid.

For entrees, Chula got chicken fajitas - which I'm fairly certain is the first time anyone in the RJG household has ordered such an item since my dear Dad departed this mortal coil some 10 years ago (Dad, as in son of Grandma above). Fajitas were all he would ever order at a Mexican restaurant. And beef at that, since he really liked the concept of a steak far more than Mexican food. Which lead to one of my Dad's favorite, and predictably corny, Vaudeville styled jokes (hey I sense a theme here): "There's only TWO dishes I like at a Mexican restaurant. Fajitas and.... (wait for it) my daughter-in-law! RA-ra-ra-ra-RA-ra-ra. Perhaps he was looking on from above as we dined at Don Mario's this fine day. So Chula's order was oddly timed indeed.

I cannot remember what Mrs. RJG ordered, but rest assured it had plenty of vegetables in it - with chicken. All I know is she loved it. For me, well it should be obvious by now that I was zoning in on any dish with green chile. So I ordered the grilled chicken enchiladas smothered in green. I have to say the grilled enchilada part was the real highlight. Slathered in melted white cheese (it may have been mozzarella rather than a Mexican cheese. Mrs. RJG couldn't tell, and she's native to the land!). The grilled chicken by itself was delicious, and the sizzling platter only aided and abetted the situation. The green chile itself was very flavorful, but I prefer more spice. Now it could be a situation of the season, and we all know that chiles can be spicy or mild depending. But I was hoping for a more Santa Fe experience regarding the heat level. No matter, as I will be back as many times as possible, and will find out for myself. Certainly if I'm back in this neck of the woods, I'll be dining at Don Mario's.

If you're looking for something a little different from your Mexican food, definitely consider a drive to Don Mario's. It's a far cry from your typical Tex-Mex joint.

12/28/12 (new entry); 4/5/15

Silver Fox Steakhouse ~ Richardson, Texas

Last visit: Apr 2015 (Grapevine - closed)

First visit: Sep 2006 (Grapevine)

--- Richardson review

About 7 years ago, Mrs. RJG took me to the Silver Fox in Grapevine for my birthday. And it was a total fiasco. They couldn't manage to get the steak cooked right for her (after 4 tries), and subsequently her mood turned sour and the evening was a total disaster. To their credit, they comp'd most of the meal. And I did enjoy my steak. But needless to say, Silver Fox was not on our "top destinations" list. We're not big steak eaters anyway, and when we do get in the mood, Mr. RJG will grill one of his famous habanero seasoned steaks for the two of us.

The tide turned in favor of Silver Fox last year, when The Garland Troublemaker (TGT) and I met with one of our vendors who flew in to see us (and a few other customers no doubt). TGT suggested Silver Fox, and I relayed my story, but we both decided let's give this location a shot, since it's close to our office. And the vendor brought a contingent of three, so it would be  a good cross section of folks. The evening was a big hit. Literally, as we watched Josh Hamilton hit a home run to win the game, and we screamed like we were at a sports bar. Much to the chagrin of the other diners in the restaurant, who cast evil eyes our way immediately. We went into library mode after that. Well maybe. OK, we didn't.

So this past week, it was time for our annual meeting, and the boss and our other peers from around the country (and world actually) came to our Richardson office for 3 days of meetings, food, and drinks. In reverse order naturally. And what was our first choice to kick off the revelry? Silver Fox of course, followed by further drinks across the parking lot at Ye Shire Tavern. There was 5 of us for this night (all dudes, sorry ladies), including one vegetarian who allows for chicken, and everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. The wine and other libations were excellent. I'll be honest and state I didn't pay that close attention to what everyone had to eat, so I'll just discuss my choices. Besides that's all that matters anyway. At least to me... Anyway, almost everyone had a steak. I had the 10 ounce baseball cut filet mignon, cooked medium, with a side of mashed potatoes. And I added a Caesar Salad, to open with. The salad is a good Caesar, with the right mix of ingredients. Sometimes Caesar's can go overboard with items like anchovies, or even avocado, that just don't appeal to my taste. The steak was cooked to order, which is not as common as you'd think. Many steakhouses will bring it to you one degree less, so that if you do send it back, they just have have to cook it a little more. I don't mind a medium rare steak, so I'll just eat it that way, but I prefer it medium. I'd rather not send a steak back, and given out history with Silver Fox, I wouldn't necessarily recommend it anyway. My baseball cut looked like Hamilton took a Louisville Slugger to it, and definitely didn't pass the shape test. But who cares about that? It was delicious. And we all passed around an excellent cheesecake to finish the evening.

On an expense account, or visiting with someone who is? Need to impress a client? Silver Fox checks that box admirably.

9/15/06; 3/10/13 (new entry); 4/1/15