Spoon Scores Four Stars, and More Reviews

Leslie Brenner reviewed Spoon: She lavished four stars on John Tesar's Preston Center seafood destination, "where elegance is the prevailing, albeit inconsistent, virtue"; starters are outstanding, including crudos, eel headcheese, and a Le Bernadin-inspired foie and tuna dish. Many of the entrees like cuttlefish faux-pasta and a $60 lobster casserole are "very good, if not particularly exciting", and desserts by new pastry chef David Collier are "thoughtful and well-executed"." Considering the prices, Spoon "should be more consistently impressive", but overall "it deserves to be called one of the finest restaurants in town." [DMN]

Scott Reitz investigated Outpost: The more-casual Campo replacement "is a good addition to the neighborhood", with some solid dishes like flatbreads and beef stroganoff that's "loaded with soft, braised tri-tip spooned over fresh fettuccine noodles"; fried pickles and chicken tenders bearing "flaccid breast meat" are less successful, but considering the low prices, "it's hard to be too critical of the cooking here". [Observer]

Teresa Gubbins scoped out Daddy Jack's in Southlake: In a "warm but unpretentious" setting, the newest location of the seafood spot serves up solid dishes like New England-style fish stuffed with crabmeat and Ritz crackers, and pecan-crusted trout; a so-hot-right-now lobster roll unfortunately suffers from a bun that's "overly toasted until dry and brittle". [DFW.com]

THE BLOGS: North Texas Daily checked out the Phatso's Cheesesteaks trailer in Denton; Almost Veggie tried Dish; the BBQ Snob added a new batch of reviews; The Brad went to Spoon.