Oddfellows in Oak Cliff

We have a love hate relationship with Oddfellows in the Bishop Arts District. We love the food but hate the long waits. But they have this wonderful fried tomato sandwich that beckons me and as a result, I’ve subjected my IttyBittyFoodies to the brutal waits – three times. On a fine day, diners can wait outside sipping coffee or hot chocolate made with their super expensive La Marzocco Strada Espresso coffee machine and the kids just wander about and playing with the piano outside.

My 2 year old cooks duck

Here is the easiest New Year’s Eve dinner party recipe - slow roasted duck legs with only 2 minutes of prep time. It’s so simple that my two year old Lollo actually makes it sans putting it in and taking it out of the oven of course. We like the Maple Leaf Farms brand which feature a meatier duck leg quarter but most duck legs will work with this recipe. The results are a wonderfully crisp skin wrapped over moist tender meat that’s almost like a confit. We use green peppercorns for its delicate taste especially for the kids and for the holidays we recommend you splurge and get some pink peppercorns too!  The kids love participating and are supremely proud that they cook duck regularly. This recipe is dedicated to my non-cook friend B.

Jamie Oliver’s Pork Belly at home

Pork belly has been trendy for a quite some time with upmarket restaurants. I’ve had it recently at The French Room, Bijoux restaurant and Charlie Palmer at The Joule. So when I spotted it at the Whole Foods on Park Lane a few days ago, I immediately bought six lbs (cut up and packaged in 1lb packs).

Main Street Garden – eat, play & splash

Lily Pad Cafe @ Main Street Garden

Take a break at Main Street Garden, the green oasis in downtown Dallas that is bordered by Main, St Paul, Commerce and Ervay Streets. With its gorgeous grounds, cafe, spray park, children’s playground and dog run, Main Street Garden  is a haven for families, even Fido.

Si Tapas! Me tapas!

The infamous Chee Japa

“Chee japa! Chee japa!”

For the longest time Lollo would say these words over and over again. As said in my About page, he had only a handful of words so whenever he said something consistently, we’d try and figure out what he was saying. Finally one day when we drove by Allen Street in Uptown and he excitedly cried out the same phrase “Chee japa, chee japa”. And finally the mystery was solved. He was of course referring to ‘Si Tapas’.