Dallas
Long overdue visit to Dallas to catch up with friends. SMU's tennis team and tennis complex is impressive-- Grant has done a great job!
Dinner at Carte Blanche was pretty meh. Flavors were either generally too mild/even absent, or they were overwhelming and not harmonious. Even their croissants, which were perfectly flaky, end up lost in the foie gras mousse they pair them with.
If you really want to get into the details, the soup and the rest of the amuse brioche were okay? Can barely remember what they were. The veggie courses were all quite forgettable, as was the amberjack. They clearly worked harder on the presentation than the flavors-- swordfish was also all presentation and not much on the flavor, ditto for the bay scallop. A veggie and smoked boar shoulder was also not really identifiable as such, and the burnt ends were a little too burned. Boar empanada was rather bland, continuing the trend.
Venison tartare was quite good but things got lost with the caviar and creme fraiche-- the tartare should have been accented, not overwhelmed. Braised antelope rib had better flavor than the boar burnt ends, but that was a low bar to clear. Dry aged elk ended up with too much gristle, while the foie gras very much overwhelmed the flavor of the elk.
Sorbet was okay, then the cranberry dessert was too sour. I found the baylee blue cheesecake underneath to be almost-helpful, but Emily did not. Then back to the theme of flavors too mild, the milk gelato and smoked chocolate were yet again forgettable despite the skilled presentation. The dessert tower at the very end was an attempt at redemption, but... yeah... did not raise the meal above ordinary. Particularly not when you consider the price. I dont know what a Forbes 5 star rating is, but I will know to ignore it in the future.