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closeTuesday, Nov. 18, 2008
On a roll with fourth outlet
The Dixie House motto, "home of the big buns," would quickly be applied to my house if we allowed ourselves to eat here too often.
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Dixie House Cafe No. 5
THE BACK STORY: This homegrown home-cooking empire has slowly expanded throughout Tarrant County, with owners Theresa and Dale Simon opening their fourth outlet, this time in Euless, late last year. Originally the only one of the four to be open for three meals a day, six days a week, the Euless cafe has since scaled back dinner service to Friday and Saturday nights only but serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday.
THE FOOD: The Dixie House motto, "home of the big buns," would quickly be applied to my house if we allowed ourselves to eat here too often. The menu lists nods to the health-conscious, such as salads, tilapia and a special Atkins plate ($6.75) featuring hamburger steak, grilled chicken breast or grilled pork chops. But we find it hard to resist more traditional items here, such as chicken-fried chicken breast, buttery mashed potatoes, plate-sized cinnamon rolls, or the plethora of pies.
THE HITS: We liked the chicken-fried steak, a tender slab of beef with a thick, crunchy crust under a dollop of peppery gravy, but we loved the dense meatloaf, spicy and not puffed up with filler as the dish so often is. Chunky homemade mashed potatoes, flat Italian-style green beans with a sheen of fat, creamy macaroni and cheese, and nuggets of fried okra were all solid, homey renditions, but we totally understand why the giant dinner rolls get star billing. They were terrific - yeasty, soft and fragrant, what your grandmother makes if you're lucky enough to have a grandma who bakes like this. If only real butter came alongside instead of margarine.
THE MISSES: We wanted a piece of the frosted deep-dish apple pie, but someone else got the last one just as we were ordering. (Teach us to wait till nearly 8 on a Friday to eat here.) Our second choice, a chocolate-pecan pie, was OK, but a little too sweet for our tastes.
THE SERVICE: Fast and no-nonsense, but pleasant. That kitchen must be an efficient assembly line; our dinners arrived in less than five minutes.
THE PRICES: Plates include one meat, two veggies and a roll, and cost $6.75 at lunch and $7.75 at dinner.
This review originally appeared in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Friday, Feb. 24, 2006.
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