Delicious

A guide to dining & drinking in our neighborhood

All In The Family

about 13 years ago, a tornado swept through North Dallas damaging everything in its path, including Kel’s Kitchen at Forest and Inwood. The roof blew off, and the cedar façade fell on top of parked cars. “It was scary,” owner Johnny Meredith says. “The place was packed, and people were still saying, ‘Where’s my hamburger?’ It didn’t faze them.” Since it opened in 1963, Kel’s has become a neighborhood institution, serving up breakfast, lunch and dinner from scratch — from staples such as chicken fried steak to less common diner fare like cheese enchiladas. Even the salad dressing is homemade, using family recipes and other ideas that are sort of “thrown together”. It all started in 1962 when Meredith’s father, a milk truck driver, decided to buy Ken’s Kitchen at Preston and Forest. He couldn’t afford a new neon sign, so he just changed one letter and thus, Kel’s Kitchen was born. Meredith started working in his dad’s restaurant at age 7. The diner relocated to Forest and Inwood in 1985. General manager Jimmie Harris has been working at Kel’s for more than 20 years and trained all the line cooks himself. “They can do this stuff in their sleep,” he says. And servers know their regulars so well they can place their orders before customers even walk in the door. Denny Kelly has been eating at Kel’s four to five times a week for the past 39 years. His favorite dish is one that probably doesn’t get as much notoriety — the oatmeal. “It’s just like my mom used to make,” Kelly says.

—Emily Toman

kel’s kitchen forest & inwood

972.458.7221 kelskitchendallas.com

Three More Neighborhood Dives

1

M a’s Daughters’ Diner o wned and operated by three generations, this local diner keeps it all in the family, offering made-from-scratch favorites on the cheap. royal & harry hines

972.241.8646 mamasdaughtersdiner.com

2 Mecca lombardy & harry hines

For a tried-and-true greasy spoon, try m ecca, which has been serving up home-cooked dishes since 1938. The cinnamon rolls, chicken fried steak and pies keep customers coming back.

214.352.0051 themeccarestaurant.com food and wine online. Visit prestonhollow.advocatemag.com/dining.

3 Original Market Diner

Established as a drive-in in 1954, this local diner has changed hands over the years but eventually made its way back to the Greek family that started it all. Burgers, chocolate pie, milkshakes — you’ll find all the staples here.

wycliff & harry hines

214.521.0992 originalmarketdiner.com

ASIAN MINT $$ODFB WB Our Highland Park location, The Mint, offers an array of Asian-fused cuisine, specializing in Bangkok style dishes. We feature farm fresh ingredients, beautifully presented, coupled with a chic atmosphere and friendly service. Happy Hour is 5pm-6:30pm Mon.-Fri. – all beers and house wines are $3; $2 off appetizers, soups & salads. 4246 Oak Lawn Ave. 214.219.6469. The Asian Mint, along with its fused and sushi menus, also offers one of the best dessert bars in Dallas. 11617 N. Central Expwy. 214.363.6655. www.themintdallas.com

CUPCAKE RIESLING ($12) WASHINGTON >

Wine drinkers are creatures of habit. Once we find like, it’s almost impossible to get us to try something different. That’s one reason why the wine business spends so much time and money on marketing gimmicks, cute wine labels and the like.They know how difficult it is to overcome our lethargy.

But wine should not be that way. There are, at best guess, more than 15,000 different wines on sale in the United States, so it’s not like we don’t have a lot of choices. And there is plenty of quality within that quantity. Wine, whether cheap or expensive, sweet or dry, red or white, has never been better.

Nevertheless, how many times have we said, “But like that,” when someone has suggested we try something new. I’m no different in that regard, and it sometimes takes all my professionalism to taste a wine I going to like.

So, this month, try something that What’s the worst thing that can happen? You’ll discover a new wine? Here are a few suggestions:

Rene Barbier Mediterranean Red ($6). This red blend from Spain doesn’t have the bitter tannins and harsh acid of many red wines. In fact, chill this you’ll wonder why you didn’t try it before.

Too many wine drinkers know Texas wine stinks, even if they’ve never tried it. That’s open minded, isn’t it? Becker’s reserve merlot ($18), which won a gold medal at the recent Lone Star International, should change most people’s minds. And this recommendation comes from someone who doesn’t much care for merlot.

Cupcake’s riesling from Washington ($12), another gold medal winner at Lone Star. It’s not sweet like white zinfandel, but the sweetness is a pleasant part of the wine.

—JEFF SIEGEL