Best Bites: Dining out in Dallas-Fort Worth March 5

by Teresa Gubbins

Let's hear it for independently-held restaurants:

· Potager

You don't encounter too many places like Potager. This Arlington restaurant prepares a different menu every day, all from scratch, using as many local, organic, and seasonal ingredients as possible in dishes such as quiche, salads, and chicken breast.

But it's their approach to serving size and price that's really one-of-a-kind. There's no set portion size, and no set price. Diners ask for how much they want, and then pay what they feel the meal was worth.

The restaurant's priorities are about making wholesome food, reconnecting diners to what they're eating, and preventing waste. Owner Cynthia Chippendale, a staunch conservationist, says her innovative formula is working well enough that the restaurant will soon expand its current lunch-hours-only to dinner, as well.

· M Cafe

M Cafe is in the space at the Shops of Spanish Village where Bagelstein's once resided. Owner John Macatee is an alumnus of Atlanta Bread Co. who decided to strike out on his own. He has a menu that's similar to Atlanta or Panera, with sandwiches, soups, salads, and of course bread.

"The Bagelstein's space used to be a Panera, so the layout and floor plan worked for us right away," Macatee says. "That was one of the reasons I decided on this space. I looked at their plans and most of Panera's infrastructure was in place, so it was easy for us to get in and get up and going."

· Durkin's

Michael Durkin, previously with Kitchen 1924, has opened the pizza place in McKinney that he hinted about here: Durkin's is serving pizzas, calzones, and salads, along with with beer and wine. Prior to Kitchen 1924, he also worked at Cuba Libre, Fireside Pies, Ferre, and Hard Rock Cafe.

· Inca's Cafe

As noted by adkim on DallasFood.org, the restaurant formerly known as La Esperanza is now called Inca's Cafe, to underscore its commitment to Peruvian food. Owner Candy Birra has owned the place since 2003.

"It was a Colombian restaurant before I took over," she says. "We kept a few dishes from Colombia, but we always served Peruvian food. I changed the name because people thought it was Latin or Mexican, when we really wanted to be identified as South American."

With her mother as chef, the recipes have a real home-cooked feel. They serve Peruvian classics such as ceviche and lomo saltado, which Birra describes as "beef cut in pieces and sautéed with onions and tomatoes, then served over French fries with white rice and a fried egg on the side, normally over easy, which we do for $10.99."

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