Restaurant review: Ocho imagines swanky-simple dishes with creative spark

by Katie & Emily Garrett of The Dish On Dallas

You'll be glad you eight there.

Katie & Emily Garrett of The Dish on Dallas

From the appetizer menu, Ocho's flavorful and spicy crab, cheddar, and chile fundido is served with fry bed and corn tortillas.

DALLAS — Ocho is located in Park Cities on Northwest Highway and Preston. We noted only valet parking up front, but you can certainly drive around and walk -- if you have an extra 20 minutes.

We arrived at 11:45 a.m. were quickly seated. The inside is gorgeous: very sleek and new. Fancy digs. The acoustics are not great, and as lunch progressed we quit talking to each other to avoid yelling. But overall, this spot is pretty cool.

From the drink menu, we ordered up a Hot Mamacita with jalapeno tequila and loved it. It was spicy without burning and had a nice sweet finish.

For our appetizer, the spicy crab, cheddar, and chile fundido appealed. The cheddar and chiles melted together in this hot dish; spicy crab and fresh tomato were ladled on top. All of it created a very flavorful item. Served with fry bread and corn tortillas, this app is something worth trying. We were full by the time we finished this appetizer off, but we were intrigued by Ocho and wanted to try a few more things.

Katie & Emily Garrett of The Dish on Dallas

Ocho's Mac & Cheese has a mild green chile flavor, highlighted with tasty bacon, and it can be supplemented with ancho roasted chicken or BBQ duck.

The Ocho mac and cheese struck a cord with us, since we are always in pursuit of a good mac and cheese dish. This one fit the bill; the green chili flavor was very mild, bacon was tasty, and you could actually tell that there was cheese in the dish (which has been our gripe as of late). You can also choose to add ancho roasted chicken or BBQ duck to this dish, but we liked it as-is.

The Kitchen Tacos were a very solid dish. They seemed very traditional and straightforward. These were just tacos. All of the flavors worked together: ground beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato, and crema. The green rice and beans were a nice compliment -- nothing extraordinary, but a decent foil for the tacos.

Ocho's food was presented well, was tasty, and was something that we would come back to try again.

The service was very friendly, albeit incredibly slow. Don't come here for the hour lunch, but do come here.

The dish: spicy crab, cheddar, and chile fundido and the Hot Mamacita make a meal. Also, check out the patio while the weather is decent.

Pegasus News Content partner - The Dish On Dallas

unlisted, anonymous:

Is this a Tex-Mex restaurant? Mex-Mex? Noveau Southwestern? Down-home Mexican comfort food restaurant? Would be nice if the reviewer told the reader. Why mac and cheese at a Mexican restaurant? Isn't that a logical question a reviewer should ask and have the answer to? Also, whats the significance of the name of the restaurant? And you're reviewing it at 11:45 in the morning? Was this part of their lunch menu? Did you go back for dinner? Again, thanks for letting us know. And did you mean, "Don't come back for the lunch hour," rather than "Don't come back for the hour lunch?" Please go back to Journalism 101, Katie and Emily. And Pegasus, please hire a better editor!