The expectations were big. Last year, Chef Matt McCallister, the multiple James Beard nominee, unveiled UnaVida Modern Mexican. McCallister had joined forces with Local Favorite restaurant group (the folks with iconic eateries like Snuffer's, El Fenix and Local Profile favorite, Meso Maya). UnaVida is his debut restaurant for the group.
McCallister, of course, has been hailed as one of Dallas' best chefs and made his name with beloved, now-shuttered establishments like FT33 and Homewood. Numerous awards and recognition followed.
UnaVida certainly lives up to its modern moniker, and, more important, it lives up to Chef McCallister's feeling that, as he told Eater Dallas, he's over "making fancy food that impresses fancy food people."
The menu is well thought out. The food is beautifully plated. We loved the house-made agua frescas, the flavorful appetizers and the delicious mains.
But two items on the UnaVida menu stood out in a fascinating contrast, and for me, best sum up the restaurant — namely the crab tostada and the heartcakes.
The crab tostada is served on a spicy masa crisp with flaming hot spice that reminds me of Flamin' Hot Cheetos, but this is all made in-house by Chef McCallister and his team. Added are guacamole, lime-zested crab salad, cinnamon pickled jalapeño, pickled red onion, cucumber and micro cilantro. The result is a flavor bomb: spicy, zesty and so very delicious. The flavors accentuate the crab perfectly.
Along with this appetizer, we ordered the heartcakes — note "heart" and not "crab." They look like crab cakes, and they eat like them, but they are made from artichoke hearts. Eating these two dishes side by side created a fascinating interplay, with each playing off elements in the other. They didn't just contrast, but complement each other beautifully — and so much is true of the restaurant.
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