The Rim at Waterside, 5912 Convair St, FW. 817-663-2950. 10am-10pm Sun, 11am-10pm Mon-Thu, 11am-11pm Fri, 10am-11pm Sat. All major credit cards accepted.
You may remember the late, funky, soul-driven Buttons Restaurant fondly, although a lot of the heart of the joint left when Chef Keith Hicks departed several years ago. I’d heard he had landed at The Rim, a family-owned restaurant in Burleson, a year or so ago, but I never made it down I-35 South to see firsthand what he did to the cuisine at the then 2-year-old eatery. Earlier this year, The Rim took over the space in Waterside vacated by Taco Diner, and Hicks fans are likely to be pleased with the menu, which merges the original owners’ retro vibe with Hicks’ groovy soul love.
The Bloody Mary Breakfast is one of those things you have to try once, assuming you like Bloody Marys. Even if you don’t, the extra-large extravaganza served at brunch essentially comes with the entire appetizer menu on a large stick impaled in the drink: one sublime curly sidewinder fry, a bacon-wrapped pretzel, seasoned boiled shrimp, a tiny pickle, an asparagus spear, a chonky andouille sausage bit, and Hicks’ signature chicken wang. If you had no plans of ordering the delicious fries, the chewy, salty pretzel, or the oversized chicken wing, the appetizer skewer was a great way to have a little taste of everything. The single shrimp was perfectly seasoned, although the heat of the andouille sausage needed taming with a big slug of the spicy, vodka-infused tomato juice. The drink was plenty strong and more than enough to share.
The diner at my table of three who ordered the giant booze-fest opted for the mushroom toast to supplement the snacks. Mushroom toast is the slightly funky fungi answer to avocado toast, and here it’s not a vegan option. A good amount of savory sauteed wild mushrooms came plated on top of creamy ricotta that adorned three average pieces of toast. The plate was completed by a field green salad tossed in a delectably pungent smoky balsamic dressing, adorned with pork belly “croutons.” The bites were better separated than all together –– I preferred the mushrooms on top of the salad, with the ricotta toast as a slightly sweet treat to be eaten apart from the savory ’shrooms.
If your brunch heart desires biscuits and gravy, you’ll find a generous serving here. Ground beef subbed in for the traditional sausage in the creamy, peppery gravy, which covered two biscuits, a couple of sausages, your choice of eggs, and half of the home fries on the plate. The light flour biscuits would have been enough, but then the crispy, slightly mealy breakfast fries were also exceptionally good, and the gravy was salty perfection. If you’re set for a carb overload with leftovers to spare, this might be your ideal meal.
Stuffed French toast implies a decent amount of filling (in this case, sweetened cream cheese and a mixed berry coulis) sort of embedded into the egg-battered bread. In this case, it was more of a fruity, creamy shmear between two pieces of French toast laid one on top of the other. Once expectations were modified, there wasn’t a thing wrong with the meal, and adding a side of applewood smoked bacon made for a nice contrast to cut the sweetness of the filling.
Because these are Keith Hicks’ recipes, we ordered a side of collard greens for the table. If you like your greens strong, soft, and salty, you’ll love them here.
The Rim’s décor is an over-the-top mishmash homage to all different types of music and showbiz personalities, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Our table was set under pictures of Freddie Mercury, and we enjoyed eating under his benevolent, bemused smirk. There’s a carousel horse decorating the back –– you’re not imagining it, and it’s not because of the strong Bloody Mary, either. There’s a raucous, unsubtle joy to the place that’s a welcome addition to Waterside.
The Rim
Bloody Mary Breakfast $24
Mushroom toast $10
Biscuits and gravy $12
Stuffed French toast w/bacon $13
Collard greens $4
