Hang onto your pants. It's time to lay out or favorite Tex-Mex restaurants -- an endeavor that consistently draws as passionate a comment stream as any burger post.

Pepe & Mito's (Pictured above)
This Deep Ellum mainstay won last year's award for Best Tex-Mex in Dallas with homemade tortillas, great Margaritas, tacos and tamales. With a warmer than normal winter expected you should hit up the patio before a night out on Elm Street, or come back in the morning for a serious brunch-based remedy to all that ails you.

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We love to drink here at the Observer. We take no shame in our excessively inebriated stories, and actually work hard to pack as much beer and liquor into every post possible. But as much as we love booze, drinkers gotta eat, too. And if you're not careful, many bar meals here in Dallas can leave you feeling worse than that morning after you downed that entire fifth of rail whiskey.

Meanwhile, some bars are absolutely killing it, turning out well-executed bar food that's good enough to eat even if you don't have a can of beer in your hand. (You have one, though, right?)

Here are my favorite bars to drink at in Dallas when you need a little sustenance to go with your drinking.

Ten Bells Tavern (pictured above)
Had this bar opened a little sooner, there's no way they wouldn't have won this year's Best Bar Food award in our Best of Dallas issue. The place is turning out the greatest beer chow I have seen in quite some time. If those wings up there aren't doing it for you, try the curry pickled eggs as an interesting starter.

They also have two new sandwiches on the menu I'll be telling you about in another blog post soon. The Cuban is a fine enough rendition, filled with roast pork, ham and loads of Dijon mustard, but the Reuben is exemplary.

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During one of my meals at Union Bear (pictured above), downstairs at the basement bar, I sat next to two bros who were swilling suds between repeated runs to their truck out front to smoke a joint. They were characters, and after every beer they finished they spent a less than optimal amount of time deciding what their next optimal brew would be.

The bartender working that evening was completely professional, pouring sample after sample of beer, listening to tasting preferences and doing his best to pair these brew-bros with their desired beverage. He was a patient man.

Here are some other bars in Dallas where I've found the bartenders willing and enthusiastic when trying to help you pick out your drink. There's no better way to find your new favorite beer.

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Tei-An's Matsutake Soba

Inexpensive and cheap are two completely different things. Not everyone has a ton of coin to blow on a lunch now and then, but financial restrictions don't necessarily have to relegate you to the likes of Chipotle and Jersey Mike's. Here are some great lunches that will cost you more than a Subway combo, but deliver big with high quality ingredients and big flavors. Think of it as a splurge we can all afford.

Tei-An (pictured above)
I've written about Tei-An's ramen dish a ton, but there are many menu items that won't break the bank for lunch. This Matsutake Soba costs $19 because the mushrooms it uses are so expensive. If it's too pricey try any of the other soba dishes (all of which are cheaper) or the jewelry box lunch, which is only $14.

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The heart attack hoagie

Corned beef and other forms of brisket may be the greatest form of deli meat to grace two pieces of bread. When that brisket is lovingly handcrafted, brined, braised, smoked and sliced on-site, it transcends typical bar food to become something otherworldly. Here are five handcrafted sandwiches derived from brisket to be found in and around Dallas. I suggest you seek out and eat them all.

Off-Site Kitchen's Corned Beef Sandwich (pictured above)
I don't care what the menu calls it, I'm renaming this sandwich the heart attack hoagie. Corn beef is piled high into a soft hoagie roll and then topped with tangy coleslaw, melted cheese and a hearty squeeze of Russian dressing. It's obscene. And it's delicious.

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Last year I rode a bicycle up McKinney Avenue and was amazed at the sea of sweatshirts emblazoned with TX and OU. People where everywhere. And people were drunk. While it's obvious that a certain demographic feels right at home yucking it up in Uptown, the scene can come off a little fratty for others.

Here are seven places to eat and/or drink in Dallas if butt-chugging is not for you.

Whitehall Exchange (Pictured above)
I'm not a fan of their food, but this corner bar in the Bishop Arts District is a heck of a place for a beer when the weather is good. Sit on the outdoor bar stools and watch the game on the big screens inside. Then walk to Veracruz Cafe and get yourself some killer Mexican food.

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Today is National Taco Day, so thousands of free corporate tacos will inundate American bellies. Taco Cabana and Taco Bueno are giving tacos away, but why not visit a real taqueria and mark the made-up holiday with something that actually tastes delicious? Who needs free when most of these tacos will set you back only a buck or so anyway?

See also:
The Best Street Tacos in Dallas

La Banqueta (Pictured above)
The king of all beef tacos, La Banqueta's suadero is likely the most well-known taco amongst connoisseurs in Dallas. Grab a Topo Chico from the reach-in and order as many as you can handle. You'll walk out with a belly full of fizz, happiness and your wallet intact. That's why La Banqueta is this year's Best Meal Under $15.

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At Black Swan, you can get a toddy that looks like this. ...

Our Best of Dallas® 2012 issue is out and chock-full of our recommendations for great places to eat, shop and drink. This being The Election Year That Never Ends, we've package them all up in a nifty election theme, including debates between staffers over certain picks -- discussions we're sure you'll find way, way more enlightening than other debates coming up in the weeks ahead.

Today, restaurant critic Scott Reitz (0-1) and Web Editor Nick Rallo try to settle which is best, Club Schmitz or Black Swan.*

See also:
- All of Our 2012 Food and Drink Winners
- Best of Dallas Debate: Who Has the Best Burger, Bolsa or Off-Site Kitchen?

Scott: Come on. Club Schmitz is a workingman's bar patronized by old fogies who sit on stools and swill Budweisers while talking about the good old days. The Black Swan is for fancy folk who order "libations" with muddled strawberries and flowery liquors. Saloon? It's like a cocktail lounge or something.

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Scott liked Bolsa best. We think maybe we're paying him too much.

Our Best of Dallas® 2012 issue is rolling out on the newsstands and online today, chock-full with our recommendations for great places to eat, shop and drink. This being The Election Year That Never Ends, we've package them all up in a nifty election theme, including debates between staffers over certain picks -- discussions we're sure you'll find way, way more enlightening than other debates coming up in the weeks ahead.

Don't think so? Then read on as restaurant critic Scott Reitz and Managing Editor Patrick Williams square off on the vital question: Who has the better burger, Bolsa or Off-Site Kitchen.

See also:
- All of Our 2012 Food and Drink Winners

Scott: I've leveraged my engineering background to develop a quantified means to determine the very best burger in Dallas. After examining enough burgers to raise my cholesterol 20 points in a single year I've determined that Bolsa is undoubtedly superior in terms of juiciness, size, bun freshness, price and a wildcard variable that's not so measurable: style.

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Scott Reitz

Our annual Best of Dallas awards are around the corner, which means you can vote for your favorite local people, places and businesses. But this year, to shake things up a bit (and because we know how much you love to Instagram stuff) we're having a Best of Dallas Instagram contest.

Send Instagram photos of your favorite people, places, restaurants, bars, food trucks and dishes in Dallas to instagram@dallasobserver.com by Thursday, September 20. Don't forget to include your name. We'll post our favorites around the time we announce our Best of Dallas winners. Snap to!