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EATING AROUND CASSIS: MEDITERRANEAN MIX

Ato: Raffles, Hips Wine Bar Trattoria, Michael’s Oyster Bar and Seafood, Harbor House
By D Magazine |

Cassis Mediterranean Restaurant



Better restaurants than this one have tried to occupy the narrow territory between casual and classic over the years. How then does it happen that an Oak Lawn upstart named Cassis already looks to have staked out a comfortable claim in this culinary no-man’s land?

That one word-comfortable-must be the key. Not that the Centrum’s new street-level eatery could be called cozy; its soaring ceiling, concrete floor, and glass walls are too hard-lined for that. But nicely spaced tables, pleasant lighting, and an invitingly set-apart but visible raised cocktail lounge area all work together to suggest easygoing intimacy-an ambience also projected by the staff. Owners George Myers and Carl Jepsen, both Dallas architects, mingle freely with the guests; for a time, I feared our super-friendly waiter was going to curl up on my lap. He turned out to be super-efficient, however, and the silks-to-sweats-clad Friday night crowd on our visit seemed rosily content with the whole enterprise.

Including the food, which is Mediterranean-a term that gives Chef Jean Marie Viriot (formerly of La Cave. Via Real, the defunct Atrium, et al.) license to include Italian, Spanish, and Moroccan specialties on his mostly French menu. The dishes we tried, while not stellar, were generally satisfactory, particularly considering their moderate prices: entrées range from $5.95 to $12.95, with few at the top of that scale.

For appetizers, we chose Quenelles St. Tropez, a rolled seafood dumpling that was marvelous on its pink salmon side, a trifle fishy in its white half. And an artichoke steamed and liberally stuffed with baby shrimp was provocative finger food, interestingly sauced. The soup du jour, a shrimp bisque (pronounced bis-kay by our waiter), delivered a suprisingly peppery punch.

House salads were minimal lettuce and tomato, blandly dressed. Entrées, though, took up the slack; a traditional Spanish paella was toothsome indeed, its saffroned rice moist and lovely, its mussels and shrimp fresh-flavored, its chicken flavorful albeit a little dry. A fresh trout, impeccably boned except for a flirting upfling of tailfin, was redeemed from being slightly overcooked by its scrumptious caper-kissed sauce.

Of the desserts we tried, only the orange crêpe merits mention; despite an abundance of undissolved sugar in its sauce, I found it delightfully fresh-tasting and delicate, a delectable foil for the stalwart espresso that ended the meal. Still, next time, perhaps, I’ll opt for the cheese tray instead.

And there will be a next time. There’s something about Cassis; maybe its smug view of Cedar Springs traffic on one glassed side, its overlook of the Centrum’s lobby fountain on the other; maybe its safe, handy free parking in the Centru’s lighted underground garage (valet parking’s also available) Or maybe it’s just that I haven’t yet tried the couscous. 3102 Oak Lawn at Cedar Springs, in the Centrum. 521-0229 Mon-Sat 11:30 am-2 am; Sun 11-11. All credit cards. Inexpensive to moderate.

-Betty Cook



Raffles



Raffles has opened and opened and opened-there was an opening party at this club cum restaurant once a week for what seemed like months-but now the downstairs restaurant is really open, for lunch and dinner. After my initial visits, I am at a loss to sum it up-1 suppose the most accurate single word description of my impressions of Raffles would have to be “confusing.” From the outside, it looks as if a touristy block of the French Quarter, all lacy iron and lights, has floated away from New Orleans and lodged itself in a corner of Trie Crescent. The inside looks like a Seventies backgammon club-flames!itch banquettes and big houseplants, except for the stark black chairs, which look as if they have traveled back in time to share a table with the banquettes. The menu, on the other hand, is pretty much northern California Italian-pasta, pizza, and grilled meats-inconsistently executed.

Lunch was better than dinner, maybe in part because it seemed like such a deal. It’s hard to buy a nice lunch for less than $10 these days; most of Raffles’ offerings came in at $7 or less. We decided against the “Mediterranean Buffet,” which, when we checked it out, turned out to be a selection of unseasonably cold pastas and salads, and ordered from the menu, which, lunch and dinner, is printed up each day and presented in a cute basket. Grilled chicken rosmarino was a small double breast, nicely marked and juicy, with a rosemary-infused butter sauce. It came with an assortment of vegetables: a fan of carrot slices, a floret of broccoli, a stalk of asparagus. The pizza margherita was a thin crust, spread with sweet tomato sauce, and overloaded with mozzarella-I couldn’t detect any of the promised roasted garlic. Desserts-crème caramel and Crocante-were good, especially the latter, a slice of neapolitan ice cream sprinkled with candied nuts and sauced with warm chocolate.

Dinner was less satisfactory, largely because of our waiter, a pretty but confused young man who hovered over us until we were ready to order then disappeared, marveled over how fast we drank our wine (which reminds me to remark that wine served in tumblers is not a good idea), had no idea what was in most of the dishes on the menu, and consistently confused our orders. The food, too, was a confused collection of pluses and minuses-the dressing on the Caesar salad was good, but had evidently been poured over, not tossed with the greens; there was a lake of it in the plate, but much of the lettuce was dry. The mixed green salad was a pleasing mix of greens and thin carrot curls unfortunately doused with a mouth-puckering vinaigrette. My salmon steak was perfectly grilled; it came with the same vegetables as my lunchtime chicken and a rather stark baked potato. But my companion’s penne vodka came drowned in a sauce that looked and tasted a lot like cheese and Rotel dip. Again, desserts were belter. Although the “country wild berries” turned out to be a pile of raspberries as big as your thumb, neither wild nor country, who’s going to complain? And the tiramisu, a concoc-tion of espresso-soaked ladyfingers and sweetened ricotta, was delicious, though extremely rich. Still, overall, eating at Raffles is taking a chance-and you may not end up with the winning ticket. 2200 Cedar Springs in The Crescent, 855-8889. Lunch daily 11:30-2:30; dinner daily 5:30-11:30; late-night menu Thur-Sat midnight-l:30. All credit cards. Inexpensive to expensive.

-Mary Brown Malouf



Flip’s Wine Bar and Trattoria



You’d think that the last thing that Dallas needs is a new Italian restaurant cloned from an original in Oklahoma City, of all places. But Flip’s turns out to be a genuine addition to the local scene. Its setting in the so-far-down-Greenville-it’s-hard-to-find former location of DiPalma’s has a fresh look about it. The only illumination comes from tightly focused spotlights on original paintings lining the walls. There’s also original art on the tabletops-for sale, if somebody takes a hankering, We’ve heard rumors about service problems, but found the staff to be helpful and friendly when we visited. A large selection of wine is available by the taste or by the glass, as well as by the bottle.

The food has a unique Americanized Italian style, and the kitchen does well by it. In the evening, main courses come preceded by soup and salad, served family-style in daunt-ingly generous portions. The soups can be heavenly, like the delicate cream of squash; the salad is prosaic. If you have room for additional appetizers (or want to order some just to go with a glass of wine), there are some excellent ones. The gnocchi con pomodoro e rosmarino are among the best versions in town of these little Italian dumplings, the spiedini alla Capri are skewered shrimp with a delectable herbal fragrance, and the fried ravioli are excellent. The smallish pizzas are also outstanding.

Pasta is handled in a unique way. For one price ($8.95), you have your choice often different shapes of pasta, mixed and matched with eleven different sauces. We found the conchiglie and the vermicelli both cooked to order, and the pesto with cream a tasty sauce (the meatballs were less successful with the tomato sauce). But the servings were so huge-especially after the enormous bowls of soup and salad-that they were daunting. There are other main courses, including nightly specials that are more New Ameri can than Italian-such as grilled fish topped with pico de gallo. Desserts, too, abandon all pretense at being Italian. Cheesecake may come topped with spiced peaches, and apricot-almond torte and chocolate chip pecan torte are tasty but unbearably heavy after the other fare here. The ice cream choices may be safer-pistachio and mocha may sound Italian enough, but here they are far milder and creamier than the Italians would ever dream of. 1520 Greenville Ave. 824-9944, Daily 11 am-2 am. All credit cards. Moderate. -W.L. Taitte



Michael’s Oyster Bar and Seafood



There really is a Michael, Michael Greene, and he has moved his restaurant from Burleson. He publishes a folksy newsletter as part of his menu and includes in it jokes, cartoons, and homely advice. The atmosphere is similarly relaxed and the food unpretentious but mostly tasty.

For starters, the shrimp gumbo is good, if rather far from what a native Louisianian would recognize. The New England clam chowder is so thick and glutinous that a spoon will stand up in it. Plain boiled shrimp and the beer-battered onion rings are better choices. The standbys on the menu seem to be the fried seafood-catfish fillets, oysters, shrimp, and the rest. The skipper’s platter offers a sample of most of them for $10.95. The most innovative things on the menu are the blackened red snapper (one of the better versions around of this latter-day cliché) and a garlicky version of shrimp scampi. Dessert is limited to lemon icebox pie and cheesecake-the pie best rounds off the homey, old-fashioned feel of a meal at Michael’s. 5805 Camp Bowie, Fort Worth. (817) 377-8021. Sun-Thur 11 am-10 pm. Fri & Sat 11-11. MC, V, AE. Moderate. -W.L.T.



Harbor House



Ben Benali (formerly executive chef for the group that owned Old Warsaw and Mario’s) had been settled into the veteran seafood restaurant Vehon’s for quite a while, but only recently did he rename it Harbor House and proclaim it his own new place. It’s unusual to find a chef with his experience running an inexpensive seafood house, but in this case the results justify the experiment.

Perhaps surprisingly, the simplest things on the menu are done with the most panache. The peel-them-yourself shrimp have tots of briny flavor, and everything on the broiled seafood platter (with shrimp, scallops, crab fingers, and catfish in a light lemon butter) is impeccably fresh and delicately cooked. Conversely, some of the most elaborate dishes come closest to being disappointing. The topping on the oysters “baked the Harbor way,” made up of onions, spinach, and mozzarella, doesn’t quite come together as a unified creation, and the salmon in puff pastry suffers from a soggy crust, though it is otherwise tasty.

In between these extremes, there are lots of appetizing offerings at Harbor House. The fisherman’s stew (fish and shellfish in a tomato sauce) comes atop nicely firm pasta, for instance. And some of the restaurant’s best dishes are even available on the children’s plates-the fat, crunchy fried shrimp and the chicken milanaise (breast pounded thin, breaded with cheese and crumbs, and lightly sautéed). You won’t, however, find a blackened or charbroiled fish on the menu, and that’s okay by us- we’re tired of the elicited taste of burned wood on our seafood. 4844 Greenville Ave. 368-8911. Mon-Thur 11-11, Fri & Sat 11 am- midnight, Sun 5-11 pm. All credit cards. Moderate. -W.L.T.



RESTAURANTS



BARBECUE & BURGERS



Anderson’s. Decorated in the finest We stern/schlock tradition. Anderson’s is what food in Texas used to be all about: plenty of choices of smoked meat, with a lew token vegetables provided to ward off scurvy. The ’cue-especially the ribs-is as it should be. and the butter beans and baked potatoes are a credit to their genre. 5410 Harry Hines Blvd. 630-0735. Inexpensive.



Chips. Chips is the burger joint forme: I like its laid-back. not-too-loud atmosphere, I like the friendly and efficient service. Hike the pig sandwich (shredded pork with relish), the chicken sandwich, and all the burgers I’ve tasted (chili, cheese, hickory, and plain). I like the skinny, sweet onion rings and the big basket of fries and I love having to choose between cold beer and an honest-to-gosh, from-scratch milkshake. 4501 N Central Expwy 526-1092. 2445 W Northwest Hwy, Suite 101. 350-8751. Inexpensive.



Hard Rock Cafe. If you like to lunch at three in the afternoon, you won’t have to wait in line to eat an ordinary, overpriced hamburger and you’ll get a better look at the awesome display of rock memorabilia. The menu ranges into more ambitious fare-grilled swordfish and such-but it’s best to stick to the basic burger or the “Pig Sandwich”-a pile of shredded pork and relish on a bun that is better than ils name sounds. Waiters seem to take literally Hard Rock’s slogan “Love All-Serve All”; service was extremely friendly and efficient. Even if you must lunch or dine at a normal hour, Hard Rock is worth the wait at least once-hail, hail rock ’n’ roll. 2601 McKinney. 855-0007. Moderate.



Prince of Hamburgers. Lined up in a row with our trays hooked to the window and a waitress bearing beer and burgers heading our way. we fell a bit of a flashback, sort of like Peggy Sue in the movie. But the food brought us back with a jolt: the burgers, served on a well-toasted bun in a basket with superlative fries, are tops; the chili dogs are served burger-style, and the old-fashioned milkshakes come in real glasses. Now, if only I had a convertible…5200 Lemmon Ave. 526-9081. Inexpensive.



Riscky’s Barbeque. Riscky’s smoked catfish is an out-and-out Texas triumph. Our appetizer portions, a quartet of satiny fillet ribbons, were the stuff of which memories are made; if the whole-fish version offered as an entrée is as good. I see no reason to order anything else on the menu. Not that there’s anything wrong with Riscky’s beef, pork, or chicken-all were top-quality meats, nicely spiked with the spice mix the menu calls “Riscky dust” before being slow-smoked in the traditional manner. Honest red beans, bland creamy cole slaw, skins-on French fries were all fresh; onion rings were crisp-battered and almost greaseless. Potato salad was a texture less disappointment. 1701 N Market, Suite 104. 742-7001. Inexpensive to moderate.



Solly’s. There are those who believe that good barbecue can’t be found in the squeaky-clean reaches of Addison. They haven’t eaten at Solly’s, where the “casual cuisine” promised by the logo features barbecue as flavorful as that in any other part of town-and French fries that were recently derived from a potato, which is a sadly rare state of affairs. 4801 Belt Line. 387-2900. Inexpensive.

Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse. In Texas, a barbecue place is rated by the quality of its sliced beef on a bun. and beef on a bun is why Sonny Bryan’s stays on lop of the barbecue heap. Yes. there are those who love the ribs and those who, inexplicably, love the inch-thick, hard-crusted onion rings. Still, the heart of the matter is the beef and Sonny’s beef is the best. Piled a couple of inches thick, the slices are a study in good barbecue-from the charred outside to the bright red smoke band to the pink-brown interior; this beef is rich and tender and simple, all at once. 2202 Inwood. 357-7120. Inexpensive.



CAJUN



Copeland’s. For a mass-market chain restaurant. Copeland’s has pretty good New Orleans-style food. But then for a mass-market chain restaurant, Copeland’s has pretty stiff prices. The kitchen relies heavily on two styles of sauces, one dark and assertive, the other pale and milder-both of them thick and liable to be pasty. The oysters en brochette is served atop the dark version. The light one (with various additions) adorns everything from softshell crab to fried redfish. 5353 Belt Line. 66I-I883 Moderate.



Crescent City Cafe. The menu here is limited, but what they serve is some of the best Cajun food in Dallas. The barbecued shrimp-served with bib and fingerbowl-are a fine, messy, spicy version of Manale’s original dish, great with an ice-cold Dixie beer. The oyster loaf is stuffed with fat fried shellfish, and the muffaletta gets my vote for Dallas’s best sandwich, a chewy loaf of fresh-baked Italian bread piled with olive salad, salami, provolone, ham, and mozzarella. The beignets, served with honey, reminded me more of sopapillas than the fried wonders of Café du Monde, but they tasted fine with a big cup of café au lait. I just wish Crescent City were still open for breakfast…2730 Commerce. 745-1900. Inexpensive.



Pontchartrain. There are two kinds of gumbo, and we liked the delicate flavor of the filé gumbo better than the traditional heavier slock. The broiled stuffed snapper, halibut, and shrimp are specialties, though the fried entrees were just as good. We’re getting tired of blackened-everything Cajun, but the subtle and tasty preparations here, though heavy, were refreshing. 13444 N Preston Rd. 385-1522. inexpensive.



CHINESE



August Moon. Not quite the standout it used to be among area Chinese restaurants, August Moon is still mostly reliable and pleasing. The moo goo gai pan has the most carefully sliced pieces of white meal, touched with a hint of garlic. The three kinds of meat in Mongolian barbecue have a rich flavor and an attractively chewy texture. But one of our favorite dishes on earlier visits. Papa Tsay’s Magic Basket, suffered from a fried noodle basket that looked pretty but tasted stale, and the bits of lobster in the dish were not overly fresh-tasting, either. 15030 Preston at Belt Line. 385-7227. H 2300 N Central Expwy. 881-0071. Moderate.



D REVISITS



Cafe Panda. The revamped Cate Panda has become one of our favorite places for a Chinese fix-the Art Deco-ish in terior is soothing, the service is smooth, and the food is reliably excellent. Don’t miss the shar-char prawns, delec table barbecued shrimp (belter order two portions, since they only come two to an order); the firecracker beef, a spicy but well-rounded mix of beef strips, scallions, and celery; or the mimosa chicken, chunks of chicken in a not-too-sweet orange sauce. End your meal with coffee instead of tea- it’s brewed at the table in a special Japanese pot. 7979 Inwood at Lovers Lane 902-9500. Moderate. -M.B.M.



Cathy’s Wok. From (he informative menu (dishes are described in detail, complete with calorie count), I tried decent wonton soup, an egg roll that was heavy on the cabbage, peppery chicken (with plenty of green pepper in a savory brown sauce), and shredded pork with garlic sauce, Even when the food here isn’t perfect, the ingredients are fresh and mercifully MSG-free, and the prices are right, 4010 W 15th. Suite 80. Plano. 964-0406 Inexpensive.



Crystal Pagoda. Among the appetizers is one of the city’s best versions of Bon Bon chicken (shredded meat topped with a paste of peanuts and hot peppers). The Hunan lamb and the shrimp with cashew nuts are also memorable. But the crispy duck is not nearly crisp enough and almost tasteless. 4516 McKinney. 526-3355. Moderate.



D REVISITS



Forbidden City. Forbidden City has opened in Joe Kus old space upstairs in Travis Walk-we always liked the room with its fine view of the western sky, and now we like the food, too. We especially enjoyed the minced chicken with pine nuts, and the beef and onion rolls, both for wrapping in crispy lettuce leaves. The starred-for-spicy dishes lacked real fire, and some of the portions were too small to provide for the usual Chinese breakfast after the night before-our only quibbles. 4514 Travis. 520-1888. Moderate. -M.B.M.



Han-Chu. Still one of the handsomest Chinese places in town, with its sleek black decor, Han-Chu is one of the better purveyors of the cuisine, too. Standard dishes like the spring rolls can be a disappointment, but the golden coin shrimp proved a worthy appetizer. Among the entrées, Shang-hai smoked pork stir-fried with vegetables is an unusual standout, and the tangerine beef is one of the best versions in town: lender, pillowy pieces of beef in a sauce not too sweet or too cloying. Caruth Plaza. 9100 N Central Expwy at Park Lane, Suite 191 691-0900. Moderate.



Henry Chen’s. This is one of the best-looking Chinese restaurants in town. Of course, pretty is as pretty does, and Henry Chen’s acquits itself honorably on that front: the food, to judge from orange beef and chicken with snow peas, is significantly above average, if not quite as noteworthy as the decor. 3701 W Northwest Hwy, Suite 180. 956-9560. Moderate.



Jade Garden. Jade Garden looks exceptionally unpromising and serves food that turns out to be exceptionally good. From the standard-moo goo gai pan-to the unusual- curry pan-fried rice noodles-die food belies the setting. 4800 Bryan. 821-0675. Inexpensive.



May Dragon. The drive-in look of May Dragon, along the restaurant strip on Belt Line in Addison, doesn’t prepare you for the sophistication within. A small labyrinth of intimate dining spaces in subtle colors is the setting for some of the best-prepared Chinese food in town, served with the attention due the Last Emperor himself. The menu holds few surprises, but even a doddering standard like moo goo gai pan offers delicately cut meat and immaculately fresh vegetables. 4848 Belt Line at Inwood. 392-9998. Inexpensive to moderate.



D REVISITS



Szechwan Pavilion. This pretty Preston Center restaurant is as popular for lunch as for dinner, and it’s so dark in the back of the place, even noontime seems like dinnertime. The list of lunch specials is very long and varied. Although generally the food was not as good as we remembered, we enjoyed the twice-cooked pork accompanied by egg foo yung and fried rice, and the shrimp and chicken with cashew nuts was a good twist on an old Chinese chestnut. 8411 Preston. 368-4303. Inexpensive to moderate. -M.B.M.



Taiwan. Ordinary things sit side by side with excellent dishes at the Addison Taiwan. The subnormal egg rolls seem to come from a different kitchen than the light, delicate shrimp dumplings. At least no one can complain any longer that they go too easy on [he spicy dishes here; both the Mongolian beef and the tangerine chicken (available on the bargain luncheon menu) we sampled were heavily spiked with hot red peppers. 4980 Belt Line, Addison. 387-2333. Moderate.



Tong’s House This offbeat shopping center restaurant has attracted a loyal following because of its seafood specials like clams and whole fish (available mostly on the weekends) and its esoteric offerings that appeal mostly to Chinese customers (such as cattle stomach). Among the more conventional dishes, we almost always opt for the kon po scallops-not made with peanuts, just lots of juicy scallops with garlic and pepper pods. The poultry selection is not outstanding; the diced chicken, snowpeas, and mushrooms combo is the best of a mediocre lot. More interesting is the stir-fried fresh asparagus when in season. 1910 Promenade Center, Richardson. 231-8858. Moderate.



FRENCH/CONTINENTAL



Café La Jardin. For starters, we found Café Le Jardin devoid of pomp or pretension; service was smooth and properly limed, plate presentations were pretty and polished, but the intimidation factor normally inescapable in French restaurants was totally absent here. The food was in sync with the ambience. Crab-meat-stuffed mushrooms brimmed with texture and flavor, as did a quartet of shrimp sautéed with vegetables julienne. Molten brie bulged divinely from its fruit-garnished puff pastry. A sauteed veal chop was a tender monster, anointed with mushrooms in a rich cream sauce; filet mignon au poivre vert was fist-sized, broiled rare and bracingly bathed in an assertive sauce studded with green peppercorns. Crème brulée was an appropriately light version, but poached pear was overkill, the fruit lost beneath a deep spill of chocolate over ice cream. 4900 McKinney Ave. 526-0570. Moderate to expensive.



Café Royal. Unfortunately, on my last visit, though chef Peter Schaffrath’s kitchen was as fine-tuned as ever, the service was a sour noie. What started out gracious declined to perfunctory; finally we felt ignored altogether. After asking for our check twice, we left in a huff instead of on air as one should after a delicious meal in a beautiful place. The menu offers a choice of an à la carte or prix-fixe ($34.50) dinner. My choices from the latter list included a typically lovely presentation of shrimp in a spiral of tomato and avocado coulis, and imaginatively prepared lamb cutlets, covered in crispy shredded rosemary potatoes. My companion’s à la carte snails in fennel sauce were sublime; the properly tableside-prepared Caesar salad and grilled sirloin that followed were nothing short of perfect and chocolate crème brulée from the dessert cart was heaven. Plaza of ike Americas. 650N Pearl. 979-9000. Expensive.



Chateaubriand. The Oysters Rockefeller we sampled would have been perfect if their spinach-graced succulence had not been obscured by a too-heavy layer of cheese, and vichyssoise delivered a surprise punch of pepper that outlasted its cool, fresh flavor. Crab-meat crepes, though, were near-ethereal. plumped with moist, fresh crab meat and mushroom slices in delicately lemoned sauce. Our entrees were superior, Veal Marsala, pounded paper-thin, was tender in heady wine sauce, flawlessly complemented by lemon-spritzed wild rice. And a pair of double loin lamb chops, broiled rare, hardly needed the steak knife thai came with them. 3701 W Northwest Hwy fat Marsh Lane). 351-2248. Expensive.



Cleo by Jean-Claude. Fans of the old Jean-Claude- once perhaps Dallas’s best restaurant-will find much to evoke nostalgia here. Jean-Claude Prevot himself is again much in evidence, and the menu has some old favorites like the pristine, very French, lettuce-only salads, the duck in an Oriental-inspired ginger sauce, and the ethereal chocolate soufflés. The price of a four-course fixed meal is Just $27.50-remarkably low for what you get. The standout appetizer is the garlicky escargots in a puff-pastry shell, and the best dessert is the hazelnut souffle. Among the entrees. both treatments or fish we sampled were superb. The Centrum. 3102 Oak Lawn. Suite 110. 520-9264. Expensive.



D REVISITS



The Grape. Subtly as a morning sunrise, this forever (since 1972) favorite quietly gets better and better. Walls once hung, as I recall, with fake grape garlands now wear restrained painted vines instead; lighting that used to be dungeon-dark now allows easy reading off the daily-changing blackboard menu of food and wine specials. Service on a recent visit was amiable as ever and less rushed than I remember; food, as always, was simply superb. The Grape’s trademark fresh mushroom soup was an inimitable joy, its dinner salad a perfectly dressed mix of lettuces lopped with ripe baby bell tomatoes. Entrées were as winning-Norwegian salmon fillet mated succulently with grape-almond relish ; a flawless chicken breast was lavished with roasted pecans in an herbed sauce of brie and white wine; tournedos of beef were fine, fork-tender and rare in deep-flavored Béarnaise sauce. The mélange of fresh buttered vegetables served on the side were simply splendid. So were desserts, with Jack Daniels chocolate pecan pie easily taking top honors. Nicest surprise of all was a flexible fillip other establishments would do well to copy; a number of entrées may be ordered in full-or half-sized portions, priced accordingly. Dine before seven on weekdays, and you’ll find several offered in half-sizes with soup or salad and dessert for $9.75-a bargain if there ever was one, even with wine by the bottle or glass added to the total. Which may be one reason this gem of a place was crowded even on a Mon day evening, traditionally a slow restaurant night in Dallas. 2808 Creeville. 828-1981. Moderate. -B.C.



L’Ambiance. On our last visit, the appetizers-a creamy tomato soup copped by a cheesy crouton, and a row of a dozen perfectly cooked asparagus spears-were especially good. Rack of lamb was traditional and well prepared: the duck breast, recommended as a house specialty, was nicely cooked, but its unidentifiable fruit sauce was overly sweet. The watercress salad with goat cheese, bacon, and hard-cooked egg was delicious, but desserts-a dry flourless chocolate cake and boringly sweet chocolate Concorde (layers of chocolate meringue and chocolate mousse)-were forgettable. 2408 Cedar Springs. 748-1291. Expensive.



L’Ancestral. First courses-an onion tan accented with pungent orange zest and a salad of tiny-diced ham, tomato, cheese, apple, and cabbage bound with homemade mayonnaise-were unusual and outstanding. Grilled swordfish and perfect pommes frites were followed by simple green salads and soothingly classic desserts-comforting caramel pot de crème and sumptuous chocolate truffle cake. 4514 Tra\is. 528-1081. Moderate to expensive.



Left Bank. The left bank in question is thai of the Trinity River, and the restaurant in question is the best thing to hit Oak Cliff since the viaduct from downtown. The food is simple. French-influenced, and changes every day. On the weekend, all of Oak Cliff wants to be here, so reservations are essential. 408 N Bishop, Suite 104. 9481630. inexpensive to moderate.



L’Entrecote. Don’t come here too hungry-L’Entrecote’s menu is ambitiously extensive; the two long pages describing the complicated and subtle dishes dreamed up by chef Michel Platz take some time to peruse. Then there are the specials to take into consideration, so that composing a dinner for two is a challenge for the curious and easily tempted. In (he end. everything we ordered was delicious. exquisite, and perfectly served, leaving us wondering about all the things we couldn’t try. Endive, watercress, and tarragon salad was refreshing; a salad of asparagus, baby com, and rose petals was good but slightly too precious. Veal in lime and sage was followed by an ideal dessert of meItingly light frozen raspberry torte. Loews Anatole Hotel, 2201 Slemmons Frwy. 748-1200, Expensive to very expensive.



Mr. Peppe. Mr. Peppe is not so much a restaurant as it is a mindset There exists a subset of monied, established Dallasites for whom fine dining begins and ends with Mr. Peppe. While the rest of us frantically trendy parvenus chase around from new hot spot to newer hot spot, the Mr. Peppe-ites are content to eat things like pepper steak and veal with lemon butter week in and week out. 5617 W Lovers Lane. 352-5976 Moderate.



Old Warsaw. The granddaddy-ma]ke that grand-père-of big-deal dining in Dallas was as romantic as ever. “Why do I feel like (should propose or something?” was the question of my escort. It could have been the low lights, the banquette seating, the violin and piano duo playing requests. It probably wasn’t the food, which, on average, was nothing special. The low point was an appetizer special of overly oniony crawfish in puff pastry; the high point was crêpes Suzette (an unjustly out-of-fashion dessert). 2610 Maple. 528-0032. Very expensive.



The Riviera. Smoked red bell pepper soup with bacon and sun-dried tomatoes was a perfect blend of salt, sweet, and smoke; the special yellowfin tuna salad played the meaty fish against smooth avocado and balanced the combination with nutty sesame vinaigrette. Delicate halibut was given depth with a rich, though slightly salty, lobster sauce, and the suc-culently sweet loin of lamb was sparked by a green peppercorn sauce. Desserts-orangey crème brulée and a chocolate cake with almond meringue-were only a little less memorable, and service was gracious throughout. 7709 Inwood. 351-0094. Expensive to very expensive.



Trieste. The menu at Trieste, which changes every Monday, was frankly French on our visit. Entrees included potato (a tan-shape of au gratin slices) and vegetable (slivered zucchini, squash, tomato). The fresh tomato looked as lively as it tasted with its garnish of crème fraiche and dollop of caviar, while the smoked trout mousse folded into rosy slices of smoked salmon was pure silk. The rare lamb slices were bathed in a sauce full of fresh currants, and the French combination plate, lobster medallions and beef tender, was served with two sauces, a classic demi-glace and a rich Béarnaise fragrant with tarragon. 1444 Oak Lawn Ave, Suite 600. 742-4433. Moderate.



GERMAN/EASTERN EUROPE



D REVISITS



Belvedere. The coziness of this place in a Park Cities apartment house is always winning; the fireplace and the Old World setting predispose you to relax and enjoy. The food at Belvedere can be a draw, too- The appetizer of a seafood- filled crêpe is rich and rewarding, and the various treatments of veal range from a crisp .schnitzel to tender scallops swim ming in cream and mushrooms. Accompaniments include buttery spaetzle (little homemade noodles) and crusty scalloped potatoes. Salads come with a topping of fried onion, and desserts include a sinfully dense and chewy chocolate mousse. CrestPark Hotel. 4242 Loma Alto. 528-6510. Expensive. -W.L.T.



Franki’s Li’l Europe. Entrées offered on our lunch and dinner visits ranged from Italian to French to German and Austrian, with side trips to Hungary and Yugoslavia. Top stop for my money was segediner, a Hungarian dish involving succulent pork chunks simmered with mild sauerkraut and cream. Cevapcici, described as the Yugoslavian national dish, was a half-dozen hand-formed ovals of veal, lamb, and pork sausage on saffron-scented rice. Chicken Pavarotti crossed the Italian border with a tender sautéed breast lavished with fresh mushrooms in a fine, fresh tomato sauce. Desserts included admirably flaky apple strudel and a particularly light, lovely bread pudding. 362 Casa Linda Plaza (behind the fountain), Garland food at Buckner. 320-0426 Inexpensive to moderate.



Kuby’s at the Brewery. The menu here is short on appetizers, though the hefty little potato pancakes and the goulash soup are both tasty. Kuby’s famous sausages are among the best of the main dishes, along with the beef rouladen and the smoked pork chop (listed on the menu as Kassler Rippchen). The sauerbraten (pot roast cooked with vinegar) is made from a fine cut of beef but was not as tender as it should be. And why serve both purple cabbage and sauerkraut as accompaniments to the same dishes? The tastiest dessert is not the vaunted apple strudel or even the Black Forest cake but the almond tone. 703 McKinney. 954-0004. Moderate.



GREEK



Crackers. The Crackers I visited recently seemed immensely improved since I last dined in its former incarnation. Appetizers were a benediction; tiropetes, the puff pastry-wrapped triangles of feta and ricotta cheeses, symphonic in flavor; tzatziki, a garlic-spiked yogurt cucumber dip, fresh and lively on small wedges of pita bread. Souvlaki was skewered succulence, its tenderloin cubes zipped with olive oil-and-lemon marinade. Baby iamb chops, a special of the day, were bile-sized sorcery, broiled rare as ordered despite our waiter’s dark warnings that lamb should always be cooked well done. Salads, side dishes, and a dessert of warm peach cobbler were all fresh and satisfying. 2621 McKinney Ave. 871-7268. Inexpensive to moderate.



Kostas Cafe. There is no great Greek food in Dallas: in foci, there’s still not much Greek food at all. Accompanied by a glass of retsina and preceded by an order of saganaki, a combination plate al (Costas is as close as you can get to Greece, gustatorily speaking. All the elements are there: the dolma (meat-stuffed vine leaves) were tasty, though their tenderness bordered on mushiness; the souvlaki (grilled lamb chunks) and grilled shrimp were authentically seasoned and nicely cooked; pastitsio, a slightly sweet, tomato-laced casserole of meat and macaroni, was delicious, and the square of spanokopita (layered spinach, filo pastry, and cheese) was savory and flaky. However, everything, even the saganaki, flamed several feet before our eyes, was too cool and the salad was short on feta, olives, and the aromatic oil that normally make salad one of (he glories [bat is Greece. 4914 Greenville. 987-3225. Inexpensive.



INDIAN



Kebab & Kurry. This north Dallas spot continues to serve some of the best Indian food in the area; lately, the service has been more personable and less inscrutable than in the past. Any of the wonderful breads or selections from the tan-door make good choices for the novice (even my kids like it), while the shahajani biryani-a complicated mix of rice, chicken, and vegetables-exhibits the balance of innumerable ingredients that makes Indian food so exciting-Chutneys and vegetable dishes are also outstanding, but I have to confess I don’t understand Indian desserts. 401 N Central Expwy, Suite 300, Richardson. 231-5556 Inexpensive to moderate.



D REVISITS



Taj Mahal. We started with the appetizer assortment, son of an Indian pu-pu tray, and ate our way through korma, vindaloo. and biryani without a complaint. It’s all good, and, a plus for inner-city types, it’s close in-just across from NorthPark. The service was exceptionally friendly and helpful. Caruth Plaza. 9100 N Central Expwy, Suite 179. 692-0535. Inexpensive to moderate. -M.B.M.



ITALIAN



Alessio’s. On the appetizer side, crab croquettes on a recent visit were gently complemented by an unusually subtle basil cream sauce. Minestrone was absolutely the best I’ve ever tasted-a sturdy studding of lima beans, cabbage, zucchini, turnips, et al., in tomato-based broth zinged with lemon. Rack of lamb riblets were divinely rosy and toothsome in white wine sauce whispering of thyme, but highest marks have to go to the evening’s veal chop, a half-pound monster of exceptional tenderness and flavor, barely haunted with rosemary. Lemon ice was the perfect dessert, ringed with fresh blackberries, but a deep-flavored flan was a classic close second. 4117 Lomo Alto. 521-3585. Moderate to expensive.



Caffé Paparazzi. This is the best little Italian restaurant in Dallas since Sergio’s (while it was still in its first location) nearly a decade ago. The main dishes do not sound particularly inventive, but they are cooked with an authority that makes them seem like fresh inspirations, veal scallops cooked with cheese is a cliche” that usually disappoints grandly; here, though, the veal valdostana is sheer poetry. flavored with a leaf of fresh sage. Of the pastas we tried, the penne all’arrabiata was the standout. Desserts at Caffé Paparazzi looked as good as they tasted. We especially enjoyed the amaretto custard and the sliced oranges marinated in liqueur and orange zest. 8989 Forest Lane. Suite 112. 644-1323. Moderate.



Campisi’s Egyptian Restaurant. My companion and I thoroughly enjoyed our visit, a trip back in time if ever there was one, right down to worn linoleum and booth-side jukeboxes. My crab claws, a house specialty, had undoubtedly started the evening frozen, but their lemon-butter bath was wonderful, and the platter held five dozen of the tiny things. Our all-the-way pizza and butter-drenched garlic bread were quite passable, too. 5610 E Mockingbird. 827-0355. Inexpensive to moderate.



Capriccio. The appetizer of snails (lumache fantasia) in garlicky sauce under puff pastry proved a terrific opener, and the pastas included a fine fettuccine Carbonara as well as a decent but less convincing spaghetti Capriccio with chicken livers and tomatoes. Both main courses we sampled-veal topped with shrimp and sweetbreads Genovese with prosciutto-were cooked to perfection. The rum cake with meringue rounded out the meal magnificently. 2616 Maple Ave. M-2004. Expensive.



D REVISITS



Carrelli’s. It’s a surprise to walk into this annex of the artsy-craftsy 011a Podrida complex and discover an ornate setting that looks like a location for some Fellini fantasy. The service is welcoming and professional, the food tasty but as unsubtle as the decor. Veal alia Carrelli’s is a mish-mash of prosciutto. mozzarella, artichokes, and shrimps over the veal in a lemon, wine, and cream sauce. A special of the day can bring you even more tastes on one plate-lobster tail alia diavolo (sadly fishy tasting) next to a luscious breast of chicken in a lemon and cream sauce. Steak lovers can order prime sirloin either plain or topped with a spicy tomato sauce. 12219 Coit Rd. 386-7)31. Moderate to expensive. -W.L.T.



La Tosca. Garlicky mussels steamed with tomato and black pepper in white wine are toothsome; tomato and fresh mozzarella slices with basil in the house dressing are fresh and fine; tagliolini takes heart from a generous topping of smoked salmon, caviar, and vodka. Thé Carpaccio was admirable, its mustard sauce perfect, although Parmesan slices served with it were near-leathery-a flaw underscored by the mozzarella’s tenderness; and breasts of chicken seemed somewhat dry, although their caper-strewn tomato sauce could not have been better. Small cavils, though, weighed against such generally consistent pleasures as Fresh profiteroles sinfully drenched with hot chocolate and whipped cream. 7713 Inwood. 352-8373. Expensive.



Lombardi’s at Travis Walk. If you can resist a pre-meal orgy of Parmesan-crusted, rosemary-scented focaccia loaves, the menu here offers a full-range Italian dining experience as fine as you’ll find in Dallas. Stan with flawless Carpaccio, paper-thin and mustard-sauced, or delicate soft-shell crab sautéed with garlic and tomato in white wine. Proceed with succulent rabbit in Provencal sauce, or a sautéed veal chop strewn with vinaigre tie-spiked arugula. If it’s your meatless day, rejoice in gnocchi, plump potato dumplings in mild tomato and bold Gorgonzola sauces. Leave room for a wicked wrap-up of double chocolate mousse cake if you can, or wind down with cappuccino or espresso-both are superior. Trans Wilk, 4514 Travis. 521-1480. Moderate.



Mario’s. One of the oldest of Dallas’s fancy restaurants seems better than it has in a long time. For appetizers, the cannelloni and the shrimp with mushrooms in a rich cream sauce are standouts. The veal Milanese is crisp and tender, the red snapper Mario perky in its sauce spiked with capers. For dessert, order one of the soufflés-but do so early, because the wait can be long. 135 Turtle Creek Village. Oak Lawn at Blackbum. 521-1135. Expensive.



Massimo da Milano. If there’s a bad item available at this attractive Italian bakery/café. I’ve yet to discover it despite exhaustive research. Although the changing pizza, pasta, and salad offerings are always alluring, more often than not I find myself opting For the focaccia sandwich, round flat bread filled with ham. cheese, leaf lettuce, and tomato slices. For dessert, there are any number of pastries to choose from, but nothing suits a cup of espresso better than the little amaretti cookies. 5519 W Lovers Lane. 351-1426. Inexpensive.



Momo’s. The original site of this expanding group still serves some of the best Italian food in Dallas. The wood-oven-baked pizzas are a better bel than the homemade pastas, which can be overcooked and undersauced. Better still are the dishes like conchiglie al modo mio (seashell pasta baked with savory meats and cheeses) and scallopini a la Momo (veal sauced piquantly with a him of anchovy). For dessert, try the zabaglione, if you like your custard strongly flavored with Marsala. 9191 Forest Lane. Suite 82. 234-6800. Moderate.



Nero’s Italian. Critics should follow their own advice-after touting the pizzas here for years as the best thing on Nero’s menu, we tried tonier offerings on our last visit, with mixed results. Osso Buco, the traditional peasant’s dish of veal shank baked with garlic, tomato, carrot, onion, and herb-seasoned celery, was a hearty, meaty delight. Pork loin Palermo, on the other hand, was a dry and leathery disaster. To our excellent waiter’s credit, he offered to replace it, but we had already progressed through Caesar salad (fresh and nicely seasoned, although overlight on the requisite anchovy accent) and focaccia (disappointingly thick and doughy), and voted to move on to triple-chocolate cake (ambrosial) and fine espresso. 2104 Greenville. 826-6376- Moderate.



Pizzeria Uno. There’s now a second area location for this Chicago-based emporium of deep-dish pizzas. This style is unique, at least hereabouts: a rich, buttery crust that doesn’t lose its crispness. filled to the brim and served in the heavy pan il was cooked in. The fillings come in lots of combina-tions, a number of which don”t even include tomato. We were skeptical about one of the novelty fillings-chicken fajita pizza? (they had to be kidding). But we ordered it on a dare, and it turned out to be the best dish on the menu, with succulent chicken and lots of sweet red peppers. 2811 McKinney Ave. 855-0011. 4001 Belt Une, Addison. 991-8181. N Inexpensive to moderate.



Ristorante Savino. An appetizer sampler of pastas, obligingly created when we could not choose among them, included a flawless swirl of angel hair in lobster sauce, as well as tortellini in deep-flavored demi-glace, the whole lavished with Reggiano Parmesan shredded over them at the table. Satin-fresh mozzarella rounds with tomato in basil dressing were flawless; red snapper sautéed with fresh tomato and basil was the same. My longtime favorite, roast veal slices served cold in rich tuna sauce, was not quite up to standard-the veal was a trifle dry-but still outstanding. 2929 N Henderson. 826-7804. Moderate to expensive.

Sfuzzi, Pizzas here are exceptional, with a thick but somehow light crust; the grilled salmon pizza with yellow tomatoes ranks as one of the best pies in Dallas, but the veal version, with sun-dried tomatoes, is also a winner. From the selection of “primi plates,” the salads were terrific. Arugula and radicchio were sprinkled with crisp pancetta and crumbled Gorgonzola and dressed in balsamic vinaigrette; spinach salad was arranged with grilled chicken chunks, toasted pine nuts, and yellow tomatoes. Pastas aren’t handled as well-a serving of angel hair was overcooked and under-sauced. But fettuccine with pancetta. Parmesan, and cream was surprisingly tighter than a classic Alfredo. 2504 McKinney. 871-2606. Moderate.



Stavis V’s. Every neighborhood should have an Italian restaurant this good. The kitchen turns out the best conventional (as opposed to New Wave) pizzas in Dallas, with crisp, delicate crust, just the right amounts of cheese and sauce, and bountiful toppings like scrumptious homemade sausage. The best of the pastas we tried was the fettuccine with clam sauce. The noodles were perfectly cooked and coated with a rich cream sauce with lots of meaty pieces of clam. Except for pasta and pizza, the only main dishes offered are veal, chicken, and eggplant parmigiana. We opted lor the eggplant and found it delicious, if not quite perfectly crisp. The nicest surprise at Stevie V’s is the high quality of desserts; we went out of our minds for the bread pudding-we’ve never had this dish better prepared. 7324 Gaston Ave, Suite 319. 321-9755. Inexpensive.



311 Lombardi’s. The waiters will hardly let you sit down without ordering the trademark focaccia (though a tariff of about five bucks for what is basically garlic bread-albeit very fancy garlic bread-seems a trifle outrageous). The fettuccine with fresh salmon is an interesting pasta choice, and the bone-in veal chop alia Milanese, crisply breaded and fried, comes garnished with arugula and tomato-anyone for salad and main course all at the same time? The intricate cakes, heavily embellished with buttercream icing and flavored with liqueurs, seem too heavy an ending for an Italian meal. 311 Market at Ross- 747-0322. Moderate to expensive.



JAPANESE/KOREAN



D REVISITS



Fuji-Ya. This little storefront Japanese restaurant just north of LBJ Freeway has managed to stay in business for a long lime, though the crowds have always seemed sparse al din nertime. The quality of the food is mixed. There is a small but impeccably fresh selection of sushi, the gyoza (pan-fried meat dumplings) are delicious, and the shrimp tempura stands out as among the lightest, crispiest, most delicate in town. But other dishes, like tatty, undercooked teriyaki chicken and overboiled, tasteless sukiyaki. can be most disappointing. 13050 Coit Rd. 690-8396 Inexpensive to moderate. – W.L.T.



Hana Japanese Restaurant. As in most Japanese restaurants, the sushi bar here is the social center-a joyous stretch of immaculate revelry staffed by swift-bladed showmen who slice out the usual artistic raw-fish delicacies as well as a specialty or two all their own; their oyster shot, a chewable potion involving raw oyster, fresh quail egg. and spicy accents, is alone worth a visit. The kitchen excels, too, with shrimp tempura and fried oysters crisped to air-light, greaseless perfection, grilled salmon steak and beef teriyaki moistly lender. 14865 Inwood. 991-8322. Moderate.



Korea House/Club Koryo. Under new ownership since our last visit, Korea House seems to be cooking better than ever-we’ve never had better Korean food in Dallas than this. The fried dumpling appetizer was especially flavorful, and the cold Korean-style vegetables (spicy pickled cabbage, bean sprouts, radish, and cucumber) refreshing as could be. The nuggets of fried chicken in dak gui were optimally crunchy and set off by a tantalizingly peppery sauce. The kalbigui (chewy, meaty short ribs) aren’t cooked at the table, but they still have a smoky taste that puts most of the city’s Texas-style barbecue places to shame. 613 Promenade Center. Coit ai Belt Line, Richardson. 231-1379. Moderate.



Mr. Sushi & Hibachi. Mr. Sushi’s original location is one of the favorite stops of local seekers of raw fish. This new establishment also includes a hibachi room for those in quest of Benihana-type slice-and-dice grilled thrills. On my visit I unintentionally ended up on the hibachi side, where the food was uninspired. However, my sushi scouts report that the sushi here is as terrific as at the original Mr. Sushi. 9220 Skillman, Suite 227. 349-6338 Moderate to expensive.



Nakamoto. This Piano restaurant (which used to be named Ishi-Sushi) may be the most decked-out Japanese restaurant in the Metroplex, with everything from Samurai armor to flocks of ikebana birds figuring in the decor. The sushi bar offers a nice variety of fish of exemplary freshness. Among the cooked dishes, fish also stands out-the salmon butteryaki has a pleasantly charred exterior and moist meal. Less impressive are the slightly soggy shrimp tempura and tough pork tonkatsu. Don’t try desserts here unless you can fall in love with green tea or red bean ice creams. Ruisseau Village, Suite 360, 3309 N Central Expressway Piano. 881-0328 Moderate.



Sakura Japanese Restaurant. Years ago, when I dined at its original location. Sakura was the first restaurant where I’d ever been asked to take off my shoes before entering. This lime, we dined to live piano music in a Western lounge furnished with cushioned rattan. The tempura-fried shrimp were almost as light and lacy as I remembered them; Shabu-Shabu, thin-sliced beef cooked quickly at table with fresh vegetables, was almost as delightful. The assortment of sushi we ordered as appetizers was impeccably fresh-tuna, jumbo clam, octopus, a salmon-and-egg standout marvelously sauced with a single quail egg broken over it. 7402 Greenville Ave. 361-9282. Moderate to expensive.



Sushi on McKinney. The hot foods here are purely mediocre, except tor a first-class salad, but who cares? The sushi bar’s where the action is, and where the good eats are in this sociable Oak Lawn hangout. All the standards here are impeccable-dark tuna and yellowtail, crisp jumbo clam and chewy abalone, salmon roe squid. Sweet shrimp, highly touted by my next-stool neighbor at the bar, turned out to be whole creatures, flash-fried to crispness, eyes, antennae, and all. “It’s wonderful!” he said “I believe you,” I said. I couldn’t hack it-I hope you’ll forgive me. 4500 McKinney. 521-0969. Moderate.



MEXICAN



Blue Goose Cantina. The sheer quantity of food that appears at the table is enough to make those of normal appetite gasp with disbelief. Quantity, however, is not the end of the story here. The quality is surprisingly high, in light of the low prices. The chicken fajitas are the best in town, and the beef fajitas are more than respectable. The flour tortillas that accompany both are admirably thin and fresh. The standard Tex-Mex is standard, with the exception of great rice and poor guacamole. 2905 Greenville. 823-8339. Inexpensive.



Blue Mesa. Chips and dip are usually effective forecasters in Mexican restaurants; Blue Mesa serves mixed blue and yellow tostados with a smoky chipotle-black bean salsa and a cumin-Flavored tomato salsa. The chile relleno with chicken, cheese, and mango salsa was beautifully presented, and the sweet-tart fruit accented the spice and cheese surprisingly. The counterpoint was repealed in the contrasting flavors of savory black beans and sweet com pudding. Com meal pasta was cooked al dente; it was sauced with tomatoes, corn, and cumin and topped with pieces of chicken breast rubbed with red chili. Village on the Parkway. 5100 Belt Line. 934-0165. Moderate.



Cantina Laredo. Despite the hectic atmosphere, our service was brisk and attentive. Tex-Mex here is good, but the specialties are better: cabrito barbacoa (barbecued goat) was rich and tender, and pollo ranchera was a tender breast with a spicy sauce of tomatoes, onions, and peppers. Desserts are good here, loo; apple pie is served on a sizzling fajita skillet with cinnamon ice cream, and churros- cinnamon-sugar coated fritters-are freshly fried. 4546 Belt Line. 458-0962. Moderate.



Chuy’s. The menu listed combination plates ranging from the huge comida deluxe (two enchiladas, one flauta, one crispy taco, chili con queso. guacamole. rice, and beans) to Chuy’s “lite plate.” a single taco with guacamole and queso. But we chose instead a “Chuychanga,” a big fried flour tortilla encasing a half breast of chicken and some melted cheese, served with a selection of sauces. Without the sauce, the dish whs underseasoned. Chuy’s special enchiladas, New Mexican blue corn tortillas slacked with chicken, cheese, and tomatillo. were gooey and good; the chile relleno, an Anaheim pepper stuffed with well-seasoned meat, was covered in a too-tomatoey sauce. 211N Record St. 747-2838. Inexpensive.



D REVISITS



La Botica Café. Has this homey little North Haskell ex- drugstore gone uppity on us? Not exactly, although some developments point in that direction: closed now for lunch except for private parties, the place has broadened its menu to include several upscale-sounding entrées-quail, Cornish game hens, and ribeye steaks, for example-as well as the familiar Tex-Mex standards. Not to worry, though-prices are still inline, and such favorites as torilla soup, green en chiladas, and cheese-hearted quesadillas are as fine as ever. A ribeye and quail combination plate was substantial and satisfying, both beef and bird grilled to perfection and served with good beans, lively pico de gallo. fresh guacamole. and adequate Spanish rice. Our attempt to try the game hen was frustrated by the kitchen’s apparent reluctance to thaw and prepare the fowl; cabrito, listed on the menu, was unavail able. Service, though, was less insouciant; our waiter’s attentions were courteous and constant-“better,” my companion observed, “than the establishment deserves.” I don’t know about that-I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for this family-run East Dallas place. But I do think closing for lunch was an unkind cut. 1900 N Haskell. 824-2005. Inexpensive to moderate. -B.C.



La Calle Doce. The mono on the menu reads “The Shrimp that Goes to Sleep is Swept Away”-the diner’s first clue that this appealing Oak Cliff restaurant specializes in marine Mexican cuisine. From the seafood side of the menu we tried Camaron a la diabla, shrimp in a spicy-hot sauce: from the landlubber list we chose chiles rellenos, stuffed with shredded, not ground, beef, and tacos de carne deshebrada, flour tortillas filled with the same tasty mixture, Fram chips to entrées, the meal was delicious; only the strangely pasty flan

La Mansion Da Blas. This is Deep Ellum’s only Mexican restaurant, and it’s a fun place to go if only because people-watching is great from the little fenced-in patio, and you’re just a hop. skip, and a jump from what’s happenin’. The food has its highs and lows (chicken mole and tamales were highs, basic beans and nachos were lows), but the hot sauce and pico de gallo are good and hot, the beer is cold, the margaritas are good, and. as I said, the location is great. 2935 Elm. 939-0853. Inexpensive.



L’Asadero Monterrey. The specially here is cabrito- baby goat-but it’s not always available in forms popular with most gringos-on my last visit only the kidneys and heart were still on the menu. If you can”l get the goat, not to worry. The rest of the menu at L’Asadero Monterrey is tasty, too. Pollo a la parilla was tender and juicy, its topping of grilled onions sweet and tender. Cheese enchiladas were properly gooey and spicy: only the steak Milanesa (Mexican fried steak) was a little dry. 112 N Collen. 826-0625. Inexpensive.



Mario & Alberto. The standards of Mario Leafs second restaurant don’t seem to have suffered with the opening of a third one-this popular North Dallas spot seemed as fine (and as busy) as ever. Among the main courses, the filete de la casa (tenderloin strongly flavored with garlic, accompanied by lightly fried potato slices) remains a favorite. Those who crave fajitas will find a relatively restrained version here-a manageably modest serving, and no sizzling fireworks. The Tex-Mex plates continue to run way behind the specialties in excellence. Preston Milley Shopping Center, LBJ Frwy at Preston, Suite 425. 980-7296 Moderate.



Mario’s Chiquita. This conservative but pretty pastel restaurant offers dependable Tex-Mex, but its forte is specialties like the tacos al carbon, tender strips of steak folded in flour tortillas, or the carnitas a la tampiqueno, a plate of grilled perk strips sided by a cheese enchilada in a terrific rancherasauce. Carne asuda is great and almost worth ordering for the triangles of grilled Linares cheese alone, and the sopapilla with cinnamon icecream is one of the few really wonderful desserts I’ve had with Mexican food. 4514 Travis, 11105 (in Travis Wilk). 521-0721. Moderate.



Prime’s. The menu is Tex-Mex. with blackboard specials, and. except for bland margaritas and some overcooked shrimp, everything we sampled on a recent visit was as soul-satisfying as good Tex-Mex L’an gel. Primos offers one of the best botanas platters around-two kinds of nachos, midget flautas, and terrific quesadillas. Take note of the tiny, crispy meat tacos-fried after they’re filled, and available in the standard size, too. The chicken enchilada in ranchera sauce was also memorable. 3309 McKinney. 520-3303. Inexpensive.



Ricardo’s. This latest in the area’s supply of “Miami Vice” style Mexican restaurants (offering pretty pastel settings and tropically influenced food) proves that there is gastronomic civilization even as one travels so far north as to sight the Oklahoma border. 17610 Midway at Trinity Mills. 931-5073. Moderate.



MIDDLE EAST



Hedary’s Lebanese Restaurant. The menu is identical to the original Hedary’s in Fort Worth, every dish is fresh and lovingly prepared, and if there’s better Lebanese food anywhere, I’ve yet to find it, The best way to sample the appetizers is to order maza, an array of nine or ten mini-servings ranging from hearty tabuli and delicate hummus to delectably dressed minted cucumber and yogurt, garlicky lettuce, and onion-spiked tomato. Entrées lean toward beef and lamb; we particularly enjoyed kafta, sausage-like patties of fine ground sirloin and savory spices, charbroiled to succulence and folded into a bread loaf. Promenade Center, 15400 Coil, Suite 2500, Richardson. 669-2112. Inexpensive to moderate.



NEW AMERICAN



Actuelle. The most innovative and consistently exciting cooking at any Dallas restaurant these days is taking place at Actuelle. Everything on the menu here is an adventure, but be sure to try the fish. Chef Victor Gielisse has won two national contests in fish cooking, and the evidence can be found here in the likes of the grilled Norwegian salmon-light as a puff of smoke, crispas an autumn day. sauced to perfection in a tomato vinaigrette with fresh marjoram. The pear poached in pinot noir swathed in butterscotch sauce makes an equally glorious final touch to a meal. The Quadrangle. 2800 Routh. 855-0440. Expensive.



D REVISITS



Baby Routh. When a menu lists things like “pot roast” and “banana split.” I have certain expectations of home- style, trendless old favorites. But trendlessness is not the schtick of Baby Routh’s chef, Rex Hale, And on my last visit to this upwardly mobile temple, the food. thankfully, final ly lived up to the social ambitions of the place. The pot roast with poblano gravy was good, although it cried out for potatoes, the seafood tamale is stunning to behold, and the smoked chicken and cacciotta empanada a success, as were all the desserts, including the above-mentioned split. 2708 Routh. 871-2345. Moderate to expensive. -M.B.M.



Beau Nash. With the new direction of executive chef Dan O’Leary (formerly sous chef at the Mansion) and Russell Hodges (formerly sous chef at Routh Street Cafe), Beau Nash seems to have come into its own. Flavors are still California-style assertive, but not jarringly so. Smoked salmon Carpaccio was ringed with translucent slices of sweet soaked onion; “Buffalo” style shrimp was nicely setoff by crunchy three-cabbage slaw. Swordfish was delicately crusted with lemon and sided with a creamy opal basil risotto. Only the Caesar salad with stale-tasting croutons disappointed. The gracious service and relaxed elegance of the room make dining here all it should be. Hotel Crescent Court. 400 Crescent Court, Maple at McKinney 871-3240. Expensive.



Dakota’s. Dakota’s is to downtown lunch what Sam’s is to McKinney Avenue al dinner-the hot spot. Two differences-lunching takes less time than dining, so the wait it Dakota’s isn’t bad. and the women here wear suits and carry briefcases. Dakota’s is a businessman’s-person’s- favorite. but the place is good-looking enough arid the food good-tasting enough to please anyone. The new fall menu features woodsy wild-mushroom-filled ravioli in rich Gorgonzola cream sauce and pecan-smoked tuna that are perfectly tuned to the season. 600 N Akard. 740-4001. Moderate to expensive.



Gershwin’s. Judging from the crowds, Gershwin’s fills a genuine need for a moderately priced restaurant suitable either for singles on a heavy date or for family occasions. Most of the food on the large menu is satisfying, and the portions tend to be huge. Both the mixed-seafood appetizer (delicious fried Calamari, shrimp, crabcakes, and mushrooms) and the California-style pizza would have done as starters for two or even three people. The selection of three kinds of grilled fish and the king-size desserts also offered good value. Only the veal scaloppine topped with fettuccine swimming in a sweetish sauce disappointed. 8442 Wa/nut Hill at Greenville. 373-7171. Moderate to expensive.



Kathleen’s Cafe and Bar: We started dinner with a bowl of venison chili served with cream over one of Kathleen’s terrific herb biscuits. We also tried the artichoke tart, which was large enough to have been a meal by itself. lis rich filling was slightly overpowered by mustard, but the cheddar cheese pastry was great. Dinner salads were a mix of lettuces, including iceberg, dressed with a slightly sweet, olive-laden vinaigrette. An entrée of seafood lasagna was filled with shrimp, salmon, and lots of cheese and smothered with a thick, rich tomato sauce; another plate of pecan-smoked chicken held a moist breast accompanied by hot and sweet Italian sausages lending spice. 4424 Lovers Lane. 691-2355. Inexpensive to moderate.



Laurels. The menu dégustation, with a Fixed price of $38.50, changes daily and is a good bet. À la carte choices are expensive, but choices like Maine lobster, wild mushrooms, and basil with fettuccine and roasted pheasant with green apple pasta and blue cheese sauce are well worth the tariff. Desserts are killers here, especially the soufflé of the day (apricot with raspberry sauce on my visit). Sheraton Park Central, 12720 Merit Dr. 851-2021. Expensive.



The Mansion on Turtle Creek. Aside from an incoherent list of specials (I was tempted by an entrée of Indian-inspired yogurt-marina ted lamb with curry and chutney, but couldn’t find anything to complement it), the kitchen’s work was up to par. Mansion standards-lobster tacos with yellow tomato salsa, tortilla soup, chicken baked with maple-pecan crust-and specials-soft-shell crab with barbecued crust and Cajun sausage with onion pasta-scaled the expected peak of perfection, which at these prices, they should. However, the front of the house didn’t measure up. Our reservation was lost and so was our waiter for much of the meal-errors thai might be forgiven in a lesser establishment, but are inexcusable at the Mansion. 2821 Turtle Creek Blvd. 526-2121. Expensive.



Parigi. On my last visit, a sage pesto pizza was the prize appetizer, followed by a terrific Caesar salad, lightened up with lemon juice and zest-the balance of rich and tart is so right you wonder why everyone doesn’t prepare it this way. Entrées, especially a veal chop with mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes, and chicken and spinach lasagna in spicy arrabiata sauce, were excellent: unfortunately, desserts didn’t measure up. Peach cobbler was a mushy mass of soft fruit and softer dough, and the berry tan on passion fruit cream looked lovely, but lacked flavor. Still, the wine list is nice, and all in all, there’s nothing in Dallas quite like Parigi. 3311 Oak Lawn. 521-0295. Moderate to expensive.



The Promenade at the Mansion. Lunch at the Promenade features some terrific examples of Kew Southwestern cuisine. The Southwest ancho pizza with smoked chicken, jalapeno jack cheese, poblano peppers, and cilantro may be the best New Wave pizza in Dallas. Southwestern-style soups, especially the yellow-tomato gazpacho, are also outstanding. The pork loin scaloppini with a sauce of capers, tomato, smoked bacon, and parsley is yet another winner. 2821 Turtle Creek Blvd. 559-2100. Moderate to expensive.



Routh Street Cafe. The muffins, salads, sorbets, and desserts here always blow away all criticism; this lime even the unlikely-sounding sorbets (chocolate sapote-sarsaparilla ice?) were as spectacular as the down-home-sounding desserts (banana-cream macadamia-nut pie with fudge sauce and blackberry buckle). But the appetizers and main courses are spectacular only some of the time; they can also be just a bit too experimental. We loved our quail with saffron fettuccine and our venison with a blue-corn tamale, but our black bean cake with sea scallops and our lamb with a guajillo-chili waffle (!?) didn’t entirely work. 3005 Routh at Cedar Springs. 871-7161, Very expensive.



Sam’s Cafe. After a period of hits and misses under former chefs, Sam’s kitchen is on a winning streak, thanks to the direction of the current chef, David Feder. Lobster pizza was outstanding, as was a special pasta paired with chunks of tenderloin and homemade “vulgar chocolate” ice cream thai may be the most intense ever. 100 Crescent Court, Suite 140. 855-2233. Moderate to expensive.



San Simeon. This sleek-looking spot has the undeniable cachet of chic, as well as one of the most experienced teams of maitre d’ and waiters in town. But we are yet to be convinced that the food matches the ambience and the reputation. Attempts at the flashy eclecticism of New Southwestern cooking seem halfhearted; the crab in a Mandarin pancake in a spicy sauce, for instance, seemed awfully like an old-fashioned crepe in a classic French sauce americaine (and the crab seemed limp, with an unacceptable number of shell bits). Fish is the strong suit of chef Richard Chamberlain, formerly of Ratcliffe’s: the swordfish with a black-bean citrus sauce was the highlight of our meal. 2515 McKinney at Fairmount in Chateau Plaza. 871-7373. Expensive.



Spatz. I had heard that Spatz is a great little neighborhood bistro, and it is actually in my neighborhood. Still, Spatz is worth stopping at even if it’s not in your neighborhood-the service is friendly, the place is cozy, but light and bright, and the food is imaginative and good. Highlights of our visit: shrimp and mango quesadillas. fettuccine with pine nuts. sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, and garlic in a cream sauce, steak with chèvre and roasted shallots, and orange macadamia nut cheesecake. 2912 Henderson. 827-7984. Moderate.



SEAFOOD



Aw Shucks. The best fried things in life are fat-free, virtually, if they’re cooked right. And as far as I’m concerned, the catfish, oysters, and shrimp served here qualify on both counts. I’ve never had a better whole farm-raised (as opposed to river-caught) catfish than the corn meal-crusted golden beauties that are any day’s catch at Aw Shucks’s order counter, and the fillets, giant butterflied shrimp, and oysters of our latest visit were almost as succulent. If you’re crazy about crabcakes, you’ll find them here heavier on crab meat than most. 3601 Greenville. 821-9449. 4535 Maple. 522-4498 Village at Bachman Lake, 3701 W Northwest Hwy. Suite 310. 350-9777 1718 N Markel St. 748-4477. Inexpensive.



Café Pacific. The star turn at our table was veal Oscar, an impressively thick, tender cut enhanced with crab meal, snapping-fresh asparagus spears, and zippy hollandaise. Admittedly, a ceviche of lobster, baby scallops, and shrimp was opulently presented, spiked with tomato and cilantro confetti, but its lime marinade struck me as a trifle sharp. And an entree of jumbo shrimp sautéed scampi style, while fresh, was not nearly as exciting as the veal. A wedge of light cheesecake with kiwi and strawberry sauce held our combined attention, I must say. And the service could not have been more competent. Highland Park Village. Preston at Mockingbird. Suite 24. 526-1170. Expensive.



Fishmonger’s Seafood Market and Cafe. Simple dishes like the boudin sausage appetizer and fried catfish or shrimp come off as well as expected (though the boiled peel and eat shrimp proved unappetizingly mealy in texture). The surprise is the excellence of the more elaborate dishes like the redfish Pontchartrain (grilled and topped with shrimp, crab, and mushrooms) and the scallops baked in lemon butter and topped with cheese. 1915 N Centrai at Chisholm, Suite 600. Piano. 423-3699. Moderate.



Hard Shall Cale. Both the New England clam chowder and the peel and eat shrimp make excellent beginnings here-neither of these standards is done better in Dallas. For the main course, we ordered the New England combo for two. At $33.95 this most expensive dish on the menu seemed quite a bargain, since it included two one-pound Maine lobsters, a pound each of cultured mussels and either Littleneck or Ipswich steamer clams, and new potatoes and com on the cob. Alt the shellfish was first-rate, but the potatoes and corn didn’t add much to the meal. 6403 Greenville Ave. 987-3477. Moderate.



Leo’s Seafood Grill. Among the starters, the shrimp in the cocktail are Orm and resilient and flavorful, the gumbo is fine if you like the dense, highly spiced variety, and the fried Calamari are tasty and crisp, if chewier than you might like. Main courses include exemplary versions of fried catfish and commeal-coated fried shrimp. The only seafood dish that disappointed us was the so-called seafood stew- the dish came with a thick sauce rather than as a soupy-type stew, and the shellfish included some rather over-the-hill mussels and tough scallops. The biggest surprise at Leo’s is the desserts-the Key lime pie is surprisingly tart and authentic, and the chocolate-pecan pie has a splendid filling and a Oaky crust. 12255 Greenville. Suite 130. 234-3474. Inexpensive to moderate.

Newport’s. Newport’s is at its best in its simplest dishes-grilled silver salmon, on our last visit, was perfectly plain and perfectly wonderful; a sampler appetizer tray of raw clams, shrimp, oysters, and ceviche could not have been fresher. Some of the trendier offerings are as delightful-a crab quesadilla, for instance, was to swoon over, tender flaked meat with cheese between crisp flour tortilla triangles-and some are not: a boned rainbow trout was eclipsed by its roasted tomatillo sauce, itself delicious but loo heavy for the delicate fish. Desserts, ranging from a flawless crème caramel to a chocolate truffle pie of surpassing richness, are exceptionally good. 703 McKinney in the Brewery 954-0220. Expensive.



D REVISITS



Theodores. Advertised as a seafood restaurant. Theo dore’s offers as well a full complement of Greek dishes from taramousalata (a pink fish-roe dip) to moussaka (the divine Greek casserole of lamb eggplant, topped with a creamy custard and delicately tinet with cinnamon). But the creatures of the briny deep occupy the bulk of the menu, and Theodore’s does a good job with most of them-though be forewarned that a simply, delectably broiled whole flounder will be adorned with an herbal oregano accent that you may not have bargained for! The humbler dishes like the fried fish and shrimp sandwiches can be disappointing, but the Greek- style shrimp scampi (with tomato and feta cheese) is extraor dinary. The Corner, Walnut Hill at N Central Êxpwy. 361-1922. Moderate to expensive. -W.L.T.



SOUTHERN



The Blue Onion Restaurant. The food here is all honest and well prepared, even if it seldom excites. Probably the best is the pot roast, so tender it has fallen apart before it reaches the plate and rich with the sweet taste of carrots and slow-cooked beef. The fried shrimp are much better than average, and the chicken pot pie tastes homemade, though the biscuits on top are a flimsy substitute for a crust. Desserts are supersweet and a bit bland-just like Momma used to make? 221 W Parker Rd at Centra! Expressway, Piano. 424-2114. Inexpensive.



Celebration. After years of exploration of Celebration’s menu, I have finally found its weak spot: spaghetti, which vies with Highland Park Cafeteria’s version for the title of worst desecration of pasta in town. However, everything else on a recent visit was as swell as ever. Given its consistent record, one problem dish can hardly be held against Celebration, which is an enduring source of well-prepared comfort food. 4503 W Lovers Lane. 351-5681. Moderate.



Highland Park Cafeteria-Casa Linda Plaza. On our last visit, I assembled a fine country vegetarian meal of macaroni and cheese, Collard greens long-simmered with cubed side pork (as they should be), and sliced cucumbers marinated, by some happy miracle, in vinegar without sugar. My companion’s fried whole trout had gone dry from holding over heat, but his tomato-avocado aspic was firm, tan, and fresh, and his stewed corn was from-the-can but passable. 300 Casa Linda Plaza. Buckner Blvd at Garland Rd. 327-3663. Inexpensive.



Kingsley Country Cafe. The big, delicate, crunchy catfish fillets are winners, and the chicken-fried steak is one of the better versions around. Our party was divided on the merits of the country-grilled pork chops; (hey had a smoky, intriguing, hard-to-place taste, but were rather chewy in texture. The barbecue tasted as though all its flavor came out of a commercial bottle of sauce, but the portions-in fact, all the portions here-were humongous. Some effort has gone into the vegetables, but why do all these country-style places think they have to douse their mashed potatoes in enough black pepper to cause a body to get a sneezing fit? Desserts are best skipped over. Skillman at Kingsley. 340-0600. Inexpensive.



Lena’s Placa. Lena’s Place turns out definitive chicken-fried steak, fried chicken, and crunchy catfish fillets-not to mention very good meat loaf and the juiciest hamburgers in Dallas. The side dishes are just as remarkable: exemplary green beans and black-eyed peas, just-right red beans and rice, fresh squash that is not at all watery or bitter, and mashed potatoes that belong in the Dallas culinary hall of fame. But the waits for the food are either maddening or laughable, depending on one’s disposition, and the kitchen is forever running out of things on the menu. Forewarned is forearmed. Caruth Plaza, 9100 N Central Expressway, Suite 111 987-9152. Inexpensive.



The Mecca. Inside the Mecca, it’s always 1957. This is one old favorite that repays revisiting, whether for breakfast, which features immense omelettes, real-thing hash browns, and swell biscuits, or for lunch, when chicken-fried steak is in order. 10422 Harry Hines. 352-0051. Inexpensive.



Rosemaries. Rosemarie Hudson never forgets a customer, and her warmth accounts in part for the fanatical loyalty this little cafeteria-style operation inspires; the terrific chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes, yeast rolls, and peanut butter pie also might have something to do with it. 1411 N Zang. 946-4142. Inexpensive.

Theo’s Diner. Don’t fret because this landmark has changed hands and undergone a minor face-lifting. The little diner thai could still docs, making from-scratch burgers and garlic-breathed grilled cheese sandwiches as homey as any around, as well as the undisputed best skins-on fries that have ever passed my lips. A new special added to the daily lunch menu. Greek spinach-and-feta pie. must be good too; on our visit, it was all gone before we could try it. 111 S Hall at Commerce. 747-0936, Inexpensive.



Tolbert’s Chill Parior. Most specialties we tried reflected some care in preparation, and all ingredients seemed fresh and high-quality. The chili labeled Frank’s Original Texas Red wouldn’t win this year’s award at Terlingua. but it’s a respectable, if undereasoned, long-simmered version studded with bile-sized beef cubes. Donkey tails, a pair of cheese-stuffed hoi dogs wrapped in flour tortillas and deep-fried, are an inspired Tolbert invention, and the onion-sparked mustard served with diem is a robust accent. For my money, though, the burgers are the best bet-the Fredericks-burger, a two-handed slack of cooked- to-order beef, bacon. Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and onions, is big enough to qualify as a for-two entrée. 350 N St Paul. Suite 160. 953-1353. 1800 N Market. 969-0310- Inexpensive.



STEAKS



Del Frisco’s. The best steak you can buy in Dallas-if you can can stand beef so laden with cholesterol and if you have the money-is Del Frisco’s ribeye. It’s lush and perfectly aged and likely to be perfectly cooked. Another plus in Del Prisco’s favor is that the side dishes are much tastier than those usually found even in high-priced steakhouses. The shrimp remoulade, the au gratin potatoes, and the rich desserts Etc all worth ordering. The one drawback is that Bew Del Prisco’s is more expensive than ever. The prices of the steak haven’t gone up, but now you don’t get a potato unless you pay extra-only marvelously crusty Frenck bread and a salad are included in the busic price. The Crescent, 2200 Cedar Springs. 526-2101. Expensive.



Hoffbrau. Maybe you bave m be a UT alum to appreciate this place, modeled on a famotts austia hangout. The mys-tique includes a particular, rigid formula lor serving the-steaks: they aft preceded by a salad mat includes lots of chopped preen olives, they are accompanied by long, soggy fried potato quarters. and they are doused by a sauce of lemon and margarine. The steaks themselves really aren’t too bad. perhaps because the beef is cooked in a pan or on a griddle, rather than charbroiled. This gives a more reliable way to gauge doueriez and keeps the steaks from tasting unpleasantly overcharted, the way they so frequently do at the chain beef establishments. 3205 Knox, 559-2680. Moderate.



Lawry’s The Prime Rib. Everything you eat at Lawry”s is accompanied by elaborate ritual, beginning with the semi-bizarre spinning salad, in which a plastic bowi of greens is set whirting in a bowl of cracked ice .is it is anointed from DU high by bottled Lawry’s dressing. When the beef arrives, yon expct trumpets to herald the beef curl, which looks somewhat like the QE2 as it lumbers down the aisle. The cart is laden with six roasts in varying degrees of donesess, available in different size cuts: once the beef is on your plate, accompanied by unexceptionm buttered peas and mashed potatoes, you understand what the hoopla is all about. No one bothers to cook prime rib like this anymore. The tender, marbled slice mas raspberry-red. rimmed with fat. and flavorful to the last bite. 3008 Maple Ave. 521-7777. Expensive.



Morton’s of Chicago. The porterhouse steaks are magnificent chunks of beef, and they are likely to be served just as specified. Some of the other dishes are fine, too. The lump crab meat is simplicity itself, perfectly fresh (though with a few too many flecks of shell). The Caesar salad is robust, and the chocolate soufflé for two a fine end to a meal. For those Who don’t want beef, the lobsters here are plansibly priced and nicely prepared. Our only complaints on our most récent visu were insteless bash-brown potatoes and the style of service that recites the menu in rote fashion. 501 Elm. 741-2277. Expensive.



TAKEOUT/DELI



Begelstein’s. This is more than Dallas’s best bagel em-porium. Past the bakery, there is a deli. Past the deli, there is a restaurant with several levels of seating Here you can order superior breakfast specials, complete with flesh hash browns and toasted bagels. Or you can order elaborate sand-wiches made from pastrami or Smoked longue. and other deli fate like chopped liver. lox, or knackworst. Or you can order complete dinners, including surprisingly tasty broiled fish accompanied by pilat and fresh broccoli. NorthwoodHills Shopping Center, 8104 Spring Valley. 234-3787. Inexpensive to moderate.



City Market. Ordering involves some executive decision-making- it’s hard to choose from the wide selection of delicioins, imaginative salnds (almond chicken with rice, potatoes in pesto with black olives, marinated beef with peppers), hearty soups, and excellent sandwiches. This is not the time to skip dessert-in addition to the apricot-raisin bread pudding, on my last visit there was a glorious hot chocolate pudding/cake I thought only my mother could make. 200 Trammell Crow Center (Ross at Harwood). 979-2690. Inexpensive.

Crescent Gourmet. In addition to the daily menu of sandwiches and salads. Crescent serves hot and cold daily specials, a soup du jour, assorted cookies, cobblers, and sweets, and even offers a wing list. But while the ingredients are of high quality, most of the dishes we tried lacked season-ing: chicken and tuna salads were meaty but bland, shrimp bisque tasted only faintly of shrimp, and the brownies were more sweet than chocolate. On the upside, the foeaccia bread on te tasty bacon-avoeado sandwich nets our vote for best sandwich bread in town, the cinnamon-spiked three-berry cobbler was summer incarnate, and the white and dark chocolate chip cookies were killers. 400 Crescent Court. 871-3223 Inexpensive to moderate.



Marty’s. The selection at Marty’s is enormous and celcetic-you can purchase all or part of any meal. to prepare at home or ready-to-heat. Everything is here, from chicken finpers to paté, caviar to potato salad. We took home supper; chicken breasts Marsala, lemon pasta, marinated vegetables, and Key time pie. My immediate treat, a piece of orange manalade cake, was the only disappointment-it was a liule too moist to be pleasant. The people who work here are extremely friendly and helpful-another Marty’s trademark. 3316 Oak Lawn. 526-4070. Moderate.

Pacific Express. The smoked chicken satad with walnutsand the beef tenderion and tarlsberg cheese sandwich with jalapeno chutney were fine, but the tuna salad was overwhelmed by blus cheese, and the tortellini in the pastavegetable salad were scarce and overcooked to the point of. disintegration. Tropical fraits cake was dry; peach, cobbler was musby. Perhaps the kitchenwas having a bad; a bad day; I hope so. 1910 Pacific Place at 1910 Elm. Suite 103. 969-7447. Inexpensive.



Pasta Plus. One of Dallas’s first fresh pasta shops is still one of the best for pasta anyway. Prepared items-meat lasagna, baked ziti with three cheeses, and chicken cannelloni were our choices- -were presented in Mom-style Pyrex casseroles and looked delicious, but sunffered in taste and texture when reheated. Salads (green, marinated vegetable. and pasta) were good, but the pasta outshines the pluses–rotelle, meat-stuffed tortellini and marinara, and piselli (cream with mushrooms and peas) sauces were wonderful in any combination. Be forewarned-Pasta Pins doesn’t take credit cards, which seems odd: takeout implies convenience, and for me. convenience means plastic. 225 Preston Rayal East. 373-3999. Inexpensive.



Petaluma This terrific takeout shop is pretty enough to cat in and the food’s good enough to take home to guests-not unexpectedly. since Petauma shares a kitchen with Sae Simcon, Like so many spots with go-or-stay options, Pesaluma suffers from confusing service procelures. It turns out that you place your order at the counter, but a waitress brings it to you if you take a table. Soups, salads, sand-wiches. and desserts were uniformly excellent on my last visit, standouts being Oriental chicken satad, pasta with sundried tomatoes, potato saiad with fresh dill dressing, and white chocolate “blondies.” 2515 McKinney. 871-2253. Inexpensive.



Tommaso’s. The pastas fine at litis Indian to-go shop, but the takeout is really tops. Classic dishes like lasagna and cannelloni hold up welt after reheating. and the rotolo, pasta rolled with ricotta. spinach, and mozzarella and topped with your choice of sauce, makes an impressive frist course or. sided with salad and bread, an elegant lunch or supper entrée Even desserts -such as cappuccino cheesecake-are deliclous, There is also a limited selection of lalian essentials-good quality olive oil. pesto. fresh Parmesan, and bread, so this really is one-stop shopping for the gourmet on the go. 5365 Spring Valley at Montfort. 991-4040. Inexpen-sive to moderate.

THAI



BanghoK Inn. Despite its sign proIaiming “We Expert in Chinese Food,” most patrons think that Bangkok Inn is. expert in Thai food. Both the pad Thai, the great Thai rice. noodle dish, and the moo satay are exceptional here. Bring your own wine; there’s no corkage fee 6033 Oram. 321-8979. Inexpensive.

Chao Wang Thai and Chinese Restaurant, Though there arc ethnic restaurants in most parts of Dallas. Thai restaurants are not so common yet that every neighborhood has one. That’s why Chao Wang seems a place to treasure, though its cooking can’t compete with the very best Siamese cuisine in the city. The moo satay-curried strips of pork grilled on a skewer-is especially flavorful here, and the Panang beef has a thick sauce in which lime leaves lurk. Sadly, the lunch buffet includes only Chinese dishes, which can be avoided on the dinner menu. Keystone Park Shopping Center. Suite 400. 13929 N Central Expwy. 437-3900. Moderate.



Thai Lanna. Thai Lanna does all the spicy, tangy Siamese specialties with pizazz, but it bas a special way with vegetable dishes, such as eggplant, and noodle dishes. The soups, too, are terrific. The chicken and coconut milk soup, for instance, contains a potpourri of mysterious fresh herbs and aromatic roots-but be careful, because it’s hotter than any Mexican dish you’re likely to get this side of Monterrey. 1490 W Spring Valley. 690-3637. Inexpensive.



D REVISITS



Thai Soon. This has quickly become one of the most popular Thai restaurants in Dallas, and it’s easy to see why-the tiny jade green room with its Indonesian print cloths has a funky coziness thai is most appealing, and the mostly vegetarian menu is appealing, too. Don’t miss the corncakes (called corn patties); soups and curries are also outstanding. 2018 Greenville. 821-7666 Inexpensive.

-M.B.M.



VIETNAMESE



Arc-en-Ciel. The French name (which means “rainbow”) points to the former French dominion in Southeast Asia, and this restaurant is mostly interesting because of its Vietnamese cooking, though a large menu of Chinese dishes is also available. The servers are willing but not able to help much about the terse Vietnamese menu. The Seven Courses of Beef turned out to contain the best dishes-some homemade sausages of various shapes and textures that had been grilled to a turn. Most everything on the Vietnamese side of the menu is supposed to be rolled up in rice paper with julienned vegetables and dipped in a vinegary hot sauce, producing a kind of Southeast Asian taco. 3555 W Walnut at Jupiter, Garland. 272-2188. Inexpensive to moderate.



East Wind. Spring and summer mils were extremely mild-flavored, even dipped in the fish sauce that accompanied them; the latter’s carrots were threads, not shreds, and needed more of those lethal little red-pepper flecks to zip up their spirits. A day’s-special roast duck was succulent, but hardly seasoned at all. Charcoal-broiled pork, diced and attractively mounded on a lettuce leaf, was dust-dry ; plum sauce, brought only at our request, was unpleasantly sweet. A mélange of chicken, mushrooms, scullions, and vegetables cooked and served in a hot clay pot had more flavor, thanks more to its ingredients than to seasoning. 2711 Elm St. 745-5554. Inexpensive to moderate.

Mekong. Mekong’s menu gives Vietnamese and Chinese fare equal time On the Vietnamese side, appetizers of shredded shrimp and pork rolled with lettuce in tender rice paper caught fire and flavor from the pepper-spiked carrot sauce that came with them. The hot pot soup was a stellar array of chicken and seafoods cooked until barely tender with still-crisp celery, pepper, and onion strips in an ambrosial broth. I’d have bet nothing from Mekong’s Chinese listings could possibly equal that soup. I’d have been wrong. An entree of roast duck al most outshone it-roasted whole in a hot stone over camphor wood chips, the golden-skinned bird was delicately scented-and served with a saucer of salted lemon juice heavily laden with fresh-ground black pepper, it was superb. 4301 Bryan Street. Suite 101. 824-6200. Inexpensive.



Saigon. First time I dined here. I ordered the shrimp wrapped around sugar cane simply to see what it was. Since, I’ve ordered it every visit because the dish is so transcendent-ly marvelous-the shrimp pureed and molded around slim sticks of sweet cane, then grilled and served with lettuce and cilantro leaves, cucumbers and carrot slices, all to be wrapped in rice paper and dipped in hoisin sauce for savoring. Savory it is, and addictive, too-but we did save room last trip to find several other dishes equally stellar. Among them: chicken simmered with beer in a deep, rich tomato sauce with bread for dipping (we fought over it);aspecial-of-thc-day fried catfish, succulent to the bone, in whisper-delicate batter; chicken done yet another way, in hot chili and lemon grass-celestially incendiary, if that’s not an oxymoronic appraisal. 1731 Greenville. 828-9795. Inexpensive.

LAS COLINAS/MID CITIES



Cacharel. This pretty establishment has a fixed price of $10 for lunch and $24 for dinner. The fa re-including such Gallic classics as green salad with goal cheese, asparagus soup, scallops with an assertive tarragon sauce, and Iamb with a natural-juice sauce-would be worth twice the tariff. Brookhollow Two, 2221 E Lamar, Suite 910. Arlington. {817) 640-9981. Moderate.

Moretti’s. Somebody wised us up on this little Italian restaurant-we would certainly never have found il on our own. tucked into a shopping strip in a country setting. There are real Italians doing the cooking, and the food is as good as we had heard. The luncheon menu is dominated by standard dishes like tortellini in a butlery broth. lasagna with a hearty tomato sauce, and veal Marsala with a delicious sauce (though the veal itself was a bit pasty from imprecise sautée-ing). The dinner menu lists more intricate creations, like veal with prosciutto and fresh zucchini and capellini with scallops-we want to return to try them. 2709 Mustang Drive, Grapevine. (817) 481-3230. Inexpensive to moderate.

Tandoor. Tandoor offers a superior assortment of appetizers: minced lamb patties, vegetables fried in chickpea batter, turnovers with potatoes and peas, and cheese fritters stuffed with mint chutney. A tomato and coconut milk soup provided a pleasurable interlude before our main dishes, which were a relative letdown: tough curried lamb and slightly overcooked tandoori chicken. 532 Fielder North Plaza, south of 1-30. Arlington. 1817) 261-6604. Moderate.

Via Reál. The appetizers include such novelties as crepa de salmone (thin slices of smoked salmon enfolded in crêpes and served dry except for a garnish of pico de gallo) and rellenos de pescado (cylinders of Tish mousse studded with salmon and surrounded by a rich sauce). Main courses at Via Reál also tilt toward the seafood end. Town North Centre, 3591 N Belt Line at Northgate, Irving. 255-0064. Moderate.



FORT WORTH



Hedary’s. They say the Lebanese are the French of the Middle East, culinarily speaking; the fare at Hedary’s bears this out. Middle Eastern cuisine is full of strong flavors-mint, onion, and garlic-combined here with finesse. For a one-visit overview, order the maza, a selection of salads, and a meat combination plate. That way you can sample a little of everything: tabuli (wheal, tomato, and parsley salad), hummus (garlicky pureed chickpeas), savory fried falafel, lentils, cucumbers in yogurt, and a delicious batin-jan mtabbal (roasted eggplant dip), along with freshly baked puffed pila bread. The meat plate features homemade sujuk (hot beef sausage), kafta (ground beef rolls), Lebanese shish kebab, and a version of the national dish of Lebanon, kib-bi, that compared favorably with my mother-in-law’s. 3308 Fairfield at Camp Bowie- (817) 731-6961. Moderate.

Le Chardonnay. Former Ceret chef Philip Lecoq is a co-owner of this bistro, and its combination of serious food and an informal atmosphere is reminiscent of that late, lamented establishment. The lamb chops topped with goat cheese, served with a rosemary sauce and accompanied by herbed French fries, are a standout. 2443 Forest Park Blvd. (817) 926-5622. Moderate.

Reflections. Fort Worth’s most beautiful and most serene dining room is the scene for some of its best food. The goat-cheese ravioli, served as an appetizer, sat in a creamy sauce and was dotted with caviar. Both the blackened redfish (accompanied by Maryland crabcakes) and the juicy, pink rack of lamb were perfectly cooked. And the dessert cart offered a raspberry tart with a firm, crisp crust and a chocolate cake with rich buttercream frosting. Our only reservations concerned some of the sauces-both the vinaigrette poured over the salads and the sauce accompanying the lamb had touches of sweetness that were not quite subtle enough. The Worthington Hotel. 200 Main. (817)870-1000. Expensive.

St. Emilion. Considering the four-course fixed price of $20 per person, it’s surprising that more Dallasites don’t make the trek to St. Emilion. The last time I did, the results were impressive. A thoughtfully put together salad (leaf lettuce, radicchio. watercress, walnuts, and bits of bacon dressed with walnut oil), textbook lobster bisque, rich spinach cannelloni, and creditable snails in garlic butter made for a great start. Juicy swordfish Provencal and nicely roasted duck with cherry sauce were all one could ask for. For dessert, pass on the fluffy, lightweight chocolate mousse and opt for the extraordinary crème caramel. 3617 W Seventh. (817) 737-2781. Moderate.

Tejano Mexican Cuisine. Fort Worth Tex-Mex lovers wail in line to sample this West Side establishment’s not-your-normal-enchilada fare. One of the trendier touches mat doesn’t work: an appetizer misleadingly called Arizona nachos and consisting of a lake of molten cheese on a single oversized flour tortilla, the whole hard-to-handle affair presented on a fiery foot-tall iron mini-grill. Forget it and order instead one that does: milk-fed cabrito (baby goal), roasted to a tender turn and lavished on a standard platter. If you must have fire on your table, a for-two specialty called parilla Tejano brings you the grill with a more manageable mélange of sizzling chicken and beef fajita strips, grilled with onions and peppers, plus all (he trimmings. Beware the salsa-it doesn’t sizzle, but you will. 5776 Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 737-7201. Inexpensive to moderate.

Tuscany. Both the look of (his place and the style of the cooking are meant to be reassuring-not stodgily old-fashioned but not so experimental that anyone is going to be alarmed-and the service is solicitous. The food is not without some original touches: the appetizer of eggplant fried and stuffed with ricotta and spinach is hardly old hat, and the fettuccine Carbonara is spiked with chopped scallions. The veal Livornese comes with very fresh-tasting shrimp, mussels, and clams still in their shells-and so much garlic butter that some might be put off. One dessert at Tuscany stands out-the puff pastry filled with berries and a pastry cream. 4255 Camp Bowie Blvd. Fort Worth. (817) 737-2971. Moderate to expensive.

Tutti Pazzi. Neither the appetizers we sampled (oysters baked with a pesto topping and a coarse rabbit pale with hazelnuts and dried figs) nor the salads (a version of Caesar and a house salad with greens, black olives, and marinated pinto beans) were impressive. The pastas and the small boutique pizzas proved more appealing. The fusilli dell’or-to are corkscrew noodles tossed with grilled zucchini and eggplant, sun-dried tomatoes, yellow peppers, and roasted garlic-fine if you like the pungency of the garlic. The grilled lamb chops were a fairly standard version. Their marinara mint sauce turned out to be a minty glaze and some chopped tomatoes on the side. 300 Main St. (817) 332-2664. Moderate to expensive.

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