RESTAURANTS DINING OUT

JEAN-CLAUDE Prevot. Guy Cal-luaud. These men, who have lit up the Dallas dining scene for years, were gustatory pioneers, proving they could serve stellar specialties in this Southwestern outpost. In the process, they have paved the way for three new stars, up and coming continental chefs in the constellation of Dallas cuisiniers.

Like Mozart, these culinary composers are all child prodigies (their ages range from 25 to 31) charged with orchestrating the eating of not only discerning patrons in their temples of haute cuisine, but also of the many hotel guests and employees as well. Their output is as prodigious as any maestro’s; the food can be as delicate as a piccolo player’s pianissimo or as bold as a bellowing contrabassoon. Meet Christian Chemin of the Mansion, Peter Schaffrath of the Plaza of the America’s Cafe Royal, and Andrew Spahr of the AMFAC’s east tower. Here, in a nutshell, is a glimpse of their genius.

Christian Chemin will never forget the day the Mansion opened for lunch. The first customers were scheduled to arrive at 11:30. At 11:25, the air conditioner (in deep August, no less) groaned and quit.

Restaurant kitchens are hot even when the air conditioning works. Without it, the stagnant air above the ranges quickly grew hotter and hotter; in a matter of minutes the intense heat had pushed up the mercury several degrees. This triggered the automatic sprinkler system. Suddenly, the kitchen looked like the set of White Christmas. White powder fire retardant blanketed everything, including the food. Chemin had to announce to the eager patrons that the Mansion was still not open for lunch.

Chemin, 30, is the quintessential Frenchman. His Gallic accent is as thick as a chocolate mousse. He has a ready smile and a quick wit. One is certain he remains cool under pressure. Not even the fire retardant could ruffle him.

He grew up in Rouen, in Normandy. At 14, he started a three-year apprenticeship at a small provincial restaurant. “For the first six months they taught me how to wash the floor, clean the stove, and polish the copper before they would trust me with peeling onions,” he laughs.

He couldn’t resist America, so he headed for Milwaukee, where he was enlisted as executive chef at the Pfister Hotel. But the bone-chilling temperatures there cooled his ardor somewhat. “One evening the temperature fell to zero. 1 said, ’Boy, it’s cold in this city.’ One of my cooks answered, ’Winter’s not even here yet.’ I decided then and there I was going to get out before winter came. I went to the general manager and told him I had to migrate south for the winter.”

Hence the manager’s call to an old friend, Clif Zwirner, (now the general manager of the Mansion), who was assembling the staff for a new restaurant in Dallas. Chemin’s reputation had proceeded him; he was packing his bags again before he had even unpacked the thermal underwear.

Since the Mansion was conceived as a 21 clone, Chemin flew to the New York club to learn the style of cooking in the famed kitchen on 52nd Street. (His strength is nouvelle cuisine; the menu at the Mansion is a combination of the two.) On one point there was total agreement: All the food had to be fresh. The Mansion’s commodious kitchen houses only a lilliputian freezer; it could easily fit in a home. Shrimp is the only foodstuff that arrives frozen.

Chemin is adventurous; variety is the key to the Mansion’s success because it’s banking on repeat business. (Some patrons eat three lunches and three dinners a week there.) “We cook with eight different kinds of mushrooms. That’s more mushrooms than Simon David,” he adds proudly.

When he’s not working, Chemin says he sleeps. On Sundays, his day off, he likes to roller-skate around White Rock Lake to disco music pushing his two-year-old daughter’s stroller. Every Sunday he takes his family to the steak and egg brunch at Bennigan’s, he admits somewhat sheepishly. When he relaxes at home, he steams a cup of espresso, pulls out some homemade sorbet, and watches TV.

Peter Schaffrath, executive chef of the Plaza of the Americas hotel, remembers the day he cried in the kitchen. Schaffrath is responsible for creating the Café Royal, the most expensive, exclusive dining establishment in the land of the real-life Ew-ings. Schaffrath, a German, has comman-diered some of the finest kitchens in Europe. He has captured his profession’s highest awards, including two gold medals in the 1976 international Cooking Olympics and a first place medal in the prestigious Baron de Rothschild Mouton Cadet competition in 1977 with the Baron himself as one of the judges. He is a man with vision, an artiste whose food reaches the pinnacles of performance. And yet, he says, he was forced to witness some oil-rich Texan pouring ketchup on his milk-fed veal.

He began in Aachen, in northern Germany. As a young boy he traveled south to the Alps to spend his holidays with an uncle who owned a renowned restaurant. “I was always impressed by the ice cream. From the time I first visited, I always wanted to become a chef,” he remembers.

Like the Mansion, everything in Café Royal arrives fresh. Seasonal herbs are preserved in butter; using them dried would be anathema. Schaffrath strives for surprise; he takes pleasure in stretching his imagination to present his entrees in an unusual light. Nothing leaves the kitchen unless he or an assistant sees it first.

Schaffrath prides himself on never losing his temper in the kitchen. (“You excite the others. They lose their concentration and standards fall.”) So to work off steam, he works out playing four hours of singles tennis on Sundays, his day off.

Andrew Spahr represents the newest breed of Dallas chefs. He is American (born in Worchester, Mass.), young (25), and educated (Culinary Institute of America). He, too, trained in Europe (London), but he comes unencumbered with the temperamental traditions of the continent.

His ability to listen and cooperate cinched him the job of executive chef at the AMFAC East, one of the hotel towers at D/FW, where he watches over five restaurants (ranging from French provincial to New York deli), room service, a 2000 person capacity banquet room, and the employee cafeteria. There was great opposition to his selection, says Manfred Keiler, assistant director of food and beverage, solely because of his youth. But management was fed up with the prima donna pyrotechnics of his European predecessors. They decided to give him a chance.

Spahr started his culinary career at 16, working as a dishwasher at a hometown steakhouse. Soon he was up front at the hickory grill, char-broiling steaks. After an after-school stint as an assistant cook “for a crazy French chef,” he enrolled at the Culinary Institute of America and completed the requisite apprenticeship.

From there he went to the swanky Connaught Hotel in London where he was constantly razzed because of his culinary citizenship. “For the first two weeks all I heard about was ’burgerism,’ ” he laughs.

As executive chef at AMFAC East, Spahr is responsible for all catered dinners. Gimmicks are his strength. When Dr. Marvin Overton III, a Fort Worth en-ophile, enlisted his expertise for a meal featuring Bordeaux wines, Spahr prepared a mid-meal sorbet shaped in the state of Texas. At the precise spot where Fort Worth lies he placed an electric bulb under the see-through plate. The waiters turned out the lights and paraded the dessert through the darkened room.

He remembers only one time he was nervous in the kitchen-the time the TexasCowgirls came to brunch. It was also theonly time the executive chef ever joinedthe serving line as a buffet attendant.”How else was I going to look at the girls?”he laughs.

RECOMMENDED RESTAURANTS



These restaurants represent the best in Dallas and Fort Worth dining.

These listings are revised and supplemented periodically. Visits by our critics are made anonymously to avoid preferential treatment. Inclusion In this directory has nothing whatever to do with paid advertising.

The pricing symbols used are categorical, not precise. They indicate only a general price range.

$ Generally inexpensive. Usually indicates a good value.

$$ Middle ground and very general. Usually indicates a menu with a wide price range.

$$$ Expensive. You can expect to spend more than $15 for a complete meal excluding wine and cocktails.

$$$$ Very expensive.

Unless otherwise noted, all restaurants have full bar facilities.

Credit card notations: MC/MasterCard, V/Visa, AE/American Express, DC/Diners Club, CB/Carte Blanche. “All credit cards” indicates that all five are accepted.



DISCOVERIES



(Serendipitous Experiences From Off the Beaten Path)

Moctezuma’s. One cf the pleasures of summer is having a drink outside as the heat of the day gives way to the cool of the evening. With the addition of a small (eight tables) patio to the restaurant. Moc-tezuma’s provides one of the handiest stop-offs to have an after-work margarita. Our waiter strongly recommended the on-the-rocks margarita over the frozen version; we tried both, and he was right. The first is a strong, creditable version, the second like slushy limeade What the waiter didn’t say was that venturing past the drinks and into the food is a mistake The combination dinners are ordinary at best, and the specialties we tried all suffered from grayish-looking beef that appeared to have been boiled rather than broiled (3236 McKinney. 559-3010. Mon-Thur 11-11, Fri 11 -midnight, Sat noon-midnight, Sun noon-11. MC, V, AE, CB. $$)



CONTINENITAL



Caté Pacific. Dining in this classy Highland Park restaurant can be a good experience or a bad one, depending on how adroit you are at selecting the right entrees. We suggest you follow the cardinal rule for dealing with new restaurants: When dining in a fish place, order fish, Its that simple. We’ve sam-pled the clam chowder and found it to be the best we’ve had in quite some time. On a recent visit, we thoroughly enjoyed the fresh fried smelts that were mentioned as a special appetizer. But the same waiter let us down when he recommended the veal Oscar as the best of the veal entrees. While it was generously endowed with great globs of crab meat, heavy hollandaise overwhelmed the slivers of buttery veal underneath Appearances are revered here. Everything on the plate and around the tables seemed so appealing that you’ll be visually seduced into believing you’re having a splendid meal. Not so, at least not quite. (25 Highland Park Village. 526-1170. Lunch: Mon-Sat 11:30-2:30, Sun 11-2:30: Dinner: Sun- Thur 5:30-10, Fri & Sat till 10:30, bar till 1 am. Jackets required for men. MC, V, AE $$$)

Café Royal. The surroundings are as exquisite as the Mozart played by the pianist on duty during dinner As for the food, scallops in pepper sauce are a fine opener, and a better choice than the thin, too briny lobster soup. Classic entrées like sirloin with béarnaise sauce are safe bets; but the more adventurous nouvelle cuisine-inspired choices are the point here: among them, flavorful duckling supreme with mustard cream sauce and tender and piquant veal steak with lime butter. Minor shortcomings are dull salads, limp vegetables (which, at $3.50 a la carte should taste as good as they look), and occasionally burned coffee. Service can be very slow. But all is forgiven with the extraordinarily refreshing strawberry bavaroise. (Plaza of the Americas, 605 N Ervay. 747-7222. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-3; Dinner: Mon-Thur 6:30-10:30, Fri & Sat till 11. Alt credit cards. $$$$)

Calluaud’s. Calluaud’s is open again for lunch, good news for connoisseurs of class, since the place effectively defines class for Dallas restaurants. The lovely terra-cotta and cream-colored surroundings and the service are as quietly elegant as always. And the food continues to hold its own. While the entrees are never less than good, it is in the areas of appetizers and desserts that Calluaud’s truly shines. Two equally fine openers are scallops in white wine and cream sauce and mellow tomato soup that banishes all memories of the Campbell’s version. To finish, you can’t go wrong with any of the souffles or fruit tarts. (2619 McKinney. 823-5380. Lunch: Tue-Fri 11:30-2:30; Dinner: Mon-Thur 6-11, Fri & Sat seatlngs from 6-7and at 9:30. Closed Sun. Reservations only. MC, V, AE. $$$$)

The Chimney. The undisputed pride of The Chimney is the veal-which ranges from the simple Weiner Schnitzel, crisply pan-fried, to the complex fores-tiere, a thin cutlet bathed in a woodsy mushroom and cream sauce. But the appetizers are overpriced and, although the seafood pancakes in hollandaise were tasty, the remainder were uninspired. Even though the desserts were homemade, they tasted as if they had been baked at home several weeks earlier. The wine list is spotty and has markups of up to 300 per cent. Overall, if you don’t order veal, you’ll see your money go up in smoke. Service is lackluster -we waited an hour to be seated on one visit. (Willow Creek Center, 9739 N Central at Walnut Hill. 369-6466. Lunch: Tue-Sat 11:30-2; Dinner: Tue-Sat 6-10:30, Sun 6-10. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)



D Revisits Jean Claude. The only bad thing about eating at Jean Claude is the demands it places on one’s short-term memory. There is no menu; instead, the waiter recites for you first the appetizers, then the entrees, and finally the desserts available. Given that there are often 10 or more entree choices, you may feel exhausted by the time coffee arrives. But once you’ve ordered, all is well, with Jean Claude himself chopping and sautéing in the open-air kitchen. For appetizers, we’ve enjoyed the scallops in cream and garlic sauce, the salmon mousse, and the warm crab meat and lobster salad. Only the patés have disappointed. Jean Claude is particularly successful-and imaginative-with fish entrees, among them swordfish with grapefruit sauce and poached trout wrapped in lettuce. For dessert, you can’t go wrong with the intensely chocolate mousse or the fruit tarts. (2404 Cedar Springs. 653-1823. Tue-Sat seat-ings at 6 and 9. Reservations only. MC. V, AE. $$$)



Ewald’s. For years the food and ambiance had made the dining experience here the closest most of us will come to having a home-cooked continental meal-served In the home of the chef. The food is still consistently good, and the service is still excellent. We’ve always been partial to the veal dishes: Veal Ibn-Saud (veal in curry sauce), veal papagallo (veal stuffed with Canadian bacon, Swiss cheese, and sour cream), and veal steak au moulin (veal sautéed with mushrooms, cognac, and cream) are all on a par with the simple veal with lemon butter, which ranks with the best in the city. Another dish that Ewald’s executes excellently is pepper steak, flamed in cognac and served with crushed white pepper. The best out-of-the-mainstream dish you’ll find is the house shrimp du chef, a broiled shrimp dish served with a tangy barbecue-like sauce. Desserts are delicious, especially the Black Forest cake and the strawberries Romanoff. (5415 W Lovers Ln. 357-1622. Mon-Fri 6-10:30, Sat till 11. Closed Sun. Reservations. MC, V, AE. $$$)

Jennivine. Jennivine is the ultimate wine bar, coupling fine wine with superior cuisine. Patés, which can be ordered a capella or as a prelude to dinner, were uniformly excellent and ranged from a creamy salmon to a coarse poivre. Jennivine was one of the first Dallas restaurants to swim in the rough waters of fresh fish. Catch the New England halibut, a juicy, sweet filet bathed in a garlic, dill, and butter sauce. And just when you thought it was safe to eat in a Dallas restaurant again, Jennivine has begun to feature shark. It was, well, chewy. Carnivores can devour the lamb curry, escorted by chunky mango chutney and fresh coconut and raisins. Chicken mirepoix, an Oriental-style saute with vegetables, is, however, oddly flavorless. Desserts are the restaurant’s Dunkirk. The cheesecake was plastery, the trifle trifling, and the rhubarb cream tasted like the fuel for the V2 rocket. (3605 McKinney. 528-6010. Lunch: Tue-Sat 11:30-2:30; Dinner: Mon-Thur 6-10; Fri & Sat 6-11. Closed Sun. Reservations. MC, V, AE, DC. $$)

Newcomer: L’Amblance. This may or may not be food in the ranks of the best continental food in town, but it is definitely the best you’ll ever eat in a converted gas station. Inside the uninspiring exterior is a first-rate restaurant that could well be characterized as “full-service.” The hosts greet patrons at the door as if welcoming house guests. And although the surroundings are standard cut-glass-and-starched-linen, the atmosphere is easy. Salads are impeccable, and soups are fresh and flavorful. Of the entrees we tried, we especially liked the tender medallions of veal with mushroom puree and the pepper-sauced filet mignon flamed with cognac (an exception to our usual rule of avoiding flamed dishes, which tend to be long on flash and short on flavor). The pastry selection is varied and gorgeous. (2408 Cedar Springs. 748-1291. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-2; Dinner: Mon-Sat 6:30-10:30. All credit cards. $$$)



Le Relais. This 24-hour glorified coffee shop is a welcome addition to the short list of local around-the-clock establishments. Although it certainly outdoes the competition at 4 am-Denny’s, 7-Eleven, the Brasserie-one expects more, considering the hefty tab. We haven’t had anything truly bad at Le Relais, but we haven’t had anything really good, either. Offerings range from pedestrian soups and sandwiches to more ambitious offerings (tasteless veal piccata, bland ham and mushroom crepes). Desserts-oversweet ice cream sundaes, over-liqueured chocolate mousse, and uninspired fruit tarts-look a lot better than they taste. (Plaza of the Americas, 605 N Ervay. 74 7- 7222, ex 1706. Daily: 24 hours. No reservations. All credit cards. $$$)

Le Remdez-Vous. The expansion and refurbishment of this once-small bistro is the best thing that could have happened to the place. Before, it was small and intimate. And even though the size has doubled, the Intimacy is still not lost. What’s new, in addition to more tables, is an air of formality that makes the place seem like exactly what it is-a first-class French restaurant. The kitchen delivers consistent quality with a number of veal dishes and one of the better pepper steaks around. The cold salmon platter is excellent, although on more than one occasion we’ve been baffled to find that the salmon with béarnaise was a bust because the salmon was too dry. The shrimp Pernod, which has long been excellent, still is. Le Rendezvous excels in service: waiters are efficient but not hovering. (3237 McKinney at Hall. 745-1985. Lunch.Daily 11-5; Dinner: Daily 5-1, Fri & Sat till midnight. Reservations. All credit cards $$$)



Les Saisons. Les Saisons is a study in contrast-the French country inn decor of the window seating (with a splendid view of Turtle Creek and downtown) contrasts with the lush main eating area in the style of a Viennesse boudoir. The menu also reflects this theme of contrasts. The shrimp Les Saisons and the leeks with crab meat are both succulent appetizers of seafood morsels served in light piquant sauce, but the gameytasting escargot are to be avoided. The simple and superb cold smoked trout with horseradish sauce and cucumber salad is the best choice Salads are ho-hum, but the hearty onion soup is good of its kind. Among the entrees, we liked the rack of lamb and the grilled swordfish. But the veal chop with chanterelles is a good concept done in by an overzealous hand with the salt jar To finish the meal, we recommend the chocolate mousse and the fresh strawberries, marinated with just the right touch of Grand Marnier, and topped with sour cream. Service is attentive, with a refreshing lack of haughtiness. (165 Turtle Creek Village, Oak Lawn at Blackburn. 528-1102. Sun-Thur 11:30, Fri & Sat till midnight. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)

The Mansion. Like its parent, the 21 Club in New York, the Mansion is a place to see and be seen-no restaurant in Dallas can match the class and elegance of its decor. The soups and salads are high society; as for the entrees, while the breast of pheasant smothered with chanterelles was perfectly juicy and sweet, and the thick filet arrived charbroiled on the outside but pink on the inside as ordered, other entrees need some refurbishing. The chicken hash, a staple of the 21 Club, tasted disappointingly canned. As for the veal with goose livers, well, God probably never intended them to mingle on the same china. Desserts, though gorgeous, were a disaster The chocolate soufflé was chemical and pasty, the chocolate and tangerine mousse resembled unflavored gelatin, and the pot de chocolate came out ponderous and bitter The service is brusquely French, but grows friendlier the more you frequent the place. (2821 Turtle Creek Blvd. 526-2121. Luncn: Mon-Fri 11:30-2; Brunch: Sat 11-2, Sun 11-2:30; Dinner: Daily 6-10:30; Reservations. MC, V, AE, DC. $$$$)

Old Warsaw. A sense of quiet know-how accrued from three decades of experience pervades this restaurant. That’s not to say the place is without its eccentricities of character-it boasts pink flamingo paintings and is capable of serving a side dish of potato chips in a little basket sculpted of French fries. And how can a place create a Grand Marnier souffle that is unrivaled and still not be able to produce a decent vichyssoise? However, you can always get a meal of the traditional continental sort without a flaw; for example, start with the escargots, then a little steak tartare. followed by an entree of good ol’ duck a I’orange. There are a multitude of more exotic offerings, but a meal of old favorites somehow seems most fitting to this favorite old place. But don’t forget that you will pay the price, especially when you venture into the wine list which, despite some beautiful selections, ranks as one of the most absurdly overpriced in restaurantdom. (2610 Maple. 528-0032. Sun-Fri 6-10:30, Sat till 11:30. Reservations required All credit cards. $$$$)

Patry’s. Your appreciation of this restaurant may ultimately center on how much you believe in the axiom that good things come to those who wait On a recent visit we spent half an hour waiting in the bar for a table-even though we had reservations-and then spent 25 minutes anticipating the arrival of our waiter after we had been seated and given menus. That type of treatment is not totally extraordinary for Patry’s, which has a loyal following and a tendency to be cold and forboding to newcomers. But if you have a high tolerance for indifferent service, you can eventually dine in high style at Patry’s. The food is consistently good. The best entree on the menu is the leeks stuffed with milk sausage cooked in cream, and the pepper steak is among the best in the city. We also like the crab Nantua and the grilled lamb chops. Patry’s entrees are complemented by an excellent selection of fine desserts and one of the better wine lists in Dallas. (2504 McKinney. 748-37S4. Tue-Thur & Sun 6-10:30, Fri & Sat till 11. Closed Mon. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$$)

Pyramid Room. Five or six years ago, Dallas was buzzing over the fact that an evening for two at the Pyramid Room could easily cost $75 to $80. Now $100 to $150 is just as easy, but no one seems shocked anymore. Luckily, the Pyramid justifies the three-figure tab. A superb array of appetizers is led by the escargots en papillot chablisienne, six escar-gots nestled in tender chunks of chicken breast and sautéed with herbs and white wine. For a more subdued beginning, try smoked salmon accompanied by a glass of aquavit. Filet of sole, baked in a flaky pastry and served with lemon butter and bisque sauce, is a dependably delicious main course. Our beef tenderloin with bordeaux wine sauce was a quality cut, but was slightly undercooked. Veal sauteed in butter was, however, prepared to perfection. For a spectacular conclusion, you won’t regret selecting cherries fiambes, if you can take your eyes off the silver cart laden with pastries. (Fairmont Hotel, Ross and Akard. 748-5454. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-2; Dinner: daily 6-11. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$$)

Three Vikings. If Vikings could eat this well at home, why would Leif Ericson want to go to America, anyway? At Three Vikings, the quality of the entrees is among the best in town, and it’s hard to go wrong: There is crispy roasted duck with almond slices, served with a slightly sweet, piquant sauce; grilled salmon, properly moist, glazed with an amber sauce and topped with a dollop of dilled sour cream; filets of veal Norway, stuffed with mushroom filling and covered with a savory brown sauce. Appetizers are almost as good, with shrimp Erika and shrimp chowder the standouts. One would think that such obvious talent in the kitchen could produce creditable salads and desserts, but one would be wrong: Three Vikings’ salads are feeble, and desserts disappointing. (2831 Greenville at Goodwin. 827-6770. Mon-Thur6-10. Fri&Sat6-11. ClosedSun. Reservations. MC, V, AE, DC. $$$)

Valerlane’s. If you walk into Valeriane’s and experience a sense of déja vu, the feeling is understandable. The intimate restaurant used to be the home of Jean Claude. The new chef-proprietaire serves the same high-quality cuisine that characterized its predecessor. Everything is homemade, from the paté to the tart fresh fruit sorbets served as palate cleansers to the closing chestnut souffle. The scallop mousse was a mound of creamy fish doused in champagne sauce. Shrimp showered with soy sauce, ginger, and garlic showed you don’t have to be Chinese to turn out an authentic Oriental dish. Rack of lamb racked up points, and fish lovers should reel in the Dover sole, piled to the gills with crab meat. Only the sweets struck a sour note. Although the chestnut souffle was so light it nearly floated, the cappuccino mousse lacked the sting of espresso, and meringue chantilly glacée tasted like it came from Ashburn’s. (2520 Cedar Springs between Routh and Fairmount. 741-1413. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-2; Dinner: Mon-Sat 6-11. Closed Sun. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)



INDIAN



Sahib. You don’t have to wear a sari or own a Nehru jacket to like Indian food. If there is one place that curries our flavor, it is Sahib The interior in shades of forest green and peach is striking in its simplicity. Canopies of airy gauze float over the window-side tables. In the back are tandoors, clay ovens where you can watch the two best dishes being prepared: nan (fresh bread) and tandoori chicken (lobster-colored marinated chicken of extraordinary succulence). Dinrer begins with papads, spicy lentil wafers served with homemade chutney. Try the cold chicken cha:, spicy fork-tender chunks, as an appetizer. Fish masala is a tender filet served in a four-alarm hot tomato sauce. The pureed spinach was a perfect foil for the coriander and pink-to-perfection meat in lamD sagwala The all-you-can-eat lunch, which features a dozen of the restaurant’s specialties, is an untouchable bargain. (9100Caruth Plaza. 987-2301. Lunch: Daily 11:30-2:30, Dinner:Sun-Thur 5:30-11, Fri & Sat 6-11. MC, V, AE. $$)



ITALIAN



Camplsl’t. A Dallas institution whose charm may be lost on the uninitiated. Count on standing in line to gain admission to the dark, dingy interior attended by harried waitresses. Most of the veal, pasta, and pizza entrees are in the ordinary-to-tasty range. (Avoid, however, the overpriced, sorry crab claws.) The best bet is the mostaccioli (tube-shaped pasta) with outstanding homemade Italian sausage Dessert is either Black Forest cake or cheesecake, two equally bad options. (5610 E Mockingbird. 827-0355, 827-7711. Mon-Fri 11 am-midnight. Sat till 1 am. Sun noon-midnight. Reservations for 6 or more. No credit cards; personal checks accepted. $$)



D Revisits Ssrglo’s. The pastas the thing at Sergio’s- t’s homemade and the entree of choice. Top honors go to the ravioli-small pockets stuffed with spinich and topped with sausage and delicate tomato sauce. (Unhappily, the ravioli is not available at lunch.) We like the fettucini della casa with ham, mushrooms, and cream sauce almost as well And the seafood bellezza (available only at lunch) would be delightful if it weren’t quite so oily. Sergio’s also makes mean omelets and quite respectable veal dishes. The only problem is the limp salads covered in Dad white house dressing; opting for soup instead to accompany your entree is always a wise decision For dessert, the cannoli is overwhelmingly rich; a more virtuous choice is the strawberries Grand Marnier. (Suite 165, The Quadrangle, 2800 Routh. 742-3872. Lunch: MonSat 11:30-2, Dinner: Mon-Thur 6-10, Fri & Sat 6-10:30 closed Sun. Reservations. All credit cards. $$)



La Tosca. It’s obvious that this relative newcomer to the Dallas restaurant community is quickly becoming a tradition. Reason: La Tosca offers one of the most reliable and extensive Italian menus in town. The appetizers, for instance, include selections like cozze gratinate (broiled mussels with bread crumbs and garlic) and crespelle fiorentina (small crepes with spinach, ricotta, and cream sauce). La Tosca is one of the only places in town to offer an octopus salad, although at this writing we’ve yet to sample it. We liked the zuppa di lu-mache (escargot soup) and found the minestrone to be perfectly suited to our taste once we added some of the extra Parmesan the waiter brought with it. The best pasta dish is the paglia e fieno aurora (so-called “hay and straw” spinach and regular noodles in a tomato and cream sauce). Other strong points include the high-quality veal dishes like saltimbocca alla romana. The dessert menu is also filled with delicious surprises, like the superb strawberry tarts. (7713 Inwood. 352-8873. Tue-Fri 11:30-2, Tue-Thur 6-10:30, Fri-Sun 6-11. All credit cards. $$$)

Mario’s. About as far from the spaghetti-and-meatballs. red-checked-tablecloth stereotype as an Italian restaurant can be, Mario’s is elegant and, of course, expensive. Appetizers are somewhat disappointing: minestrone is boring, escargots are heavy, and sautéed shrimp is bland. But the main dishes- especially the many variations on veal and the homemade green lasagna-are consistently excellent, and served in generous portions. And the souffles equal those at any French restaurant in town. Service is friendly and efficient. (135 Turtle Creek Village, Oak Lawn at Blackburn. 521-1135. Daily 6-11, Sat till midnight. Reservations. Jackets required for men. All credit cards. $$$)



MEXICAN



D Revisits Chiquita. With its tablecloths, candles, and white-suited waiters, Chiquita is out of the ordinary compared to most Tex-Mex places in town. Therefore, it’s appropriate that Chiquita excels with its out of the ordinary specialties. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with the standard combination dinner offerings; it’s just that you can do as well or better elsewhere. But when it comes to dishes like carne asada tampico style (filet mignon with sautéed green peper and onions) or filete de la casa (filet mignon with garlic and hot peppers), you can’t match Chiquita’s combination of top-quality beef and skillful preparation. We’ve found that chicken and seafood specialties have not lived up to the standard of the beef dishes. And don’t miss the tortilla soup, a rich, oniony tomato broth with tortilla strips and melted white cheese. (3810 Congress off Oak Lawn. 521-0721. Mon-Thur 11:30-10:30, Fri & Sal till 11. Closed Sun. No reservations. MC, V, AE. $$)



D Revisits Raphael’s. It may be that Raphael’s has slipped somewhat from its longtime position as one of Dallas’ very best Mexican restaurants, or it may be that the growing competition from ambitious upstarts has simply overtaken this established enchilada outpost. Regardless, nobody’s bothered to tell the hungry hordes constantly waiting for tables. When a second location opened on Greenville Avenue, we thought it might be the answer. So far there is no waiting at the Greenville Raphael’s, but perhaps that is true because it doesn’t live up to the somewhat slipped standards of the original Raphaels. The Greenville menu is not identical-some items, like the superb strawberry or peach sopapillas, are missing, and some, like the dry, undersea-soned soft pork tacos, are present that aren’t available at the original. Therefore, we still recommend the Raphael’s on McKinney, if you have the stomach to wait. Once seated, head for the specialty dishes, many accompanied by wonderful pico de gallo. Two sure bets are the “authentic combination plate,” an assortment of specialties, and the tacos al carbon. (3707 McKinney. 521-9640. Mon-Fri 11:30-10:30, Sat noon-10. Closed Sun. Reservations Mon-Thur only. All credit cards. $$)



Mario & Alberto. This place has the same type offerings found at restaurateur Mario Leal’s home base, Chiquita. The staples like enchiladas, burritos, guacamole, and tacos are all well above the Dallas standard, as are the carne asada and the chile relleno. As is the case at many restaurants, however, straying away from the well-worn path of entrees is a gamble that doesn’t always pay off. Try the calabacitas rellenas (zucchini stuffed with ground beet and covered with cheese) and you lose; it’s a good idea that the chef just can’t execute-our zucchini took a steak knife to cut. But the few negatives on the menu are well overshadowed by the overall high quality of the entrees and service. (425 Preston Valley Shopping Center. LBJ at Preston. 980-7296. Mon-Thur 11:30-10:30, Fri & Sat till 11. No reservations on Fri & Sat. Drinks with $5 membership charge. MC, V, AE. $$)



MIDDLE EASTERN



Newcomer Khalil’s Beirut. If you can negotiate the obstacle course that is Belt Line Road in the vicinity of Quorum Plaza, you will be well rewarded. Khalil’s Beirut is definitely the top of the line for fans of Middle Eastern food. Its competition admittedly is limited: The Pita Place is equally fine but has a more limited menu, and Hedary’s in Fort Worth, though good, is not up to Khalil’s quality. Khalil’s is a more formal place than either of its competitors. On Friday nights there is a belly dancer (in case you require entertainment to induce you to venture into the unfamiliar territory of mahshi warak areesh, malfouf mahshi, and baba ganouj). Order the “extra special” appetizer tray, and you will get the aforementioned and 10 or so more dishes; at $14.95, this is more than enough for an entire meal for two-and the best introduction we know of to Lebanese food. Other choices in-clude Lebanese larnb and beef dishes and. for the unadventurous, standard steak and seafood entrees. (Quorum Plaza. Belt Line west of Dallas Parkway. 934-3100. Mon-Thur 5-10:30, Fri & Sat 5-11. Closed Sun. All credit cards. $$$)



ORIENTAL



August Moon. As the lines at dinner time attest, North Dallas has an appetite for high-quality Chinese fare. Large and lavishly decorated, August Moon fills the bill with a vast menu featuring specialties of Taiwan, Young Chow, Shanghai, Peking, Szechuan, Hunan, and Canton. Soups are nothing special here, but the pu pu tray of assorted appetizers makes for a good start. Mongolian barbecue (marinated sirloin, pork, and lamb stir-fried with vegetables) and kung-po chicken are two of the best choices for main courses. Shredded pork in garlic sauce, diced chicken with almond, and Shanghai steak are less successful. Portions are generous, and service is extremely fast and accommodating. (15030 Preston at Belt Line. 385-7227. Mon-Fri 11-10:30; Sat 4-11; Sun noon-10:30. Reservations. Bar by membership. All credit cards. $$)

Hunan. Selecting from the large menu of this restaurant specializing in the spicy cuisine of the province of Hunan is like throwing darts: You may hit, and leave thinking you have dined splendidly, or you may miss, and leave feeling thoroughly dispirited. On one recent visit, our food wasn’t even on the dart board. Appetizers were among the worst we’ve ever had. (Entree portions are extremely generous, so appetizers can easily be skipped.) Diced chicken with peanuts was tender, with crunchy peanuts, but the pieces of gristle were unforgivable. River Shang pork was blandly forgettable. On another visit, we were in luck. Shredded pork with garlic sauce was inspired, with black mushrooms, chopped scallions, and julienned water chestnuts in a delicious, garlicky sauce. Lake Tung-Tin shrimp was tasty, although we could have done without the limp, over-cooked celery. (5214 Greenville at Lovers Ln. 369-4578. Sun-Thur 11:30-10:45. Fri & Sat till 11:45. MC, V, AE. $$)

Sakura. What with the geisha dancing in the tatami room, the schmaltzy piano bar music downstairs battling the koto music playing in the rest of the place, and the slashing, clanging, and sizzling of the chefs upstairs, the diner at Sakura feels transported to a three-ring Japanese circus. The only trouble is if you want a table at a restaurant, not a seat in the big top. But for feats of skill and daring, the sushi chef didn’t disappoint us. With the deft hands of a master, he sliced perfect pieces of impeccably fresh raw seafood and served them atop rice. We were disappointed only by most of the more standard Japanese offerings, with the exception of chicken kara-aga, deep-fried sesame-coated morsels. The sushi bar is definitely the center ring at this circus; the side shows are best avoided. (7402 Greenville near Walnut Hill. 361-9282. Sun-Thur 6-10:30, Fri & Sat till 11. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)



Newcomer: Monkok. Monkok won’t change your life, but it offers reasonably priced Chinese food that, if you order well, can be very good. We tried the pu pu tray of assorted appetizers and found the butterfly shrimp and egg rolls to be far and away the best components. Both can and should be ordered a la carte, in order to skip the overcooked rumaki, tough spare ribs, and too chewy cho cho beef on the pu pu tray. Wonton and hot and sour soups are respectable versions; skip the egg drop, which is exceptionally bland. Among the entrees, Monkok Delight (juice chicken, shrimp, and ham with mushrooms and vegatables). Chicken with peanuts (marked with a star as hot and spicy) is a more passable but pallid version than usual; it doesn’t earn its star. Cantonese roast duck is a tasty version. Only pork lo mein with vegetables and homemade noodles is irredeemable; it’s greasy and, worse. a strange orange color. (2150 N. Collins Blvd. Richardson. 644-0404. Lunch: Sun-Fri 11:30-2:30; Dinner: Sun-Thur 5-10, Fri & Sat 5-11. WC, V, AE, DC. $$)



SEAFOOD



Crazy Crab. The standout of the menu is definitely the Dungeness crab, served with a tangy sauce and a large wooden mallet, which is the only instrument that will allow you to extract the tender and tasty white meat from the shell. Hammering your way through a course of Dungeness crab is more than just filling; it gives you a certain sense of accomplishment after you’ve smashed those formidable-looking crab claws into a pile of harmless shells. About the only unsuccessful medium for crab meat here is the crab chowder, which is pasty and under-seasoned. A good choice is “Too Much,” an eclectic sampling of oysters, clams, shrimp, sole, and scallops in various states of fried, broiled, and boiled. No one could eat it all and still have room for the excellent Key lime pie. A staple with almost every order is the “seaweed,” a dumb name for some of the best thin-sliced onion rings you’ll find in Dallas. (3211 Oak Lawn at Hall. 522-5310. Mon-Thur 11-10, Fri till 11, Sat 5-11, Sun5-10. No reservations. All credit cards. $$)

Fausto’s. Fausto’s is a restaurant of nice touches. There’s marbled black and rye bread toasted with Parmesan cheese that appears before the menu. Homemade pear sorbet perched atop an orange half to clear your palate before the main course. Fresh strawberries stuffed with chocolate mousse after dessert. In between, you can enjoy one of the finest meals in Dallas if you navigate the menu carefully. The best catch is the poached salmon steak topped with a luscious green peppercorn sauce. And be sure to sink your teeth into the shark gumbo. Frog legs were tender and sweet, swordfish steak juicy, and duckling with lingonberry sauce crisp and crackling. But the seas turned rough with the bago bago, a seafood potpourri in a cloying sauce, and we got mired down in the souffles. (Hyatt Regency Hotel. 651-1234. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11-2; Dinner: Sun-Thurs 6-11; Fri & Sat till midnight; Sun brunch 10:30-3. Ail credit cards. $$$$)

Jozef’s. Jozef’s is to Dallas seafood restaurants what Calvin Klein is to jeans-chic, expensive, and when it is on, absolutely top of the line. It’s difficult to imagine a simpler yet more elegant meal than smoked freshwater trout with horseradish sauce, followed by charbroiled fish-perhaps scrod or swordfish-with fresh strawberries and cream for dessert. Jozef’s also serves an outstanding ceviche (raw fish marinated in lime juice and spices) and an even better boiled Maine lobster, seasoned only with lemon and butter. The fancier dishes, on the other hand, are less dependable. The sauce on our shrimp Pernod was bland and gluey, and our bouillabaisse (a fish stew) was unseasoned and overstocked with a peculiarly tasteless variety of sea scallop, an odd turn since Jozef’s serves excellent scallops proven-cale. And forget the turtle soup. The hosts are gracious and obviously run a tight ship because the service is quick and cordial. But the wine list is still too aristocratic, with the majority of bottles in the $15-$25 range. (2719 McKinney 826-5560. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-2:30; Dinner: Daily 6-9:30. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)

Oyster’s. Oyster’s remains successful by offering a limited but very adequate seafood menu. The interior is pleasant, and although no reservations are accepted, the wait is not long, even on a Friday or Saturday night. The fresh fish, which includes red snapper, scrod. flounder, and sole, is good, with flounder the best. The raw oysters and the fried shrimp are excellent, but the best part of the meal may be the appetizers, including outstanding fried zucchini and eggplant, as well as “spicy shrimp dip” and gumbo. The coleslaw, “natural” French fries, and hush puppies that accompanied the meal were very good, but desserts-lemon chess pie and carrot cake-were disappointing. A tip for those who don’t like seafood-the hamburgers are delicious. With friendly and efficient service, Oyster’s is a pleasure. (4580 Belt Line. 386-0122. Mon-Thur 11:30-10, fri till 11, Sat 5-11. Sun 5-10. MC, V, AE, $$)

Peter B’s. Although Peter B’s calls itself a seafood restaurant, there are more than enough beef, chicken, and veal dishes on the menu to make the label questionable. Nevertheless, we ordered seafood both times, and decidedly average seafood it was. We sampled a shrimp and seafood bisque that had the taste simmered out of it, a nondescript dish called scallops Creole, and a salmon steak with dill sauce that was moist and flaky. One out of three isn’t good, particularly at Peter B’s prices. Worse, the meal looK over three hours. Lunch was less crowded, and considerably better. We began with fresh oysters on the half shell-small, but extremely tasty-followed by a delicately cooked scrod filet topped with capers, and a seafood crepe that, alas, was mostly pastry. For dessert we ordered an elaborate ice cream, almond, and coconut concoction that was very rich and large enough for three. This time the service was prompt but the rest of the presentation was sloppy-chipped plates, a bit of cheese pressed between the pages of the menu, a wine list that appeared to have a bite out of it. Bad form for a restaurant with aspirations to elegance. (Doubletree Inn in Campbell Centre, 8250 N Central Expy. 691-8700. Breakfast and lunch: daily 6-2:30; Dinner: daily 5:30-11. All credit cards. $$$)Ratcliffe’s. Although it’s been open less than six months, Ratcliffe’s may well have earned the title of best seafood restaurant in Dallas. The menu is easily as impressive as the handsome surroundings. Shrimp rernoulade, Dungeness crab, shrimp and crab in white wine sauce, scampi Mediterranean, lemon sole salmon with hollandaise-all are unsurpassed. Only the tasteless fisherman’s stew and the laughable house salad (a vinegary quartered head of romaine lettuce) disappoint. Don’t miss the apple hazelnut tart for dessert. (1901 McKinney. 748- 7480. Daily: 11-11. No reservations. All credit cards. $$$)

S & D Oyster Company. The line is usually long; the dining room is noisy; the desserts are consistently bad. If these minor hitches will keep you away from S & D, that’s fine with its fans, who swelter, freeze, and get drenched, depending on the season, waiting in line. You can find places where it costs more, you can find places that are more tony, but you can’t find a better plate of fresh fish. Even fried shrimp, the child’s greasy delight, was the best we have ever had. Boiled shrimp and red snapper are also good choices. And the oyster loaf sandwich, though too large to eat easily, was worth the battle. (Ask to have it cut in two.) The dining area is comfortable and charming, with waiters and a lone waitress bustling about in traditional black and white uniforms. These people give S & D class. However, nothing so complimentary can be said of the desserts. There was something fishy about the ice cream, and the cheesecake could have been retitled cheese and egg cake. (2701 McKinney. 823-6350. Mon-Thur 11-10. Fri & Sat till 11. Closed Sun. No reservations. MC, V. $$)



Newcomer: Turtle Cove. Here is a restaurant with a gimmick that is simple and valid. Turtle Cove serves fresh Texas seafood cooked over mesquite wood (a roomful of which is visible and deliciously scents the air). Steak is also available, but coming here for steak is like going to elan for a deep philosophical discussion. mes-quite-grilled whole fresh fish is available daily; when we visited, there was perfectly prepared salmon. The fried seafood platter, with fish, shrimp, and oysters in beer batter was also commendable. With entrees, you get two “extras” from the menu. The best one is the grilled vegetables (zucchini, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and onions). The fresh-cut fries and sautéed mushrooms are also tasty. Pass, however, on the iceberg lettuce salad and dull wild rice. Don’t miss the superb strawberry shortcake for dessert. All in all, a welcome addition to the growing ranks of good seafood restaurants in town. (2731 W Northwest Hwy near European Crossroads. 350-9034. Daily: 11-11. MC, V. AE. $$)

SOUTHERN SPECIALTIES

Broussard’s. “No oil shortage here” should read the sign in front of Broussard’s, a backwoods Louisiana Cajun diner that just happens to be located in Irving. The specialties of the house are all fried: oysters, shrimp, catfish, frog legs, hush puppies, and potatoes with the crunchy skins left. All attest to the expertise of chef “Frenchy.” They are very simply prepared with lightly spiced coatings and properly fried, complemented nicely by the tangy homemade red sauce. Broussard’s bats .500 with its rice dishes. The picante and jambalaya were pleasing versions, but the étouffée and gumbo were foul balls -one can get much better from a can. At all costs avoid the coleslaw. It is just an excuse for someone to abuse a defenseless head of cabbage. The food is served cafeteria-style, but the wait is shortened by the great jukebox featuring various Cajun bands and Willie Nelson. (707 N Belt Line in Irving, 1 mile S of Rte 183. 255-8024. Lunch: Mon-Sat 11-2; Dinner: Mon-Sat 5-/0. Closed Sun. No reservations. No credit cards. $$)

Celebration. Returning to Celebration is like visiting an old friend. The limited but dependable menu stresses home cooking: fresh trout, meat loaf, pot roast, baked chicken, and spaghetti. The meals are served family-style, with a large bowl of salad and side dishes of vegetables shared by each table. The best things about Celebration besides the food, which is predictably good, are the generous portions. backed by frequent offerings of second helpings, and the service, which is efficient and friendly, without being cute. With all this going for it, you might expect to wait at Celebration-and unless you come early, you will. Celebration is an excellent family restaurant, with reasonable prices for children. (4503 W Lovers Ln. 351-5681. Mon-Thur 5:30-10, Fri & Sat till 11, Sun 5-10. No reservations. MC, V, AE. $$)

Crawdaddy’s. Someone finally realized how noxious cedar air freshener can be to the palate, and told the busboy to quit spraying it around. The difference is delightful-we could actually taste the crawfish and catfish and shrimp we ordered. Craw-daddy’s gets points for being the only dependable source of mudbugs in town, and for having learned to cook beignets the right way. (Now, if they’d only cut them smaller than feather pillows.) The catfish we had, as well as the crustaceans, was moist, well-prepared, and worth the money. The dinner salad, with the house dressing, was generous and crisp, as well as being lovely to look at. The help, good-natured but lackadaisical, didn’t know the difference between coffee with chicory and coffee that is simply bitter. We have never had any luck getting anything but the latter. (2614 McKinney. 748-2008. Mon-Thur 11-10, Fri&Sat noon-11, Sun noon-10. No reservations. MC, V, AE. $$)



STEAKS, BURGERS, ETC.



Hoffbrau. Nestled in the center of the fern-bar belt, Hoffbrau is a welcome haven for the carnivore. We notice, with some delight, the absence of any healthy green stuff: No bizarre presentations of fried zucchini, or the infamous fresh spinach salad. The Hoffbrau sits directly across from Highland Park Cafeteria: The parking is the worst, the atmosphere one of the best. Smacking of Austin, the interior offers rough-cut wood beams, neon beer signs, and Texana to the tenth power including stacks of long-neck boxes full of return deposit bottles. The menu touts a top-end price of $9.95 for a 24-ounce cut of meat as big as a hubcap and goes down to a chopped sirloin for $3 95. These dishes come with giant-cut steak fries and a no-nonsense salad. The steaks are pan-broiled in a lemon butter sauce that evades detection until you dip your sliced white bread in it. (3205 Knox at McKinney. 559-2680. Mon-Fri 11-11, Sat noon-11, Sun 5-10. All credit cards. $$)

Kobe Steaks. This plush Japanese steak house offers combinations of steak, seafood, and/or chicken. Beef is the featured attraction, and it is of the highest quality. Dinners come with delicious beef broth, a piquant shrimp appetizer, and smooth green tea as well as salad and rice. The seating arrangements, with groups of diners around the surface where the cook chops and sautes, offer all the privacy of a bus station. (15000 Quorum Plaza at Belt Line off Dallas Pkwy, Ste. 600. 934-8150. Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30-2; Dinner: Sun-Thur 5- / 1, Fri & Sat till midnight. All credit cards. $$$)



Newcomer: Ruth’s Chris Steak House. The stunned looks on the faces of your fellow diners mean that they’ve opened the menu. The unprepossessing no-frills steakhouse appearance of Ruth’s make the prices an unexpected shock. The entrees (sirloin strip, filet, ribeye, and porterhouse) are $17 (and no cheaper at lunch). With that, you get bread. Period. No salad, no potato, no vegetable. Those will run you from $2.25 to $3.75 each. One keeps finding new financial affronts: You want Roquefort dressing? That will be another dollar. And this is to dress a characterless iceberg lettuce salad. The steaks, pan-broiled in butter, are good, but not good enough to justify the dent that meal at Ruth’s will put in your bank balance. (6940 Greenville. 691-6940. Daily: 11:30-11:30. All credit cards. $$$)

Edalweiss. Edelweiss is a big, joyous beer hall with food. It’s ersatz Texas German food, but who cares? It sounds German and comes in portions large enough to please any aspiring Burgermeister. And always, on the tiny center stage, is Bernd Schner-zinger, with an Alp-sized voice and the proper oom-pah backup. Hokey, no doubt, but Bernd is a charmer-he kissed seven ladies during one song while we were there. Of course, there are German wines and beers, and a cheese soup as thick as we’ve ever tasted. For entrees, we tried sausages in mushroom sauce and cordon bleu Kartoffein (schnitzel stuffed with ham and cheese), which is reputed to be the house specialty; it wasn’t sensational, although the potato pancakes spiced with onion made a tasty side dish. (3801-A Southwest Blvd. (817) 738-5934. Mon-Thur 5-10:30, Fri & Sat 5-11. Closed Sun. Reservations for 10 or more. MC, V, DC. $$)

Hedary’s. Where else in Fort Worth can you sit down to a meal of hummus bit-tahini (chickpea dip seasoned with lemon and garlic), khyar bil-laban (sliced cucumbers in fresh yogurt), and a plate of magdoos (pickled eggplant stuffed with walnuts), followed by some kibbi mishwiyyi (crushed wheat and ground sirloin charbroiled with pine nuts and spices), and frarej (chicken and vegetables baked in olive oil and lemon juice), topped off with a slice of baklava and a cup of qahwi, a thick, aromatic Lebanese coffee brewed bitter or sweet depending on your mood. Hedary’s is intimate, a bit idiosyncratic, and thoroughly old-fashioned in its methods. “No hot table, freezer, chemicals, or can opener,” says the menu, and we believe it. The bread is baked while you watch, and the service can be fast or slow depending on how many Hedary children are on the premises. (3308 Fairfield, Ridglea Center off Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 731-6961. Tue-Thur 5-11, Fri & Sat 5 till midnight. Sun 5-11. No reservations. All credit cards. $$)

J & J Oyster Bar. New Orleans comes to Fort Worth. At least that’s where the oysters served here come from. The fried oysters are rather small for the price ($4.75 for seven), but ours were flavorfully prepared in a very agreeable batter. The light batter doesn’t overpower the oyster, but is spicy enough to draw your attention, reminiscent of Captain Benny’s Half Shell in Houston. The best buy on the menu is the cup of “home-cooked Cajun gumbo” for $1.25. Ours was brimming with oysters, crab, and shrimp. A dozen oysters on the half shell, also small, cost $3.95. The location is the former site of the old Top-sy’s Cafe. If things don’t go well, they can add wheels to the tin building and haul the customers to the coast. (929 University. (817)332-0238. Mon-Thur 11-10. Fri & Sat 11-11. No credit cards. $)

Jimmie Dip’s. Jimmie died, and for a while, it was easy to forget this longtime Chinese restaurant. But Jimmie Dip’s is still in business: The food remains excellent, the service superb, and the decor unassuming and tasteful. We began, of course, with tried wonton all around, and then opted for the Chinese vegetable soup. Both were supreme appetizers. Our main dish was the almond gai ding, diced white chicken meat with snow peas, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and mushrooms-so good, we hated sharing. Other dishes we sampled included the war sui har (breaded jumbo shrimp wrapped in bacon), the sweet and sour pork, the ginger beef, and the Jimmie Dip special, which is a mixture of chicken, chicken livers, Virginia ham, and vegetables, sautéed in chicken broth-an unlikely dish that was the best of the evening. This restaurant knows what it’s doing. (1500 S University. (817) 336-4333. Tue-Thur & Sun. 4:30-10:30. Fri & Sat 4:30-11:30. Closed Man. No reservations. MC, V, AE. $)

Kincald’s. In this grocery-cum-hamburger-stand, there’s no seating, no fountain soft drinks, and very little air conditioning. But hamburger aficionados crowd in for the right stuff: real meat, real thick; just-sliced tomatoes, generously distributed; pickles that crunch resoundingly; and grilled buns. Diners sharing the counter top with us swore the other choices, including fried vegetables, catfish, salads, and cake, are just as good as the hamburgers. But how anyone can muster the will to order cauliflower amid those hamburger smells is a mystery. Adding to the satisfied air of the patrons are the attentiveness and good cheer shown by the counter help and the neighborhood air of the place. 1200 meat patties a day sizzle on the grill, but there’s nothing mass-produced about the greetings regulars get. (4901 Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 732-2881. Mon-Sat 10-6:15. Closed Sun. No reservations. No credit cards. $)

Massey’s. Warning; Don’t order the a la carte chicken-fried steak for lunch unless you have time for a siesta. The portions are huge, and it tastes too good to leave any behind. From the outside, Massey’s could easily be mistaken for a hardware store or a second-hand shop. You won’t be distracted by frills here. The menu advises that in the interest of conservation, water will be served upon request. There are no pepper shakers; tables are stocked with the original pepper cans. At lunchtime, you get chicken-fried steak, salad, two vegetables, and homemade biscuits. The tender meat is cooked with a heavenly breading and topped with yellow creamed gravy, just the way they do it on that great spread beyond the sunset. The French fries are the kind you eat and then begrudge the lost space. The assembly-line salad consists of wilted lettuce and bulk dressing. Massey’s offers seafood and Mexican dishes, but to go here for something other than chicken-fried steak would be like going to the Grand Canyon to see the chipmunks. (1805 Eighth Ave. (817)924-8242. Daily 8 am-10 pm. MC, V. $)

Old Swiss House. Though the food here isn’t better than that served at most Dallas continental restaurants, the service is. From our arrival, when the parking valet assured us that he would not need a name to remember which car was ours, to the personal visit of the chef to our table, we were coddled all evening. If only the food were up to the standards of the service. Alas, though much of what was served was good, nothing except the lamb chops and the cherries jubilee was awe-inspiring, and some of it was downright puzzling. For instance, the cheese fondue was not bite-sized bits and a pot of melted cheese, but a pile of warm, bread-crumbed, cheese-filled items. But the veal Oscar and the King Edward broil (a beet filet) were good. The only absolute disappointment was oysters on the half shell: more shell than oyster, and not much of either. The decor at Old Swiss House borders on tacky, with fake red brocade wallpaper and early American tables and chairs. You don’t have to dress up-we saw men without ties or jackets-but the service and attention shown by the staff will make you feel like your dinner is a special occasion anyway. (5412 Camp Bowie. (817) 738-8091. Mon-Thur 6-10, Fri & Sat till 10:30. Reservations. All credit cards. $$$)



Szechuan. Some like it hot, but Szechuan likes it hotter. The local Hunan/Szechuan boom has led to some inevitable backsliding in seasoning, as some restaurants slip in a pinch of Lawry’s seasoning salt to appease the more delicate American palate. Not so at Szechuan, where “hot and spicy” means exactly what it says. Our chicken with garlic sauce and shredded beef Szechuan style arrived smoking, and superbly prepared. The Szechuan lamb was equally good, and even the broccoli in oyster sauce, ordinarily a fairly bland dish, had a little extra zip. Even though Szechuan has a large menu, the chef is able to accommodate individual preferences without difficulty. If you want moo shi chicken rather than pork, or a bit more pickle in your sautéed green beans, just ask. (5772 Locke Ave, off Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 738-7300. Mon-Thur 11:30-10, Fri & Sat till 11, Sun 5-70. Reservations for 5 or more. MC, V.AE. $$)