YEAR IN REVIEW
Except for the culinary ambition and social glitter of Ml Piaci, this year’s notable new restaurants have been more affordable and less pretentious. And even while nursing a bit off nostalgia for the days when a glitzy new bistro opened every week, it’s reasonable to rejoice that the prevailing food trend of the first few years of this decade finds restaurants operating within the financial reach of almost everybody.
MASON’S RIBS
PEOPLE Side by side in the parking lot, a shiny red Mercedes convertible and a grimy pickup with a gun rack tell the story. Everybody adores the Country Tavern, its legendary barbecued pork ribs and its ownert Lois Mason, 67, (pictured here) who looks like Aunt Bea with her grey curls piled high atop her head. On weekend nights, when the waiting line snakes by the pool table and out the door, Lois takes names: East Texas yuppies, farmers, church groups, even movie stars. Actor Larry Hagman and his wife gobbled down three plates of ribs with hardly an oink. President Bush tipped big when Lois hand delivered an order to his Tyler hotel. No wonder, then, that Lois claims the tavern near Kilgore sells more than 2,500 pounds of ribs weekly. As for Lois, she was one of the tavern’s first waitresses in 1964. Thirteen years later, she bought the place. Retirement? Hardly, Lois says. “I love this place. It keeps me young.” -Derro Evans
An Adventure in Dining
ON THE ROAD Where are we? In an African hunting lodge, maybe? Wild animal trophies of every description look down from the walls; a boat floats from the ceiling. No, wait- the boat, a lightweight primitive shell, suggests some tropical island resort.
But then, how can you explain the hundreds of framed photographs and magazine covers on the walls? Or the platinum Beach Boys records displayed near the entrance? Dobber Stephenson can-the owner of The Oar House, a remarkable dining oasis overlooking Lake Ray Hubbard’s east shore, wears an aura of multilayered past adventures and present fantasies as bright as the macaw that rides his shoulder, and almost as intriguing as his restaurant’s decor.
The very excess of the place creates an ambience that is magical-and, amazingly, comfortable. Just as amazingly, the food lives up to its surroundings; the menu’s a mix of homey Italian standards with daily-changing seafood specials. Even more than the food, we liked the frisky Cajun-style live music filtering in from the patio and the relaxingly rootless pleasure of not quite knowing where we were.
From Dallas, take Interstate 30 east 14 miles to the Ridge Road exit, then double back on the access road. (214) 722-1126.
-Betty Cook
Tasteful TV
NEW PRODUCTS Is the world ready for a videotaped magazine? The food world is-with every celebrity chef in the culinary spectrum putting out how-to videos, someone had to carry the concept a step farther by combining TV technology with slick magazine-style coverage of the food and wine scene. The someone who’s done it is Ed Dudkowski, a West Coast film pro/foodie who last month launched Savor, a quarterly video journal food lovers may find irresistible.
The format is ambitious-each two-hour videocassette will include segments ranging from expert interviews, cooking tips and techniques to world-class restaurant and cookbook reviews and food-related travel in this country and abroad.
Included in each installment are also regular departments with commentary from such stellar contributing editors as Irena Chalmers, Barbara Kafka, Jacques Pepin and Merle Ellis.
A neat touch, from a home cook’s point of view, is the packet of 50 recipe cards that comes with each video, detailing featured dishes and time-coded to specific locations on the videotape. Best of all, for armchair Christmas shoppers, is the introductory subscription price-$89.95 for the first year’s four-volume subscription, $79.95 for additional gift subscriptions. The regular price will be $99.95 after January 1. Call 1-800-547-2867 for info. -Betty Cook
The Oar House’s courtyard is a miles-from-anything little paradise, complete with fountain and bustling aviary.
CHEAP EATS
Aprés-Party Places
The party’s over. You’re canapéed up to here, but you don’t want to head home just yet. How about a little late-night dessert and coffee in a setting that’s festive, but not too frenetic for conversation.
Flip’s Wine Bar sets you up for sweet sin with a Chocolate Bomb-a cake shell centered with mousse and gift-wrapped In fudge icing. $4.75. Served until 2 a.m. dally. 1520 Greenville Ave. 824-9944.
Humperdink’s plays with Its Centennial Tater-a baked-pota-to-shaped loaf of Oreo cookie ice cream, rolled in cocoa, split down the middle and heaped with whipped cream and toasted almonds on hot-fudge. $3.75. Served until 2 a.m. dally. 4021 Belt Line. 934-2612.
Kathleens Art Cafe halls the holidays with Italian Cream Wedding Cake, a heady affair spiked with spiced nuts and coconut. $3.95. Served Friday and Saturday until 1 a.m., other nights until 10. 4424 Lovers Lane. 692-2355.
Quadrangle Grilles ready a post-curtain addiction for theatergoers, packages pre-Christmas Indulgence as seductively. $4.95. Served Thursday through Saturday until 1 a.m.
Theodore’s Seafood Restaurant celebrates every season with the known to man-Gal-aktobouriko, a lemon custard topped with light honey syrup. $3. Saturday until 2 a.m., other nights until midnight. 8041 Walnut Hill. 361-1922.
-Betty Cook
NEW RESTAURANTS
In a Class by Itself
RUBY’S GREENVILLE AVENUE CAFE The name and look of the place-it’s where Little Gus’ used to be, with checkered tablecloths and a sparse decor-promise little in the way of ambition. Perhaps it’s only Grandma in the kitchen turning out her well-loved favorites. Guess again. Ruby’s is named after a grandmother, all right, but she’s not in the kitchen-her grandson, Brian Hennington, is. And Hennington, formerly of Deep Ellum Cafe and several other notable local eateries, can be counted on to conjure up some real surprises.
Sure enough, though Ruby’s breakfast menu holds such old-fashioned things as eggs, hot cakes and French toast, at lunch the likes of chicken-fried steak and fried catfish have to share table room with an assortment of Mexican and Santa Fe-style dishes. At dinner, things are even more complex. Even the homey-sounding items are citified. The menu leads off with a spectacularly light and tender chicken-fried steak and Hennington’s famous chicken and dumplings. The Mexican dishes include such upscale delights as a fist-sized beef tenderloin stuffed with Mexican cheese and herbs and topped with a subtle chili chipotle sauce.
To complicate matters further, Ruby’s dinner menu resurrects a few things from the location’s past life- a Greek salad with feta cheese and calamata olives and the superb kotopolo rigani chicken, marinated in lemon and oil, roasted and also topped with feta. Then there are the three blackboard specials that change nightly: one fish, one pasta and one vegetarian. These impart a distinct New American spin to the goings-on here, and the ones we sampled-grilled red snapper with sautéed crimini mushrooms in lemon thyme butter and fettuccine with veal meatballs in a light cream-tomato sauce-were superb, and bargains at the price.
The appetizers-except for a zesty Yucatan seafood soup of the day that contained tuna, snapper, crab and shrimp along with orange and strips of jala-peno-can’t compete with the entrees in excitement. The desserts sound grandmotherly, but are really too sophisticated to satisfy cravings for homey comfort. The apple pie, for instance, comes with a layer of thick custard topped with crunchy, underdone apples.
We stilt don’t know how to classify Ruby’s, especially at dinner time-is it home cooking, Mexican, Southwestern, New American, Greek or what?-except to say that it’s the most interesting and satisfying new restaurant to open in Dallas in months. 1916 Greenville Ave. 826-4910. Lunch Tues.-Sat. 7a.m.-2p.m.; dinner Tues.-Thur. 6 p.m.10 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 6 p.m.-11 p.m.; open Sun. 9a.m.-2:30p.m.; dosed Mondays. MC, Visa. Moderate.
-W. L. Taitte
A Diner with a View
STARLIGHT DINER About the time you begin to think Deep Ellum entrepreneurs have used up all the fresh, one-of-a-kind restaurant concepts possible in one neighborhood, along comes a lulu. One-of-a-kind-wise, Starlight Diner delivers on its name-I’m not a devotee of al fresco dining, but I can wish no sweeter small pleasure for you than to sit at a rooftop table here on a fine, clear evening and raise your glass to the touching-close downtown skyline. That’s the Starlight part; dinerwise, too, SD delivers. Owners Beth Vercillo and Carri Focucci describe the decor as ’50s, but it’s a modern version-bare and spare, lean and clean, with silver sweeps of steel carrying the stairway upward from the inside dining room’s free-form tables and concrete floor. And while the proprietors1 names sound Italian, their food is pure American-we savored a vast, juicy Jack Burger enshrining fine beef, Jack cheese and all the fixings on a grill-crisped, home-baked bun. Fries were crisp-tender curls sided with home-style cream gravy to dip them in. Baked meat loaf was a homey tomato-sauced version, served with bland green beans and well-seasoned mashed potatoes. One companion’s albacore tuna salad (guaranteed dolphin-safe) held the fine crunch of fresh greens, celery and tomato along with olives and boiled eggs; another’s ham-and-eggs supper was accompanied by fresh-baked biscuits. The best dessert, My Grandma’s Next Door Neighbor’s Cherry Pie, delectably outshone the over-cinnamoned one called My Grandma’s Apple Pie; a Reese’s peanut butter/chocolate pie reincarnated the candy bar of the same name as sweetly as you’d expect. All were immaculately fresh.
As, indeed, is Starlight Diner’s whole point of view. The menu’s vows of health and environmental consciousness are apparently serious-canola oil is used for all frying, and all paper products, bottles and cans are biodegradable or recyclable. Service was as accommodating as service gets, and whatever a Frank Sinatra Happy Hour is, I’ll bet it’s one-of-a-kind, too- that’s between 5 and 8 p.m. daily, if you want to check it out. 2715 Elm Street. 747-STAR. Tues.-Thur. 9a.m.-11 p.m.; Fri. 9 a.m.-4 a.m.; Sat. 11 a.m.-4 a.m.; and Sun. 11 a.m.-ll p,m,; closed Mondays. MC, Visa. Inexpensive. -Betty Cook
Attention, Virtuous Eaters
AGNEW’S NATURAL GRILL It was déjá vu all over again. We had just reviewed this made-over bistro a few months ago as Agnew and Brown, a newcomer in the steak and barbecue categories. And here we were in the identical setting, under more or less the same ownership-only this time we were reviewing it as a brand new dispenser of natural foods! The ever-resilient Agnews had tried offering a health conscious menu at an earlier stage in their long string of restaurant experiments, so this conversion from cholesterol to virtuous eating apparently wasn’t a case of born-again faddism, just an attempt to salvage the location and make a buck.
The clientele, however, does seem to take the menu claims quite seriously-in our eavesdropping we heard various stiff-lower-abdomen types insisting they wanted their goodies cooked entirely without added fat. Luckily, the self-righteous atmosphere hasn’t prevented the proprietors from offering such things as excellent wines by the glass, and the attentive waitstaff doesn’t discriminate against customers who have come for a good meal rather than for self-improvement.
The line between appetizers and entrees tends to blur, since a number of the same items are available on both lists in different-sized portions. We wished we had ordered the scallop brochet, grilled and served over spinach, as an entree, since it was the standout starter we sampled. A colorfully striped vegetable terrine, a mild chicken-and-vegetable soup and a barely dressed Caesar salad proved less interesting, though agreeable enough.
All the items from the hickory grill, in fact, turned out to be delicious. The Larry North plate (named for the local fitness trainer) featured a grilled, fresh turkey breast accompanied by couscous, a mixture of wild and brown rice, green beans and black-eyed peas. A chicken breast and a thin cut of a barely marbled beef ribeye also came from the grill juicy and with just the right touch of smoky flavor. True believers in carbohydrate loading will find less here to be happy about: The crust of the wholewheat pizza is a dry, chewy, penitential affair, and the two treatments of angel hair pasta we sampled were both gummy and overcooked.
For a restaurant that takes pains to announce just how low in fat its cooking is, Agnew’s Natural Grill offers a surprising number of desserts. Sadly, none of those we tried was worth the obvious effort that had gone into them. A sugarless chocolate meringue pie was also flavorless, and a thick, probably honey-sweetened sauce couldn’t help the coarse, mealy texture of the carrot cake. We’d have had a lot more fun eating plain fiesh fruit or low-fat frozen yogurt, if either had been offered. 3011 Routh Street. 720-3900. Tues.-Sat. 11 a.m.-2 p.m., 6 p.m.-I0 p.m. All credit cards. Moderate to expensive. -W.L.T.
A Gentle Joy for Timid Tongues
THAI THAI One of my most frequent and usually tolerant dining companions begged off from accompanying me to this new Lowest Greenville restaurant on grounds that the last few Thai places she’s visited inflicted too much pepper pain for her palate. A pity she missed this one-while the trend seems to be toward ever-hotter interpretations, Thai-Thai’s deliberately pulled punch makes it an ideal place for timid tongues to test the popular Asian cuisine. I’m a little bit of a sissy myself, but the most incendiary dishes we tried here delivered only a baby-sized burn. Hot-and-sour chicken coconut soup carried the merest mild piquance in its lime-zipped creaminess, and a glass-noodle salad called yum woon sen barely hinted at heat in the interwoven flavors of chicken, shrimp, mushroom, lime juice and herbs.
Corn patties, our only real disappointment, held little Flavor of any kind; the fried rounds were leathery and appeared to have been previously cooked and reheated. Finger shrimp, though, were lovely, the fresh, firm crustaceans shelled and wrapped in a rice paper skin fried tissue crisp. Mee grob, a sweeter than usual version, was nonetheless crunchy and delightfully tinged with tartness.
One entree, a yellow curried beef with potatoes and onions in coconut milk, did furnish enough fire to make us grateful for the healing effect of good steamed rice, as did hor mok ta-lay, a red curry-sparked seafood and vegetable combination that arrived sealed in steam-puffed foil. The fragrance of the dish, though, would have tantalized the most craven tongue. And both noodle dishes we sampled-pad Thai, a classic involving stir-fried noodles with shrimp, egg, sprouts and peanuts, and radna, tender wide noodles topped with pork and broccoli in rich bean gravy-were gentle joys.
We tried a kind of loose pudding of red beans and rice for dessert, which was pleasant enough, although as usual we found tall glasses of sweet iced coffee more satisfying. Thai-Thai, by the way, occupies the same pretty space where Saigon once drew aficionados of Vietnamese fare. The same clientele should have little trouble adapting to the new Asian accent; the decor appears little changed, and service was hospitable in the extreme. 1731 Greenville Ave. 828-9795. Lunch Mon.-Fri. 11-2:30; dinner Mon.-Thur. 5-10:30, Fri.-Sat. 5-11:30; open Sun. 12-10:30 p.m. Inexpensive. -B.C.
Actuelle Moves Closer to Perfection
ACTUELLE A restaurant’s physical setting comes to be as much a part of its identity as its food. So when Actuelle, one of the top restaurants in Dallas, announced a move, it was a wrench. And at first you are homesick for the dramatic, light-filled gazebo at the old Quadrangle space. But the seemingly bland interior of the new Crescent location grows on you as you dine. Certainly the new space works better than the old one. The restaurant’s two levels create intimate areas out of a large space, avoiding the coldness that was the old Actuelle’s only drawback, and the open kitchen, a gleaming beauty, is more visible than in the old restaurant. Neutral colors and ceiling spots illuminating the flowers on each table provide romance and drama while the bold, black paintings by Dutch artist Arie Van Selm (a friend of chef Victor Gielisse) provide punctuation.
As for the food, it may be even better than at Actuelle I, where it was seldom less than perfect. To the favorites from the old menu, chef Gielisse has added more autobiographical touches-foods like lamb shanks, potato cakes, red cabbage and strudel-that recall his Dutch upbringing and European training. Servings are enormous for a restaurant of this caliber- it’s hard to tell the appetizers from the entrees-and garnishes are so elaborate they almost constitute side dishes.
Appetizers were each a judicious contrast of flavors and textures. Gielisse’s signature dish combines sweetly crisp pecan-and-bran-crusted catfish with a ragout of just-cooked lentils and black beans tinged with spicy heat. House-made duck confit came with a toss of tart frisée, shoestring green beans and a deeply wine-steeped pear half. Silky smoked and vodka-cured salmon slices were anchored by earthy cakes of caraway potato cakes.
Salads were faultless: lettuce hearts with dry Jack cheese, Mexican oregano croutons and Parmesan dressing; fresh mozzarella with tomatoes, parma ham, radicchio and arugula; field greens with a round of hazelnut-crusted goat cheese. Each would have made a satisfying lunch.
Examples of the three strands that make up Gielisse’s style were seen in our entrees: A big grilled pork chop with caramelized onion sauce and apple compote made a homey, satisfying entree; roast loin of lamb, the rosy meat complemented by white beans and shallots and sided with bright spinach, was a classical balance of flavors. The sirloin was imaginatively garnished with a piquant sauce of red pepper ketchup, a wedge of pineapple seasoned with black pepper and a polenta fritter. Seafood has always been Gielisse’s forte; the pan-seared salmon steak was perfectly cooked and presented on braised Chinese cabbage with morel and porcini mushrooms.
Dessert was almost more than we could bear: the very tart lemon-lime tart with raspberries, the gingered créme brulée, the chocolate log-each a plateful, each as generous and gorgeous as the courses preceding. All in all, in its new incarnation, Actuelle surpasses itself. 500 Crescent Court, Suite 165. 855-0440. Mon.-Thur. 6 p.m.-10 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 6 p.m.-l0:30 p.m; closed Sunday. All credit cards. Expensive.
-Mary Brown Malouf
D REVISITS
BARBECUE
D Revisits. Riscky’s. If Riscky’s were anywhere but the West End. I’d eat there more often. But I’m one in a million on that, and Riscky’s is always crowded. The setup is gen uine Texas touristy, the service brisk and friendly, and the meat is the real thing. Though the brisket isn’t as good here as at some beef bars, the chicken half-juicy and smoky- and the extraordinary smoked catfish are excellent. The fish is worth the trip, though for me. never worth the hassle of parking and the general Disneyland feel of the area. 1701 N. Market, Suite 104. 742-7001. Inexpensive. -M.B.M.
BURGERS
D Revisits The Green Elephant Bar and Grill. The nostalgic hippies who put this place together must have had a fine old lime unpacking their past-the do-it-yourself decor’s strictly ’60s: Indian tapestries belly down from the ceiling; colored bulbs outline a peace sign on the back wall; structural columns are wrapped in what appears to be school-project paper The air resonates with tunes of the period-Lennon. Hendrix et al. All that’s lacking is incense, and the fragrance of simple grilled foods covers that omis sion. Generous, juicy burgers are the main attraction, but the small menu offers some now-tuned alternatives as well. We particularly like the Yard Bird sandwich, a succulent chicken breast stacked burger-style with fresh fixings on a whole wheat bun. A grilled turkey and Swiss cheese sub added sprouts and avocado to the mix on a crisp sourdough roll. Quesadillas were less intriguing, their flour tortillas crisp but barely held together by a thin melt of yellow and white cheeses. French fries, though, were delicate and greaseless. and our quart-sized tumbler of iced tea seemed true-brewed. Service was all smiling efficiency, and while I couldn’t quite echo the outside sign (hat promises “Great Food,” (he filled booths and al fresco tables at happy hour were more than justified by the mellow ambience of the place. 5612 Yale. 750-6625. Inexpensive. -B.C.
CHINESE
D Revisits Hunan Restaurant. Once upon a time, there was only one kind of Chinese food in Dallas-subtle. Americanized Cantonese. Then a restaurant opened that served dishes laced with tiny, fiery peppers from the Chinese province of Hunan, and Dallas flocked to the new flavors, living happily ever after. That’s pretty much a true story, and the restaurant was Hunan on Greenville, at the time the hot test (literally and figuratively) spot for Chinese food in Dallas. Now there’s a Hunan-style restaurant in every neighborhood, so it had been years since I visited Hunan on Greenville. The food was still very good (though the place has faded a bit), and the service was as excellent as if there were still a line out the door. We tried some standards-pork in garlic sauce, pots tickers, chicken with broccoli, a pu-pu tray-and it was all fresh, spicy and plentiful. 5214 Green ville. 369-4578. inexpensive to moderate. -M.B.M.
FRENCH/CONTINENTAL
D Revisits York St. You’d hardly expect a restaurant as liny as this one to have room Tor status distinctions in seating, but York St. did on our visit. My companion and I, politely greeted, were consigned to one of those wretched little (ray- sized two-tops set flat against a wall, while the two couples who next appeared, apparent regulars, were warmly hailed and given four-place tables we’d assumed were being saved for larger parties. Ah. well-at least York St. accepts ad vance reservations now. And its food, while less wonderful than we found it when the place opened two years ago, still almost justifies the prices here. An appetizer of shrimp tamales was sunnily spiced, bathed in lobster sauce with pica de gallo butter; wild boar sausage held robust authority in ancho chili butter sauce, slightly oversalted. Her bed celery cream soup and a field greens salad splashed with basil balsamic vinaigrette were both so delicate as to be almost bland, but my companion’s sauted veal medallions approached perfection, complemented with fresh forest mushrooms in shallot- and thyme-scented port cream to achieve complete harmony. My entree’s lamb chops were tender and fine, but their crown of sharp goat cheese with basil pesto and sherry demi-glace somehow lacked the veal dish’s finesse. A fresh fruit tart featuring blackberries. raspberries and strawberries on vanilla cream in a flawless crust lasted as glorious as it looked, though, and service could not have been nicer if we had been cherished frequent guests. 6047 Lewis (off Skiliman at Live Oak), 826-0968. Expensive. -B.C.
GERMAN/EASTERN EUROPEAN
D Revisits Bohemia. I’m not sure whether the kitchen has improved at Bohemia recently or whether I had just never ordered the right dishes in previous visits, because this time the Czech cooking here seemed to me simply sensational. A daily special of chicken paprikash was coated with a dense, creamy sauce richly colored with the sweet Hungarian spice. A formidable-looking half duckling lived up to its menu billing and indeed was roasted to a dark golden brown, with crisp skin and tender, juicy flesh. Just as impressive were the side dishes, especially the sweet-and-sour green cabbage and the sauerkraut, tamed to a mellow docility after long cooking. Strains of Mozart in the background and a warmly unpretentious atmosphere helped create the illusion that the clock had turned back to the age of Franz Josef and the glorious Viennese empire. 1 still hold out against the vaunted attractions of Bohemia’s apple strudel, though-by the time it gets to the table all the freshness and crunch have gone out of the pastry, and the heretical addition of ice cream only makes things soggily worse. 2810 N. Henderson- 826-6209. Moderate. -W.L.T.
ITALIAN
D Revisits Caffe Paparazzi. Each visit here strengthens our conviction that this is Dallas’ best moderately priced Italian restaurant. The kitchen executes simple standbys with flair and authority-witness the lightly crusted, tender-fried calamari or the toothsome spaghetti alla cafbonara. Even the dinner salads that precede all entrees shout out how much magic first-rate Italian cooking can work with the simplest ingredients. But there are also touches of fancy and originality, like a daily special of eggplant lasagna in which thin slices of the vegetable alternate between layers of sauce. Another superb treatment of eggplant-the slices rolled around a stuffing of delicately flavored rice-accompanies scallops of veal in a rich forestiera sauce laden with mushrooms. After all this, the desserts (such as créme caramel or profiteroles) are little more than serviceable, but it’s hard to complain when everything that has gone before has proved so memorable. 8989 Forest Lane. Suite 136. 644-1323. Moderate. -W.L.T.
JAPANESE
D Revisits Hana Japanese Restaurant. Tucked away in a strip shopping center on a far north stretch of In-wood. Hana is inconspicuously turning out some of the best Japanese food in town. A mostly Asian clientele occupies the long, attractive sushi bar where the chefs wield their knives to deliver impeccably fresh slices and cubes of fish. In the rest of the dining area, cunningly divided by a little wooden house with a hanging paper lantern, patrons can order from a menu and do very well with standby dishes like a puffy. light shrimp tempura and a spectacularly tender and tasty version of tonkatsu (Japan’s answer to the chicken-fried pork cutlet). A steak of salmon, too, comes to the table grilled to juicy perfection. But Hana is also polite enough to translate into English its menu aimed at the Japanese clientele, so the adventurous can sample such rarely encountered (in America) delicacies as chawanmushi-a salty, rather than sweet, custard filled with a big mushroom cap, shrimp and chicken. The grilled mackerel also rewards exploration for those who appreciate its assertive taste and rather oily texture-I thought the crisply grilled skin the highlight of a fine meal. 14865 Inwood. 991-8322. Moderate. -W.LT.
MEDITERRANEAN
D Revisits Adelmo’s. The ill-defined “Mediterranean” trend of the past few years has mostly given us a lot of res taurant kitchens that use too much garlic. Adelmo’s-though the kitchen isn’t stingy with the garlic-instead offers a spec trum of seasonings in a variety of regional dishes and serves them with a joie de vivre more typical than any spice. The narrow, two-story space, which has seemed nothing but cramped in its past lives, has gained a European charm. The service is exuberant, and the food is the son that makes a party. The good house-made páté was creamy and but tery-soft on the tongue and strong in the nose-and was properly served with comichons and mustard. The flavor of a special soup of leeks and potatoes, made without cream, seemed a little faded beside the other appetizers. Crabcakes, which we see on every menu in town, were saved from triteness by a dollop of pesto and harissa-spiked mayonnaise. Gorgeous tomatoes (does Adelmo grow his own?) were mixed with feta, greens and olives in a Greek-style salad. Entree portions were enormous-what could have been a pound of house-made duck sausage rested on a bed of couscous blanketed with wilted peppers. A wonderfully juicy half of rabbit was golden crusted on the outside; an enormous veal chop was smothered with a flavorful sauce of tomatoes and capers: a big piece of tilapia swam in a slightly sour sorrel sauce. 4537 Cole. 559-0325. Moderate. -M.B.M.
NEW AMERICAN
D Revisits Quadrangle Grille. This stylishly casual cafe is one of my regular spots for off-the-job eating- service, food and atmosphere never fail to please. The serv ice on our last lunch was typically amiable and efficient, even though Quadrangle Grille is probably one of the most popular-that is, crowded-spots for lunch in town. The selection of salads (we like the achiote-rubbed chicken breast arranged with slices of buttery avocado, chopped olives and shredded asadero cheese over a bed of greens), sandwiches (especially the Yucatan chicken on squaw bread) and pizzas (the shrimp-topped version is a favorite) is ap pealingly savory and light enough for the middle of the day. If you feel you need a shot of sugar energy, the mysterious ly named bitter chocolate “tart.” actually a kind of fallen soufflé’, and a cup of cappuccino will send you zooming on to 5:00. 2800 Routh St., Suite 180, in the Quadrangle. 979-9022. Moderate. -M.B.M
SEAFOOD
D Revisits Fishmonger’s Seafood Market and Cafe. When we visited the new Greenville Avenue location of this Piano standby it didn’t seem to come up to standards, but we’re happy to report that all still seems to be well at the original location-including the bustling crowds. Fishmonger’s, with its retail fish market right in the midst of the dining tables, is the sort of place where you expect to find simple things well executed. And that expectation is satisfied in (he planks of fried bluefish, the oversized fried shrimp (which one person in our party thought the best she had ever lasted) and the grilled salmon fillet. But far and away the most popular dish here is the more complex red- fish Pontchartrain-grilled perfectly and topped succulently with sautéed shrimp, mushrooms and crab meal. We had heard irate reports that service had faltered here, but can only report that our server was professional both in efficien cy and in manner. 1915 N. Central at Chisholm. Suite 600. Piano. 423-3699. Moderate. -W.LT.
TAKEOUT/DELI
D Revisits Gilbert’s New York Delicatessen. From any-time breakfasts to lush desserts, the menu at this Preston/Forest haven for the hungry reads like a deli dictionary of comfort foods, kosher and non. You like soup? The mushroom barley is thick and rich-flavored. You favor your corned beef sliced thin and piled high, your chopped liver well seasoned and nubby lextured? Try both on rye-it’s hard to pick a preference. Stuffed cabbage rolls, two to an order, are plump and succulent, subtly sweet-and-sour. Mutton brie, from the breakfast listings, plays toasty-crisp crushed crackers against tender scrambled eggs; fluffy but termilk pancakes soak up syrup deleclably- A formidable wedge of chocolate cake lavished with creamy fudge frosting competes with the melt-away splendor of dense, smooth cheesecake-’”Our own Aunt Ruthie’s Secret Recipe.” the menu says. Viva Aunt Ruthie. 1 say. And viva Gilbert’s for offering the perfect weekend brunch solution for couples divided between late-breakfast and lunch fare, even outside normal brunch hours. Every item on the menu, by the way, is packable for takeout, although deep-cushioned booths and a black, chrome and shades-of-aubergine decor make eating here a pleasant proposition. As did the accommodating serv ice on our visit. 127 Preston Forest Village. 373-3333. Inex pensive to moderate. -B.C.
D Revisits Hao’s Chinese Food. The heartbreak of psoriasis is nothing compared to learning you live three blocks outside a hot new food shop’s free delivery area. Let me fill you in: Appetite whetted by a Park Cities friend’s confession that the Hao’s in Snider Plaza delivered her from workaday dining drudgery. I had rejoiced to learn that owner David Ho had opened a clone on Lower Greenville rearer my own neighborhood. Alas, not near enough-since he considers my address below the salt (or soy. if you will). I must pick up my own. No great chore-the new place is spif- fy, the help couldn’t be nicer, and the food, if not as wonder ful as my friend claimed, is very fresh, no-MSG Chinese. Crispy egg rolls, “the best in town.” weren’t quite that, and fried won tons were downright leathery; but other appetizers-big butterfly shrimp, crispy chicken drumettes and hell-hot dragon wings-were excellent. Hot-and-sour soup was incendiary, but oddly sweet rather than sour; garlic shrimp likewise lived up to its spicy-hot star; pepper steak was a mild-mannered mix of beef and bell peppers in onion-spiked black bean sauce. Steamed rice came in little cartons shaped like the traditional Chinese takeout pails, but without metal handles, hence microwavable-as were all containers, with a happy absence of plastic foam. Even fortune cookies were included. Hao’s Ho has thought of everything, right down to using the same phone number to take computer-controlled orders for either location. 6912 Snider Plaza. 3709 Greenville Ave. 361-2020. Inexpensive to moderate. -B.C.
RESTAURANTS
D RECOM M E N DS
BARBECUE
Austin’s Barbecue. 2321 W. Illinois.. 337-2242. Inexpensive.
Baker’s Ribs. 2724 Commerce. 748-5433. Inexpensive.
Peggy Sue BBQ. 6600 Snider Plaza. 987-9189. Inexpensive.
Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse. 2202 In wood. 357-7120. 302 N. Market. 744-1610. Inexpensive.
BRITISH
Jennivine. 3605 McKinney Ave. 528-6010- Moderate to expensive.
Outback Pub. 1701 N. Market. Suite 105. 761-9355. Inexpensive.
BURGERS
Allen Street Bar & Grill. 2900 McKinney Ave 871-0256.
Balls Hamburgers. 3404 Rankin in Snider Plaza. 373-1717. 4343 W. Northwest Hwy. 352-2525. Inexpensive.
Cardinal Puff’s. 4615 Greenville Ave. 369-1969. Inexpensive.
Chip’s. 4501 N. Central Expwy. 526-1092. Inexpensive.
Club Schmitz. 9661 Denton Drive. 902-7990. Inexpensive.
8.0. 2800 Routh St. 979-0880. Inexpensive.
Hard Rock Cafe. 2601 McKinney Ave. 855-0007. Moderate.
Prince of Hamburgers. 5200 Lemmon Ave. 526-9081. Inexpensive.
Snuffers. 3526 Greenville Ave. 826-6850. 14910 Midway, Addison. 991-8811. Inexpensive.
Texas Hamburgers. 1606 Market Center Blvd. 747-2222, Inexpensive.
CAJUN
Arcadia Bar & Grill. 2114 Greenville Ave. 821-1300. Inexpensive.
Atchafalaya River Cafe. 4440 Belt Line. Addison. 960-6878. Moderate.
Cafe Margaux. 4216 Oak Lawn. 520-1985. Moderate.
Crescent City Cafe. 2730 Commerce. 745-1900. Inexpensive.
Dodie’s Seafood Cafe. 2129 Greenville Ave. 821-8890 Inexpensive.
Louisiana Purchase. 2901 N. Central Expwy.. Suite 101. Piano. 423-0533. Inexpensive to moderate.
Nate’s Seafood & Steakhouse. 14951 Midway Road. Addison, 701-9622. Moderate.
Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen. 3520 Oak Lawn. 521-4700. Moderate to expen
Red’s Cajun Queen. 3701 W. Northwest Hwy. 350-9777. Inexpensive to moderate.
CENTRAL/SOUTH AMERICAN
Gloria’s Restaurant. 600 W. Davis. 948-3672. 9386 LBJ Frwy. at Abrams. 690-0622. Inexpensive.
Latnamerican Cafe. 4436 Lemmon Ave. 526-4436. Inexpensive.
CHINESE
August Moon. 15030 Preston at Belt Line. 385-7227. 2300 N. Central Expwy. Piano. 881-0071. Moderate.
Cafe Panda. 7979 Inwood, Suite 121. 902-9500. Moderate.
Cathy’s Wok. 4010 W 15th. Piano. 964-0406. Inexpensive.
Canton Chinese Restaurant. 400 N. Greenville Ave.. Suite 25. Richardson. 238-1863. Inexpensive.
Chef Wang. 9330 N. Central Expwy., United Artists Plaza. 373-1403. Moderate to expensive.
Chu’s Restaurant. 15080 Beltway. Addison. 387-1776. Moderate.
Crystal Pagoda. 4516 McKinney Ave. 526-3355. Moderate.
Elm St. Shang-Hal. 2807 Elm St. 651-8988 Moderate.
First Chinese Barbecue. Ill S. Greenville Ave., Richardson. 680-8216. Inexpensive.
Grand Taipei. 216 W. Campbell. Richardson. 907-1027. Moderate.
Henry Chen’s, 3701 W. Northwest Hwy. 956-9560. Moderate.
Hong Kong Royale. 221 W. Polk, Suite 200 Richardson. 238-8888. Moderate to expensive.
May Dragon. 4848 Bell Line at in wood. 392-9998. Moderate.
Restaurant Jasmine. 4002 Belt Line, Suite 200, Addison. 991-6867. Moderate.
Szechwan Pavilion. 8411 Preston. 368-4303. 1152 N. Buckner. Suite 128. Casa Linda Plaza. 321-7599. Moderate.
Taiwan Restaurant. 4980 Belt Line, Addison. 387-2333. Inexpensive to moderate.
Tasty China. 3514-A W Walnuti, Garland. 276-1999. Inexpensive.
Texas Jade. 3227 McKinney Ave. 871-8898. Moderate.
Tong’s. 11661 Preston. Suite 143. 361-6588. Moderate.
Tone’s House. 1910 Promenade Center. Richardson. 231-8858. Moderate.
Uncle Tal’s. 13350 Dallas Pkwy., in the Galleria. 934-9998. Expensive.
ETHIOPIAN
Dallul. 2515 In wood. 353-0804. Inexpensive to moderate.
River Nile. 7001 Fair Oaks. 363-1128. Inexpensive to moderate.
FRENCH/CONTINENTAL
Addison Cafe. 5290 Bell Line, Dallas. 991-8824. Moderate to expensive.
Cafe Le Jardin. 4900 McKinney Ave. 526-0570. Moderate to expensive.
Chez Gerard. 4444 McKinney Ave. 522-6865. Moderate
Clair de Lune. 5934 Royal Lane, Suite 120. 987-2028. Moderate to expensive.
Epicure Highland Park. 69 Highland Park Village. 520-8501. Moderate to expensive.
Ernie’s. 5100 Belt Line, Suite 502. 233-8855. Moderate to expensive.
Ewald’s. Stoneleigh Hotel. 2927 Maple. 871-2523. Expensive.
The French Room. The Adolphus Hotel. 1321 Commerce. 742-8200. Expensive.
The Grape. 2808 Greenville Ave. 828-1981. Moderate.
La Madeleine. 3072 W. Mockingbird. 696-0800. 3906 Lemmon Ave. 521-0183. 628 NorthPark Center. 696-2398. Inexpensive.
L’Ancestral. 4514 Travis. 528-1081. Moderate.
Le Brussels. 6615 Snider Plaza. 739-1927. Moderate.
L’Entrecote. Loews Anatole Hotel. 2201 Summons Frwy. 748-1200. Very expensive.
Lea Saisons. 165 Turtle Creek Village. 528-1102. Expensive.
The Old Warsaw. 2610 Maple. 528-0032. Very expensive.
Pierre’s By The Lake. 3430 Shorecrest. 358-2379. Moderate to expensive.
The Riviera. 7709 Inwood. 351-0094. Very expensive.
St. Martins. 3020 Greenville Ave. 826-0940. Moderate to expensive.
Watel’s. 1923 McKinney Ave. 720-0323. Moderate to expensive.
GERMAN/EASTERN EUROPEAN
Belvedere. 4242 Lomo Alto. 528-6510. Expensive.
Cafe Athenee. 5365 Spring Valley. Suite 150. 239-8060. Moderate.
The Chimney. 9739 N. Central Expwy. 369-6466. Expensive.
Franki’s Li’l Europe. 362 Casa Linda Plaza, Garland Road. 320-0426 2515 McKinney Ave., Suite 150. 953-0426 Inexpensive to moderate.
Hofstetter’s. Plaza at Bachman Creek. 3840 W. Northwest Hwy.. Suite 400. 358-7660. Inexpensive to moderate.
Kuby’s Sausage House Inc. 6601 Snider Plaza. 363-2231. 3121 Ross. 821-3121. Inexpensive.
GREEK
Athens Cafe. 5290 Belt Line. Suite 118. Addison. 991-9185. Inexpensive to moderate.
Goldfinger. 2905 Webb Chapel Extension. 350-6983. Moderate to expensive.
Greek Bistro. 2014 Greenville Ave. 826-8989. Inexpensive to moderate.
Kostas Cafe. 4914 Greenville Ave. 987-3225. Inexpensive.
Theodore’s Seafood Restaurant. The Corner Shopping Center, 8041 Walnut Hill. Suite 810. 361-1922. Moderate to expensive.
HOME COOKING
Bishop Arts Cafe. 316 W. Seventh St. 943-3565. Inexpensive to moderate.
Celebration. 4503 W. Lovers Lane. 351-5681. Moderate.
Chubby’s. 11333 E. Northwest Hwy. 348-6065.
Farmer’s Grill. 4015 Lemmon Ave. 521-2281. Inexpensive.
Gennle’s Bishop Grille. 321 N. Bishop. 946-1752. Inexpensive.
Highland Park Cafeteria. 4611 Cole at Knox. 526-3801. 300 Casa Linda Plaza at Garland Road. 327-3663. Lincoln Plaza. 500 N. Akard. 740-2400. Inexpensive.
Highland Park Pharmacy. 3229 Knox. 521-2126. Inexpensive.
Mama’s Daughter’s Diner. 2014 Irving Blvd. 742-8646. Inexpensive.
Original Market Diner. 4434 Harry Hines. 521-0992. Inexpensive.
The Mecca. 10422 Harry Hines. 352-0051. Inexpensive.
Roscoe’s Easy Way. 5420 Lemmon Ave. 528-8459. Inexpensive.
Rosemaries. 1411 N. Zang. 946-1142. Inexpensive.
Theo’s Diner. 111 S. Hall. 747-6936. Inexpensive.
Tolbert’s. One Dallas Center, 350 N. St. Paul. 953-1353. 1800 N. Market 969-0310. Inexpensive.
Vice Versa. 6065 Sherry Lane. 691-2976. Inexpensive.
INDIAN
Akbar. 2115 Promenade Center, Richardson. 235-0260. Inexpensive (lunch) to moderate (dinner).
Ashoka Indian Cuisine. 5409 Belt Line, Prestonwood Creek Shopping Center. 960-0070. Moderate.
India Palace Restaurant. 12817 Preston, Suite 106. 392-0190. Moderate to expensive.
Kebab-N-Kurry- 401 N. Central Expwy., Suite 300. Richardson. 231-5556. Inexpensive to moderate.
Kebab-N-Kurry. 2620 Walnut Hill. 350-6466. Inexpensive.
Motl Mahal. 1492 Spring Valley. Richardson. 238-7673. Inexpensive.
Shallmar. 35 Richardson Heights Village. Central at Belt Line, Richardson. 437-2858. Inexpensive.
Shusmi. 859 N.E. Green Oaks, Arlington. (8I7) 860-8728. Moderate.
Taj Mahal. Caruth Plaza. 9100 N. Central Expwy.. Suite 179- 692-0535. Moderate.
IRISH
Tipperary Inn. 2818 Greenville Ave. 823-7167. Inexpensive.
ITALIAN
Acapeita Cafe. 2508 Maple. 871-2262. Moderate.
Alessio’s. 4117 Lomo Alto. 521-3585. Expensive.
Cafe Italia. 2720 Stemmons Frwy. 521-0700. Inexpensive to moderate.
Caprlccio 2616 Maple. 871-2004. Expensive.
Chianti Restaurant and Pizzeria. 9526 Webb Chapel. 350-7456. Inexpensive.
Fausto’s Own. 300 Reunion Blvd., in the Hyatt Regency Hotel. 651-1234. Moderate.
Ferrari’s. 703 McKinney Ave., in The Brewery. 954-1112. Moderate to expensive.
Flip’s Wine Bar & Trattoria. 1520 Greenville Ave. 824-9944. Moderate.
Joey Tomato’s Atlantic City. 3232 McKinney Ave. 754-0380. Inexpensive to moderate.
La Tosca. 7713 Inwood. 352-8373. Expensive.
La Trattoria Lombardl’s. 2916 N. Hall. 954-0803. Moderate.
Lombardi’s at Travis Walk. 4514 Travis Walk. 521-1480. Moderate.
Lombardl’s Expresso. 6135 Luther Lane. 361-6984. Inexpensive to moderate.
Massimo da Milano. 5519 W. Lovers Lane. 351-1426. 2121 San Jacinto. 871-0400. 901 Main Place, Suite CI06 in the NCNB Building. 761-6350. Inexpensive to moderate.
Ml Piaci. 14854 Mont fort, 934-8424. Moderate to expensive.
MoMo’s Italian Specialties. 9191 Forest Lane, Suite A2. 234-6800. 2704 Elm St. 748-4222. 3309 N. Central Expwy.. Suite 370. Plano. 423-1066. Moderate.
MoMo’s Pasta. 3312 Knox. 521-3009. Inexpensive.
Nero’s Italian. 2104 Greenville Ave. 826-6376. Moderate.
Patrizio.25 Highland Park Village. 522-7878. Inexpensive to moderate.
Piccola Cucina. 1030 NorthPark Center, Suite 330. 691-0488. Moderate.
Pizzeria Una. 2811 McKinney Ave. 855-0011. 4002 Belt Line, Addison. 991-8181. Inexpensivé to moderate.
Pomodoro. 2520 Cedar Springs. 871-1924. Inexpensive to moderate.
Ristorante Savino. 2929 N. Henderson. 826-7804. Moderate to expensive.
Romano’s Macaroni Grill. 4535 Belt Line, Addison. 386-3831. Moderate.
Ruggerl’s. 2911 Routh St. 871-7377. Moderate.
Scuro. 2713 Elm St. 741-0111. Inexpensive to moderate.
Sfuzzi. 2504 McKinney Ave. 871-2606. 15101 Addison Road. Addison. 960-2606. Moderate.
Sweet Basil. 17610 Midway. 733-1500. Moderate.
311 Lombardi’s. 311 Market. 747-0322. Moderate to expensive.
JAPANESE
Fuji-Ya. 13050 Coit. 690-8396. Inexpensive to moderate.
Hibachi-Ya Japanese Steak House. 3850 W. Northwest Hwy., Suite 510. 350-1110. Inexpensive.
Mr. Sushi. 4860 Bell Line. Addison. 385-0168. Moderate.
Nakamoto JapaneseCuisine. 3309 N. Central Expwy., Suite 360. Plano. 881-0328. Moderate.
Sakura Japanese Restaurant. 7402 Greenville Ave.. Suite 101. 361-9282. Moderate to expensive.
Shinano Japanese Restaurant. 8830 Spring Valley. 644-1436. Moderate.
Shogun of Japan. 5738 Cedar Springs. 351-2281, 3455 N. Belt Line. Irving. 594-6911. Moderate.
KOREAN
Kobawoo. 3109 Inwood. 351-6922. Moderate.
Korea Hometown. 10560 Walnut. 272-9909. Inexpensive to moderate.
Koreana. 12101 Greenville Ave.. #107. 437-1211. Inexpensive to moderate.
MEDITERRANEAN
Monte Carlo. 15201 Dallas Pkwy., in the Grand Kempin-ski Dallas Hotel. 386-6000. Expensive.
Sambuca. 2618 Elm St. 744-0820. Moderate.
MEXICAN
Anita’s Mexican Cantina. 7324 Gaston. #319. 328-9639. Inexpensive.
Blue Goose Cantina. 2905 Greenville Ave. 823-6786. Moderate.
Cantina Laredo. 4546 Belt Line. Addison. 458-0962. 8121 Walnut Hill. 987-9192. Moderate.
Casa Dominguez. 2127 Cedar Springs. 742-4945. Inexpensive to moderate.
Chuy’s. 211 N. Record. 747-2838. Moderate.
Desperados. 4818 Greenville Ave. 363-1850. Inexpensive to moderate.
El Asadero. 1516 Greenville Ave. 826-0625. Inexpensive to moderate.
El Ranchito. 610 W. Jefferson. 946-4238. Inexpensive to Moderate.
Flamingo Joe’s. 2712 Main. 748-6065. Inexpensive to moderate.
Grandpa Tony’s. 3130 W Mockingbird. 357-1531. inexpensive.
Javier’s. 4912 Cole. 521-4211. Expensive.
La Calle Doce. 415 W. 12th. 941-4304. Inexpensive to moderate.
Las Cazuelas. 4933 Columbia. 827-1889. Inexpensive.
La Supreme Tortilleria. 7630 Military Pkwy. (at Loop 12). 388-1244. Inexpensive.
Mario & Alberto. LBJ Frwy.. at Preston. Suite 425. 980-72%. Moderate.
Mario’s Chiquita. 4514 Travis. Suite 105. 521-0721. 221 W. Parker, Suite 400, Piano. 423-2977. Moderate.
The Martinez Cafe. Preston Park Village. 1900 Preston. Piano. 964-7898. Inexpensive.
Matt’s Rancho Martinez Mexican Restaurant. 6312 La Vista. 823-5517. Inexpensive to moderate.
Mercado Juarez. 1901 W. Nothwest Hwy. 556-0796. 4050 Belt Line. Addison. 458-2145. Inexpensive to moderate.
Mia’s. 4322 Lemmon Ave. 526-1020. Inexpensive.
MI Casa Tex Mex Restaurant. 8301 Westchester. 890-9939, Inexpensive to moderate.
Ml Cocina. 11661 Preston. Suite I38. 265-7704. Inexpensive.
Primo’s. 3309 McKinney Ave. 520-3303. Inexpensive.
Uncle Julio’s. 7557 Greenville Ave. 987-9900. 4125 Lem-mon Ave. 520-6620. Moderate.
ZuZu. 6423 Hillcrest. 521-4456. 5940 Royal Lane. 739-1312. 3100 Independence Pkwy.. Plano. 596-6744. Inexpensive.
MIDDLE EASTERN
All Baba. 1905 Greenville Ave. 823-8235. Inexpensive.
Hedary’s Lebanese Restaurant. Promenade Center. 15400 Coit. Suite 2500. Richardson. 669-2112. Moderate.
NATURAL
Bluebonnet Cafe & Deli 2218 Greenville Ave. 828-0052. Inexpensive.
Dream Cafe. 2800 Routh St.. Suite 170. in the Quadrangle. 954-0486. Inexpensive.
NEW AMERICAN
Aransas Pass. 2912 N. Henderson. 827-8650. Moderate inexpensive.
Aristocrat Hotel Bar & Grill. 1933 Main. 741-7700. Moderate to expensive.
Beau Nash. 400 Crescent Court in the HoteI Crescent Court. 871-3200. Moderate to expensive.
Bravo. 2621 McKinney. 871-2786. Moderate.
The Bronx. 3835 Cedar Springs. 521-5821. Inexpensive to moderate.
The Buffalo Club. 2800 Routh St.. Suite 125. in the Quadrangle. 748-2400. Moderate to expensive.
By George! 2900 Greenville Ave. 821-1538. Moderate.
Chaplin’s. 1928 Greenville Ave. 823-3300. Moderate to expensive.
City Cafe. 5757 W. Lovers Lane. 351-2233. Moderate.
The Conservatory. 400 Crescent Court in the Hotel Crescent Court. 871-3242. Very expensive.
Crockett’s. Doubletree Hotel at Park West. 5410 LBJ Frwy. 701-5160. Expensive.
Dakota’s. 600 N. Akard. 740-4001. Moderate to expensive.
Deep Ellum Cafe, 2706 Elm St. 741-9012. Moderate to expensive.
Dover’s Grille. Doubletree Hotel at Park West. 1590 LBJ Frwy. 869-4300. Moderate to expensive.
Gershwin’s. 8442 Walnut Hill at Greenville Ave. 373-7171. Moderate to expensive.
Huntington’s. Westin Hotel. Galleria. 13340 Dallas Pkwy. 851-2882. Expensive.
Kathleen’s Art Cafe. 4424 Lovers Lane. 691-2355. Moderate to expensive.
Landmark Cafe. Omni Melrose Hotel. 3015 Oak Lawn. 521-5151. Expensive.
Laurels. Sheraton Park Central Hotel, 12720 Merit Drive, off Coit near LBJ Frwy. 385-3000. Expensive.
The Mansion on Turtle Creek. 2821 Turtle Creek Blvd. 559-2100. Very expensive.
Maiibu Cafe. 4311 Oak Lawn. 521-2233. Moderate.
Nana Grill. Loews Anatole Hotel. 2201 Stemmons Frwy. 761-7470. Expensive to very expensive.
Parigi. 3311 Oak Lawn. 521-0295. Moderate to expensive.
The Promenade. 2821 Turtle Creek Blvd. in The Mansion on Turtle Creek. 559-2100. Moderate to expensive.
The Pyramid Room. 1717 N. Akard in the Fairmont Hotel. 720-5249. Very expensive.
Routh Street Cafe. 3005 Routh St. 871-7161. Very expensive.
SEAFOOD
Atlantic Cafe Too! 14866 Mont fort. Addison. 960-2233. Moderate to expensive.
Aw Shucks. 3601 Greenville Ave. 821-9449. Inexpensive.
Cafe America. 4546 McKinney Ave. 559-4441. Expensive.
Cafe Pacific. 24 Highland Park Village. 526-1170. Expensive.
Dinger’s Catfish Cafe. 8989 Forest Lane. 235-3251. Inexpensive.
Hampton’s. Preston Center, 8411 Preston. Berkshire Court. 739-3474. Moderate.
Jozef’s Seafood Restaurant. 2719 McKinney Ave. 954-0407. Moderate to expensive.
Maine St. Seafood Grill. 6348 Gaston. 826-8264. Inexpensive to expensive.
Newport’s Seafood. 703 McKinney Ave. in The Brewery. 954-0220. Expensive.
Oyster’s. 4580 Belt Line. Addison. 386-0122 or 387-4231. Inexpensive to moderate.
Rusty Pelican. 14655 N. Dallas Pkwy. 980-8950. Expensive.
S&D Oyster Company. 2701McKinney Ave. 880-0111. Inexpensive to moderate. Yoll’s. 9220 Skillman. Suite 124. 341-3533. Inexpensive.
SOUTHWESTERN
Baby Routh. 2708 Routh St. 871-2345. Moderate to expensive.
Blue Mesa Grill. 5100 Bell Line at Dallas Pkwy. in Sakowitz Village. Suite 500. Addison. 934-0165. Inexpensive to moderate.
Brazos. 2100 Greenville Ave. 821-6501. Moderate to expensive.
Cisco Grill. 6630 Snider Plaza. 363-9506. Inexpensive.
Lama Luna Cafe. 4131 Lomo Alto. 559-4011. 8201 Preston. Suite 100 (at Sherry Lane). 691-1552. Moderate.
Sam’s Cafe. 100 Crescent Court. Suite 140. 855-2233. Moderate to expensive.
Zuma. 2701 Stemmons Frwy. 631-3050. Moderate.
SPANISH
Cafe Madrid. 4501 Travis. 528-1731. Inexpensive to moderate.
White Swan Cafe. 2307 Abrams. 824-8122. Moderate.
STEAKS
Arthur’s. 8350 N. Central Expwy., Campbell Centre. Suite M 1000. 361-8833. Expensive.
The Butcher Shop Steakhouse. 808 Munger, off Lamar. 720-1032. Moderate.
Del Frisco’s Double Eagle. 4300 Lemmon Ave. 526-9811. Expensive.
Lawry’s The Prime Rib. 3008 Maple. 521-7777. Moderate to expensive.
Old San Francisco Steakhouse. 10965 Composite (off Walnut Hill, east of 1-35). 357-0484. Moderate to expensive.
Palm Restaurant. 701 Ross. 698-0470. Very expensive.
Ruth’s Chris Steak House. 5922 Cedar Springs. 902-8080. Expensive.
Wellington Restaurant & Bar. 2408 Cedar Springs. 748-1291. Expensive.
TAKEOUT/DELI
AI’S New York Style Dell. 3301 Oak Lawn. Suite A (entrance on Hall). 522-3354. Inexpensive.
Basel Emporium. 7522 Campbell. 248-0608. Inexpensive.
Bagelstein’s. 8104 Spring Valley. 234-3787. Inexpensive
City Cafe To Go. 5757 W. Lovers Lane. 351-3366. Moderate.
City Market. 2001 Ross, Trammel] Crow Center, Suite 200. 979-2696. Inexpensive.
Crescent Gourmet. 400 Crescent Court, Suite 150. 871-3223. Inexpensive to moderate.
Dell News. 15775 Hillcrest. Suite 502. 392-3354. Inexpensive.
Henk’s European Dell. 5811 Blackwell Street. 987-9090. Inexpensive to moderate.
Marty’s. 3316 Oak Lawn. 526-4070. Moderate.
Polio Bueno. 3438 Samuell Blvd. 828-0645 Inexpensive.
Tommaso’s Fresh Pasta. 5365 Spring Valley, Suite 158, at Montfort. 991-4040. Inexpensive to moderate.
THAI
Bangkok City. 4301 Bryan at Peak. 824-6200. Inexpensive to moderate.
New Slam. 2415 Willow brook. Suite 108 (at Northwest Hwy. and Harry Hines). 358-5679. Inexpensive to moderate.
SalaThai. 4503 Greenville Ave. 696-3210. Moderate.
Thai Cuisine. 1915 Central Expwy. (off Park), Piano. 422-5219. Moderate.
Thai Lanna. 1490 W. Spring Valley, Richardson. 690-3637. 4315 Bryan. 827-6478. Moderate.
Thai Lotus. 3851-D Cedar Springs. 520-9385. Inex-pensive.
Thai Nipa. 4315 Lemmon Ave. 526-6179. Inexpensive.
Thai Soon. 2018 Greenville Ave. 821-7666. Inexpensive.
Thai Taste. 4501 Cole. 521-3513. Moderate.
Toy’s Cafe. 4422-BLemmon Ave. 528-7233. Inexpensive to moderate.
VIETNAMESE
Arc-en-Clel. 3555 W. Walnut, Garland. 272-2188. Inexpensive to moderate.
Cafe de Saigon. 5617 W. Lovers Lane. 350-S767. Moderate
East Wind. 2711 Elm St. 745-5554. Inexpensive to moderate.
Mai’s Cuisine. 4814 Greenville Ave. 739-5424. Inexpensive.
LAS COLINAS/MID CITIES
Bistro Bagatelle. (French) 406 W. Abrams, Arlington. Metro 817-261-0488. Moderate to expensive.
Cacharel. (French) Brookhollow Two, 2221 E. Lamar, Suite 900. Arlington. Metro 817-640-9981. Moderate.
China Terrace. (Chinese) 5435 N. MacArthur, Irving. 550-1113. Inexpensive to moderate.
Esparza’s. (Mexican) 124 E. Worth St.. Grapevine. Metro 817-481-4668. Inexpensive.
Gaspar’s. (New American) I50 S. Denton Tap Road. Coppell. 393-5152. Moderate.
Jinbeh. (Japanese) 301 E. Us Colinas Blvd.. Suite 301. Irving. 869-4011. Moderate.
La Margarita. (Mexican) 3636 N. Bell Line, Irving. 570-1137. Inexpensive to moderate.
Tandoor. (Indian) 532 Fielder North Plaza, Arlington. Metro 817-261-6604. Moderate.
VIa Real. (Mexican) 4020 N. MacArthur, Irving. 255-0064. Moderate to expensive.
FORT WORTH
Benito’s. (Mexican) 1450 W. Magnolia. (817)332-8633. inexpensive.
Cafe Aspen. (New American) 3416 W. Seventh. (817) 877-0838. Moderate to expensive.
Ciao. (Italian) 2454 Forest Park Blvd. (817) 924-2426. Inexpensive to moderate.
Kincaid’s. (Burgers) 4901 Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 732-2881. Inexpensive.
Hedary’s. (Lebanese) 3308 Fairfield off Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 731-6961. Moderate.
Jon? Grille. (Burgers) 3009 S. University. (817) 923-1909. Inexpensive.
Juanita’s. (Mexican) 115 W. Second. (817) 335-1777. Moderate.
Ristorante La Piazza. (Italian) 3431 West Seventh. (817) 334-0000. Moderate to expensive.
Le Chandonnay. (French) 2443 Forest Park Blvd. (817) 926-5622. Moderate to expensive.
Papi’s. (Puerto Rican) 2239 N. Main. (817) 625-4413. Inexpensive.
Reflections. (New American) The Wonhington Hotel. 200 Main. (817) 870-1000. Expensive.
Saint Emillon. (French) 3617 W Seventh. (817) 737-2781. Moderate to expensive.
Tejano Mexican Cuisine. (Mexican) 5716 Camp Bowie Blvd. (817) 737-7201. Inexpensive to moderate.
Tours Restaurant. (New American) 3500 W. Seventh. (817) 870-1672. Moderate to expensive.
Water Street Seafood Co. (Seafood) 1540 S. University Drive. (817) 877-3474. Moderate.
NIGHTLIFE
Pete & Sean’s Angry Dog. 2726 Commerce. 741-4406.
The Art Bar. 2803 Main. 939-0006.
Club Clearview. 2806 Elm St. 939-0006.
Club Dada. 2720 Elm St., at Crowdus. 744-3232.
Dave & Buster’s. 10727 Composite, near Walnut Hill at Stemmons Frwy. 353-0649. 8021 Walnut Hill, at North Central Expwy. 361-5553.
Dick’s Last Resort. Corner of Record and Ross. 747-0001.
Froggy Bottoms. Part of Dallas Alley in the West End Marketplace. 2019 N. Lamar. 988-0581.
Greenville Bar & Grill. 2821 Greenville Ave. 823-6691.
Improv Comedy Club and Restaurant. 9810 N. Central Expwy,. Suite 600 (in The Corner Shopping Center). 750-5868. 4980 Belt Line at Quorum. Suite 250. Addison. 404-8503.
Infinity. 703 McKinney Ave. 720-1300.
The Library Bar. Omni Melrose Hotel, 3015 Oak Lawn. 521-5151.
The Lounge. 5460 W. Lovers Lane. 350-7834.
Memphis. 5000 Belt Line. Suite 500. 386-9934.
The Outback Pub. 1701 N. Market. 761-9355.
Poor David’s Pub. 1924 Greenville Ave. 821-9891.
Stan’s Blue Note. 2908 Greenville Ave. 824-9653.
Stoneleigh P. 2926 Maple. 871-2346.
Trees. 2707 Elm St. 748-5009.
2826. 2826 Elm St. 741-2826.
White Rock Yacht Club. 7324 Gaston, Suite 301. 328-3866.
