hahahahaha, seems like all of the food critics in Dallas wanna make sure the rest of the world knows that they too are too good for Dallas food. where do y'all gather to share notes on how to make fun of our great city?

after reading your opening disclaimer I figured I should have stopped reading your... review? I mean, you went on dollar hotdog night and complained about the bun!

in my full price experiences Fearing's has been the best restaurant in Dallas. the restaurant itself is gorgeous, the service 2nd to none and the food makes me want to come back for more!

Yes, Creth--this is known as a starting point. The experience made me wonder about a broader issue.

So who is making fun? We have some great chefs and restaurants in Dallas. Then we pay (as I did last week) far too much for non-prime steak at Bob's.

Don't get stuck on Fearing's. The question isn't about the restaurant. The question is why we (all of us) don't demand more from some of the area's high end places.

I don't really do fine dining all that much as I'm notoriously cheap and I rarely have any hot dates worth impressing. I did take my sister to the Tasting Room at Lola once. That was one of the better meals I've had in Dallas, although it's very casual for fine dining. I haven't had the pleasure of having my entree unveiled in unison by a tuxedo clad waiter at Aurora. I have to say the stuffiest place I ever ate at, Charlie G's in the Lou, was not one of my favorites. Would the Molecular Tapas Bar at the Mandarin Oriental in Tokyo be considered fine dining? I've never actually eaten at a Michelin starred restaurant and tbh I'm not sure I'd really like it.

Tai Kemo Sabe.

You have the economy pressing down on the available number of diners that can pay $100+ for a nice dinner (and let's be honest here, a dinner at a truly fine dining restaurant in any city is going to cost multiples of that $100) combined with the over-capacity of restaurant space from Sunday through Wednesday.

We recently priced a specialty cocktail at $8, had it in Boston earlier in the summer at a "high end" tapas place for $10. Even with a very generous vodka pour, homemade raspberry simple syrup and freshly squeezed lime juice feedback was that it was "expensive". Exquisite, but expensive. Quantity, not quality.

The restaurant market has by no means bottomed out in Dallas. But this recovery, unlike the one in the late 1980's may have some new twists due to the impact of the suburbs. Most have voted themselves a modified "wet", giving their landlords an advantage that was once almost entirely Addison's, which was almost Dallas back then. And they have expanded their retail space to the point where it's sitting empty, just waiting for the right mom/pop to come along to fulfill their dreams and pay a very low rent (low taxes, etc). The advantage to the owners is serious purchasing cost savings and avoiding the hassles of being licensed a private club.

Restaurant week gives you a $35 meal for $35. It's a fair deal. But you can't judge any restaurant that stoops down the price ladder for restaurant week on the basis of its restaurant week menu or service. The kitchen is slammed. The food must be quick prep. from budget ingredient items. All prepared for an audience that doesn't return when pricing reverts to normal. The very FINEST restaurant is the one that stoops the furthest and should come off worst. So Fearing's (being in that category) gave you what you paid for.

Every city has fine dining -- relative to itself as the universe. You are asking something different. You are asking if any establishment in Dallas is world class. Despite there being people on the Eats blog who claim you never need to leave Loop 12 to dine 'the best' it is likely that the answer is 'no'. We used to have one, it was called Actuelle but Dallas didn't populate it enough so the chef left to direct programs at the Culinary Institute of America (the CIA -- they're the ones who waterboard their commies).

I have eaten at just about every top restaurant here in Dallas (that has been open over a year) and while I've had many great meals I have yet to have THE MEAL OF A LIFETIME. I don't think it exists here. Right now my MEAL OF A LIFETIME was at Le Bec Fin in Philadelphia and it cost triple what I've had to pay for great meals here. You do get what you pay for.

Based on my experience, people who live here do not wish to pay Le Bec Fin or French Laundry prices so they don't get it. Aurora comes closest to high quality/high price but I know they have had to change their M.O. to match the local dining mentality.

It's fine that Dallas has great restaurants with great chefs so I am not complaining at all. But world class? No. And if you think a hundred bucks for dinner for two is over-paying I don't think we'll ever get that world class restaurant.

The tasting menus at Le Bec Fin are $150. That's cheaper than tasting menus at the erstwhile Chef's Room at the Mansion, the French Room, and far less than the ludicrous tasting menus at Aurora. (When Samuel first instituted his tasting menus years ago, it was cheaper to have the the chef's menu at the French Laundry...including the cost of coach airfare to SFO.)

The problem isn't with what Dallasites are willing to pay. It's what they're able to get for their money. Fine dining pricing in Dallas has kept up with the big city Joneses, but without matching them in quality.

Actually, Price check, I ate at Le Bec Fin ten years ago and the cost was $295 per person. Obviously they too have had to lower their prices and perhaps their standards? I don't know.

I would rather cook at home and enjoy a really good meal than to pay a high price for a meal that is is, at best, just okay. And there are LOTS of higher-priced just-okay restaurants in the DFW area. So I will pick restaurants for the social vibe, if I want to be with friends, or I will pick restaurants where the price point matches the food quality. A really good taco from a hole-in -the-wall taqueria beats an over-priced boring meal coupled with mediocre service. Places like Neighborhood Services (thank you Nick!) get it all right.
I miss Actuelle, too.

thanks for the reply,

personally I struggle with allowing my expectations to ruin what would have been (and by the looks of people's faces around me, was) a fine (good) dining experience. which isn't that what we all want? and does grade, star or price change that? the old blind fold test...

I'm just lookin' for a great meal

Worzel, I have to disagree with the idea the FINEST places will be the worst during Restaurant Week. The FINEST places are typically fully booked during non-Restaurant weeks, so probably don't need to produce that more more food. Plus, it's not an unexpected rush - they know Restaurant Week is coming and can staff accordingly. They have lots of time to plan a menu that meets the price and "produceablity" parameters of the event. The FINEST chefs should be able to easily come up with something interesting and delicious, and the FINEST service will make all of their guests feel welcome - even the Restaurant Week punters.

The Big Guy thinks the real "meat" (pun intended) of Dallas is the "Big Steak" places, and the mid level locals.

The Big Guy thinks the problem is the people with the disposable income to really drive a great restaurant scene in Dallas could care less about the food. They only care about the "scene".

Big Steak in Dallas is as good as anywhere in the USofA. The Big Guy current favorite for OPM dining (Other People's Money) is Pappas Bros. This is a phenomenal place, that would succeed anywhere.

The Big Guy idea of mid-level locals are Royal China, Pietro's, Royal Thai, Mia's, El Ranchito. Decent places, locally owned. Fairly priced.

The Big Guy wonders what Dallas is exactly "famous" for. What is the local indigenous cuisine?

The Chain Restaurant?

The Big Guy is wrong about steak in Dallas. The best prime beef in America doesn't make it to Dallas steak houses, many of which only use prime beef as window dressing on the menu (if at all). The top steak houses in New York beat anything available on the Dallas market because they forge relationships with the wholesalers. Chicago also beats Dallas. (Allen Brothers, out of Chicago, sells to many of the top steak houses in Dallas.) Below that, Dallas is on par with a lot of other second tier cities for steak.

um... third person? I agree with most of what he said, other than his local picks, but sheesh enough with "The Big Guy" talk

my local favorites that are all cheap eats-
Mama's Daughter's
Dream Cafe
Cindi's
Chip's
Barbec's
Back Country BarBQ
Babe's
Alo