Dirty Little Secret

By Robert Wilonsky Fri., May 5 2006 at 9:36 AM

On the one hand, I hate hipster elitism and the mentality that the fewer people who know about a thing you like, the better. On the other hand, I am a hipster elitist, but in this case I am too late to stop you from finding out about the Belmont Hotel in Oak Cliff. Late to the party, I only found out about the place in the last few months, which means I'm part of the new herd of interlopers, anyway.

Besides, given that my true loyalties lie with this blog and making sure there are a few things about Dallas that don't absolutely suck on Unfair Park, I am at last telling you that the �ber-mod Belmont Hotel is an appropriate and awesome after-work drink destination. That's particularly true when there's some cool stuff on the walls to look at, which there currently is, thanks to the Mulcahy Modern.

The Bishop Arts gallery has extended itself into the lobby, bar and a suite at the Belmont with work from Tom Sime and Derrick Saunders, among others, until May 22. My favorite piece was a nude drawing in the bar area by Heyd Fontenot, which caused me to exclaim, "Hey, there's a penis on the wall!" as my date graciously handed me a Stella.

Later, a cane-weilding guy in Harry Potter glasses showed up, and we bumped into a man wearing--I kid you not--a sea captain's hat. When we ventured down to the pool to check out the panoramic views of downtown, I took comfort in knowing that while I stared at the Dallas Phallus, there was a phallus in Dallas on a wall just a few hundred yards away. What a city. --Andrea Grimes

Email to Friend