Dallas Oppo's

"mkbruin, Atlas VP" (mkbruin)
09/23/2014 at 12:46 • Filed to: None

I'm in town on business this week. What are the must eat restaurants?

DISCUSSION (7)

Your boy, BJR > mkbruin, Atlas VP
09/23/2014 at 12:52

GAS MONKEY!

03mach1 - Now has a Fiesta ST > mkbruin, Atlas VP
09/23/2014 at 13:26

If you're up near Frisco there's Three Stacks. Amazing BBQ restaurant.

Tapas > mkbruin, Atlas VP
09/23/2014 at 13:32

What area/suburb of Dallas are you close to?

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > mkbruin, Atlas VP
09/23/2014 at 15:35

CBD Provisions is Downtown in the Joule, fantastic for an upscale-rustic meal. It's a very Dallas/Texas-y menu, without any of the kitsch you generally associate with Dallas/Texas.

Pecan Lodge in Deep Ellum (just east of downtown) is the best barbecue in Dallas. You'd think there'd be a lot more good barbecue here given Texas' reputation, but unfortunately that doesn't really start until you start getting south of Waco. Pecan Lodge will compete with the better briskets in the state, though. Smoke is great for upscale way-m0re-than-barbecue barbecue.

Cane Rosso is a neopolitan pizza place over in Deep Ellum as well; if you like neopolitan then you're going to love Cane. Protip: get the Edgar for dessert, it's mindblowingly good.

Chophouse Burger off of Main is one of my favorite burgers in town and a great place to drop in for lunch if you're working in downtown.

Offsite Kitchen in the design district (just west of downtown) does great sandwiches, Slow Bone BBQ over there isn't bad either. The Meddlesome Moth is also in the Design District and is one of the best places in town to grab a drink; amazing beer selection, solid cocktails.

Victor Tango's is just up I75 from Downtown and has great modern tapas-style plates. The Porch is over there and very good, as is Sissy's (amazing) if you want southern/home cooking.

If you want a smorgasbord of great options without having to pick a certain spot, head to Trinity Groves. It's a newer area west of town that has a bunch of restaurant incubators and constantly changing formats, lots of really great stuff happening over there in one place. Just west of downtown.

If you go anywhere for tacos (El Come Taco, Rusty Taco, Tacos Y Mas, Fuel City Tacos are great choices, along with any run down trailer (read: not fancy food truck) that looks sketchy; please, please, please avoid Torchy's or Fuzzy's. Neither is good, and both will be hyped to you), order the brisket tacos. For some reason it's a thing that you really only find in Dallas, and you'll find it everywhere in Dallas. A few places in Austin and outside of Dallas will have brisket tacos, but it's not the same style and it's just not as good. Taco Diner is a good, safe place (nice casual environment as well) to give the brisket tacos a try.

With that in mind: Mexican food in Dallas. People get really, really torn up about Mexican food in Dallas, and Texas as a whole. There's a lot of incredibly mediocre Mexican food here, and there's a lot of really good Mexican food here, and it's really hard to differentiate between the two on the outset.

For more traditional style Mexican food in a crazy, trippy, yet slightly upscale environment, try Javier's. For a really safe but not amazing bet, you can go with Mi Cocina (as opposed to Gloria's, which will be hyped to you), of which you'll find several throughout the city; their margaritas are great. Mesero Miguel, Mr. Mesero, and Mesa are among the best Mexican joints in the city, IMO, and are what I would recommend.

I'll stop now. I don't like food. At all, as you can see.

dsicle-dallas > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney
09/24/2014 at 00:00

I was going to comment, but you already mentioned almost every place I was going to suggest. I agree 100% with everything you said, and the only additions I'd have are too far East for the OP (Good 2 Go Taco and Good Friends Burger). Seriously, GREAT POST!!

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > mkbruin, Atlas VP
09/24/2014 at 11:05

Dallas has an In-N-Out, if you've never partaken.

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > dsicle-dallas
09/24/2014 at 11:38

Both would be great additions to the list. Thanks for the kind words, it makes me feel better about being a snobby, pedantic asshole!