In partnership with the Highland Hotel in Dallas, which has been home to Knife Steakhouse since its 2014 inception, Tesar announced that Knife will temporarily close while the restaurant and hotel undergo a $13 million renovation. In January, the restaurant will reopen as “Knife Steak & Seafood”, which is intended to be a more approachable version of Knife & Spoon, Tesar’s Michelin-star-awarded restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton Orlando.
Tesar’s other Dallas-area restaurants, Knife Plano and Knife Italian, will continue to operate normally during Knife’s rejuvenation for those who need to get their steak fix.
The nod to Knife & Spoon’s Michelin star pedigree is timely since Michelin will announce the inaugural star recipients this November as part of the launch of its eponymous restaurant guide in Texas.
After 10 incredible years at Knife Steakhouse, Tesar is ready for a new adventure.
"We're taking what we've learned over the past decade, combined with the successes from Knife & Spoon in Orlando, to create an updated offering that gives Dallas the Michelin-star experience it deserves, especially with the guide now entering our city," Tesar says.
For the uninitiated, Tesar opened Spoon in Dallas in November 2012 after stints at Commissary and the Mansion at Turtle Creek. The fine-dining seafood restaurant earned plenty of rave reviews, but when Tesar opened Knife in 2014, the profile of Spoon took a step back. Tesar and his partners closed Spoon on the last day of 2014.
At the time, Tesar spoke of opening an Italian-style restaurant appropriately named Fork, and Dallas waited with bated breath to see what other utensils Tesar could leverage into a restaurant. Fork never got off the ground, however, and Tesar remained plenty busy with other endeavors over the last decade. The Fork name may have been dropped, but Tesar opened Knife Italian at the Ritz-Carlton resort in Las Colinas earlier this year, allowing him to explore more Italian themes.
We spoke to Tesar last week for an upcoming story, and he mentioned that changes to Knife and the Highland Hotel were forthcoming, along with a preface that he was serious about getting back into the kitchen. He’s also not shy about setting some lofty goals in the process.“I tell everybody this is not some PR stunt. I want to get into the Michelin Guide in [this] restaurant, and I want to get a Michelin star at Knife Italian. Those are my goals, but I know that we're not worthy of those now." – Chef John Tesar
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“I tell everybody this is not some PR stunt. I want to get into the Michelin Guide in [this] restaurant, and I want to get a Michelin star at Knife Italian. Those are my goals, but I know that we're not worthy of those now,” Tesar told us.
“So with the owners, I convinced them that we need to renovate the Highland Hotel and they knew they had to do it anyway. So they're redoing all the rooms, all the lobby, and we're doing the entire restaurant as well," he added.
Two years ago, we had the chance to attend one of Tesar’s seafood-centric tasting dinners at Knife Plano, and the dishes we tried gave us plenty of reason to long for the days of Spoon. Tesar says guests at the new Knife Steak & Seafood can expect that Spoon vibe to return, along with bits of Knife, all buttoned up with a more modern and detailed service.
But most of all, Tesar is excited to spend more time back in the kitchen where he feels most at ease.
“I’m getting to go crazy this time. I need to cook,” Tesar says. “I’m tired of the mediocrity. I want to create something special for people."
Knife Steak & Seafood is expected to open in January 2025, at 5300 E. Mockingbird Lane (inside the Highland Hotel).
