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The Paisano Burger is served on a cheddar jalapeño bun with queso fresco, avocado, pico de gallo and jalapeños.

First Look: Pinpoint Burger Bar Has a Cake Shake, Poutine & Global Burgers

By Lauren Drewes Daniels

Jun 21, 2021

Pinpoint Burger Bar recently opened on Lemmon Avenue near Mia’s Tex Mex. It’s a flash of new in an otherwise drab-ish strip of stores. As its name implies, the focus is burgers, some of which are locally appointed, like the Red Coat which is British-inspired.

Cambodian dishes, like these served at Apsara, are gaining traction in the North Texas dining scene.

Review: Apsara Brings Cambodian Family Recipes to Grand Prairie

By Brian Reinhart

Jun 15, 2021

“No one knows what Cambodian food is,” the Cambodian-American chef Joseph Be says. “But if Thai food, Vietnamese food and Lao food can be popular, why can’t Cambodia’s food?” Good question.

Review: On Taquero’s Huge Menu, Mexican Tradition Is the Star

By Brian Reinhart

May 18, 2021

What a difference a location can make. Taquero started in West Dallas, in a building with no room for indoor seating and hardly any room for cooking. Chef-owner Fino Rodriguez served meals out of a window to customers who sat at bar stools or on parking spaces which he’d converted into a patio.

Kissed with hickory smoke and a dry rub, D Jackson's ribs are fall-off-the-bone tender.

Review: An Oak Cliff Barbecue Joint Where the Stars are Ribs and Rhythm

By Brian Reinhart

Apr 27, 2021

On an ordinary day, in an ordinary world, someone would probably be singing at D Jackson BBQ right now. Music flows through this shoebox-sized dining room and kitchen in the southwestern reaches of Oak Cliff, just off Cockrell Hill Road.

Encina's menu changes frequently, so if you like what you see, go for it.

Review: Encina Is a Sequel Restaurant That Beats the Beloved Original

By Brian Reinhart

Mar 22, 2021

The pressure’s on at Encina. This new restaurant a few blocks west of the Bishop Arts District opened in October, seven months into the pandemic, with high expectations. It replaces Bolsa, a beloved neighborhood hangout that drew crowds into the same space for almost 12 years. Now Bolsa is gone,...

Invasion offers a variety of corn-in-a-cup sides, all of them good.

Review: In East Dallas, Invasion Serves Massive Sandwiches with a Generous Spirit

By Brian Reinhart

Mar 2, 2021

Invasion was supposed to be primarily a sandwich restaurant, with occasional side gigs doing good for the community. Instead, in its first year this tiny East Dallas diner became a hub for goodwill, volunteering and feeding the needy. All that charity started the day before Invasion opened. On Monday, March...

There's a new restaurant serving exceptional Vietnamese food on Lowest Greenville.

Review: Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen Might Be the Pandemic Year’s Most Exciting New Dallas Restaurant

By Brian Reinhart

Jan 25, 2021

I have a simple, attainable New Year’s resolution for the year 2021: I want to eat every single thing on the menu at Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen. Ngon, which opened on Greenville Avenue last summer and is pronounced “non,” is maybe the most exciting new restaurant to hit Dallas during the pandemic...

A perfect double cheeseburger from Sky Rocket Burger

Here's How We Chose the Top 100 Dallas Restaurants During a Pandemic

By Brian Reinhart

Dec 16, 2020

Twelve months ago, the Dallas restaurant scene was riding high on a wave of national recognition, including being named the “Restaurant City of the Year” in Bon Appétit. Our chefs were starring in splashy magazine profiles and raising funds for exciting new openings. Diners were falling in love with bold...

Review: Luna 23 is a Oaxacan Culinary Embassy in Garland

By Brian Reinhart

Nov 24, 2020

“I like to describe Oaxaca as the Texas of Mexico,” Leslie Luna says. Texans might think that’s big talk, but Oaxacans can back it up with a unique centuries-old heritage that sets their state apart from the rest of Mexico in culture, history and cuisine. “There is just so much...

Review: Edoko Omakase Brings Texas Flair, and Tacos, to the Sushi Bar

By Brian Reinhart

Oct 19, 2020

Some of Tokyo’s best sushi bars feel like secrets. They’re hidden away down alleys, inside multistory buildings or in bustling shopping centers. A few don’t have formal names. Only the most devoted sushi lovers know where to find them. It’s hard to get away with a nameless restaurant in the...

Review: A Chef with African Roots and Global Training Brings Fine Dining to Garland

By Brian Reinhart

Sep 21, 2020

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but ambitious young chefs looking for big opportunities to show off their skills should consider the suburbs. This goes against everything an urbanist Oak Cliff dweller like me should believe. But the thought was inescapable as I walked into Pangea, a triumphant new Garland...

Pilmany are handmade dumplings filled with beef, cooked in a bowl of broth, and served with sour cream on the side

Review: A Melting Pot of Central Asian and Russian Cuisines at Bubala Cafe

By Brian Reinhart

Aug 24, 2020

There's not a lot of Central Asian food in the Dallas area — and there is a lot of it, at the same time. The Silk Road, threading its way across mountain ranges and deserts between Europe, Persia and China, carried recipes along with its cargo for centuries. Turkic peoples...

Brisket, sausage links, ribs, macaroni and cheese, beans and fried Okra

Review: Smokey Joe’s BBQ Is an All-Star Team of Different Texas Barbecue Traditions

By Brian Reinhart

Jul 28, 2020

Even before a global pandemic arrived, this was a year of change at Smokey Joe’s BBQ. Last spring, after 34 years of takeout-only service, Smokey Joe’s finally opened a dining room. Owner Kris Manning, whose father, Kenneth Manning, co-founded the restaurant with Joe Melton in 1985, hoped some of his...

Gimbap, a seaweed-wrapped roll of bulgogi, imitation crab and veggies, from Damasita.

Review: Damasita Is a Beautiful Survivor in Dallas’ Beleaguered Korea Town

By Brian Reinhart

Jun 29, 2020

Damasita’s dining room has changed dramatically in the last six months. The restaurant opened in early 2018 as a Japanese izakaya, serving tempura platters and agedashi tofu. But without changing its name, new owners arrived in December 2019, remodeled the whole space and converted the menu to a list of...

The Best Patios in Dallas

By Taylor Adams and Alex Gonzalez

Mar 17, 2020

This spring — maybe when it's a little safer to sit closer than 6 feet apart from one another — step outside and feel the crisp, Texas air as you eat, drink and merry-make. Sure, Texas weather can be unpredictable, but we all know that feeling when “perfect patio weather”...

In Deep Ellum, Will Call Creates Brilliantly Eccentric Cheesesteaks

By Brian Reinhart

Mar 16, 2020

Pickle fries and sofrito cheesesteaks are some of the brilliant ideas coming from a Deep Ellum bar.

The bird Benedict at Lucky's, which (if you ask nicely) you can also get on a weekday.

Lucky’s Cafe Still Satisfies for Brunch

By Taylor Adams

Mar 2, 2020

I used to go to Lucky’s Cafe all the time in college. Despite my never really having lived that far from it, it fell off my rotation until recently. And that’s a mistake, considering the place is still pretty wonderful. For one, there aren’t a lot of places that feel...

Steamed Nepalese spice dumplings immersed in signature Bajeko Sekuwa Sauce

One of Nepal’s Biggest Bar-and-Grill Chains Makes a Splash in Irving

By Brian Reinhart

Mar 2, 2020

Bajeko Sekuwa has locations in Nepal, where the chain has become famous for its grilled meats, momo dumplings and local comfort foods. Irving’s location is the second to debut outside Nepal.

Lochland’s Food and Spirits in East Dallas Is a Tightened-Up Irish Bar

By Lauren Drewes Daniels

Feb 18, 2020

Lochland’s opened in East Dallas earlier this month, another Irish pub from Peter and Cheryl Kenny, the former who was born and raised in Ireland and the latter in Dallas. This is the fourth spot for the couple, including the longstanding Dubliner on Greenville Avenue and The Gin Mill on...

Neapolitan Throwdown: Two New Pizzerias Duel in Downtown Dallas

By Brian Reinhart

Feb 10, 2020

Two rival Naples-style pizzerias are open downtown. But one menu is stronger across the board.

Restaurant Reviews

Review: Petra and the Beast

Review: Krio in Bishop Arts

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