All-day French brasserie at Preston Center, open from breakfast through dinner with a 1,200-sqft covered patio and a casual format that makes the serious French cooking accessible at any hour.
Must order: Croque-monsieur at lunch. The Paris-Brest dessert.
Tip: The all-day format means you can treat this as a cafe in the morning, a lunch spot, or a dinner destination without the booking pressure of a dinner-only restaurant.
Address: 8420 Preston Center Plaza, Dallas, TX 75225
A family-owned Lemmon Avenue institution since 1981 whose brisket taco created a Dallas archetype. The combination plate with cheese enchiladas and chili gravy is the city's most-imitated plate.
Order: Brisket tacos. Cheese enchiladas. Mama's ribeye con hongos.
Tip: Expect a wait on weekend evenings. The brisket taco was created by founder Butch Enriquez in 1981; the recipe is unchanged.
Founded 1918 by Mike Martinez, this is the restaurant most historians credit with formalising the Tex-Mex combination plate in Dallas. The McKinney location is the flagship; four Dallas locations remain open.
Order: Cheese enchiladas with chili gravy. The daily combo plate.
Tip: The weekday lunch combo runs under $12. The chili gravy here is the reference version for the style.
Michelin-recommended Mot Hai Ba on Lewis Street blends modern French technique with Vietnamese soul in a casual East Dallas room. Chef Peja Krstic's evolving seasonal menu is among the most inventive in Dallas.
Order: Seasonal pho; spring rolls with heirloom vegetables
Tip: Tuesday through Thursday is the easiest booking window. The seasonal menu changes frequently; the pho preparation is always the dish to watch. OpenTable from two weeks out.
Deep Ellum's most-visited dining room: long communal tables, cold beer, and brisket that made national food media relocate their coverage of Texas BBQ from Central Texas to Dallas.
Order: Beef brisket by the pound. Jalapeño cheddar sausage. The beef rib on Saturdays.
Tip: The beef rib on Saturday is the highlight. Come at 11am or accept the queue. They sell out daily.
The Bishop Arts BBQ institution run by descendants of Kreuz Market's original bloodline, maintaining the Central Texas no-sauce butcher-paper tradition in Oak Cliff. The shoulder clod is the rarest cut in the city.
Order: Shoulder clod cooked 18-20 hours. Brisket on butcher paper with no sauce.
Tip: If you have not had shoulder clod, this is the place to start. Cooked 18-20 hours over post-oak, it is not available at most Dallas BBQ joints.
The suburban BBQ pilgrimage: Michelin Bib Gourmand, Texas Monthly Top 50, Akaushi Wagyu and Duroc pork, and a loyal following that lines up before 10am to secure their order.
Order: Akaushi Wagyu brisket. The Toddfather sandwich.
Tip: BYOB. Credit card only. Pre-order whole meats for the best selection. Closed most of the week.
A family-owned Lemmon Avenue institution since 1981 whose brisket taco created a Dallas archetype. The combination plate with cheese enchiladas and chili gravy is the city's most-imitated plate.
Order: Brisket tacos. Cheese enchiladas. Mama's ribeye con hongos.
Tip: Expect a wait on weekend evenings. The brisket taco was created by founder Butch Enriquez in 1981; the recipe is unchanged.
Founded 1918 by Mike Martinez, this is the restaurant most historians credit with formalising the Tex-Mex combination plate in Dallas. The McKinney location is the flagship; four Dallas locations remain open.
Order: Cheese enchiladas with chili gravy. The daily combo plate.
Tip: The weekday lunch combo runs under $12. The chili gravy here is the reference version for the style.
