Ooh La La

New York import Le Bilboquet brings French back to Travis Walk

Le Bilboquet dining room boasts real rattan furniture and original art on thewalls.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins
Le Bilboquet in Dallas has executed a perfect relica of the original in New YorkCity.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins
Located in the former L'Ancestral space, Le Bilboquet has the the sameunderstated signage as the New York original.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins
Le Bilboquet boasts a wall of doors that open onto a sidewalk patio.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins
Tightly trimmed ivy adds beautiful color and texture to the exterior walls.
Photo by Teresa Gubbins

It's getting all French up in here: A new restaurant called Le Bilboquet is slated to open next week in Travis Walk, in the space that was once occupied by L'Ancestral Restaurant.

Le Bilboquet comes to Dallas with loads of history. The original, open for 27 years in New York's Upper East Side, changed the game with its fusion of French bistro and trendy hot spot. The Village Voiceproclaimed it one of New York's "10 most pretentious restaurants." It shut down on New Year's Eve after losing its lease, but a reopening has been set for August, with at least one other branch in the works for Brazil.

Meanwhile, some former Bilboquet staffers have settled in Dallas, including managing partner Laurent Lesort and longtime chef "Momo" Sow. They'll be re-creating menu favorites such as crab and avocado salad, foie gras terrine, and endive with Roquefort cheese.

"Chocolate mousse, crème caramel, apple tarte tatin, we'll be doing all the dishes exactly from the original Le Bilboquet," LeSort says. "It's simple food; we're not here to compete with the Mansion. Our most famous dish is the Cajun blackened chicken, and that's not French, although we serve it with salad and frites. People from all over say, 'The Cajun chicken!' It's the dish they want to go to Le Bilboquet for."

Perched on the corner of Travis and Armstrong, the space has been given a clean, bright makeover, with authentic touches from the original, LeSort says. That includes a dead-on replica of the bar with a bar-top made entirely from pewter; real rattan chairs made by hand; original art on the walls; and understated, barely perceptible exterior signage. A row of doors opens onto a long sidewalk patio, and the exterior walls are "carpeted" with ivy.

"The other thing about Le Bilboquet is that it was always a place where all kinds of people would mix," LeSort says. "Artists, downtown, Uptown — most important, it's a neighborhood restaurant, and that's what we hope to re-create here."

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Sushi News

Top-notch chef team brings upscale Japanese restaurant to McKinney

Yama Sushi

Special at Yama sushi

An upscale Japanese restaurant with a high-powered chef team has opened in McKinney: Called Shun by Yama Sushi, it's at 6651 Alma Rd. #200, in the District 121 dining and entertainment venue, where it will do sushi in a fine-dining setting.

They've been open softly but will officially open on January 17.

Shun by Yama is a spinoff of Yama Izakaya and Sushi, the acclaimed sushi and izakaya concept with locations in Plano and Dallas from chef Shigekazu Tateno. An entrepreneurial and veteran chef who previously worked at sushi spots such as Yutaka Sushi Bistro and Blue Sushi, Tateno also owns owns a bento and yakitori restaurant Totto Yama in the Plano Mitsuwa Food Hall.

For Shun by Yama, he's assembled a top-notch team that includes executive chef and partner Kenny Chong, former sushi chef at Shoyo in Dallas; and Shinichi Okamoto, who previously worked at Tei-Tei, the venerable Japanese restaurant on Henderson Avenue, as well as Akira Back in Las Vegas and Dallas.

Chong says that Shun will take more of a fine dining approach, unlike the casual atmosphere of Yama restaurants.

“Yama is more laid-back, and is open until late hours,” Chong says. “For Shun, we’re trying to create a more upscale atmosphere with a greater focus on dining — open for lunch and dinner, and no late nights.”

At Shun, they'll use fish imported from Japan in a menu of classics such as yellowtail sashimi, tuna sashimi, salmon sashimi, and kanpachi carpaccio. They also offer grilled items cooked on a binchotan charcoal grill, such as chicken yakitori. There'll be a seasonal menu with frequent specials, and. full bar with beer, wine, sake, and cocktails.

Dinner will range from $65-$70 per person.

Shun will be among the first of the restaurant concepts in the area and definitely one of the first to bring this kind of Japanese cuisine in an upscale setting to McKinney.

“The inside is more upscale, but kind of relaxing fine-dining," Chong says. "This is a prime location, this is why we chose this area."

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