This Week in Gluttony

Beaujolais & Beyond Wine Festival tops best food and drink events in Dallas

With temperatures colder than most Dallasites can handle, there is only one way to keep warm: booze. This week there is so much alcohol, from a special bourbon dinner to a craft brewer’s 10th anniversary to the 31st edition of a popular wine festival.

Tuesday, November 18

Chipotle Benefit for Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children
Eat at any Dallas Chipotle and help the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children as part of the MetroPCS Dallas Marathon. (TSRHC is the primary beneficiary of the marathon.) It’s pretty simple: Order your burrito as you normally would, mention this promotion, and 50 percent of your meal’s proceeds will be donated to TSRHC. This is going on all day.

Wednesday, November 19

Eat Meat Drink Buffalo Dinner at Filter Building
Buffalo Trace Distillery, Kent Rathbun Catering and Eddie “Lucky” Campbell host a dinner and rare bourbon tasting in the spirit of the Dinner Lab. Attendees can taste some of the rarest bourbons from the Buffalo Trace Distillery while dining on such courses as pan-seared cod, molasses-lacquered roasted duck, wood-grilled venison and caramel apple bread pudding. Tickets are $200 a person. Reserve a spot by emailing events@kentrathbun.com.

Thursday, November 20

Basic Knife Skills: Thanksgiving Edition at Urban Acres Farmstead
Urban Acres founder Steven Bailey shares his culinary experience and proficient knife skills. This class is hands-on, so students need to bring their own knives and cutting boards. The instruction focuses on chopping and dicing produce such as carrots, onions, garlic and potatoes. Students also learn how to choose the best knife for their cooking needs and receive resources for maintaining knives. As a week-before-Thanksgiving bonus, the class also covers carving the Thanksgiving turkey. It runs 6-9:30 pm and costs $55 a person. Buy tickets online.

Deep Ellum Wine Walk
The Deep Ellum Community Association and the merchants of Deep Ellum are combining two great things — wine and shopping — at this event. Visitors can purchase a collectible Wine Walk glass for $5, raise it and repeat as they enjoy wine samplings and explore one of Dallas’ hottest neighborhood. The event, which takes place on the third Thursday of every month, features different venues every time. The walk lasts from 5-8 pm.

November Wine and Food Dinner at Sevy’s Grill
The Wagner family of winemakers is partnering with Sevy’s Grill for a special dinner. The reception starts at 6:30 pm; a four-course dinner paired with wine begins at 7. Cost is $89 per person. Call 214-265-7389 to reserve your table.

Oysters and Ruinart Champagne Thursday at Proof+Pantry
This is your second-to-last chance to indulge in French Champagne and oysters for crazy prices. Thursdays through November 27, from 4 pm until close, get a half-flute of Ruinart for $11 paired with three 25-cent oysters, a full flute for $22 with six 25-cent oysters, or a full bottle for $105 with two dozen 25-cent oysters. Ruinart would typically be $35 per glass and $120 per bottle, and East Coast oysters are usually $3 each.

Friday, November 21

31st Annual Beaujolais & Beyond Wine Festival at Irving Convention Center
The French-American Chamber of Commerce welcomes oenophiles to this French Riviera-themed event, where guests can sample an impressive collection of French wines from Beaujolais, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire Valley, Provence, Alsace and Rhône Valley, as well as American wines and craft beer. Admission includes a commemorative wine glass for tastings, food from local chefs, live entertainment, silent auction and more. Entry is $55 for members and $65 for non-members, and the fun lasts from 7:30-9 pm. Buy your tickets online.

Rahr & Sons 10th Anniversary VIP Beer Dinner
Rahr & Sons hosts a 10th anniversary VIP beer dinner featuring rare beer tastings with food pairings, as well as live music from High School Caesar. Attendees can sample more than 20 beers on tap with food by Chadra Mezza & Grill, Reata’s Mike Micallef, T&P Tavern, and chef Terry Chandler of Fred’s Texas Cafe. Dress is “tuxedo casual.” Tickets are $75, and you can buy them online. Fun starts at 6 pm.

Saturday, November 22

CornucopiBus
This special tour explores three local breweries: Collective Brewing Project, Panther Island and Martin House. Attendees get to sample several brews at each place and learn how they are made. Between stops the guides educate guests on the growing craft beer scene in North Texas. Guests can also enjoy grub from some of the area’s best food trucks parked at some of the breweries. Cost is $50 per person, and that gets you a seat on the bus, complimentary beer samples at each brewery, a snack from Luck and a commemorative snifter-style glass. The tour takes off from Community Beer Company and lasts from 11:30 am-5 pm. Buy tickets online.

Rahr & Sons 10th Anniversary Celebration
Rahr & Sons hosts an extended tour and tasting event featuring more than 30 rare beers, including Regulator, Midnight Cab 2013, Iron Joe, Ninth Anniversary Belgian Golden Ale, Bourbon Barrel Aged Winter Warmer 2013, Batch 1000 Pilsner, Iron Thistle, Angry Santa, and more. Attendees receive a collectible glass and can customize a commemorative T-shirt at a mobile screen printer. Also expect live music from Big Mike’s Box of Rock and snacks from food trucks such as Lee’s Grilled Cheese, Chadra Mezza & Grill, Schnitzel Shack and Gepettos Pizza. VIPs get early access from 11 am-1 pm, with live music from Brad Thompson, for $20. General admission starts at 1; tickets are $10. Buy them online.

Rahr & Sons celebrates 10 years with a VIP beer dinner on November 21 and a party on November 22.

Photo by Mary Tuab Flickr

Rahr & Sons celebrates 10 years with a VIP beer dinner on November 21 and a party on November 22.

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Cocktail buzz

New Art Deco-inspired cocktail lounge Marlowe shakes into Uptown Dallas

Rendering courtesy of Duncan Design Group

Rendering of the Marlowe cocktail lounge coming to 2912 McKinney Ave. in the fall.

A cocktail lounge coming to Uptown Dallas this fall will give night owls a new place to hang. Called Marlowe, it will open in September at 2912 McKinney Ave., in a space that most recently housed Theory Nightclub Uptown (which closed in June 2025), and before that, Avenu Lounge and Aura Lounge / Club Babalu.

A release calls Marlowe an "a richly layered hospitality experience where design, food, cocktails, music and service have been conceived to work together as one."

It will be open just Wednesday through Saturday, from 5 pm-2 am.

The project is led by Dallas hospitality entrepreneur Alon Abramov, who has more than a decade of experience developing and operating hospitality concepts, the release says. Thomas Menaitreau is operating partner and general manager, while Kyle Buckelew serves as beverage director and Garrett Swain, also known as DJ Zillamatic, is music programming director.

Marlowe is designed as a place where guests can drop in for drinks and a bite, stay for dinner, or swing by after dinner for a late-night drink, the owners say.

While few menu details are available yet, the food will be prepared without seed oils, they say. Early menu items include charred Matagorda Pearl oysters with garlic-lemon butter and parsley, along with beef skewers served with sumac tahini yogurt.

Buckelew, who led the bar team at just-opened Delilah Dallas, is overseeing the cocktail program. One of the early offerings revealed is an espresso martini made with salted caramel vodka, dulce de leche, espresso, and Demerara syrup.

The interior is designed by Duncan Design Group and takes cues from Art Deco and cinematic design, they say. The space will feature wood-vaulted ceilings, curved architectural elements, tiered seating, antique-mirror and marble bars, brass details, velvet seating, and a central stage. There's also an enclosed glass-and-brass patio with a birdcage-inspired structure. Music will be another major component, with Swain overseeing the programming.

Abramov says the idea for Marlowe started with the guest experience.

“Marlowe started with one question I’ve carried throughout my career: how should a guest feel the moment they walk through the door?” says Abramov in the release. “We’ve approached every decision through that lens. The lighting, music, design, cocktails, service and energy of the room all have to work together. We’re not interested in creating the biggest room — we want to create one of the most memorable, and a place people feel connected to enough to return to again and again.”

Menaitreau, who was born and raised in Strasbourg, France, has worked at Michelin-recognized restaurants including Fiola and Bresca in Washington, D.C., and Joël Robuchon in Las Vegas.

“At Marlowe, every element should contribute to how a guest remembers the evening — not individually, but collectively,” Menaitreau says. “Our vision is to pair refinement with warmth and create an atmosphere where excellence feels natural, personal and never overly formal. Ultimately, we want every guest to leave feeling better than when they arrived.”

What is the significance of the name "Marlowe?" The release does not explain the name, and CultureMap has asked. Considering the logo is a penguin, it could possibly be a "Marlowe penguin," referring to the Penguin Classics editions of works by Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe. Stand by for an update on the intriguing name.

The exact opening date, full menu, cocktail list, reservations and entertainment programming will be announced in the coming weeks, the owners say say.

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