Happy 25th, Bob's

Slice open the numbers behind Dallas' most famous steakhouse

This carrot is one of many.

Photo courtesy of Bob's Steak & Chop House

From day one, Bob's Steak & Chop House has been a cut above the rest. Founded in 1993 on Dallas’ Lemmon Avenue, it has since grown into a national destination for diners seeking large cuts of excellent beef prepared without gimmicks. Oh, and half sour pickles, strong martinis, excellent wine list, and that famous glazed carrot.

As the restaurant celebrates its 25th anniversary, let's take a look at just how big of an impact Bob's has had on diners across DFW — Grapevine, Plano, Fort Worth, and two Dallas locations, one in the luxe Omni Dallas Hotel downtown — as well as Austin, The Woodlands, San Antonio, and Edinburg, Texas; California, Arizona, New York, Kentucky, and Tennessee. That's growing from one to 16 locations in under three decades, without ever losing focus on quality.

650,000 lbs. of beef
In 2017 alone, carnivores tore into a massive amount of meat. But it's never just any steak at Bob's, which has kept the same supplier since the beginning. Every ribeye, T-bone, and strip is Prime, which means it's designated in the top 2 percent of all beef. Prime is derived from young beef and has the highest degree of fat marbling, which results in amazing tenderness, juiciness, flavor, and texture. Also included is the famous Prime filet, a cut rarely found in most steakhouses. Not sure how you like your steak? The experts are happy to help you order.

600,000 carrots
It wouldn't be a true Bob's experience without the oversized glazed carrot that's served with each dish. Your choice of potato also accents each entree, but you'd be remiss if you didn't also order a few family-style sides, such as macaroni and cheese, creamed corn, sauteed mushrooms, and fresh asparagus. In 2017, diners ate more than half a million of the iconic carrots.

200,000 loaves of bread
At the start of every meal at Bob's, take a moment to close your eyes and inhale the scent of freshly baked bread when it hits the table. It's tempting to fill up on — and clearly plenty of diners indulged in 2017 — but just remember all that has yet to arrive. Don’t worry, they have to-go bags for you.

2,460 five-gallon pails of half sour pickles
Providing a tangy pre-meal counterpart to the sweetness of the bread are the pickles. A sturdy jar adorns each table, and plucking a pickle or two from it is a delightful way to prime your taste buds for the flavors to come. Almost three full truckloads arrived at Bob's locations in 2017, and with an average count of 90 pickles per pail that equals 221,400 (or almost a quarter of a million!) pickles for the year.

700 employees
A large part of why Bob's has flourished over the years is its exceptional service. Employees take pride in serving the best, and that's evident in how they welcome diners and see to their every need. From the moment the valet greets you in the parking lot to when the host bids you goodnight, the personalized service has cemented Bob's as the steakhouse of choice for many.

Keep in mind that these impressive stats will only continue to grow, especially with your help. So when's your next visit to Bob's?

drinks dinner promoted

Spring Arrival

West Dallas gets new Spanish-Peruvian restaurant with big-name chef

Photo courtesy of Ulloa's

Paella will be on the menu.

A new restaurant with a high-profile culinary director will bring Spanish and Peruvian flavors to West Dallas: Called Ulloa’s, it is coming to 727 Fort Worth Ave., with a projected opening in March 2027.

The concept is from philanthropists Susan and Woodrow Gandy, who were previously investors in the historic Belmont Hotel just around the corner. They've teamed up with Dallas celebrity chef Kent Rathbun as culinary director, along with Christopher Tunnell as general manager to lead the front of the house.

Rathbun is a name Dallas diners know well, with a resume that includes The Mansion on Turtle Creek, the Landmark Restaurant at the historic Melrose Hotel, Seventeen Seventeen at the Dallas Museum of Art, Abacus, Jasper's, Rathbun’s Blue Plate Kitchen, and more. He's won numerous awards and made multiple appearances on Food Network. He was most recently behind the launch of On The Rocks, an Italian bistro in Burleson.

Chef Kent Rathbun will be the culinary director of Ulloa's. Photo courtesy of Kent Rathbun

Tunnell’s background spans both culinary direction and front-of-house operations. He worked at Los Angeles hot spots Ketchup, Geisha House, and Les Deux, as well as the Mandalay Bay and The Mirage in Las Vegas, before moving to Dallas to open The Mexican, the upscale restaurant in the Design District.

“I am truly excited to partner with Chef Kent Rathbun, whose reputation is amazing — not only in the DFW Metroplex, but in the culinary world,” Tunnell says. “He has been with this project since the beginning, helping develop it; this will be a very chef-driven, culinary-forward restaurant.”

The team's vision for Ulloa’s is both culinary and urban, with hopes of anchoring the corridor and attracting other businesses to Fort Worth Avenue — a stretch connecting downtown Dallas with Oak Cliff that remains somewhat underdeveloped despite its panoramic skyline views.

The restaurant is named for Spanish explorer, astronomer, and scientist Antonio de Ulloa, who spent extensive time in the Mexican peninsula before becoming Louisiana’s first governor. During his travels, Ulloa documented a fogbow — a circular rainbow formed when sunlight meets mist that causes silhouettes standing between the sun and fog to appear ringed in light, a phenomenon known today as “Ulloa’s Rings.”

That vibrant phenomenon inspired both the restaurant's identity and logo. The concept promises "bold, worldly flavors in a welcoming neighborhood setting inspired by exploration and discovery,” the owners say.

Ulloa's Rendering of Ulloa's.Rendering courtesy of Ulloa's

While the menu remains in development, Tunnell describes the culinary direction as “Spanish soul with a Peruvian heart.” The kitchen will merge the coastal flavors of both traditions — ranging from paellas and ceviches to crafted cocktails and signature adaptations by Rathbun.

The 200-seat, two-story space will feature a downstairs dining room, a large bar, and an outdoor patio. Upstairs, plans call for a secondary bar, a private dining room, a patio, and an expansive balcony patio, offering views of the city's skyline and of the Margaret Hunt Hill and Margaret McDermott bridges.

While the upstairs space will be available for private events, the owners intend for it to operate primarily as an organic extension of the main restaurant. The buildout will include a guest elevator along with ample parking, including both self-parking and valet options.

The team says the restaurant will have have an aesthetic that's “warm, theatrical, generous, elegant but alive, with the energy of a great Spanish tapas bar and the soul of Peruvian hospitality.”

Ulloa’s plans to launch with dinner service first, followed by lunch and weekend brunch.

restaurants bars peruvian flavors west dallas oak cliff kent rathbun