Christmas Dining

The best Dallas-Fort Worth restaurants for Christmas 2016 dining

Christmas dinner with ham and red wine and candles

Here’s all the info you need on holiday dining.

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Christmas may be a few weeks away, but it's never too soon to start planning. By planning, of course, we mean what you're going to eat. While some people spend their holidays holed up at home, we're here for the folks looking to get out. We have restaurants open on Christmas Eve, and restaurants open on Christmas Day. We have one-of-a-kind events, and places offering special holiday treats. We got it all.

Here's our list of holiday dining options, updated regularly by our office elves:

Americano
Open breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day marking Italy’s Feast of the Seven Fishes with seafood-forward holiday specials such as monkfish saltimbocca with kale and white beans, and lobster fra diavola. Also veal osso bucco with risotto and crispy garlic. 214-261-4600.

Bird Café
Open Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with three-course menu, including dessert. First course choices are charred leek and potato soup, Comice pear salad, or acorn squash salad. Choose from entrees, all served with seasonal vegetables, such as Cornish game hen, black grouper, grass-fed blade steak, or pork shank. End the evening on a sweet note with a choice of tantalizing desserts crafted by Pastry Chef Laurel Wimberg. 5-9 pm. $50. 817-332-2473.

Blue Mesa Grill
Special Christmas Eve day brunch with omelets, ham, brisket, salmon, eggs benedict, salads including Caesar, spinach, and pasta, chicken-mushroom enchiladas, chicken and steak fajitas, adobe pie, carving station,taco bar with housemade tortillas, Belgian waffles with fruit, huevos rancheros, migas, flan, churros, fruit cobbler, guajillo apple pandowdy, and more. 10 am-2 pm. $22 adult includes champagne, mimosas, coffee, tea; $7 for 12 and under.

Canary By Gorji
Christmas dinner will be served on December 25 from 5-9 pm. Three-course dinner comes at two price points, depending on entrée. Choice of salad from traditional Caesar with egg yolk and anchovies, or berries and baby greens with pomegranate vinaigrette and roasted pistachios. Dessert is a choice of Kefir cheese butterfly with medjool date, or flourless chocolate cake. For $60, choose from turkey breast or bone-in pork chop with mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables, or a vegetarian spinach lasagna. For $70, choose from prime filet with gnocchi gorgonzola, or Arctic char and poached shrimp over turnip purée. Pre-payment required. 972-503-7080.

Cook Hall
Restaurant at the W Dallas Victory Hotel will serve a three-course Christmas special on December 25. Choices include French onion soup; choice of coq au vin with mushrooms, pancetta, burgundy, and root vegetables, or pork tenderloin roulade stuffed with smoked sausage, pecans, cranberries, and apples with buttermilk cornbread hash; and apple cranberry cobbler with gingerbread streusel and spiced eggnog ice cream. $35. 214-397-4111.

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House Fort Worth
Celebrate the "11 Days of Christmas" at Del Frisco’s with special lunch hours, from 11:30 am to 2 pm. The menu serves a two-course meal with choice of Del's salad, Caesar salad, or soup; and choice of entrée from filet medallions, salmon, or chicken picatta. Served with chateau potatoes and green beans. $25. 817-877-3999.

Empire Baking Co.
Holiday breads include gingerbread, stollen, pecan rings, chocolate-cherry bread, and the December Bread of the Month: cranberry paisano. 214-350-0007.

Fearing's
Restaurant at Ritz-Carlton Dallas is hosting three holiday options. Call 214-922-4848 for reservations.

Christmas tea service on December 11 and 18, with sandwiches, scones, sweets, tea, and a glass of Chambord Champagne. 3 pm. $60 adult, $20 for 12 and under.
Christmas Eve lunch includes holiday-inspired à la carte dining between 11:30 am-3:30 pm.
Christmas Eve dinner with three courses. First course offers choice of lobster bisque with lobster-corn fritter; Texas Wagyu beef carpaccio; or Nantucket Bay scallops with Brussels sprout leaves, Virginia ham, and truffles. Second course offers choice of turbot with potatoes, green beans, and brandied Maine lobster fondue; lamb chops over truffled celeriac purée with lamb cassoulet; ribeye on creamed spinach with mushrooms; antelope with cranberry gastrique on celery root-pear purée; or rigatoni in chestnut cream and lemon ricotta. Dessert is a trio of mint chocolate chip ice cream cake, gingerbread cake, and eggnog crème brûlée. 5-8:30 pm. $100 for adult, $30 for 12 and under.

Flavor House
New digital retail line from chef Tim Love ships pre-cooked meat and wild game to your door such as rabbit-rattlesnake sausage, wild board sausage, elk and cheddar sausage, triple-cut tomahawk ribeye, chicken and vegetarian tamales, and baby back ribs. $15-$299. Order online here.

Front Room Tavern
Christmas Eve dinner with additional holiday specials, 5-11 pm. Christmas day will begin with breakfast, followed by a brunch buffet and dinner holiday specials. Brunch includes shellfish display, deviled eggs, salads, butternut squash bisque, chicken and dumplings, carving station with leg of lamb, prime rib, and ham, omelet station, challah French toast, bananas foster waffles, eggs benedict, brisket scramble, Randall’s biscuits and gravy, and more. 10 am–3 pm. $55 adults $20 for 12 and under. 214-219-8282.

The Grape
Christmas Eve dinner features holiday dishes in addition to the a la carte menu. Specials include smoked prime rib ($42) and Peking duck with dried cherry gastrique ($32), both served with seasonal sides. 5:30 pm. 214-828-1981.

Grayson Social
Brunch and dinner on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Brunch includes avocado toast, Empire croissant fried chicken sandwich with bacon and egg, crawfish omelet, fried quail and waffles, biscuit benedict, chicken poutine, duck wings, Dutch baby, white chocolate croissant bread pudding, and biscuit display. Christmas Eve 7 am–2 pm, Christmas Day 8 am-2 pm. Dinner is a four-course menu with chicken poutine, oysters, chicken-fried quail, corn bisque, fried chicken, redfish, or pork. 5–9 pm. $35. 972-232-1728.

Lark on the Park
Three-course family Christmas supper with choice of mache salad with apples and pears, hamachi crudo, duck with pureed sweet potatoes, Nova Scotian halibut with fingerling potatoes, boeuf Bourguignon, pappardelle with chantrelle mushrooms, chocolate pudding cake, créme Fraîche cheesecake, or apple pot pie with rum raisin ice cream. Seatings at 5 pm, 6:30 pm, or 8 pm. $65 adult, plus $30 for wine, $18 for 12 and under. 214-855-5275.

Lavendou
Chef Pascal Cayet’s cranberry walnut tarte is a dessert based on a favorite recipe from his mother, with cranberries, walnuts, and pecans in a crust. $27. 972-248-1911.

Meddlesome Moth
Special Christmas night dinner features a festive menu with lamb breast, seafood cioppino, and a 44-ounce wagyu tomahawk ribeye, in addition to a la carte menu. Desserts include studded gingerbread, drunken apple dumplings, and chocolate pignoli torte. 214-628-7900.

Mudhen Meat and Greens
Christmas dinners to-go includes pork loin, rotisserie chicken, chicken or green chili pork tamales, cauliflower gratin, glazed carrots, Brussels sprouts, winter greens, dressing, and sticky toffee pudding. $150, serves 4-6. Order by December 22 for pick up on December 23 or 24, 11 am-3 pm. 214-698-7000.

Oak
Open Christmas Eve with special holiday dishes including blue crab fingers scampi, roulade of duck with black pudding and roasted wild mushrooms, Santa cookies and milk, warm chocolate cookies, and Bailey's Irish cocktail. 214-712-9700.

Pakpao
Open Christmas Eve with special holiday dishes including wagyu beef wontons, arctic char with kabocha coconut rice, and eggnog bread pudding with Thai rum eggnog custard, pumpkin bread, and ube ice cream.

Pecan Lodge
BBQ restaurant has to-go options online including smoked turkey, smoked ham, beef tenderloin, whole smoked brisket, racks of ribs, sausage, macaroni and cheese, and peach cobbler, $36-$179. Order by December 18 at 12 pm and pick up December 24 11 am–3 pm. Email catering@pecanlodge.com. 214-748-8900.

Redrock Canyon Grill
Southlake restaurant has Christmas Eve hours, serving full menu including rotisserie chicken with redskin mashed potatoes and glazed carrots ($16), skillet cornbread ($7), and Key lime pie. 4-9 pm. 817-912-1510.

Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek
Special menu on December 24 and 25 features traditional holiday favorites and a decadent dessert display. Starters include winter greens, lentil soup with pheasant confit, braised oxtail with gnocchi, and mussel risotto. Entrées include smoked pheasant with butternut squash, black bass with artichoke, filet mignon Rossini with truffle mashed potato, and lamb loin with sauerkraut. Desserts include a Snickers yule log, chestnut mandarin tart, chocolate tiramisu, apple-cinnamon crème brûlée, carrot cake, peppermint marshmallow lollipop, and more. $125. 214-559-2100.

Royale Burgers
Open Chrismas Eve with special holiday offerings including a gumdrop martini, a "Father Cheesmas" burger with bacon and queso, and a peppermint chocolate shake. 972-781-0212.

Savor
Christmas Eve at Klyde Warren Park restaurant will reflect the feast of the seven fishes, with three seafood specials and a red meat option. Starters include salt cod fritters, clams casino, scallops with Israeli couscous, beef tenderloin, with choice of desserts from eggnog crème brûlée, fried pecan pie, pumpkin pie, or chocolate peppermint bar. 11 am-8 pm. 214-740-7228.

Ser Steak + Spirits
Christmas brunch at Hilton Anatole Hotel will inlcude carving station, farmer’s market offerings, charcuterie, seafood, gourmet breakfast classics like fried green crab benedict, and desserts such as Baileys truffle torte.10 am-2 pm. $68 adult, $35 for 12 and under. 214-761-7479.

Starbucks
New Snickerdoodle hot cocoa is made with steamed milk, white chocolate sauce, and cinnamon dolce syrup, topped with whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon sugar. It joins Starbucks' hot cocoa family, which includes peppermint, salted caramel, and white chocolate.

TNT / Tacos and Tequila
Christmas Eve day brunch with omelets, BBQ pulled pork, brisket, fish, eggs benedict, and salads. 10 am-2 pm. $22 adult, includes champagne, mimosas, coffee, tea or soft drinks. $7 for 12 and under. 469-518-7888.

Toulouse Dallas
Special menu on Christmas day includes foie gras torchon, Saint Jacques aux truffles, filet de boeuf and bouche de noel. 214-520-8999.

holidays lists

What Just Opened

Crazy wave of Dallas restaurants and bars have all just opened

Courtesy

1519 Main St.

The Dallas hospitality scene almost never sleeps and right now it's pulling an all-nighter, with a big slate of fresh openings, all of which have debuted within the past days, give or take.

Everyone's hustling to get their doors open in time for the holidays, and these establishments have all made it happen: From a cosmopolitan new lounge in downtown Dallas to a modern Asian restaurant in Plano to a bountiful AYCE Chinese seafood spot in Richardson, there's something here to pique everyone's interest and appetite.

1519 Main
Spectacular lounge is now open in downtown Dallas at 1519 Main St., in a nearly century-old building across from the Joule Dallas hotel where it's serving up stellar drinks in a space that's both cosmopolitan and low-key. The bar is from Hospitality Alliance, the company led by restaurant wunderkind Kevin Lillis, who helped create the original AT&T Discovery District. It's a stunning space with many original features like the rose-and-cream marble floors from the 1920s and the brick walls with signage from prior businesses in the space that dating back decades. The menu has cocktails from Brian Van Flandern, who oversaw the program at Per Se, The Carlyle Hotel, The Plaza Hotel, and Palm Court restaurant, and also has a homage menu featuring recipes from some of the most impactful but now closed cocktail lounges in the country. They're open Thursday-Saturday from 5 pm-12 am.

Centrale Italia
New concept from veteran restaurateur Patrick Colombo (Cru Wine Bar, Princi Italia) opened in November at Preston Hollow Village at Walnut Hill Lane and US-75 with a menu of wood-fired dishes, Neapolitan style pizza, pastas, and gelato made in-house. They're debuting brunch on Sunday December 7 and lunch on Monday December 8, with a menu that includes spicy meatball sub, chicken parm on toasted ciabatta, and a parmesan garlic cheeseburger with Wagyu beef and arugula. Salads include Little Gem Caesar, chopped salad with salami, prosciutto, and soppressata, and an Italian Cobb salad with chicken, Romaine, radicchio, avocado, beets, prosciutto, eggs, and Campari tomato in a creamy gorgonzola.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Restaurant in Richardson which just opened in the former Maxim's space is an all-you-can-eat sushi/seafood buffet featuring a daily rotating menu with 300-plus items from various Asian cuisines. There are oysters, crab legs, lobster, sushi bar, ramen bar, dumplings bar, skewers bar, noodles, stir-fries, and Chinese dishes both Cantonese and Sichuan, such as spicy boiled beef and kung pao chicken. Plus dim sum and desserts such as precision-cut layer cakes and a chocolate fondue station where you can dip strawberries and other fruit. (The lobster and crab are available at dinner and weekends only, not at lunch.) The price is $20 at lunch, $30 at dinner on weeknighs, and $35 all weekend long.

Jashan
Indian ambitious new Indian restaurant with a one-of-a-kind menu offering has opened at Plano's Legacy North with a chef team who are bringing flavors from cities and regions across India, from Dehli's fried potato tikkis to pepper chicken from the south. For those seeking something truly unique, Jahsan also offer a Dil Se menu — an omakase-style tasting, available in 7- or 13-course versions, featuring a procession of these flavors, letting guests discover the stories of these cities in one visit.

La Stella Italian Steakhouse
Stupendous Italian restaurant just opened at a storied North Dallas address at 14655 Dallas Pkwy. in the former Lawry's space, where it stands as a bigger, grander spinoff of its sibling La Stella Cucina, the Italian restaurant in Dallas' Design District. The menu is an expanded version of the original: combining Italian seafood and a chophouse, plus an accompanying music lounge for live entertainment.

LuLu Modern Chinese
Glamorous new Asian restaurant just opened in Plano at 3310 Dallas Pkwy. #121, with a goal is to bring an authentic and modern Chinese American dining experience. The menu features classics like Peking duck, xiao long bao (soup dumplings), and seafood executed with spices and recipes from various regions of China — from Shanghai to the Pan Asian continent. The 4,300-square-foot space features a subtle lounge theme — a place you can dine or grab tequila shots over a soundtrack of '90s hip-hop and pop, plus craft cocktails, and a serious collection of sake and wine — but not what you'd typically find at a Chinese restaurant.

Mendocino Farms
California chain known for creative sandwiches, salads, soups, and other healthy fare, has opened its newest DFW-area location — the sixth — at NorthPark Center, joining Addison, downtown Dallas, Plano, Preston Hollow, and Dallas' West Village. With its casual but upscale menu, featuring staples such as the Chicken & Hummus Crunch Wrap — as well as seasonal offerings like the November to Remember sandwich with turkey, mozzarella, mushroom & turkey sausage stuffing, spicy cranberry chutney, and Romaine on toasted cranberry walnut wheat bread — NorthPark seems like a perfect fit.

Old Ferry Donut
Doughnut shop chain from Korea entered the U.S. in 2023, with five locations in California. Now they've made their Texas debut in Carrollton at 2225 Old Denton Rd. #215, Their doughnuts are unique: They have a slightly chewier, more bready texture than the fluffy texture of a Krispy Kreme, and are a little less sweet than traditional American doughnuts. Many of their doughnuts have fillings, made from premium ingredients. The menu includes old-school flavors such as Boston Cream, Original Glaze, and Cinnamon Sugar — but also new-school flavors like White Chocolate Sesame, Earl Gray, and Matcha Cream.

Roots Chicken Shak
Fried chicken restaurant concept from celebrity chef Tiffany Derry, just opened a location at 3748 Belt Line Rd. #118, in a former Einstein's Bagels on the southeast corner of Marsh Lane. There are chicken wings, tenders, nuggets, and sandwiches on sweet potato buns. Derry opened the first Roots Chicken Shack at Plano's Legacy Food Hall in 2017, but the Addison location is owned by franchisees.

Yearby’s Barbecue & Waterice
Halal BBQ spot which originated in Pilot Point is in soft opening mode at a new second location in Plano at 3201 Alma Dr., just west of US-75, where they'll be open from 11 am–3 pm or sell out. There's likely to be a line, because BBQ places like to have a line, but the Yearby's in Pilot Point also earned a slot on Texas Monthly’s 50 Best list for 2025.

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