Drink Up

Best new Dallas bars to drink away the winter blahs

Get your winter sip on at the Honor Bar in Highland Park Village.

Photo courtesy of Honor Bar

Deciding where to grab a drink can take you down many paths. You can opt for the tried-and-true, the neighborhood favorite, the place you already know. Or you can seek out the new.

For those in the second category, we keep a running tab of bars that are newly opened, so you can always stay up with what's going on. Since our last roundup in August, five more new spots have emerged. Here's the list:

Crafty Irishman
New haunt in downtown Dallas is a pub and a little more, with customer-friendly hours that begin early and offerings that evolve as the day unfolds. In the morning, there are coffee and pastries. Lunch has salads and sandwiches. At dinner, it's a pub in all its glory with scotch, whiskey, beers, and fish and chips. Crafty Irishman comes from Alan Kearney, a native of Ireland who grew up in the hospitality business and knows the Irish pub world firsthand.

Grayson Social
Technically speaking, this downtown spot that opened in October is a restaurant, with early-morning hours for locals and a menu of Southern-styled dishes like shrimp and grits. But the place — perched on the ground floor of the LTV Tower on Elm Street — really has more of a bar feel, with a drop-in casualness and a long bar with stools. Not to mention, a drink list that numbers 30 cocktails. If you're searching for "what's new in downtown Dallas," this is the place.

Lounge Here
East Dalllas bar-restaurant comes from Julie Doyle, co-founder and manager of the Polyphonic Spree and co-owner of Good Records, who envisioned a stylish, relaxed place in an under-serviced area on Garland Road. Her idea was to found a space with refreshing cocktails, good food, and, of course, a worthy soundtrack. Mission accomplished: Since opening in October, she and her team have created a kind of living room for hipsters. If you're wanting to sip in East Dallas, then Lounge Here.

Honor Bar
Highland Park Village bar-restaurant in the former Patrizio's space is a newish concept from the Hillstone Restaurant Group family, which includes R+D Kitchen and Houston's. So you know the service and food are on point. That's a plus for HPV, which has suffered more than its share of turnover. It has a gastropubby feel, with the same younger, fresher vibe that R+D has. If you're in North Dallas or wanting to rub elbows with PCPs, you got it.

Little Woodrow's
Concept from Houston made its Dallas debut in a vintage building at 3300 Ross Ave. in September. The bar boasts more 100 types of beer, 22 hi-def TVs, and a patio courtyard that will undoubtedly be divine once this horrific winter thing is done. Owner Danny Evans founded the chain in 1995; branches have since opened in Austin, San Antonio, and Katy. This is the place if you're in the market for craft beer.

craft-beer cocktails nightlife openings

Omakase News

Downtown Dallas restaurant Sauvage expands with new dining twist

Sauvage

A downtown Dallas restaurant famous for its multi-course tasting experience is letting its hair down: Sauvage, the high-end mom-and-pop restaurant near the Statler Dallas hotel, has a new dining option that gives a smaller, more casual taste.

The restaurant opened in September with a set menu featuring 16 to 18 courses — wild game, seafood, vegetables, and dessert — all cooked via grill and smoker.

While 16 courses might sound like a lot, the courses are mostly small bites. However, owners Casey and Amy LaRue received feedback from diners wanting a smaller option.

"We were getting a ton of messages from guests who want to stop by just to try one dish, a bite, or a specific pairing without committing to the full tasting — so we built something for exactly that," Casey says.

They've introduced a new three-course "Cocktails & Bites hour" featuring three dishes, each paired with its own cocktail, served from 5–6 pm on weekdays.

Last week’s menu consisted of:

dry-aged red snapper crudo with La Chinola Way, a cocktail featuring passionfruit, mezcal, lime, and ginger
foie gras & truffle on house-baked croissant with Pendennis Club, a gin sour with apricot liqueur bitters
jerk-spiced shrimp with Clarified Paper Plane, a bourbon cocktail with Aperol, Amaro Nonino, and lemon juice

The new offering continues their pattern of pairing courses with cocktails rather than wine — an approach they've embraced since opening. "Limiting pairings to wine can get boring — it so often ends up being one expensive red after another," Casey says.

You can make a reservation on Tock, or just walk in and grab a seat.

Caviar
They've also added a new version of their classic menu: no caviar.

"Some love having caviar integrated into the menu, but others prefer to skip it, whether for taste or dietary reasons, but still want the full value of the experience," Casey says. "With such a small counter, this put us in a strange position: do we give everyone caviar whether they want it or not, or do we remove it entirely and lose a core part of our menu?"

Thus, a new menu without caviar, priced at $195, with an optional caviar course available for those who want it for $245.

downtown