Splurge or Save? Dallas Fall Dining Experiences Worth Busting Your Budget For

Fall is here and that is when most fine dining chefs throw a fall dinner or some sort. It might be driven by a wine or liquor brand, or in collaboration with a farmer, rancher, or even another chef. It can be investment dining — these meals are frequently near $200 a plate, with wine or cocktail pairings as an extra price.

This fall, several one-off dinners have us wanting to take a seat at the table. Here are some dinners worth splurging on in North Texas.

Monarch, Tuesday, September 24

Michelin finally making its way to Texas and promising to reveal the restaurants honored with stars in the state before the end of the year is all anyone can talk about in food.

Chef Danny Grant is offering a dinner where he will recreate several dishes from his two Michelin star restaurant RIA in Chicago in 2011.

The charmingly nostalgic menu includes oysters and caviar, jamon iberico, and gougeres; sea scallop with Hakurei turnip and octopus with fumet blanc; foie gras with strawberry, truffle, and shallot; Dover sole with apple, chanterelle, and calvados; dry-aged strip loin with bone marrow, truffle pomme puree, and sauce bordelaise; pear, almond, and star anise; chocolate souffle with vanilla and salted caramel; mignardise.

The cost is $300 per person with an optional wine pairing for $150 per person. Seatings are available at 6 and 7 p.m.

Carbone, starting on Wednesday, September 25

Rather than one night, this meal is available for six consecutive Wednesdays, starting on the 25th. The restaurant will open two rare and limited Tuscan wines each evening at a per-glass cost. We’re especially intrigued by the 2019 Tenuta San Guido, at $195 per glass, which is the brand that started the “super Tuscan” movement that will be served on the first night, and the pair of Brunello’s being served on October 9 at $140 and $450 per glass.

Chef Mario Carbone partnered with Rosewood Ranches to offer a selection of steaks to pair with the wines, including a 24-oz cowboy at $270 for two, a 14-oz bone-in Strip at $160 each, and an 8-oz. filet mignon at $55. The whole thing is a very choose-your-own-adventure — diners can have both or just one featured wine and as many glasses as they like, along with a cut of beef or whatever they might desire from the regular menu. See the full list of wines that will be made available on Carbone’s website.

All of that means the cost is based on what you order. Reservations are recommended.

Misti Norris of Petra and the Beast, Saturday, September 28

James Beard recognized chef Misti Norris will head out to Bowie, Texas, a small town north and just west of Fort Worth, for an outdoor, sit-down dinner. The meal will be held on Shadow Creek Ranch, using its field kitchen.

The menu is not released in advance but will reflect local ingredients and play on the surroundings. It includes wines from Alta Marfa Winery & Vineyard and animals from Diamond G Cattle.

The cost is $385 per person. There is a single seating at 3 p.m.

The Mexican, Monday, September 30

One of Mexico’s most revered chefs, Ricardo Muñoz Zurita, will make his way to Dallas for a dinner at the Mexican. Thanks to his many restaurants in Mexico City and his work cataloging Mexican cuisine, Eater considers Zurita as one of the nation’s most well-regarded chefs. His research into the culinary traditions of the various regions of Mexico is extensive and has been the subject of 11 books.

The menu includes four courses with Mexican wine pairings. Those are flor de calabaza, or zucchini blossom stuffed with goat cheese and almonds and drizzled with raw honey; pork belly with purslane; beef tenderloin in Mexican-style chocolate sauce and plantain puree; and a strawberry tamale served with whipped cream and red berry coulis.

The cost is $195 per person and includes wine pairings. Cocktail hour starts at 6:30, and the meal begins at 7 p.m. (click under experiences on the reservations page to get your seat).

Restaurant Beatrice, Wednesday, October 16

This dinner at Beatrice represents the restaurant’s mission to know its farmers and ranchers and serve sustainable foods. A whole hog is procured from chef Michelle Carpenter’s family ranch in Louisiana and serves as the focus of the meal. Over four courses, including dessert, it is served in many ways. This October, the restaurant partners with Fort Worth’s Blackland distillery to provide whiskey cocktails with each course.

There are three courses for the fifth in this dinner series. The first bites include Cajun spiced pork rinds with hot sauce, muffuletta deviled eggs with bacon, sweet tea brined riblets, and pork belly burnt ends brochette with house pickles. The shared family plates include cochon de lait, ham hock braised greens, country-style cole slaw, smoked potato salad, and jalapeño cornbread. For dessert is a peanut butter, chocolate ganache, and bourbon pie with candied bacon streusel.

The cost is $100 per person with drinks included, with seating starting at 5 and going until 7:30 p.m. Reservations are available under the experiences tab.

Update: September 19, 2024, 1:45 p.m.: This article has been updated with more details on the courses at Restaurant Beatrice’s dinner.