Travel Blog

I should really take Kathy some place really nice to eat for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. This may be the place. Here’s the review from a web site:

Star Canyon

3102 Oak Lawn Ave., Suite 144 /tel. 214-520-7827

If any restaurant embodies the essence of Dallas, it is Star Canyon, the “new Texan cuisine” palace created six years ago by celebrity chef Stephan Pyles. After defining the regional cuisine known as Southwestern at Routh St. Café (which was also the restaurant of its time, the late ’80s), he launched Star Canyon and proceeded to update Texas’s country basics. His barbecue sauce is a nuanced brew laced with smoked chipotle pepper. Tamales are stuffed not with the usual shredded pork but with goat cheese.

Pyles has since become a one-man merchandising stand, with cookbooks, TV shows, and a line of salsas and marinades. He and his business partner Michael Cox even sold the Star Canyon concept to Carlson, the corporation that owns TGIFriday’s, which has opened a second branch in Las Vegas.

Stylish and a bit kitschy (TVs in the bar play old western movies, 24-7), Star Canyon’s shimmer has faded only slightly. It’s still a top pick for celebrities passing through town and a dependable favorite for foodie tourists, businessmen, and a regular clique of locals.

REQUIRED EATING: The magnificent bone-in rib eye with red-chili onion rings; tamale tart with roast garlic custard and crabmeat; Caesar salad with warm polenta cubes; Heaven and Hell cake layered with peanut butter, angel’s food, and devil’s food cake.

—Reviewed by Teresa Gubbins

RESERVATIONS:

Recommended.

PRICE:

Lunch, appetizers $7 to $12; entrées $12 to $18. Dinner, appetizers $7 to $15; entrées $16 to $25.

SERVICE:

Mostly efficient, with occasional distractions.

SETTING:

Spacious and casual.

HOURS:

Lunch, Monday to Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner, Friday and Saturday, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.