Here's a look at the best new Dallas/Fort Worth restaurants, hotels, party rooms, corporate event venues, conference centers, and private rooms to open this winter. These new and renovated Dallas/Fort Worth venues can accommodate groups large or small for private and corporate events, meetings, business dinners, cocktail parties, conferences, weddings, and more.
The Rustic, open since October, hosts local and national musical acts, with 250 seats inside and 300 seats on the patio. Concerts accommodate as many as 2,000 people. The Rustic’s stage opens to the inside and to the patio and includes a P.A. system setup.
Sundance Square Plaza in Fort Worth is a 55,000-square-foot outdoor space suited for large gatherings such as concerts, movie screenings, and an annual Christmas tree lighting. The plaza, which debuted in November, has a permanent stage, several water features, and four massive umbrellas that offer sun protection and can be lit with LED lights. On the north side of the plaza is Sundance Square Pavilion, a 1,400-square-foot indoor space available for meetings and events. It holds 120 for receptions and has large doors that open onto the plaza.
W Dallas—Victory renovated its 252 guest rooms this fall, adding luxe Texas touches such as lasso sculptures, jewel-toned hardware, armadillo skin embellishments, and materials including cowhide and snakeskin. For meetings, the downtown hotel offers 11,000 square feet of event space. The largest space, the Great Room, is 4,300 square feet and accommodates 400 for receptions or 250 for banquets.
Barter, a restaurant serving contemporary Texas cuisine, opened uptown in December. Its name draws on Dallas's origins as a trading post, and the menu picks up on the city's current bold attitude with dishes such as wild boar ribs, soft-shell crab fajitas, and a number of steaks. Executive chef Andrew Dilda collaborated with consulting chef Tim Love to design the dishes. Barter seats 134 inside and has a 23-seat patio.
For V.I.P. guests traveling with entourages, the Ritz-Carlton, Dallas created a multiroom "Privacy Wing" that debuted in early February. Offering a combined 5,500 square feet of space, the wing includes the Ritz-Carlton Suite—which has a master bedroom, living room, private study, dining room, and kitchen—plus four connecting rooms and suites, a dedicated private main entrance, a nearby access staircase and service elevator, and keyed elevator access. The area sleeps 16. The 218-room hotel has 19,000 square feet of meeting space, including the 9,450-square-foot Ritz-Carlton Ballroom.
Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth has opened the 81 Club, a 10,000-square-foot private space located across from Rodeo Plaza. The space holds 800 guests for receptions and has a 1,000-square-foot dance floor as well as a raised platform that can be used for a head table, entertainers, or displays. Audiovisual features include concert-quality sound and lighting, as well as high-definition TVs and high-speed Internet.
Gemma Restaurant, a seasonal American concept, opened in late December on Henderson Avenue. The husband-and-wife team of Allison Yoder and Stephen Rogers came to Dallas by way of Napa Valley and bring the ethos of the area to a menu sourced from small American farmers and producers. The restaurant seats 55 inside and 30 on a patio. The rustic interior includes custom farmhouse tables, banquette seating, and dark wood ceiling beams.
The first Texas location of True Food Kitchen opened in November in the new Plaza at Preston Center’s University Park Library building. From Phoenix-based Fox Restaurant Concepts, the restaurant serves a menu based on Dr. Andrew Weil’s anti-inflammatory diet. It also caters to diners seeking vegan, vegetarian, organic, and gluten-free meals as well as those following a paleo or Mediterranean diet. The full bar serves sustainable, organic, or biodynamic wines and cocktails. The 4,070-square-foot space seats 120 and has a 1,845-square-foot patio that seats 100. The bright interiors include eco-friendly touches such as hardwood floors made of reclaimed wood and dining chairs made from recycled soda bottles.
The Bungalows at Hotel Zaza are 12 suites in two historic homes in a secluded compound behind the uptown hotel’s main building. Each suite is decorated in a unique style by local interior design agency Design Duncan Miller Ullmann. The Bungalows encompass 6,500 square feet and include a brick courtyard that can be covered for additional space.
From the owners of the newly opened Tanoshii Ramen & Bar comes Miss Chi Vietnamese, which debuted in late November in Preston Center. The 54-seat restaurant specializes in authentic Vietnamese cuisine with broths, tapioca noodles, and steamed buns made from scratch. A full cocktail menu is available.
