Located in the bustling restaurant row of Dallas’s Lower Greenville neighborhood, Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen serves elegant Vietnamese classics in the style of Hanoi. Drawing inspiration from both family recipes and a buzzing street food culture, Ngon’s dishes are vibrant and packed with flavor. Portions are ample, but not “Texas sized,” meaning you don’t have to worry about the after lunch food coma. A breakout success even before being awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2024, Ngon has become a cornerstone restaurant in the area. You can’t go wrong with any of the dry or wet noodle dishes as a main, but an absolute non-negotiable is the mango salad appetizer. The perfect balance of tangy, crunchy green mango with gently poached shrimp and squid, tossed in a mouthwatering fish sauce dressing and topped with fried shallots and peanuts. It’s sweet, salty, pungent and aromatic. There’s a reason every table orders it.
Just outside the city limits in neighboring Richardson, TX you can find the best Iraqi food in the Metroplex. While the sandwiches and small plates are fantastic, Al Baghdadi’s restaurant Salam Grill excels at family style dining. Order a platter with tender lamb tikka, the yogurt and spice marinated chicken known as shish tawook, saffron rice, hummus, and baskets full of warm-from-the oven khubz (flatbread). Food is prepared on charcoal- burning grills, giving it a mouthwatering char and aroma that electric grills could never dream of replicating. After dinner, stroll on over to the bakery side and satisfy your sweet tooth. Beautiful spiraling displays of z’labia (Texans might call it a funnel cake), fried just behind the counter. Trays of pistachio-bejeweled, diamond- shaped baklava emerge from the ovens in the back. Thick squares of daheen, a gooey, rich, aromatic cake soaked in cardamom syrup, are cut to order. In short, you can’t skip the bakery, no matter how full you are.
From chic, contemporary Western vibes to classic steakhouse bluster, these spots bet big on Texas-style dining
The high, rounded ceiling of this repurposed Quonset hut frames the horseshoe bar of local watering hole Far Out. With intimate seating and terra cotta bound cacti inside and out, it has the West Texas rugged-chic thing going for it. Located near the state fair grounds in a largely uninhabited area just outside of Downtown, Far Out feels shielded from the chaos of the big city. The menu bears a familiar DNA from chef Misti Norris (formally of Petra and the Beast), with ferments, pickles, and preserves making appearances throughout. The menu is playful and draws from a number of inspirations, but Texas remains the center of its universe. On a warm summer night, try the duck confit salad: A trio of cool herbs (mint, basil, cilantro) tossed with red cabbage, crunchy pickled jicama, a creamy chile emulsion dressing topped with juicy duck confit and a crispy fermented black rice crisp. With a heaping helping of Western style (and an even bigger patio) Far Out creates an inviting, casual-cool environment that encourages another round of stories (and cocktails) under the Texas sky.
