The Dallas Design District has become one of the city’s hottest dining destinations, and with each new restaurant opening, the definition of indulgence evolves. The Saint offers guests the chance to savor a $150 Japanese A-5 Wagyu filet mignon. Over at Evelyn, you can sip on $275 martinis with caviar-stuffed olives. Or book a reservation at Delilah for a reasonable-by-comparison $34 hot fudge sundae to cap off a meal highlighted by six ounces of A-5 Snow Beef grilled tableside on a hot rock for $310.
As of June 2, the luxury bar has been raised another few notches with the debut of Punk Noir.
The concept comes from the native Dallas McKeel family, including dad John and sons Cole and Clay. The kitchen is led by Chef RJ Cooper, who won a James Beard Award for Best Chef Mid-Atlantic in 2007 and has been behind several notable concepts across the southeast.
Supporting his vision are chef de cuisine Jay Vopatek, who created many an outside-the-box tasting menu at Rye, which recently closed in favor of an expanded Apothecary. He’s joined by pastry chef Rachel Maykut, who wowed diners for years at Uchi. Together, they conjure up 20 one- or two-bite dishes that frequently change with the seasons and the availability of ingredients.
Reserve one of the available 26 seats per seating and you’ll be treated to an elevated tasting menu that leads you on a progressive meal through three of the restaurant’s main spaces over approximately three hours.
Plan a date night, and the tab will quickly hit $1,000—that’s if each person orders the signature Ritual tasting menu, which carries a $295 price tag per person, with the Punk Wine Pairing, an additional $145 per person. For even more indulgence, guests have the option to upgrade to the Noir Wine Pairing for $335 per person to taste rare vintages from around the world, bringing the tab closer to $1,500.
If the full splurge isn’t in the cards, the $195 Sojourn and Verdant tastings still deliver 20 courses, either with fewer exotic ingredients or an entirely vegetarian lineup. Another alternative is to dine in the lounge with a pared-down Craft in Seven Moments tasting for $105, or a $60 Flora/Maris/Fauna three-course tasting. Add on Seven Vices for $85 per person and taste your way through seven unique cocktails.
Mathematics aside, the Punk Noir experience takes fine dining and twists it into something mysterious, dramatic, and often wildly innovative. The restaurant books two or three seatings per night at designated start times. Show up a few minutes before, and you’ll be golden, or arrive at least 30 minutes in advance so you can sip on a cocktail in the lounge from an elaborate list of carefully crafted cocktails created by Shane Scully.
Several cocktail categories, including spirit-forward options and riffs on classics, break the menu down into manageable chunks based on your tastes. To fully embrace what’s ahead for the night, however, look to the experimental section of the menu. Here you’ll find the Pretty Vacant, which somehow captures all the flavors of a Bloody Mary plus a little pineapple, but in a completely clear beverage. Even an otherwise basic vodka martini gives patrons a show, thanks to liquid nitrogen used to chill the glass, which yields billows of cryogenic fog.
Once it’s time for your seating, you’ll be escorted from the lounge, passing the graffiti mural by local artist Michael Shellis, followed by the impressive wine vault, and into the communal dining room. Like a haunted house, it’s unclear what awaits behind the curtains, but instead of jump-scares and latex masks, you’ll be immersed in art and a high-energy soundtrack. (“Antmusic” by Adam & The Ants likely has never been played elsewhere in Dallas as the seafood course hits the table.)
Take your seat at the massive dining table where your name is digitally projected in front of your chair—place cards worthy of the 21st century. You’ll be seated with other guests who booked the same time slot, spaced far enough apart to have a private conversation yet close enough to chat with your dining mates if you prefer.
On the walls, digital graffiti showcases imagery ranging from Downtown’s Majestic Theater to top hats made from cans of Fort Worth-based Ranch Style Beans, alongside less-local graphics featuring the cold stare of a Bengal tiger or a laughing Sammy Davis, Jr. next to Frank Sinatra. Projected directly onto the table, a video of the nighttime Dallas skyline rolls past empty wine glasses soon to be filled with the first pairing.
Soon, the beautiful and dynamic Jenna Vendettuoli appears in her role as the evening’s Mistress of Ceremonies. She’s mic’d up like a Broadway actor, appropriate for such a theatrical evening, guiding diners through the intricacies of and techniques behind each course. She deconstructs what you’re about to eat in a way that makes even the most unfamiliar ingredients that much more accessible. That could be razor clams, whelks (sea snails), or lobster roe chicharrones.
During your time at the communal dining table, the soundtrack evolves with the courses, as do the visuals. When the seafood course begins, the walls transform into scenes of pirate ships and mermaids. At one point, the table itself becomes engulfed in rolling, white fog.
After you take your bite of the 10th course, you’ll be invited to stand and follow Vendettuoli into the spectacularly opulent exhibition kitchen where you’ll stand at the counter watching all the chefs and line cooks orchestrate the next half of the meal. You’ll be guided through four different courses, some of the most innovative of the night, with the ability to ask as many questions as you wish about what’s being served directly from its creators.
From there, you’ll be escorted to the final dining space where you’ll be seated at a private table reserved just for you and your dining companion(s). The cozy room is adorned with ornate chandeliers and vibrantly painted canvases from Shellis on one wall, a black-and-white video featuring many of the night’s musical artists projected on the other. Enjoy your final six courses here, including dessert, which will likely include a dessert you never knew you needed: ice cream topped with caramel and caviar. Guests can choose to end their night in this room, or return to the lounge for a full-circle conclusion.
Punk Noir could be a once-in-a-lifetime, special-occasion splurge for many guests or a frequent destination for the eternally epicurious. You can even add luxury black car service to transport you to and from the restaurant within 20 miles for an additional fee, completing your brief embodiment of life as an A-List celebrity, accidental millionaire, or counterculture rock star.
The restaurant is taking reservations Tuesday through Saturday, from 5 p.m. to midnight. The “business punk” dress code encourages classy but edgy apparel, just no sandals, shorts, or hats. It’s the first hint that this is far more than dinner—it’s an evening designed to surprise from start to finish.
Punk Noir, 139 Turtle Creek Blvd. Ste. 130, Dallas, punknoir.com
