French in Dallas

5290 Belt Line Rd., Suite 108 North Dallas

972-991-8824

Quiet, white tablecloth French restaurant has been open since the mid-1980s. The service and some of the cooking seems a lot older-and that's a good thing if you're a fan of traditional dishes such as duck l'orange or steak au poivre.

1 article

AT Bistro

8305 Westchester Dr. Park Cities

469-726-2237

American, French, Cuban

Au Troisieme, or AT Bistro, is neighborhood bistro in the heart of University Park (Preston Center). The concept is new American cuisine with a global influence — actually not French. There are a few French dishes on the menu (like fish Provencal), but then there's also a kimchi Reuben. Start with the tuna and avocado appetizer with a generous portion of tuna poke, avocado, wonton crisps and a sharp kimchi emulsion, perfect to share between two people. The Texas Gumbo is filled with andouille sausage, Gulf shrimp and okra and served with their house fermented hot sauce that is fermented for six months — just like a sourdough starter — and is more about the flavor than the heat. It added a nice, pickled contrast to the gumbo. Ça c'est bon. Another stand out dish is the the New Style Cuban sandwich, which features Hawaiian-style kalua pig, house ham, Swiss cheese, mustard and mojo au jus. The bread is buttery and toasted but what sends this sandwich over the edge is their mojo au jus. We combined the Cuban with a side of their Parmesan fries, which has a hint of truffle. Dip these in the au jus to unlock a new level of french-fry euphoria.

3 articles

Bar Sardine

6805 Snider Plaza Park Cities

972-432-5912

French

1 article

Beehive

1514 Elm St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

469--848-1515

Asian Fusion, French

The all new Beehive in downtown Dallas has been attracting restaurant and Instagram-eaters from all walks of food. With their twisted, experimental food style, even the most classic of dishes like French onion soup comes with an unique twist. The cocktails are probably the most alluring item; with alcohol infused boba, brightly colored drinks with a sweet fruity flavor, and fun cotton candy toppers, these drinks are something to stop everything and run into beehive for.

Bisous Bisous Pâtisserie

3700 McKinney Avenue, Ste. 150 Uptown/Oak Lawn

214-613-3570

Bakery, French, Pastries, Best Of

5 articles

Bouchon 1314

1314 W Davis St., Ste 110 Oak Cliff/South Dallas

214-941-3000

French, New American, Wine Bar

3 articles

Boulangerie

1921 Greenville Ave. East Dallas & Lakewood

214-821-3477

Bakery, French, Critics' Pick, Best Of

If you’re looking for a well-made baguette, the Village Baking Co.'s Boulangerie is a good place to find one. If you’re lucky, you’ll witness the baker pull several from the oven as you walk through the door. Not everything is quite that fresh, but everything you see was baked that morning, from the croissants to the éclairs to the massive boules on the shelves behind the counter. Come in the afternoon and get a sandwich made on the same bread. Ham, cheese and butter sounds rather plain, but it’s one of the best ways to enjoy a baguette.

11 articles

Boulevardier

408 N. Bishop Ave., #108 Oak Cliff/South Dallas

214-942-1828

French

This quaint French bistro in the Bishop Arts District has one of the best brunches in the city, a celebrated wine list, phenomenal French cuisine and a stellar oyster program. It almost feels arrogant of them to also have one of the best bars in the city. And, yet, here we are. Every Friday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., get half-off of every bottle of wine on their list and discounted oysters. Watch the chalkboard for the best picks. Not a wine-drinker? No problem. Their hand-crafted classic cocktails will get you wherever you need to go.

Fun fact: Every Tuesday they run a special: one-third off all steaks, including the chef's cut.

25 articles

Brian's Coffee

4109 TX-121 Carrollton/Farmers Branch

469-900-8019

Bakery, French, Korean

Brian’s Coffee Roasters in Carrollton offers house roasted coffee and European pastries. The coffee menu includes a handful espresso-based coffees — cortado, Americano, cappuccino — as well as lattes (including a Spanish and matcha version). The coffee beans at Brian's Coffee are sourced from Guatemala and are roasted in-house. Brian's Coffee is not just a cafe with pastries and coffee, however. There are also few specialty Korean items on the menu, including the omelet rice (omurice) dish made with fried rice and a tornado egg topped with a house demi-glace, kind of like the dish we wrote about at Kyuramen recently.

Bullion

400 S. Record St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

972-698-4250

French, Critics' Pick, Menu, Slideshow

With a collection of specially commissioned sculptures and a dining room that’s literally a gold bar on the side of a skyscraper, Bullion is one of the most ambitious restaurants Dallas has seen in years. It’s also one of the best, with a deep cast of talented chefs producing elegant, but not pretentious, updates on classic French foods. Dig through the superb bread basket, share maybe the city’s best beef tartare and revel in the exquisitely cooked seafood. (Grab a side order of crispy bistro-style pommes frites, too.) A superb, all-French wine program, outstanding desserts by pastry star Ricchi Sanchez and world-class people-watching complement the excellent dinners.

Top pick: Many of the best meals are rotating daily specials, which change seasonally and always represent chef Bruno Davaillon’s technique at its peak.

The downside: Last year, we heard lots of reports that Bullion’s service falls down somewhat when the customer isn’t recognized as a newspaper food critic. Some of that lesson has been learned, reportedly, but a literal gold bar full of sculptures is probably always going to play favorites to some extent.

Fun fact: The entrance, at the corner of Young and Record streets, is a grand spiral staircase direct from the sidewalk; ask the valet if you need an elevator.

6 articles

Cacharel

2221 E. Lamar Blvd. Arlington

817-640-9981

French, New American, Recommended

Cacharel's unusual location on the top floor of an Arlington office building means that a trip there feels a little like going to work, but if dining out could be work, Cacharel would be a dream job. The French cuisine offerings for the fixed-price menu are varied enough to satisfy most people (the delectable duck breast with cassis sauce, for example), but the steak menu adds a whole other dimension, with a New York strip as tender as most people's filet mignon. The only sour note is that the kitschy view of Six Flags across the highway is mostly obscured by wooden shutters. True, it's not in keeping with the French county décor, but if you use your imagination it could be a view of Eurodisney.

Cadot

18111 Preston Rd. Richardson & Vicinity

972-267-5700

French, New American, Critics' Pick, Best Of

Jean-Marie Cadot cooks up some impressive French-New American dishes at this North Dallas destination. His version of escargot, riding in a Pernod-spiked sauce, ranks amongst the best in Dallas. The homemade terrines are memorable, and most other dishes will at least set you to talking - although at review time they were still working out a couple service and kitchen kinks. Still, Cadot is one of the better moderately priced restaurants in the area.

5 articles

The French Room

1321 Commerce St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

214-651-3615

French, Critics' Pick

The French Room is still The French Room. In fact, it’s more The French Room than it had been in decades. A no-expense-spared restoration has returned the dining room to the elegance of its original look, closer to the way the restaurant appeared when it opened in 1912. Head Chef Michael Ehlert and his team are doing an impressive job stepping into one of the city’s most storied kitchens. The cooking — available on tasting menus only, three courses for $85 or seven for $135 — is classically French with a modern accent, the plates happily focused and uncluttered. Overall, the effect of the new French Room’s food is to show the elegance creative minds can achieve when working within the constraints of tradition.

20 articles

The Grape

2808 Greenville Ave. East Dallas & Lakewood

214-828-1981

French, New American, Critics' Pick

The Top 100 Dallas Restaurants, No. 22: Born in 1972, The Grape is Dallas’ quintessential bistro, a warm, cozy, even slightly cramped dining room where the walls are decorated with old wine cases and the food is creative but still comforting. The recipe for the superb mushroom soup, in which the mushrooms are diced just finely enough to still have texture and the creamy sherry broth is divine, is as old as the restaurant itself. But when chef Brian Luscher bought the place in 2007, he started tweaking other plates in beneficial ways, always with the goal of doing classics like steak frites and mustard-crusted salmon the right way. And the brunch service he introduced is a runaway success.

Top pick: Right now we’re in love with a plate of pork collar, fork-tender but with crispy, herb-crusted edges, served alongside Italian sausage and on a bed of outrageously rich polenta. There’s gardiniera to add some acidic kick and broccoli rabe to make us feel healthy. It’s perfect. Oh, and notice the praise for the burger, which appears in seemingly every framed newspaper clipping? That burger deserves every good word ever said about it.

The downside: For a restaurant that prides itself on well-chosen wines — look at its name — The Grape surprised us by recently serving a bottle of red at the temperature of a very well-heated room. Also, the restaurant’s legendary weekend brunches offer pleasures similar to dinner, but with double or triple the crowd size.

Fun fact: The Grape is the oldest restaurant on this list. It’s also one of just four restaurants in the Top 50 to have opened before 2001, along with Royal China, Tei Tei Robata and Dal Dong Nae.

64 articles

Knox Bistro

3230 Knox St., Suite 140 Park Cities

469-250-4007

French, Best Of, Essentials

Too often we associate French cuisine with stuffiness, arrogance, overpriced fare or some combination of the three. Thankfully, Dallas has Knox Bistro to show off the best that French cuisine has to offer in a much more approachable fashion. Knox Bistro’s menu offers ingredients that aren’t at all complex but are so brilliantly executed that they taste like something new and fresh. There are delicate soufflés, naturally, exquisite seafood (don't sleep on the brilliant branzino) and perfectly prepared vegetables. It's all reminiscent of chef-partner Bruno Davaillon's home in the Loire Valley. His team, including executive chef Michael Ehlert, creates a casually elegant meal that should change anyone’s mind about French cuisine being too pretentious to enjoy.

Top pick: Soufflés may be the essence of French cooking, and Knox Bistro’s chocolate dessert soufflé borders on a religious experience. It’s light yet rich, chocolaty yet still bright, and should almost be a requirement to end your meal.

8 articles

La Madeleine

5290 Belt Line Rd. North Dallas

972-239-9051

French, Restaurants, Best Of

The first of Loire Valley native Patrick Leon Esquerré's La Madeline boulangeries opened on Mockingbird Lane in University Park with the backing of famous retailer Stanley Marcus. To date, there are more than 60 locations, including spots in shopping centers, malls and freestanding operations. No matter where the outpost, all La Madelines exude the charm of the French countryside to the nth degree, at times reaching the gratuitous. The most popular mealtime is breakfast, where customers enjoy specialties like Egg Crêpe Champignon along with a Fruit Salade. However, it's the Caesar Salade that is the restaurant chain's most popular. Other signature items include the Croque Monsieur and Chicken Friand. The latter comes with a healthy dose of béchamel. Can't forget the tre magnifique Duet Magnifique. Oui.

3 articles

La Madeleine

1320 W. Campbell Richardson & Vicinity

972-671-4887

French, Restaurants, Best Of, Menu

The first of Loire Valley native Patrick Leon Esquerré’s La Madeline boulangeries opened on Mockingbird Lane in University Park with the backing of famous retailer Stanley Marcus. To date, there are more than 60 locations, including spots in shopping centers, malls and freestanding operations. No matter where the outpost, all La Madelines exude the charm of the French countryside to the nth degree, at times reaching the gratuitous. The most popular mealtime is breakfast, where customers enjoy specialties like Egg Crêpe Champignon along with a Fruit Salade. However, it’s the Caesar Salade that is the restaurant chain’s most popular. Other signature items include the Croque Monsieur and Chicken Friand. The latter comes with a healthy dose of béchamel. Can’t forget the tre magnifique Duet Magnifique. Oui.

4 articles

La Parisienne French Bistro

6740 Winning Dr., Suite 1000 Frisco

469-200-5411

French, Tea

If you’re headed to the area around The Star in Frisco, reward yourself with a visit to La Parisienne, a newish French bistro that has been open now for a couple of months. In an effort to sate a bit of wanderlust and memories of outdoor cafes along the banks of the Seine in Paris. La Parisienne is also open for dinner, and on the weekends for brunch. Live music is provided on Friday and Saturday nights and during the brunch service, where the offerings include croissant Benedict, omelets, quiches, crêpes, duck and waffles, truffle toast and short rib hash, all of which sound delish. Additionally, there's a high tea service, including one specifically for children under ten years of age.

2 articles

Lavendou Bistro Provencal

19009 Preston Rd. #200 Richardson & Vicinity

972-248-1911

French, Recommended

This is without question one of the finest venues in the metroplex. Few eateries possess the inviting, warm pull this Provencal bistro exerts, from the sheaves of dried lavender that soak the place with a sharp, musky smell, to the brick arches that provide a gentle rustic edge. A cursory glance at the table makes it clear that everything touching it has been given painstaking attention, with food that is swept with imaginative, articulate flavors. Owned by Chez Gerard proprietor Pascal Cayet, Lavendou is what fine dining should be: romance, elegance and engaging flavors seamlessly orchestrated into a simple, highly expressive culinary experience.

4 articles

Madrina

4216 Oak Lawn Ave. Park Cities

469-513-2505

French, Mexican, Fusion, Menu

Highland Park’s fine-dining restaurant Madrina manages to take Mexican food to levels it has never achieved in Dallas by infusing the cuisine with French techniques and lofty aspirations. Where else can you get duck confit enfrijoladas next to a whole lobster served en croûte? Fussy french preparations tend to exceed the boundaries of this kitchen’s capabilities, but some simpler dishes satisfy and the drinking here is good. Don’t miss the wild setas, a plate of fried mushrooms with a tangy poblano cream sauce, or the tacos di chivo, which produces a cast iron skillet filled with meltingly tender goat meat. Both plates come with a short stack of freshly made tortillas, resulting in some very compelling tacos.

12 articles

Mercat Bistro

2501 N Harwood St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

214-782-9807

French

1 article

Mignon

4005 Preston Rd. #518 Plano

972-943-3372

Steak, French, Best Of, Menu

A French steakhouse overlooking a lake is perhaps not something one expects to find in Plano, but Mignon is just that. It’s possible to imagine you’re somewhere other than a suburban strip mall when dining here -- provided you can ignore the view of the Walgreen’s across the street and all the Lexus SUVs parked out front, of course. The walls are covered with artwork of French people as imagined by Americans; you know, riding Vespas while carrying baguettes and stuff like that. The expansive menu includes French classics like escargots, steak au poivre, and pommes frites alongside more Tex-American dishes such as bacon-wrapped quail, a 24-ounce “cowboy” rib-eye and creamed corn with bacon. Is brunch a thing in France? We’re not sure, but it’s definitely popular in Plano, and Mignon caters to the midday crowd with fried oysters Benedict, candied pecan pancakes and chicken and waffles. How very Parisian.

10 articles

Mister Charles

3219 Knox St., Suite 170 Uptown/Oak Lawn

972-920-9471

French, Italian

1 article

The Mitchell

1404 Main St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

214-971-6273

French, Critics' Pick, Best Of, DrinkHere

Downtown’s glamorous gold-themed bar can be a place for a big, romantic night out, or it can be a quick place to crash after a show. The Mitchell is versatile, and that extends to the enormous liquor selection — including dozens of gins; order a martini and they’ll ask which you want — and the party-ready Champagne options. A tiny kitchen produces big, hearty cheeseburgers and French bistro food like steak frites, venison tartare and platters of fresh oysters. When The Mitchell reopened after the pandemic, it took a while to get new drink menus printed, but in the meantime, the staff here can make darn near anything, or ask to find out about their own eccentric inventions. Just don’t order vodka. They save a bottle or two for emergencies, but that’s about it.

4 articles

Rise No. 1

5360 W. Lovers Lane Park Cities

214-366-9900

French, Critics' Pick, Best Of

Former President George W. Bush was at Rise when then President Barack Obama called him to inform him of Osama bin Laden’s death. Bush’s habitual order is crab souffle, which suggests to us that his taste in food is pretty good. Truthfully, any souffle here is probably good, especially paired with wines from a list that includes thoughtful, descriptive recommendations. There are main courses here besides souffle, but they’re not the stars of the show.

14 articles

Saint-Emilion

3617 W. 7th St. Fort Worth

817-737-2781

French

We thought we'd taken a wrong turn and wound up in France instead of Cowtown when we pulled up to this quaint chateau eatery. Although reservations are a must and some diners are dressed in formal attire, the atmosphere isn't stuffy and the waitstaff is refreshingly genial. Starters include buttery escargot in tiny, individual puff pastries as well as thick, delicious brie with a small bit of pear cradled in a pastry. The whole Dover sole fillet sautéed in lemon butter made an excellent main course--very rich, so come hungry. End with the decadent melting chocolate cake, which does just that. The wine list is so thick it could be mistaken for a novel.

St. Martin’s Wine Bistro

4223 Bryan St. East Dallas & Lakewood

214--826--0940

American, French, Wine Bar

This beloved French restaurant, originally on Greenville Avenue, closed in 2023 after 46 years but has reemerged in East Dallas. The new location is bringing back favorites such as escargot and foie gras torchon, but there are plans to introduce new dishes as well, according to CultureMap.

St. Martin's Wine Bistro

3020 Greenville Ave. East Dallas & Lakewood

214-826-0940

French, Continental, Recommended, Best Of

Dining at St. Martin's Wine Bistro is not so much like dining on Greenville Avenue as it is dining in some kind of surreal, David Lynch-esque dream sequence. Not because they meant it to be that way. The Victorian decor is, somehow, tastefully overdone, and the lighting is so low you might wonder what's on the end of your fork, though whatever it is is probably excellent. A gregarious old pianist dedicates songs to patrons while the waitstaff magically appear when you need them and then become practically invisible. You get the feeling Isabella Rossellini might walk in at any moment with Rasputin on her arm as a date. It's just that kind of place. The French-American food is top-notch--try the grilled portabella or the pork tenderloin--and our knowledgeable waiter accommodated varying wine tastes at the table by splitting glasses of red and white. Well worth the cost, the restaurant has been in business for almost 30 years and embodies the kind of class and timelessness that Dallas' younger, hipper restaurants can only aspire to.

10 articles

Toulouse Cafe and Bar

3314 Knox St. Park Cities

214-520-8999

French, Bars and Clubs, Recommended, Best Of

Alberto Lombardi shares his love of Franco-influenced Belgian comestibles and his house specialty, pomme frites, in the Park Cities. The eatery"s amber glow gives it the ambience of a bistro where customers can while away the hours enjoying the Gallic-heavy wine stock or perhaps some frogs" legs. Mussels come in many compelling varieties, their bread-sopping sauces adding to your dining pleasure. The third Monday of the month is when a reservation-required, three-course wine dinner is held. The dining room is small but inviting, decorated by French posters and artwork, and the bar is a cozy, steel-topped vantage to watch the Katy Trail joggers trot the evening away.

8 articles

Toussaint

1907 Elm St. Downtown/Deep Ellum

214-765-2311

French

Toussaint Brasserie, the classy and chic French-inspired restaurant, has opened in the Renaissance Hotel Saint Elm in downtown Dallas.

The menu includes staples of French cuisine like moules frites, steak tartare, steak frites and lobster Thermidor. During the week, Toussaint will offer plat de jours such as chicken truffle pot pie on Sunday, pork belly ramen on Wednesday, and coq au vin on Thursday (braised chicken thighs and white wine).

Traditional French and Asian sandwiches are also on the menu with banh mi and a fried shrimp po' boy adding to an already appetizing menu. The New Orleans-influenced cocktail menu will also be something to look forward to and the wine will be flowing.

1 article

Whisk Crêpes Cafe

1888 Sylvan Ave. West Dallas

469-407-1899

Crepes, French, Critics' Pick, Best Of

The menu of savory crepes at Whisk changes with the seasons and with the inspiration of Julien Eelsen and his chefs. Many of the most deluxe are topped with what amounts to meal-sized salads. There are breakfast and dessert options, too; at breakfast, consider the fiery-hot shakshuka crepe with a runny egg yolk perched in the middle, or a crepe filled with smoked salmon. Eelsen, a Parisian native, delights in the flavors of Oak Cliff, sourcing local barbecue and deli meats for some of his dishes. During the pandemic, Whisk has kept its dining room resolutely shut, only adding patio seating in the fall. For takeout or patio customers, there’s one new addition to the menu’s temptations: eggy breakfast sandwiches, often topped with rustic European ingredient combinations like beer-braised onions and molten French cheese.

Top pick: Almost anything at Whisk makes for a fabulous picnic.

5 articles

French in Dallas

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