Georgie was first visited by Frankie last July and we were very excited by the potential of this recently re-vamped place. The addition of Chef RJ Yoakum in Jan. 2023 was a step in the right direction and we wanted to see how it fared without the benefit of the summer’s bounty of ingredient options. Inside not much has changed, but it felt darker- probably because it was dark outside and there are a lot of windows posing as exterior walls. They still have double-clothed nice-sized tables with stuffed bench-like seating, music in the background, a mix of dress styles and a lively bar taking up one-third of the space. Now however, the tasting menu is printed in the menu in addition to the a la carte options. Wine pairings are offered as well as a sommelier and large wine list. Service was a little more mixed this visit, sometimes quite slow and absent and while the food was very good it couldn’t maintain the same caliber the entire tasting. There’s a lot of staff in the kitchen, you could see them through the screen by our table as most folks seemed to be ordering a la carte. Dallas has been super slow to accept tasting menus, but hopefully, with Michelin recognition in Texas, this place will continue to evolve into stars.
Set-Up
Food
Snacks included “Big Mac Attack”, Black truffle churro, and Butter poached oyster. The Big Mac was beef tartare on grilled bread topped with sauteed lettuce. It was way better than any Big Mac I’ve tasted. The potato churros came with a caramelized onion dip topped with black truffles. Their crisp exterior melted into their soft interior and was fabulous with the wonderful dip. The oyster was topped with Siberian Baerto caviar in a creamy sauce. They were all different and quite yummy.
French onion consommé included grilled cheese custard and was topped with caramelized parmesan mousse. The excellent beef broth had a fabulous depth of flavor accented with the sweet onions and a couple of crisp croutons. This was another yummy plate.
Maine sea urchin topped a mix of Jasmine rice and smoked shellfish sabayon. Some smokey flavor emanated from the sabayon and was tempered by the addition of lemon. Also the uni was served cool while the rice and sauce were warm, which made a nice contrast of temperatures.
Chef Yoakum brought out an extra dish he’d recently created next – a combination of King crab, scallop and langoustine with Meyer lemon. The scallop was barely cooked and melted in your mouth while the chewy langoustine was just as good with more texture. The shellfish infused broth added to the wonderful aftertaste this left on the palate, but it needs a little more work to make the varied shellfish complement each other.
Grilled Hiramasa came in a beet and bone marrow vinaigrette. The vinaigrette was almost like a barbecue sauce, sweet and spicy and the fish was topped with some crisp carrots, which were very good. This was fine.
Some small warm baguettes were next with softened butter. They were divine.
Tortellini en brodo was stuffed with duck confit, topped with black truffle and parmesan in dashi broth. Some parmesan rind was used somewhere in this dish which added to its savory flavor. The perfectly cooked pasta was wonderful but the duck was light on flavor and the broth heavy on salt.
Texas Venison was with Asian pear, smoked mushroom, coffee brown butter gastrique. The meat was tender and nicely rare with a good consistency to the sauce, but it also was a tad salty. The pear was good and I was delighted to not have to endure a boring beef course.
Coconut sherbert was with yuzu granite and Finger lime. This one didn’t work. The creamy middle didn’t work with the salty jelly underneath. It left the side of my tongue dry rather than refreshed.
Chocolate creme was plated with burnt honey ice cream and candy coco nibs. The server called it an espresso tuile to go with what was more like chocolate ganache and some ice cream with little flavor but nice texture. There was lots of chocolate in the dish that gave you a sweet finish to the meal.
Would you say the menu was worth the $185 price? Last year the tasting menu and “standard” wine pairing together would be $230 per person. Now the tasting menu with wine pairings will set you back $335 per person. That increase is pretty eye watering.
It is steep but in line with other high end restaurants tastings. Monarch is a combined $300. For me Georgie is doing great food now that RJ Yoakum is at the helm but when he gets a Michelin star I would expect it to go up again. He serves lots of luxury ingredients in an expensive setting. I think the recent price increase was due to Michelin recognition and his nod as chef from the James Beard awards. One way to save would be to order your own wine instead of the pairings. I’m always with someone so for the price of 2 pairings we can usually find a better wine that will go with the meal and maybe a glass of red for the protein. I’ve had good experiences with telling the sommelier my price range and style and they know the menu. Ask them to find you a hidden treasure that’s a value. Pairings seem to have inched up where they are as much as the menu and this is not worth it in my book. For Dallas I think Georgie is priced fairly but it will put it out of range for many unfortunately. If and when you go I’d love to know what you think.