Valentine’s Day is near. Book now at these restaurants. (One’s a real zoo.)
(Updating Cafe Modern and the Fort Worth Zoo; adding Wicked Butcher, Steinway Piano, Lili’s, Stirr, Cru, Fireside Pies, Fire Oak.)
Normally this would be too early for a Valentine’s Day preview.
Not this year. The best times are already booked at some restaurants, so it’s not a day too soon to make plans for your special sweetheart.
Here’s a look at Valentine’s specials, to be updated:
▪ The beautiful Café Modern in the Modern Art Museum is open for dinner every Friday, so Valentine’s fits perfectly.
The Modern will offer a three-course $69 dinner Feb. 14 featuring prosciutto-wrapped halibut, osso bucco or a mushroom-truffle risotto, with a dessert trio of a chocolate tart, panna cotta and a white chocolate mousse tartlet; 3200 Darnell St., 817-840-2157, themodern.org.
▪ In the Stockyards, Lonesome Dove Western Bistro is serving a $110 five-course dinner Feb. 14, featuring chef Tim Love’s original signature dish, his garlic-stuffed beef tenderlloin.
Other choices include duck mole or redfish, with Tuaca French silk pie for dessert; 2406 N. Main St., 817-740-8810, lonesomedovefortworth.com.
Before dinner, go across the street to Ático, Love’s new rooftop cocktail bar and tapas cafe with a view of downtown and Stockyards growth from atop a hotel at 2315 N. Main St.; 682-255-5100, marriott.com.
▪ The Magdalena’s monthly pop-up dinner is booked, but chef Juan Rodriguez is also promoting a special Valentine’s dinner in the Steinway Piano Gallery in downtown Fort Worth.
Chef Baxter McDonald is serving a three-course $125 dinner to the music of pianist Sara Doan.
The published menu includes mushroom ravioli, poached lobster, veal shank ragu and a choice of desserts such as red velvet cheesecake or dark chocolate ganache; 510 Commerce St., 817-665-1853.
▪ The new downtown steakhouse, Wicked Butcher in the Sinclair Hotel, is serving a $75 dinner featuring a 12-ounce dry-aged ribeye, steak-and-king-crab, salmon, chicken or a pork chop.
Desserts include black cherry creme brulee, bourbon caramel cake or chocolate ganache; 512 Main St., 682-231-8214, wickedbutcher.com.
▪ On West Seventh Street, Blue Mesa Grill is outfitting its upstairs banquet room to offer a $100 dinner for two with dancing.
The dinner features tequilas, corn bisque, red-chile beef tenderloin and warm chocolate cake; 612 Carroll St., 817-332-6372, bluemesagrill.com.
▪ Downtown, Bird Café on Sundance Square Plaza is serving its first Valentine’s Day dinner under well-known local chef Brian Olenjack.
The dinner choices: a $88 surf-and-turf platter for two of a filet and king crab legs, a $38 New York strip or a $32 seafood stew (mahi mahi, mussels and shrimp). For dessert, there’s tiramisu or a chocolate version of a “Dutch baby” crepe with caramel and chocolate.
Bird is at 155 E. Fourth St.; 817-332-2473, birdinthe.net.
▪ The new Toro Toro steakhouse will serve a $75 dinner featuring halibut, roasted duck breast, a tenderloin or a zucchini-portobello dish. A room with sparkling wine and breakfast is $389; 200 Main St., 817-210-2222, torotorofortworth.com.
▪ Ellerbe Fine Foods, generally considered one of the city’s best special-occasion restaurants (along with Grace and Paris 7th), has an $85 dinner Feb. 14-15, featuring a choice of steak or Sicilian seared swordfish.
The first course is cauliflower soup or salad, and the dessert is a champagne cake or a salted dark-chocolate tart; 1501 W. Magnolia Ave., 817-926-3663, ellerbefinefoods.com.
▪ On West Magnolia Avenue, Lili’s Bistro is serving a special menu Feb. 14-15, priced a la carte.
The entrees ($42-$45) include sea bass, a filet and a roasted rack of elk. There’s also a long list of regular entrees ($18-$38) such as petit beef Wellington, steaks, chops and veggies entrees such as a quinoa-stuffed roast poblano.
Lili’s is at 1310 W. Magnolia Ave., 817-877-0700, lilisbistro.com.
▪ On Crockett Row, Stirr is serving a $40 dinner featuring tenderloin with kung pao lobster, redfish with lump crab or chicken with portobello; 3028 Crockett St., 817-770-0947, stirrrestaurants.com.
▪ It’s not fancy, but Fireside Pies locations are offering a $35-per-person combo including a pizza, appetizer, salad plus a bottle of wine; firesidepies.com.
▪ In Clearfork, CRÚ Food & Wine Bar is offering a four-course $60 dinner featuring filet mignon, rosemary rack of lamb, scallops or sea bass.
Desserts includes chocolate mousse, creme brulee or molten chocolate cake for dessert; 5188 Marathon Ave., 817-737-9463, cruwinebar.com.
▪ In Arlington, the new Cut & Bourbon is offering a reasonab;e 3-course dinner Feb. 14-15 for $65, four courses for $85.
Choices include sea bass; 1600 E. Randol Mill Road, 682-277-4950, loewshotels.com.
▪ The Fort Worth Zoo serves a $195/couple Valentine’s dinner Feb. 14-15 in its Portraits of the Wild Art Gallery, but it’s sold out.
The dinner includes visits with a zoo animal and an open bar. It’s for grownups only, and the zoo requests “after 5” dress. There’s still a “Galentine’s” event with an open bar and dessert buffet Feb. 13 ($85); fortworthzoo.org.
▪ In Weatherford, Fire Oak Grill offers a $75 dinner featuring filet mignon, an herb-stuffed chicken breast or a salmon-scallop dish; 114 Austin Ave.. 817-598-0400. fireoakgrill.com.
Restaurants with good tables remaining Feb. 14 include Branch & Bird, Buffalo West, Istanbul Grill, Gemelle, Local Foods Kitchen, both Mercury Chop House locations, Michaels Cuisine, Taverna by Lombardi and Wishbone & Flynt, along with Piccolo Mondo in Arlington, American Revelry in Burleson and La Bistro in Colleyville.
Call soon for the tables remaining at B&B Butchers, Bob’s Steak & Chop House, Bonnell’s, Capital Grille, Eddie V’s, Pacific Table, Paris 7th, Reata, Ruth’s Chris Steak House and Silver Fox, along with Restaurant506 at the Sanford House in Arlington.
This story was originally published January 20, 2020 at 5:45 AM.