Like most people who live and dine out often in Dallas, I'm a pretty big Stephan Pyles fan. When I first moved here in 1997 I think it was the last year of his mega-successful Star Canyon run and regrettably, I ate there only once but I remember that experience quite fondly even though my waistline has never recovered. He opened another couple of restaurants afterwards (AquaKnox was way ahead of its time, when Texans had yet to discover that fish didn't necessarily have to be battered and fried to be edible.) Then he blasted into the big time again with the eponymous
Stephan Pyles restaurant which has resolutely stood the test of time and taste buds. It's darned expensive, however, so it's kind of a once-a-year place for us. He opened
Samar on the ground floor of the building I work in a few years ago and it is a fun place to share Indian, Spanish and Mediterranean dishes with odd sounding names and unfamiliar spices. I usually have minor gastric distress afterwards but it's worth it, kind of like soreness after a strenuous workout. He used to have hookahs outside on the patio under little cabanas but they kept blowing over in the windy canyons of downtown Dallas so he gave them to some hookers. J/K.
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| This Little Piggy Stayed Home |
About a year ago the unstoppable Chef Pyles opened
Stampede 66 as what I can only think of as his unapologetic bromance with Texas. I mean you walk into the place and it is so western and snazzy and cocky it takes every bit of your will power to
not start dancing the Cotton Eyed Joe. The decor is Pure-D awesome with metal horse heads, a big old lit up snake, mounted longhorns and a gigantic hog sculpture made out of pork rinds, which is kind of Silence of the Lambs-esque, like creating an outfit for someone using human skin.
Lunch is a blast. Last time I went there I met a female friend who happens to be one of the brightest stars in the firmament of Dallas society (she is one of the nicest people you will ever meet plus she laughs at my feeble attempts at humor so don't judge) and we both seriously discussed healthy options like the Gazpacho and the Venison Taco Salad and then promptly ordered the BBQ Brisket Reuben with French Fries and Potato Salad. It was $12 which is pretty much like free in a Stephan Pyles restaurant. My friend and I always like to case the bathrooms in restaurants and Stampede 66 does not disappoint. Instead of Dudes and Dudettes or Guys and Gals, they have name plates of famous Texans nailed to the front to indicate where to go. If you are a male and you option for door number two with Janis Joplin, Ebby Halliday and Farrah Fawcett among others you really need to start paying more attention to something other than your smart phone.
Dinner is a little less casual but not very much and the prices are again, insanely cheap for S/P food. This man is a world famous chef and one of the founding fathers of Southwestern Cuisine and you can sink your teeth into his Chicken Fried Buffalo Steak and Mashed Potatoes with Potlicker Greens for 21 bucks, or fork over 16 smackers for Shrimp and Grits. My most devoted readers (I think I am up to almost ten now) know that I
always usually skip dessert but I cannot resist his mason jar of Butterscotch Pudding with Salted Caramel and I have heard from trusted sources that his Chocolate Custard, Snickers, Dr. Pepper Float is every bit as ridiculously delicious as it sounds. I know my fingers just plumped up a little while I was typing that so it must also be incredibly fattening.
The place is crazy busy and deserves to be. The service is all Southern grace, the food is outstanding, the decor is at once deluxe and amusing, and it is not much more expensive than a Saturday Date Night at Denny's. I really wanted to use the expressions "All Hat No Cattle" and "That Dog Don't Hunt" in this post because they are so truly Texan but they just don't apply here at all. Nope, when I am at Stampede 66 I am Happier than a Big Tick on a Fat Dog.
Now do yerself a favor and git on over yonder pronto.
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