Mother’s Day rule: Go where Mom wants, not where the men want. Here are a few ideas
This might be a first.
Moms want something for Mother’s Day besides steak.
After years of prime steakhouses filling every seat for lunch on Mother’s Day, they’re mostly wide open this year while the newest or prettiest restaurants are full.
Cafe Modern is nearly booked. So are classy newcomers Don Artemio, Goat & Vine and Quince, along with beloved Rise nº3 Souffle and Waters.
But you can pick any time at the chain prime steakhouses, although there are fewer tables at perpetual favorite Capital Grille.
In Texas, this is big news.
Not too many years ago, a Star-Telegram readers poll awarded Del Frisco’s the title of “Most Romantic.”
Even midprice restaurants with a fun spirit such as Chicago-based Doc B’s Restaurant + Bar, “clean food” HG Sply Co. and Burleson’s overachieving American Revelry have strong bookings compared to steakhouses.
Here’s a look at a few top restaurants and hotels with space available:
▪ Ellerbe Fine Foods, 1501 W. Magnolia Ave., will open for a special $68 Mother’s Day brunch featuring citrus-garlic shrimp, Lousiana grillades-and-grits or a spinach-and-egg biscuit, plus salad or BLT soup and lemon-berry tiramisu.
Ellerbe now takes reservations at resy.com, with no deposit but a $25-per-person fee for late cancellations; 817-926-3663, ellerbefinefoods.com.
▪ Quince, on the Trinity Trail at 1701 River Run, has a few tables available early and late.
Quince has expanded its menu since opening and now offers entrees ranging from Cajun shrimp and sea bass to steaks. The brunch menu hasn’t started yet, but some items will be ready for Mother’s Day.
The best news at Quince — “15” in Spanish, from the original location’s address in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico — is that the in-house dessert menu continues to grow.
The six desserts now include Quince’s own Black Forest cake — creamy like the German version, not the familiar local dacquoise — a pavlova, tiramisu in a martini glass and baklava cheesecake.
Quince is open for lunch and dinner daily; 682-385-9073, quincesma.com/fw.
▪ Grace, 777 Main St., and 61 Osteria, 500 W. Seventh St., are cousin restaurants with tables available.
Grace, a locally owned prime steakhouse, opens for brunch only on a few special Sunday holidays, offering egg dishes along with the regular menu; 817-877-3388, gracefortworth.com.
61 Osteria is a flashy new Italian restaurant open for brunch every weekend; 817-953-3271, 61osteria.com.
▪ Lucile’s A Stateside Bistro, 4700 Camp Bowie Blvd., just celebrated its 30th anniversary as one of the city’s longstanding brunch favorites.
It’s not heavily booked for Mother’s Day yet, so get on the list for the wide-ranging menu of steaks, seafood, pizzas and breakfast dishes such as Maine lobster eggs Benedict.
Lucile’s fried lobster-and-waffles or bananas Foster waffles make it more than just a dinner restaurant; 817-738-4761, lucilesstatesidebistro.com.
▪ In the Stockyards, the new Tannahill’s Tavern serves a $49 monthly gospel or jazz brunch both Mother’s and Father’s Day.
The menu includes breakfast dishes, pecan-smoked ham, housemade sausage and caramel-pecan French toast bread pudding; 817-900-9300, tannahills.com.
▪ In the downtown Fort Worth hotels, Cast Iron (in the Omni) and Wicked Butcher (in the Sinclair) have brunch tables available early or late.
Il Modo, in the Harper, and Toro Toro, in the Renaissance Worthington, have more space available.
▪ In Arlington, Cut & Bourbon at Live! by Loews-Arlington, 1600 E. Randol Mill Road, has tables available throughout the lunch hour for a $68 buffet featuring cheeses, omelets, seafood, entrees and desserts.
The valet parking is free. (Check out the construction progress on the new Loews tower.)
▪ In Southlake, Sky Creek Kitchen, 251 Texas 114 East, has space available.
Sky Creek’s $85 menu features steak-and-eggs with a sweet-potato enchilada, scallops or a bourbon-smoked pork chop, plus a crab-and-shrimp salad and opera cake.
