DALWORTHINGTON GARDENS
A fine-dining steakhouse named for President Theodore Roosevelt will replace a landmark “Christmas wonderland” restaurant between Fort Worth and Arlington.
Théodore’s Steak & Seafood, promoted as from the “era of confidence” in the U.S. at the turn of the 20th century, will open in mid-April in the former Campo Verde Mexican Bar & Grill at 2918 W. Pioneer Parkway in Dalworthington Gardens.
The restaurant is the latest effort from former Loews hotel chef “Moose” Benhamacht and Liesl Best, also the owners of Cafe Americana in downtown Arlington.
Théodore’s Steak & Seafood is named not for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who oversaw the founding of suburban Dalworthington Gardens, but for the earlier president who was his distant cousin.
“Refined” burrata at Théodore’s Steak & Seafood in Dalworthington Gardens, Texas. Courtesy of Théodore’s Steak & Seafood
Franklin Roosevelt was president when Dalworthington Gardens was established as a post-Great Depression federal homestead colony.
First lady Eleanor Roosevelt visited the property and laid out her vision for the suburb.
Theodore Roosevelt is recognized in Arlington’s nationally renowned National Medal of Honor Museum.
The restaurant is at the corner of Pioneer and Roosevelt Drive. It will be one of the few fine-dining steakhouses serving Arlington and east Tarrant County.
According to a bullish menu published on the reservations site OpenTable.com, Théodore’s will offer aged Texas wagyu beef from Rosewood Ranch in Ennis, Texas, including cuts such as a 20-ounce rib-eye and a 14-ounce New York strip.
The menu also includes a bison rib-eye, a prime porterhouse and entrees such as lobster, sea bass, lamb chops and chicken Parmesan.
The interior of Théodore’s Steak & Seafood in Dalworthington Gardens, Texas. Courtesy of Théodore’s Steak & Seafood
Appetizers include brisket sausage, lobster bisque and Prince Edward Island mussels.
A lunch menu includes a 10-ounce “Teddy’s Burger.” Weekend brunch adds blueberry pancakes, shrimp-and-grits and eggs Benedict.
A bar menu offers a flight of tequilas honoring the letters that Theodore Roosevelt exchanged with Mexican President Porfirio Díaz, and a cocktail named the Pearl Revolver for Roosevelt’s Colt Single Action Army revolver.
Steak and shrimp at Théodore’s Steak & Seafood in Dalworthington Gardens, Texas. It replaced a Christmas-decorated restaurant. Courtesy of Théodore’s Steak & Seafood
Another cocktail, a version of the classic Boulevardier, is described as being inspired by the 1912 campaign speech in which Theodore Roosevelt continued speaking after he was shot in an assassination attempt.
Campo Verde closed Dec. 24, ending a 42-year as a regional Christmas decoration with an elaborate decor and 120,000 lights.
The restaurant opened as a busy Sonoran-style Mexican steakhouse and bar under founder James “Smiley” Williams when southwest Arlington was developing in the 1980s heyday of baseball’s Texas Rangers.
Williams had managed traditional Tex-Mex restaurants that were the forerunner of today’s Mercado Juarez Cafes. Williams opened the first Campo Verde in 1979 at 7108 Camp Bowie Blvd. West in Fort Worth, then added the second in 1983 on Pioneer Parkway.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Bud Kennedy is celebrating his 40th year writing about restaurants in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has written the “Eats Beat” dining column in print since 1985 and online since 1992 — that’s more than 3,000 columns about Texas cafes, barbecue, burgers and where to eat.
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