The 102-year-old Stoneleigh Hotel in Uptown Dallas has a new look in its guest rooms, lobby bar and restaurant, after a $20 million renovation.

“It’s elevated, sophisticated and a bit boisterous,” Lions Den partner Bruce Bronster said of the restaurant during a walk-through before its opening May 7, 2026.

Visitors to the redeveloped hotel will first come across Bar Leonessa, the lobby bar with sage green ceilings and thick drapes. Those same rich tones continue down a hallway into the Stoneleigh’s new restaurant, Lions Den, which is tucked in the first floor corner.

“There’s going to be some natural exclusivity,” Bronster said.

The Italian supperclub’s burgundy walls match the old-is-new renaissance of one of Dallas’ oldest hotels.

Lions Den chef-partner Michael White, who has spent much of his career cooking Italian food in New York, created a rich menu that starts with options of caviar served on a potato chip or steak tartare toast. White has been known for his lobster and burrata salad at restaurants like Marea in New York City, and it makes an appearance at the new Dallas restaurant.

“It’s like Jimmy Buffett having to sing ‘Cheeseburger in Paradise’ every time,” the chef said. His crudos and house-made pastas are part of the reportoire, too, and versions of each made it onto the Dallas menu. 

Pastas include agnolotti with braised oxtail and tagliatelle with ragu Bolognese. Entrées range from cauliflower steak to actual steak to Guinea hen cacciatore.

White says he’s “the new guy” in Dallas, but he hopes to entice neighbors and office workers to the bar and restaurant for a cocktail and a finer-dining meal. 

Under their hospitality company B Bianco, White and Bronster have opened restaurants in the Bahamas and New York City. For their next act, they’ll open eateries in Coral Gables, Fla., and in Puerto Rico.

White said he was drawn to the history of Dallas’ Stoneleigh Hotel as it reinvents itself more than 100 years in.

“I’m honored to have a spot in Dallas at a historic hotel,” he said.

The Lions Den at The Stoneleigh is at 2927 Maple Ave., Dallas. It’s expected to open May 7, 2026. Reservations recommended.