The bar at Palladino’s is great for a quick steak, or neighborhood gossip.
Alison McLean for the Dallas Observer
Two New York-born restaurateurs are collaborating on a Dallas steakhouse. And it almost guarantees to be tasty and interesting.
First, some intros.
Dallas X Grand Central Station
Bronx-born Joseph Palladino — who was once an NYPD officer — helped build Nick and Sam’s, one of Dallas’ iconic steak restaurants, over 20 years ago. In 2025, he opened the upscale Palladino’s Steak and Seafood in the main concourse balcony of Grand Central Station in New York City.
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Earlier this year, he expanded the concept to Preston Hollow, rolling out the red carpet for a neighborhood that had largely been expected to traverse the tollway for such an upscale meal. Neighborhood regulars don’t mind dropping $200 for dinner, even when perched at the bar. This space feels like a posh slice of Uptown, but with plenty of free parking (there’s literally a huge parking lot right there. It’s amazing; you should see it).
The new role
Chef John Tesar’s story is long, winding and anything but boring. He cut his teeth in the Hamptons and moved on to upscale restaurants in New York City, including the lauded and now closed 13 Barrow Street and The Supper Club, where he worked alongside Anthony Bourdain (who claimed to have thrown a pan at his head at least once).
After a stint in Las Vegas, Tesar landed in Dallas at the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek, where he earned a five-star review prior to opening his own spot, Spoon, and later Knife Steakhouse. This skips many small details for brevity. But notably, in 2020, he expanded his steakhouse concept to Knife and Spoon at The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grand Lakes, which earned a Michelin star in 2022 and 2023. He had more stints in the Ritz-Carlton lineup, including Knife Italian in Irving, which he’s no longer a part of.
But what it all comes down to is that, on the plate, Tesar may be best known for dry-aged steaks sourced from central Texas farms. Case in point: after spending just under $17,000 on steak dinners over a year across Dallas, D Magazine’s Brian Reinhart ranked Knife Plano as one of Dallas’ best steakhouses, where Tesar’s dry-aged steaks are “magnificent.”
The new duo at Palladino’s
With all the intros aside, Palladino has tapped Tesar to run his kitchens in both New York City and Dallas. (Initially, Palladino’s announced Sam Hazen as the executive chef, but apparently those plans have changed. Hazen out; Tesar in.) Tesar will travel between the two restaurants to get them in sync. The menu is being tweaked a little, but the highlights are sushi, steaks, pasta, fish and hearty sides.
Tesar, who says he has been sober for two years now and off social media for six months (crazy how those two things line up) made it clear on a call, “I’m working for Joe. I’m not here to do John Tesar. I’m here to do Joe Palladino.”
Quick Q&A
We had just a couple of questions for Tesar, though, notably about stars and dry-aged steaks.
Dallas Observer: You’ve earned a Michelin star before and the guide is in Texas (for now, anyway). Is that on your mind at all at Palladino’s?
Tesar: “Any accolade is welcome, but having achieved most of them, I learned that they’re all fleeting in the minds of the public, and it’s something that I’ve obtained and have on my resume, but I don’t count on it. I don’t need it. And I’m mature enough now and accomplished enough that I just want to be known as a person who opens great restaurants, but also makes money and serves amazing food.”
DO: Will you bring your dry-aged program to Palladino’s? You’re a dry-aged guy.
Tesar: “Yeah, I know, but not anymore. I’m working for Joe. (…) I’ll say though, the Knife brand is still mine. But we don’t need to create speculation that I’m going to be doing that in the future because right now I’m totally focused on this and I have no plans. I’m not working a side plan … But maybe one day I might return back to doing Knife and dry aging, but I don’t want to borrow $10 million from a group of guys I don’t know and not sleep at night. That’s the reason I don’t want my children to rely on licensing that could dry up in five minutes or, say, open another restaurant and it doesn’t work out. Then where’s my career? So Joe has this infrastructure. He has great investors. (…) It’s a great partnership between Joe and me because he’s got the front and I have the back [the kitchen].”