{"id":232056,"date":"2026-04-02T16:38:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T16:38:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/232056\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T16:38:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T16:38:14","slug":"qa-with-dallas-chef-toby-archibald-at-quarter-acre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/232056\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A with Dallas Chef Toby Archibald at Quarter Acre"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"Chef
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tChef Toby Archibald at Quarter Acre chats about kitchen nightmares and his favorite meal ever. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Lauren Drewes Daniels<\/p>\n

In this series of interviews<\/a>, we chat with Dallas chefs about trends, kitchen disasters, overhyped ingredients and favorite meals.<\/p>\n

This week, we caught up with chef Toby Archibald <\/a>in his kitchen at Quarter Acre<\/a>, where he was prepping for Wednesday dinner service. Side note: Quarter Acre has a new five-course tasting menu Tuesday through Thursday for $105. The seven-course menu the rest of the week is worth every bit at $145, but if you want to start slow, this mid-week option is wonderful.<\/p>\n

Chef Archibald\u2019s journey from New Zealand, where he was born and raised, to kitchens around the world eventually landed him in New York City, where he worked under Daniel Boulud. At Quarter Acre, he marries his coastal upbringing, classic training and travels with local ingredients, making for a delightful culinary adventure. Which is best experienced through his aforementioned tasting menu.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s your go-to meal when you need something quick and easy?
Raising Canes!\u00a0<\/p>\n

What\u2019s one food trend that needs to retire immediately?\u00a0
Flashy restaurants are opening, saying they will be different, but the menus are all the same as the other flashy places here in town. Also, I like avocado and Tuna too, but it does not need to be on every menu in town.<\/p>\n

Pick one: Michelin Guide or Luka back?\u00a0
Michelin for sure.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re on a\u00a0date and you want to really get to know the person\u2019s true character \u2014 and if the\u00a0relationship has real potential \u2014 where\u00a0are you taking them?\u00a0
A comedy show. They need to know how to laugh and appreciate that life is not so serious ALL the time.<\/p>\n

Who\u00a0is a Dallas maker (farmer, pastry chef, barkeep) you wish more people knew about?\u00a0
Tida Picharkron at Haute Sweets<\/a>. She is so talented and has always helped me with information as a small business owner.<\/p>\n

Soundtrack vibe: What\u2019s the soundtrack for your favorite meal?
Old school blues on my record player: Muddy Waters, Blind Lemon, Lightning Hopkins, Howlin\u2019 Wolf, BB King.<\/p>\n

What dish will you be most remembered for?\u00a0
The Glory Bay hot-smoked salmon.<\/p>\n

What are some of your favorite restaurants in Dallas right now?\u00a0
Encina, Mot Hai Ba and Taco y Vino.<\/p>\n

Should caviar really be on everything?\u00a0
No! But it sure tastes great when it is on the RIGHT thing, doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the worst thing that\u2019s ever happened in your kitchen \u2013 that you can speak of?\u00a0
Oh, jeez, The Bear has nothing on the first two years at Quarter Acre. Staff going to jail, hood vents breaking, the power going out mid-service, things catching on fire, dishwashers walking out mid-service, the usual, really. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s the most\u00a0under-appreciated position\/job in a restaurant?\u00a0
The dishwasher.<\/p>\n

What menu embellishment makes you crazy?\u00a0
\u201cAu jus\u2019\u2026. \u201cWould you like some of the Au jus?\u201d It literally means \u201cWITH sauce!\u201d People use this term so very wrong! Jus, is the sauce! Au jus is not the sauce, it means \u2018with the sauce\u2019 gah!!!!<\/p>\n

What is something that, if you see on a menu, you\u2019re ordering immediately?
Octopus.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the toughest challenge facing the restaurant industry right now?
Wow, that answer is long and short all at the same time! Rising costs is the short answer, but the long answer is: lease prices, staff prices, food prices, delivery prices, all the prices. The public knows life in general is getting more expensive, but as soon as menu prices go up, we get complaints.<\/p>\n

What has having the Michelin Guide in Texas done for Dallas dining?
First up, the dining scene got a reality check; the city\u2019s restaurants were not at that level. Now, restaurants are trying to be better. This, I love. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s the best meal you\u2019ve ever had?
My mum\u2019s lasagna any time. Or my meal at Alinea in 2014.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chef Toby Archibald at Quarter Acre chats about kitchen nightmares and his favorite meal ever. Lauren Drewes Daniels…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":232057,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[2808,102,104,103],"class_list":{"0":"post-232056","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas","8":"tag-chefs","9":"tag-dallas","10":"tag-dallas-headlines","11":"tag-dallas-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232056","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232056"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232056\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232057"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232056"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232056"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232056"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}