Inside the reimagined hotel sits Top Brass<\/a>, a restaurant that doesn\u2019t lean on its location as a crutch. Instead, it tries to define it.<\/p>\n The Transformation Of A Landmark Property<\/p>\n Hotel Dax lives inside what was once the Crowne Plaza Addison, a 1984-era property that shuttered during the pandemic before being repositioned by Centurion American Development Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n At Hotel Dax, the ambition is different. It\u2019s not just a renovation. It\u2019s a reset aimed at capturing a lifestyle crowd that doesn\u2019t necessarily associate the Tollway corridor with destination dining.<\/p>\n That\u2019s where Top Brass enters the picture.<\/p>\n A Chef With A Resume Built On Reinvention<\/p>\n Executive Chef Dustin Lee<\/a> doesn\u2019t arrive at Top Brass as a hotel lifer. His career in kitchens has been more about resets than routine, each stop marked by a different kind of rebuild.<\/p>\n In Fort Worth, he opened Beast and Company, a restaurant that earned quick critical notice and landed on several Best New Restaurants lists in 2022 before eventually closing its doors. From there, he moved into large-scale hotel operations at Loews Arlington, helping shape multiple concepts across the property, including Tomar el Sol.<\/p>\n Lee\u2019s work later took him to College Station, where he led a sweeping overhaul of the Hilton College Station Hotel and Convention Center after a major renovation. He reimagined banquet programming, retooled the main restaurant into a steakhouse called The Dean, and picked up an OpenTable Diner\u2019s Choice Award in 2025 along the way.<\/p>\n That background is evident at Top Brass. The food feels composed rather than flashy, disciplined without being restrained to a fault. It\u2019s hotel dining, but approached with the mindset of a chef who treats \u201cgood enough for a lobby\u201d as a nonstarter.<\/p>\n A Menu That Elevates The Familiar<\/p>\n Top Brass doesn\u2019t try to reinvent the steakhouse wheel. It simply tightens it.<\/p>\n The bang bang rock shrimp arrives first, a familiar dish in theory, but sharpened here with pickled vegetables that cut through the richness. It\u2019s the kind of plate that could disappear into background noise elsewhere but holds its own on this menu.<\/p>\n Deviled eggs, another staple, are reworked with salsa macha, miso-garlic and crisp chicken skin. The effect is less novelty and more intention, a reminder that small adjustments can change a dish\u2019s entire tone.<\/p>\n For mains, the kitchen leans into Texas expectations without getting stuck in them. Filets and sirloins are present, but so is a pork porterhouse that feels built for appetite rather than trend. The demi-glazed short rib, served with creamy mashed potatoes, lands in that slow-cooked comfort zone that hotel restaurants often aim for but rarely refine.<\/p>\n Vegetarians aren\u2019t an afterthought. The bucatini primavera stands out on its own terms: spring peas, sun-dried tomatoes, asparagus, basil and black truffle folded into pasta cooked with real precision. It\u2019s fresh without being delicate, structured without feeling heavy-handed.<\/p>\n Drinks And Dessert End The Night Right<\/p>\n The bar program at Top Brass mirrors the kitchen\u2019s approach. Classics are handled cleanly for guests who want something familiar, but there\u2019s room for curiosity.<\/p>\n Cocktails rotate through inventive combinations, with rum-forward builds and whiskey variations that lean more expressive than expected for a hotel dining room. Nothing feels overly engineered, but nothing feels accidental either.<\/p>\n Dessert is where Top Brass allows itself a more obvious indulgence.<\/p>\n The New York cheesecake is the anchor, served with seasonal coulis, fresh fruit and Valrhona chocolate. It doesn\u2019t try to reframe the category. It just executes it well enough that ordering it feels less like tradition and more like the correct ending.<\/p>\n Why Top Brass Works Beyond Hotel Guests<\/p>\n Top Brass succeeds because it understands its environment without being limited by it. Yes, it serves Hotel Dax guests. Yes, it\u2019s convenient. But the kitchen treats convenience as an entry point, not a ceiling.<\/p>\n There\u2019s enough intention in the food, enough clarity in execution and enough confidence in the menu that it doesn\u2019t rely on foot traffic alone. In Addison, where restaurants are plentiful and competition is constant, that kind of separation actually means something.<\/p>\n Top Brass is located inside Hotel Dax at 14315 Midway Road, Addison. Reservations and additional information are available at hoteldaxaddison.com<\/a>. We thank the restaurant for hosting and treating us. Hungry for more? Check out our dining guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n Don’t miss anything Local. Sign up<\/a> for our free newsletter.<\/p>\n ![\"img_0114\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_0114.JPG;w=960.jpeg\"\/)
\nPhoto: Matilda Preisendorf | Local Profile
<\/p>\n![\"topbrass\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/topbrass.jpeg;w=960.jpeg\"\/)
\nPhoto: Matilda Preisendorf | Local Profile
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