Glen Lakes Grill is now open on Walnut Hill near the DART station
Let’s see how you do on this LH trivia: What LH-area restaurant made frequent appearances on the TV show Dallas? Answer: Madison’s Restaurant hosted the likes of Miss Ellie and Sue Ellen back then (and many of us enjoyed it later as Houston’s), but it has newly re-opened as Glen Lakes Grill, perhaps its best translation yet.
New owner and LH resident Rick Sheen has kept mum about his new project, hoping to fully train his staff before he’s overwhelmed with business. Wishful thinking, perhaps, considering how site has struggled since those good ole Dallas days. Based on the reaction of my buddies at Girls’ Night Out, though, Rick and his staff better get ready.
The measure of a good friend is whether she’ll let you eat off her plate, and we ooh-ed and aah-ed as we sampled and shared. The blackened chicken breast platter was spicy and tender and could have fed all four of us. My salmon, stuffed with Crab Imperial and finished with champagne cream sauce, was perfect, and the beef tenderloin medallions were peppery and delicious. The Linguini al Forno, also enough for our crowd, had an Alfredo sauce with chicken, shrimp, Andouille sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms and scallions. We liked both options on fries – shoestring and sweet potato – with a little mango ketchup, and we loved the pull-apart rolls, crispy on top and soft & moist in the middle. Don’t miss the Peaches and Cream dessert, with vanilla bean ice cream and deep-fried crisps, a bit like sopapillas, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.
Rick earned his restaurant chops while working with another LH food king – Kurt Stadelmann. Kurt owns and runs Richardson institution Café Max, where Rick has been a manager for years. They met long ago while working at a Hyatt (more trivia, Kurt was the saucier) and Rick served as Best Man in Kurt’s wedding.
Our biggest ah-hah moment was when Rick showed us his Media Room, where Pixar movies run on a big screen Friday and Saturday nights. After children eat macaroni-n-cheese or chicken tender kids meals with their families, they can retreat to watch the show while parents enjoy a glass of wine or cup of coffee. And adults at neighboring tables can dine in peace, since fidgety kids don’t have to sit and wait.
Glen Lakes Grill is open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week and stays open til 10 on weekend nights. Sunday Brunch with omelettes, Belgian waffles, and Bananas Foster French toast, begins at 11 am. Prices ranged from about $8 for a salad or sandwich (available all day) to about $18 for a dinner entrée with sides. They have a full bar with sports-tuned TVs but also dark corners for romantic date nights. It took us a while to get out because we had to stop at several tables to greet all the LH folks we knew, so schedule that into your evening. I predict Glen Lakes Grill will be the next LH hot spot.
