Wicked Butcher & National Anthem, Downtown Dallas
A downtown Dallas double: we started at National Anthem, then headed over to Wicked Butcher for Restaurant Week. Both are worth knowing about.
Wicked Butcher
The entrance sets expectations high — blue doors, velvet rope, gold stanchions, a circular “Purveyors of Fine Cuts” sign lit up at night. Wicked Butcher delivers on all of it. The interior is dark and moody, with a geometric black-and-white diamond-tile feature wall that runs floor to ceiling, a gallery room with black walls and framed photography, and a dining room that earns the adjective dramatic. Someone put real thought and real money into this room, and it shows.
We went for Restaurant Week: $59 for three courses, which is a genuine deal for what’s on the table here. Places often phone it in during these events — smaller portions, lesser cuts, the B-team menu. Wicked Butcher didn’t do that.
Appetizers were the tuna crudo, calamari, and white truffle Caesar. All three were solid, portions were generous, and the Caesar in particular is the kind of dish that makes you think about ordering a second before you’ve finished the first. For mains, the filet and the cacio e pepe ravioli were both the right calls — the filet comes out properly cooked, finished with shaved parmesan and a rich sauce, and the ravioli holds its own alongside it. Neither dish felt like a concession.
Dessert: we ordered one of each. The chocolate tart is rich and the peanut butter element works. The banana pudding and crème brûlée are both well-portioned and a proper close to the meal.
Wicked Butcher verdict: One of the better-designed rooms in downtown Dallas, with a kitchen that matches the aesthetic. The Restaurant Week menu was legitimately impressive — no corners cut. Worth a visit at full price too.
National Anthem
National Anthem is a few blocks away and a completely different register — bright, airy, relaxed, the kind of place you pop into before dinner without a reservation. We tried the cauliflower and two cocktails.
The Eastside — gin, cucumber, mint — is very good. Clean, refreshing, well-balanced. The kind of cocktail you’d order again immediately. The cauliflower holds up as a shared plate: well-prepared, a nice contrast to the heavier meal that followed.
National Anthem verdict: A strong pre-dinner option downtown. Low-key room, good cocktail program, worth the stop.
