Food pharaoh Stephan Pyles revamps DMA’s bistro menu in time for Tut

The salmon terrine at Seventeen Seventeen includes saffron ‘caviar,’ left, one of several successful examples of molecular gastronomy on the redesigned menu. - ARNOLD WAYNE JONES/Dallas Voice

Predictably, Downtown’s Arts District will be the focus of a lot of attention in the coming months. What has been less predictable is that much of the attention will come from foodies.

Sure, there’s the Opera House and Wyly Theatre joining the Meyerson and the retooled Arts Magnet High School, but while the former are still in their skeletal stages, many eateries are hogging the limelight.

Already, Screen Door and Dali are stirring up One Arts Plaza, with three more restaurants set to come online there by the end of the year. But over at the Dallas Museum of Art, the food is almost as exciting as the pending King Tut exhibit.

After a boffo opening in 1996, when everyone I knew headed down there for lunch (it’s closed for dinner), Seventeen Seventeen began to dwindle in the collective consciousness. The recent announcement that Stephan Pyles — whose eponymous restaurant next door launched the Downtown renaissance nearly three years agao — would redesign the menu by taking inspiration from the DMA’s collection has done something exciting: Made the restaurant relevant again.

Not just relevant, either; important. The DMA will be under a lot of scrutiny when Tut opens in October, and everyone knew Seventeen Seventeen had to create a menu as worthy of discovery as when Howard Crater pried open the pharaoh’s tomb in 1922. And Pyles has delivered.

There is, of course, his signature creativity and attention to detail. Working with executive chef Jason Ferraro (a newcomer to Dallas), Pyles has pushed the boundaries of molecular gastronomy. Take, for instance, one of the starters, a salmon terrine. Layered with strata of butter, it arrives at the table “virtually smoked” — an inverted wine glass traps a puff of applewood against the fish; when it’s removed, the chariness wafts into the air, as savory and appetizing as a Texas barbecue.

That’s only the beginning. The salmon is accompanied by saffron caviar, house-made glycerin-like pearls in a vibrant, sunny yellow. All of it is so extravagantly labor-intensive, you’re tempted to stare at it agog, forgetting to eat. Don’t. The sashimi-grade fish is rich and outstanding, served alongside a cucumber-watermelon salad and crowned with microgreens: Delicate, summery, ideal for luncheon.

You might puzzle over where the art comes into play. Pyles has 5,000 years worth of art from which to draw his ideas, plus his own predilections for Southwestern and African flavors. The latter can certainly be felt in the East African sweet pea soup, perhaps the menu’s most unexpected pleasure.

It definitely reflects the colors of a African savanna: burnt oranges and reds and greens, with the sweet-savory scent of cardamom dancing off marinated lobster. The lobster, oven-dried tomatoes and yams give the soup a chewy, nearly crunchy quality —it’s hearty without being heavy.

Even the tamarind-cured tenderloin manages the balance between satiation and loginess. Preparation is excellent, as strips of beef, scorched crisp on the outside, remain cool, juicy and medium rare in the middle. Off-setting the meat, though, are fresh macerated figs and berries, plus a selection of almonds and fine cheeses. It’s like an afternoon tea for carnivores.

Fish is always best when not excessively fussed over, and the kitchen wisely adds some bells and whistles without diminishing the fish itself. Here, the halibut entrée resembles cioppino, with a thin broth of sweated onions and stewed tomatoes hosting in-the-shell clams and lamb chorizo. Perched above a brandade (a pillowy mash of fish and seasonings) sits the halibut itself, caressed by a sauté pan with just the most elegant browning on each side.

Less impressive was the soft-shell crab sandwich, although admittedly it’s never been my favorite way to eat crab. But the smoked duck bacon that came with it was simply heaven.

Both Pyles and Ferraro trained as pastry chefs, so the dessert menu is diet-busting, even if the selections are small and carefully crafted.

The “banana split” is little more than a caramelized half-banana criss-crossed with a brownie, fresh strawberries and marshmallow, but oh, who needs more? The pistachio and mango clafouti, an airy cake with green tea ice cream, recalls the perfect warm-weather shortcake dessert.

Pyles promises a seasonal menu, meaning items will rotate off at least four times a year. That means that by the time King Tut opens, there will probably be more dishes to explore. I’m hoping he doesn’t take the exhibit inspiration too seriously — I’m not sure I could handle scarab-beetle soup and mummy-wrapped organ meat — but if there’s one thing Stephan Pyles can do, it’s make you try anything once.

   

REPORT CARD Seventeen Seventeen, inside the DMA, 1717 Harwood St. Open Tuesdays–Fridays for lunch, 11:30 a.m.–2 p.m. 214-922-1858. Pyles’ magic touch is evident on several signature dishes, but the entire menu exudes the hand-crafted quality of a true four-star restaurant. Overall: 4 Stars Price: Expensive.

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This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition August 8, 2008.