Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1538826
From top: Miriam Henley, Bill Haveron, Frank X. Tolbert, Steve Pietzsch, Judy DeSanders, 8.0 owner Shannon Wynne, John Ashley Bellamy, Willard Watson (The Texas Kid), Dan Rizzie at 8.0, 1989. A painting by State Bar bartender and artist Greg Contestabile captures the minimalist vibe. Dallas Nightspots That Made History W hat is it about a place you recall after the very, very last call? Everyone has at least one memory of the infamous Starck Club, but the watering holes that came in its wake were just as impactful and conjure up fond memories even though they closed decades ago. Spread out from Uptown to Down, Knox Henderson to Fair Park, they were wildly different yet shared key ingredients. At 8.0 (for those who didn't live through that time, it's pronounced eight-OHHH), minimalist State Bar, and Asian-influenced Anzu, magical nights were the result of mixing an owner with a creative vision with an ambitious, attractive staff and a high/low blend of patrons. Ideally, the moneyed set was picking up the bill for the painters and musicians, who kept things lively as they sang for their supper — or at least a free martini. When a bar has starving artists rubbing elbows with oil-and-gas millionaires, and leggy models mixing it up with Dallas Cowboys, the result is a bouillabaisse of effortless cool. Today, that combination still inspires conversations that begin with: "Remember when …?" The year was 1990. It was the era of 90210, the original Bush, and unflattering spandex bicycle shorts. It was also the year that I, a fresh-faced college graduate, joined the staff of the up- and-coming 8.0 as a hostess. Actually, I wasn't that fresh- faced, as I'd indulged in plenty of late nights at the Starck Club. 8.0 wasn't exactly brand-new either. Owner Shannon Wynne had created Nostromo, Rio Room, and Tango. The Quadrangle's 8.0 was the 2.0 version of Wynne's successful boîte. Shannon was slim, tall, and slightly scary as he walked purposely with a frown on his face across the bustling dining room. But there's no denying the man had a way with design. From the moment I walked in wearing a Tracy Feith tracksuit, it was clear 8.0 — with its cute waiters and chic clientele — was special. Wynne says today, "When you hire a designer, they overdo it. I'm too cheap to use a designer, so I design my own stuff." Because he hung out with painters, the walls had eight murals featuring cowboys, aliens, and tornadoes by The Texas Kid and Frank X. Tolbert. Local artist Danny Hurley's vivid menus were so covetable that patrons stole them, and a bronze rattlesnake railing dressed up the long, skinny bar that bisected the room. In the daytime, I seated movers and shakers to a soundtrack of "Pump Up the Jam" and Grace Jones bangers playing on loop from the free jukebox. After 8 pm, the teriyaki tempeh burgers and Blue Plate Specials of meat and two vegetables (sounds boring, tasted great) THE DINER ON STEROIDS: 8.0 Where We Watered By Kendall Morgan '90s in the