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156 W hen Amber Venz Box, the fashionable founder of rewardStyle, and Amy Berry, one of the city's most sought-after young interior designers, touted Hudson House restaurant as their favorite, we knew a crowd would follow. Hudson House, which opened mid-summer, is the passion project of Hunter Pond — another Highland Park native and Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree (Box made the list in 2017), who burst onto the Dallas dining scene five years ago with his East Hampton Sandwich Co. Hudson House is the perfect bookend to East Hampton Sandwich Co.'s beloved all-American vibe — with Hudson offering a more refined dining experience while embracing the same East Coast charm. In Kennebunkport style, there are scads of blue-and-white china vases and pineapple motifs, chalkboard oyster menus, brass finishes, Greek-key tiled floors, and gallery walls with framed New Yorker covers and Annie Hall movie posters. Inspired by neighborhood restaurants in New York City's West Village, Pond and partners Kyle Brooks, Justin Hollis, Wes Freeman, and Hank Keller created Hudson House to be a place for family dinners, date nights, and nightcaps alike, with a raw bar, classic cocktails, and moderately priced comfort food. On any given night, the bar is packed with up-and-comers sipping the World's Coldest Martinis and slurping Chappys oysters, flown in from Martha's Vineyard. Make note: Hudson House doesn't take reservations, so the bar has become a bustling scene. The menu's elevated comfort food ranges from the Big Brother Lobster Roll (chilled lobster tail, butter, yuzu pickles, and lemon mayo) to Idaho trout (order it pan fried with butter and a light coating of panko), and the Caesar salad is reinvented with a side of smoked salmon, capers, and a tangy lemon dill dressing. Dinner only for the present. Hudson House, 4448 Lovers Lane, 214.583.2255, hudsonhousehp.com. BY LISA COLLINS SHADDOCK . PHOTOGRAPHY KELSEY FOSTER . AT THE NEW EAST COAST VIBE HUDSON HOUSE From top: Hudson House, the Park Cities' new neighborhood hot spot. Fresh oysters from the East Coast. Framed caricatures at Hudson House.