Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/987764
77 A t F a c h i n i , t h e n e w restaurant from chef Julian Barsotti (Nonna, Carbone's, Sprezza), dapper waiters don tuxes, '50s hits set a nostalgic mood during dinner service, buttery caramel- colored booths rest on a classic hexagonal tile floor, and chandeliers flicker above the dining room. "It's a very controlled environment, an escapist atmosphere," Barsotti says. "You enter a retro Italian-American world." Indeed, you are not in Dallas anymore after ascending the steep stairwell to Barsotti's new second-floor Highland Park Village eatery, which takes inspiration from old-school red-sauce establishments popular in the mid-20th century, plus a little taste of old New Orleans — Galatoire's, Commander's BY LINDEN WILSON. PHOTOGRAPHY CHRIS PLAVIDAL. CONTINENTAL CUISINE REDEFINED Palace, Antoine's. Borrowing its moniker from the surname of Barsotti's paternal grandmother, Fachini has a more concise menu than Barsotti's other eateries, which primarily focus on handcrafted pasta. Here, his favorites are the the wood-oven and cast-iron steaks, seafood, chicken, and broiled veal dishes, including the veal chop marsala and lobster fra diavolo. There's also creamy burrata, a decadent 100-layer lasagna, and traditional tableside Caesar salad. Fachini's crab cocktail is "very much influenced by the great crab cocktail at Galatoire's," Barsotti says. All of the red wines are Italian; as for white and sparkling, the restaurant is Barsotti's first to offer French labels. Reserve a table in the main dining space, where deep-navy walls display cool vintage artwork and black- and-white photos, including one from the set of The Royal Tenenbaums shot by Laura Wilson, actors Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson's photographer mother. Or. pop over after an Hermès shopping spree to sip a Negroni at the intimate six- seat bar. Fachini, 33A Highland Park Village, 214.838.9688, fachinidallas.com. Clockwise from top left: Cappelletti alla Bolognese. Fachini's cozy bar. Chef Julian Barsotti. The new clubby Fachini in Highland Park Village.