This place is nice for ambiance Chop chop salad is very delicious. Really like the pomodoro pasta– very nice and acidic. Bolognese is wayyyy too creamy but the chicken vegetable soup is good. Drinks are good and service is really nice.
Justina W.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Dallas, TX
FIrst, before I forget: Shout out to Nathan, our waiter, who dealt with our bad jokes and smiled through our NYer menu interrogation. We sadly wrote down our tip before the real crux of this story, and 20% was not enough. So. Here’s the story. It’s Thanksgiving. Our oven doesn’t work. So we decided movie and dinner out would be fine. But a couple working on DIY projects in their house won’t dress up for the night. So in our sweatshirts and jeans, we headed over to see Spectre and Unilocaled an open restaurant for dinner. We were shocked to find ourselves in the fancy part of town, picking Palomino because it was close and open. I ordered salmon and my husband got the Thanksgiving turkey dinner. I personally felt like I was swimming in butter while nibbling on meltable grilled salmon and felt amazing. And being a new Dallas resident who doesn’t eat cows or pigs, a good salmon makes me so happy! John’s turkey dinner was solid, but not mom’s turkey(how can a restaurant’s TDay turkey ever compare to Mom’s?). So the dinner was good. Our waiter, Nathan, was sweet and attentive. The dessert put us both on a high note(pumpkin pie and chocolate cake with ice cream and blueberries). But here’s the best part. We asked for the rest of my husband’s meal to go. It was all the dark meat.(My husband gets zero stars for not liking dark meat). But another waiter accidentally threw it away. We waited for them to process the check and mistakenly thought Dallas was as slow as NYC on getting your bill taken care of(GAWDNYC restaurants won’t let you leave).But no. This is what they were doing. They were cooking us new«leftovers.» The other waiter came out, apologized, said he accidentally threw away our leftovers and it was not Nathan’s fault. I’ll admit. As someone who used to be in food service, I assumed this meant Nathan made the mistake. Which means HOWAWESOME are your coworkers for throwing themselves under the bus for you??? In any case, whoever made the mistake apologized and basically cooked us a new meal to make up for it. I am so impressed with the level of customer service. Love this place. They have a new loyal fan.
D. E.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Plano, TX
This was my first dinner at Palomino. I’ve passed it many times, it’s been at Crescent Court for some time. I did check out other reviews first and noted that service seemed to be a consistent issue. Unfortunately that was not changed on my visit. We had a 7pm dinner on Halloween night. The place was, frankly, dead. A few at the bar, three other tables seated. We were greeted rather quickly, but that was the last thing that went quick. We were unsure of our choices, so the server encouraged us to take all the time we needed. We ordered bar drinks that seemed to take a while to get back to us… those waits grew longer when we switched to wine… as unbelievable as that may seem! We ordered the deviled eggs as a starter… our server had only two other tables… but somehow he forgot our deviled eggs… that’s right, never got them. Server first recommended one dish over another… but when we asked again about 10 mins later, he abandoned this recommendation… very odd. Wait times were just way too long for a very slow night. Forgetting the appetizer is inexcusable. Food was tasty, but nothing amazing. Crisp and solid service would help the dinner experience greatly! I’m not sure I’ll visit here again anytime soon.
Terry H.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Euless, TX
Very good salad and really poor service for this type of place. Our server left us thirsty many times and even thought they were not busy he was never around. I know I will be back because we have friends that live across the street and they come here often. and I will give them another try. but was not impressed tonight. the Chicken Salad was very good and I enjoyed every bite, others in our party were happy with their meals.
Shay J.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Irving, TX
3 ½ stars would probably me more appropriate. I brought my team(of 6) here for dinner a few weeks ago. They seat 7 people at a tight round table… so I’m initially put off because we didn’t really have room. Then I guess the air wasn’t on. It was very warm and humid inside and we were all fanning ourselves.(You’d think the waiter would pick up on this detail, but he didn’t). We had to ask for them to do something about it. Our waiter: At first he was very standoffish. He wasn’t acknowledging anything. We’d ask for something, he wouldn’t respond, he’d just come back with it. I think this is so rude. He didn’t offer suggestions, could care less if it was our first time it not. Towards the end, he was much better, but that did not make up for his absolutely terrible service in the beginning. I tipped him 12% because of it. Our food: For appetizers we had: Caramelized Cauliflower, bruschetta, crab and artichoke dip, and crab cakes. Top two favs of the table: crab cakes and bruschetta. Best bruschetta I’ve had in a while. Crab cakes, phenomenal! For our entrees:(Of the 7 fishes, only 2 people weren’t overly happy.) 1. Lamb shank(x2). Both said it was delicious. Loved it. 2. Prawn scampi: she looooooved it. Plate was clean. 3. Signature paella: not overly happy. Liked the mussels. But it was just ok. 4. Filet mignon: I’ve had better. My steak was unevenly cooked. I asked for medium. It was medium in the very very middle, so like 2 bites were medium. I did enjoy the hashbrownish potato cake that was under it though. Very yummy. 5. The halibut special: yummy! She loved it! 6. Pizza: it was okay. «Nothing too exciting.» If the service had been better our experience would’ve been great. I’ll go back, with a smaller group and see if I get the same type of service.
Benjamin L.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
After dropping a pretty penny at Stanley Korshak, why not drop in for a fancy meal at Palomino? While the meal will demand quite a few pennies, the attentive service and savory food will earn your favor. I’ve been in a few times but recently revisited for a good friend’s birthday. The décor is upscale, warm, and inviting, even if it’s a tad reminiscent of 2001. It’s a great spot even for just a glass of wine at the bar. Our server was friendly and chatty. We were quite hungry so ordered almost right away. I enjoyed the Chicken Carbonara Risotto, paired perfectly with a glass of Pinot Grigio. The meal was quite rich but after being so hungry, I easily cleared my plate. My friend said that his filet mignon was perfectly cooked. It’s a nice spot for a special occasion with a small or large group. For mid-week dinner, the place was quite empty. Lunch seems to be the busiest time of day although I’m sure the place gets quite busy on weekend evenings. I’ve heard spotty opinions of Palomino but from personal experience, I can speak most positively of this Crescent favorite.
Matthew S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Richardson, TX
I recently took my relatives here and they all had a great time. I always love the food and have never had bad service. If you have not yet go visit them.
Diane D.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Rockwall, TX
I’ve been to this restaurant many times over the years but today was without a doubt my worst experience. First off, there’s a ton of construction going on at that site so you can’t just drive up and leave your car with valet. We had to circle our way around the block and ask where the parking garage entrance was located and then didn’t know if we were even going to find our way out the way we were detoured around. Obviously, this is not the fault of the restaurant but it makes it very inconvenient to go there for lunch or dinner. We arrived early before the lunch crowd arrived so we should’ve had plenty of time to get our food before the kitchen got overwhelmed. The food — once it came out, was excellent, as always. No complaints there, but the service… Ugh! Not only was it slow, but it was the worst I’ve ever experienced at this nice restaurant. I don’t want anyone to lose their job so I won’t go into specifics but this person wasn’t polished at all and I got the impression they must not have had much experience in this line of work. It will be awhile before I go back to this restaurant, so I’m hoping the next visit will yield the type of service that patrons at this type of establishment have come to expect.
NaeemahHollywood S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Irving, TX
A guy friend took me there. It was the BEST steak salad I ever had and the service was great!!! I dream about this salad!!’ Yummy
Lauren T.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
I haven’t been here for dinner, but I did come in for Mother’s Day brunch. Palamino was delish! I ordered the Vegetable Ricotta Frittata with a side of breakfast sausage, and both dishes were oh-so-tasty. I topped it off with some mimosas and bread pudding… My full tummy was in heaven. Palamino was not very busy for brunch, but it was also raining cats and dogs outside. Our waiter was very friendly and attentive, and we thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon. If you have never been inside the courtyard area of The Crescent, it is such a lovely treat and this is a great spot for a special occasion.
Misti O.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Irving, TX
Came here for a nice dinner with my Mr. There is a lot of construction so that was a little annoying initially. Made it inside — seated earlier then our reservation time. It was busy but not overly. At this point we were both hungry and everything on the menu sounded good. We were in luck because our server was very knowledgeable and walked us through all the menu items and offered his recommendations. Great service. We ordered the hummus/tizikki(sp?) app with flat bread. The hummus had a Moroccan spice it was a little heavy — good — but if you are used to Mediterranean style hummus it’ll catch you off guard a bit. The tizikki(sp?) sauce was flavorful and light. Our server brought another flat bread since we still had a lot of sauce left. Bonus! We also split the chop-chop salad. Excellent. The vinaigrette dressing was light and gave it a nice punch. I’m typically not a whole-bean-garbanzo fan, but those were an added touch to the salad. Definitely get this salad. I ordered the rigatoni bolognese pasta — creamy, filling, light, and spicy! So good. I only ate about ½ of it so that’ll be dinner tomorrow. Definitely a nice pasta dish especially if you like spice. My mr ordered the braised lamb shank. Tender. Moist. Fall off the bone delicious. The asparagus and potatoes were seasoned and cooked to perfection. He brought ½ of his home as well. Great experience. Our server rocked. Descent prices. Great ambiance. Delicious food. Could see this place being pretentious during the week but For a Sunday night it was fantastic!
Farheen I.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
This place is great for dinner and happy hour. You can order food at the bar at happy hour prices and they have some real gems on the menu(like the deviled eggs). The bartenders are awesome and their recommendations are on point and fresh. I’ve had dinner here on a few occasions. Once for an after-wedding reception and once for a birthday party. Both times, we had a huge party. The service is always wonderful and the food is respectably delicious. I have a stupid number of food allergies and the waiters are always very attentive to them, checking with the kitchen to make sure that my food isn’t even prepared near any of my allergens. I really appreciate that kind of service, especially since my allergies are serious. I had the bolognese last time, which had great flavor. I sampled my friend’s mashed potatoes and they were just amazing. Weird to be pointing out mashed potatoes but they were just so solid. I also got some chocolate cake thing which was also delicious. I will definitely return for dinner/happy hour!
Maggie O.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
The hostesses were a little slow(in the non-speed-related way). They seemed a little spacey and disinterested in the whole thing. Each of us walked in with obviously heavy coats, but we still had to actually ask about coat-checking instead of being offered a coat-check. Our party had about 15 people. Our server managed the table fairly well. The food and drinks were great so I’m definitely going back.
Amy M.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Dallas, TX
I am really disappointed in this place. Rewind back to NYE a few years ago, we had a big group and ordered off their set menu. I wasn’t impressed with the food at all but just wrote it off as a NYE thing and never thought about it again. Now fast forward to present day, we decided to give Palomino another shot. It was one of the places that actually still had reservation spots open the Friday evening before Valentine’s Day. We should have taken that as a red flag. The waiter was attentive and took our drink orders right away. My husband ordered an old fashioned and I just ordered a simple vodka dirty martini. I am not exaggerating when I say our drinks were the worst things I’ve ever tasted. How do you mess up basic cocktails? My husband’s drink was almost clear, and no whiskey taste at all. In fact it had like a ginger ale type of taste to it… Weird. My martini was completely watered down. I could barely taste vodka nor could I even taste olive juice! We decided to just send my husband’s drink back. When he explained to the waiter about his drink, the waiter responded«oh, I thought you ordered the Palomino Old Fashioned, they make it different»… My husband wasn’t even aware of a special old fashioned but he reiterated that he only just ordered a regular old fashioned. Nonetheless, if Palomino makes their own kind of old fashioned, it is still crap. A couple of minutes later they brought back a new drink… It looks EXACTLY the same as the old drink, and tastes exactly the same as well. What do we say at this point?! The waiter never bothered to ask him if this drink was better or not. Ok we will let it go. I added an extra star bc the truffled deviled eggs and the hummus/tzaziki appetizers were very good. Our entrees were just mediocre(pasta carbonara and seafood paella)… For $ 20+ a plate, it was definitely not worth it. And to top it all off, the waiter charged us for both of the old fashioneds. We gave you a second chance, Palomino. Never again.
Alice L.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
This is where I attended my first ever Unilocal Elite event a couple of years ago, and I enjoyed my experience then. Palomino is currently celebrating their 25th anniversary with $ 25 meals, so my friends and I decided to check it out. Since we were in a group of 4, 2 of us decided to order the 3 course menu and the other 2 decided to order off the happy hour menu. –Portabello mushroom soup: So creamy and so good! This wasn’t my dish so I only had a sip, but a sip was enough to for me to want more. –Rigatoni bolognese: The sauce was like a vodka sauce which was not what we were expecting with a ‘bolognese’ sauce. We were expecting something more marinara with ground meat? Either, the dish was good. –Fennel crusted flank steak: We asked for medium rare but to me, it was cooked more medium. The dish had a lot of potatoes so the overall dish was sort of deceiving in that aspect since the potatoes made up majority of the dish. However, the steak was good but eat quick while its fresh because after a while, it didn’t taste as good to me. The everyday happy hour menu is pretty legit, considering it’s everyday… and it’s from 3pm to closing so that allows a lot of time to get happy hour in! –Sicilian meatballs: I honestly thought this had a weird taste to it. Everyone else seemed to enjoy them though. –Crispy calamari: Standard and can’t go wrong. Comes with 2 different sauces. They also had fried peppers too that I didn’t really care for. –Crab and artichoke dip: I enjoyed it but my friend said it was too«fishy» for her. It came with a lot of crackers/bread but not enough dip, so with the price, it’s probably something I wouldn’t get again. –Hot Italian sausage and mushroom pizza: I really enjoyed the pizza. I couldn’t taste or see any mushroom, but this was the dish I was probably reaching for the most. The restaurant is nice and has a romantic feel to it so it’s nice for a date place or even just with friends. Will probably be back for more happy hour one day!
Keli M.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
I took my boyfriend here for his birthday dinner. It is located in the beautiful Crescent Court, and there is valet right outside of the door. I was looking for a place for a romantic dinner, and this fit the bill. We had to wait a moment for the hostess, but she was friendly, and found our reservation right away. Since it was a weeknight, we were immediately seated. There were a lot of people in the bar area enjoying the all day happy hour, especially since it was the normal happy hour time when we arrived. The menu has a lot of options. I ordered the grilled seafood pasta with scallops, mushrooms, artichokes, and prawns in a beurre blanc sauce. He ordered the rotisserie pork loin with asparagus and mashed potatoes. The pasta was delicious! I also loved the pork loin. It was seasoned right, and it was huge! The service was great, and we did not feel rushed. Afterwards we walked over to the bar area for drinks. I tried the pomegranate margarita. It was soooo good! My boyfriend had a beer. Kona I think it was called. The only reason for a missing star is because the bathrooms could be tended to a little better. Otherwise, it was a great evening, in a beautiful setting.
Jason B.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Richardson, TX
Very beautiful décor and lighting. Plenty of seating everywhere and loves being able to see the cooks making the food! Service was good but not great. Several lights out and bathroom not at cleanliness level that would be expected from an upscale establishment. Food was very good and cooked well! Went to bar area after dinner and was very nice although service was a bit lax. Enjoyable time overall!
Anitha K.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Dallas, TX
All day everyday happy hour sounds too good to be true but it was excellent! The bartenders really know what they’re doing. The basil gimlet and pomegranate margarita were both great. Try the crab dip as well! Unfortunately, I’ll have to give this 3 stars since the manager was extremely rude. We came here to celebrate a friend’s birthday and they charged us an extra $ 25+ because we brought a small cake to surprise her. We weren’t informed of this beforehand and when we asked the manager about the extra charge he just wanted to argue with us. The fee they charge is more than the cake costs! Other than that the service was great! Our server, Jayme, was very attentive and handled a large group well. Parking is also very stress free since you can park for free in the garage as long as it’s validated.
JJ P.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Flower Mound, TX
Had a GREAT dinner at the Palomino Restaurant. My wife and I were having a fun weekend, staying at the W Hotel after I had some business in downtown Dallas. We were trying to find a great restaurant near the W without spending a fortune, because we were already spending a fortune by staying at the W! So after browsing Unilocal and a few menus in the area, we decided on Palomino. We made a reservation because it was Saturday night and we were worried we wouldn’t get in. I parked in the self park at the Crescent Hotel because I read that Palomino validated parking. Coming up from the parking garage takes you through a beautiful atrium with a fountain. Also next to the fountain, in the atrium at the Palomino is some outdoor seating which could be nice for lunch. When we arrived, we were right on time, so we didn’t get a chance to sit in the bar and have a drink, but the bar looked SO cool. Next time I am definitely going to show up early for a drink. The restaurant inside is very classy. There is some really cool Mediterranean artwork on the walls. I asked our waiter if he knew anything about the art. He said they are all different artists, but couldn’t offer anything beyond that. I put a really dark picture on Unilocal of an example of the art. The general gist is that the décor is dark woods, dim lighting and really cool paintings on the walls. Very classy. BUT… No candles on the tables… :(. After we ordered, they brought us some Italian bread with a tomato relish to dip it in. Very good. I had to hold back because I didn’t want to fill up on bread! We each ordered an appetizer. I got the Portabella Mushroom Soup($ 8) and My wife got the Maytag Blue cheese Salad($ 8.5). My soup was thick, creamy, mushroomy awesomeness. After sprinkling some fresh ground pepper on it, it was on. SOOOOOoo good. I stopped shoveling it in long enough to try my wife’s salad. There were large chunks of roasted chick peas and large hunks of Blue Cheese dressing. She asked for the dressing on the side, so i didn’t try that, but she said it was great. My appetizer was the Grilled Seafood Pasta($ 24). It came with a piece of garlic bread, which was hot and crispy, with a yummy garlic spread. The pasta was fresh, homemade and cooked al-dente. The seafood was also fresh and cooked very well(It was not overcooked). There were scallops, mussels, shrimp with the tails shells on, artichoke hearts and fresh basil in a tomato based sauce. You aren’t able to see how deep the bowl is from the picture, but the portion size was very generous. My wife got the Tuscan Filet($ 35), which came with a Mushroom-Artichoke Relish, Caprese Salad and Glacé Potatoes. The filet was delicious. Perfectly cooked to a medium rare. It was so tender and flavorful it melted in our mouths. The caprese salad was an actual salad, with greens, cherry tomatoes and Mozzarella.(Not Mozzarella di Bufala). The potatoes tasted like they were boiled and they had no seasoning on them. We decided they meant to do that because the only seasoning she wanted was a little salt and pepper. So… she was happy with that. We were so FULL by the time we were done with our entrees. We didn’t even consider dessert. Although i got a coffee and it was dark, hot and delivered with fresh cream and a compliment of sweeteners. All in all, this restaurant was EXACTLY what we wanted. Good food that was not too overpriced. We got out of there all together for $ 108, including 3 glasses of wine and coffee. I didn’t mind paying what we paid because we were dressed up and downtown in a beautiful restaurant with great service. On the way out, the girl at the hostess stand gave me a tolken in exchange for my parking ticket. I then inserted that in the«tolken slot» at the parking machine on the way out. Can’t wait to be back!
Cher'on A.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Dallas, TX
Very posh looking but please understand who check in at the Cresent Hotel. The patio circle is kissable especially around dawn the fountain light up and on a good night say 80 degrees will make you feel a lil special inside IJS. Happy hour dishes and wines is a treasure. Bring a friend and slide in. Only strange thing the waters/waitress are kinda not in he know i don’t know if they have a Hugh turnover on staff but seem to me to be slow. If you need to visit outside there are many other diner that are in walking distances But over all it is a 4star for me. Cu there maybe