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foodRestaurant Reviews

Mexican with a side of gnocchi: Welcome to the mad mishmash of Tulum in Dallas

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Long before I went to Tulum, a stylish new restaurant in an Oak Lawn Avenue shopping strip, I was getting puzzled questions about it. What is this place about? The food isn't Mexican. Why are there truffle gnocchi on the menu? What's the deal with radish chips?

On an early visit, our voluble waiter held forth for more than five minutes attempting to explain the menu and connect the unconnectable. Meso America ... jungle ... gluten-free ... mezcal ... tapas. It all became a blur, and I hadn't even ordered a drink.

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Tulum

Tulum

4216 Oak Lawn Ave.

Dallas, TX 75219

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But Tulum is simple, really. Forget about regional Mexican, much as you might expect that at a place named for a city on the Yucatán coast, a city that has become a lure for chefs and serious foodies. Tulum is offering the authentic cuisine ... of a Mexican resort.

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You might know these places: beautifully walled off from their surroundings, meticulously catering to wealthy guests, tinged with just enough of the local color that it feels like you've actually gone somewhere. Tulum reproduces the experience so precisely, all that's missing are the swimming pool and the sunset yoga class.

It's an almost breathtaking transition walking from the agitated strip-mall parking lot into the bar -- which is lushly papered in a banana-leaf pattern, with flirty cloth chandeliers that feel like passing clouds. Behind the bar, a lobby-like lounge is crowded with carved wood furniture and mismatched artwork, while a surreal video installation loops overhead. The dining room, divided by a thicket of bleached-white branches, is packed tight with tables and an open kitchen.

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The bar
The bar(Shaban Athuman / Staff Photographer)

The owner, Mike Karns, whose Firebird Restaurant Group includes El Fenix and Meso Maya, has said Tulum is his favorite vacation spot and that he wanted to bring a bit of it back to the city. But the region's most glorious dish — cochinita pibil, pork marinated in earthy achiote and sour orange and cooked to spoon-tenderness in a banana leaf — isn't even on the menu. Neither are the region's seafood ceviches, save for a vegetarian version made with mushrooms. There is hardly a tortilla in sight.

Instead, chef Nico Sanchez has assembled a menu that ranges from middle-of-the-road steaks and scallops to creative Mexican dishes to what might even be called spa food. It is mostly good, if disjointed, as if he were cooking for a demanding private client.

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Take a dish called avocado and French radish chips, a name that has you thinking of chips and guacamole. But what arrives is an airy mound of avocado mousse, piped onto the plate and drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil, surrounded by thinly sliced French breakfast radishes and triangles of crisp jicama bathed in citrus and serrano chile. Dip the vegetables into the avocado, and it's addictive — more like a finger-food salad than the usual guac appetizer, both clever and delicious.

Avocado and French radish chips
Avocado and French radish chips(Shaban Athuman / Staff Photographer)

Such a skillful update made me wonder why Sanchez messed with classic seafood ceviche, which is already light and bright with flavor. His vegetarian version is a beige scoop of diced portobello, shiitake and oyster mushrooms, with cubes of jicama and beet, all in a one-note marinade and served with plantain chips, which for some reason are dusted in cinnamon sugar. The charred Spanish octopus appetizer, a single tentacle on a plate with a cork-shaped chunk of heart of palm, is also oddly sweet with a piloncillo glaze.

The verde soup, made with tomatillo and poblano, is a very good starter for the bikini-conscious, with a judicious amount of shredded chicken and Chihuahua cheese, and a bit of crunch from radish matchsticks rather than fried tortillas. Those who dare eat carbs can try the dish called mixed three mushrooms and wild tomatillo, which turns out to be two tacos on soft green corn tortillas made with cactus and epazote. The triumvirate of mushrooms — portobello, shiitake and oyster — makes a triumphant return here in a tangled sauté with onion and tomatillo salsa.

A dish called mixed three mushroom and wild tomatillo. A standard order will get you two...
A dish called mixed three mushroom and wild tomatillo. A standard order will get you two tacos. (Shaban Athuman / Staff Photographer)

Among the main courses, one of the best is lamb chops, with three rib chops seared over a wood fire balanced on carrot logs and truffle-ricotta gnocchi. On a recent night, there was no truffle in evidence, which was just fine — the dish didn't need it. Did it seem weird to be eating gnocchi in a Mexican restaurant? Not if you stop thinking of Tulum as a restaurant and start thinking of it as a virtual reality resort.

Cheshire pork ribs, also roasted in the wood oven, had a nice crust and flavorful meat. But the sticky sauce, which the menu called mulato salsa negra, tasted overwhelmingly of black strap molasses. Other main courses include a simple red snapper, with crisp skin and steamy, tender flesh, and a rubbery free-range chicken.

Lamp Chops with carrots and truffle-ricotta gnocchi
Lamp Chops with carrots and truffle-ricotta gnocchi(Shaban Athuman / Staff Photographer)
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Among side dishes is a whole roasted beet, perhaps an homage to Danish superchef René Redzepi and his famous Noma pop-up in Tulum a couple of years ago. In the new Nordic tradition — and at this point, why not? — a whole beet is roasted to black on the exterior and set, uncut and unadorned, on a cushion of whipped goat cheese. It will, no doubt, make a stoic very happy.

The one-page wine list isn't nearly as creative as it could be and includes a single bottle from Mexico (a good one, a 2016 Casa Madero Merlot for $50). There are also plenty of markups that'll add to the illusion of a pricey Tulum vacation. The 2016 Da Vinci Pinot Grigio is listed at $40 and retails for $10, while the 2016 Far Niente Chardonnay is a shocking $175 on the list, and $60 retail. Not one beer is on the menu.

More thought has been lavished on the cocktails, which are largely focused on tequila and mezcal, and usually involve fresh fruit and herbs. The Oaxaca is one of the most balanced, a blend of reposado tequila and mezcal with passion fruit, agave nectar, pineapple and lime juice, with a spicy salted rim. If you're at the bar, ask about the nightly special cocktail, which was recently a new-agey cilantro-sage margarita.

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In any case, order one. A fruity cocktail completes the fantasy of a warm day at the beach, and it may even help the mad mishmash of Tulum make a little more sense.

Tulum

Rating: Two stars

Price: $$$ (Dinner starters $8 to $15, mains $21 to $37, desserts $12)

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Service: Professional and efficient, even on busy nights

Ambience: Behind a heavy door in the middle of an Oak Lawn shopping strip lies this little stretch of Mexican beach resort, with a bar and dining room wrapped in lush banana-leaf wallpaper, bleached woods and beautiful tilework; and a menu, by chef Nico Sanchez, that leans toward Mexican-inflected, bikini-conscious fare to pair with fruity cocktails.

Noise: Shouty (79 decibels)

Drinks: A short wine list with some resort-level markups, and only one bottle from Mexico (but a good one: 2016 Casa Madero Merlot, $50). More attention is devoted to cocktails; standouts include the Oaxaca ($12), made with mezcal, reposado tequila, passion fruit, pineapple, lime and agave, and the VV ($13), a tangerine-habanero twist on the classic daiquiri.

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Recommended: Avocado and French radish chips; flutes (chicken flautas); verde soup; lamb chops; red snapper; sautéed green kale; Oaxaca cocktail

GPS: Tightly spaced tables make the dining room a squeeze on busy nights. A seat on the banquette helps, but better yet: Grab one of the elevated booths along the side of the bar. It's prettier than the dining room, and you'll have a view of the action (and a surreal video projection).

Address: 4216 Oak Lawn Ave., Dallas; 972-677-9747; thetulumexperience.com

Hours: Dinner Monday-Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday-Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m.

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Reservations: Accepted

Credit cards: All major

Health department score: Not inspected at time of publication

Access: Restaurant and bar are on one level.

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Parking: Free valet parking Tuesday to Saturday, as well as self-parking at the front and back of the shopping strip

Ratings Legend

4 stars: Extraordinary (First-rate on every level; a benchmark dining experience)

3 stars: Excellent (A destination restaurant and leader on the DFW food scene)

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2 stars: Very Good (Strong concept and generally strong execution)

1 star: Good (Has merit, but limited ambition or spotty execution)

No stars: Poor (Not recommended)

Noise Levels

Below 60: Quiet. Maybe too quiet.

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60-69: Easy listening. Normal conversation, with a light background buzz.

70-79: Shouty. Conversation is possible, but only with raised voices.

80-85: Loud. Can you hear me now? Probably not.

86-plus: Tarmac at DFW.

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Prices

Average dinner per person:

$ -- $19 and under

$$ -- $20 to $50

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$$$ -- $50 to $99

$$$$ -- $100 and over