Curtain Call: Morton’s The Steakhouse in downtown Dallas closing tonight

The original Morton’s, The Steakhouse (weird name, great food)  in downtown Dallas will close after dinner service tonight, Valentine’s Day.

I popped in last night for a final meal at the subterranean digs that I awarded four stars to when I reveiwed the restaurant for the Dallas Morning News.

I love Morton’s steaks–sourced from top-producer Allen Bros. of Chicago. I love the ice-cold wedge salad, whose crunchy bits of bacon and unseasonably flavorful tomatoes fly in the face of kitchen logic. I love the crispy, crunchy potato wedges tumbled with caramelized onions — they’re cooked in more bacon fat than even a double dose of Lipitor can neutralize. And I love finding bargains on the concise wine list, like the $60 bottle of 2002 Freemark Abbey Cab Sauv lurking on the list this week.

Over the years, I’ve grown fond of the low ceilings and heavily spackled walls, the broad-shouldered waiters with their service trolleys and archaic “meet your meat” menu presentations,  the buttery leather banquet seating, and the b&w photos of celebrities that line the walls (Look! There’s Tiger Woods).

Not a bad place to celebrate Valentine’s Day for one final swan song before Morton’s opens its new location up the street in a couple of weeks, taking over the space across from the Crescent Court complex that was last inhabited by the Grotto. The current management team, which includes GM Jim Huntley, Assistant GM Brian Perry and Wes Lowry, chef Rick Naon, and events manager Lise Lang, will relocate to the new store.