Fine dining enters The Star in Frisco with Da Mario, upscale Italian restaurant with great design, talented chef
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Da Mario, a splashy new Italian fine dining restaurant, has opened at The Star in Frisco. The restaurant is from d.ream (Doğuş Restaurant Entertainment and Management), part of the same team that opened the Jose Andres restaurant Zaytinya earlier this month.
Da Mario says they import ingredients imported directly from Italy and offer “locally-sourced ingredients, imported Italian specialties and the highest quality meats.”
Former Nicola’s chef Luigi Iannuario leads the culinary team at Da Mario Frisco (he exited DFW for a few years, but he’s back. We wrote about him here.) I liked his cooking a lot.
The menu includes handmade pastas, black truffles, Prince Edward Island mussels , focaccia and “Fiorentina di Black Angus,” which is “dry-aged for 30 days and wet-aged for another 30 days.” I sure hope they got the order on that aging reversed.
“Da Mario is what Italian cuisine should be,” says a press release and quotes Iannuario, a Naples, Italy native. “You won’t find lasagna on our menu, but rather dishes that are true to the heritage and indulgence of Italy.” Which is crazy talk, because lasagna is most assuredly Italian, invented during the Middle Ages and originated in Naples.
Da Mario is a great looking space. No surprise. NYC-based Rockwall Group created the look and feel of Da Mario (they’re also responsible for the design on Zaytinya, next door).
Da Mario is open for dinner daily. Lunch service will begin March 10.
photos: Manny Rodriguez, courtesy of Da Mario