Spotlight Series – Dallas Restaurant & Bar

Quisine’s Spotlight Series takes an inside look at the food and beverage industry by speaking with the folks who know it best – restaurant owners, chefs and managers. This time around, we get the inside scoop on Dallas Restaurant & Bar by talking to Jason Pope, the managing director and owner.

If you’re unaware, Dallas Restaurant & Bar is an American steakhouse and cocktail bar with three venues throughout Singapore – Boat Quay, Marina Bay Sands and Suntec City Sky Garden. They all offer truly fantastic food, exceptional drinks and all-round good times. The atmosphere is relaxed with an air of sophistication, which makes them perfect for catching up with friends or unwinding with colleagues after a hard day’s work. You’ll love the top-quality cuisine as well as hand-picked wines and, of course, the fantastic cocktails.

But all of that is just surface information. We wanted to learn a bit more, so we sat down with the owner and managing director Jason Pope, asking him a few questions about his restaurants. Here’s what he had to say:

What made you choose this line of work? What and who inspires you?

I entered the hospitality industry at an international hotel when I was just 23 years old. The head chef at the time asked me to peel and chop 20kg bags of potatoes, carrots and onions for hours at a time. Back then, little did I know that it was a test to see if I had the persistence to stay on and prove myself. Before me, there were several young lads who only lasted a day.

After one long and very tiring month of doing the same repetitive thing, I was offered an apprentice chef position and I was absolutely over the moon. After which, I was promoted to chef and then I decided to make the switch to hotel management.

For the past 15 years, I’ve been using my experience to help others as a hospitality consultant. I also own and operate several successful brands in Singapore and Australia.

(Ladies and gentlemen, the value of dedication and hard work.)

What do you feel your restaurants add to Singapore’s dining scene?

With three strategically-positioned outlets in the heart of Singapore, Dallas offers discerning diners maximum comfort, stylish surroundings, world-class service and amazing food, all at affordable prices.

(Why offer one great restaurant when you can have three?)

What has been the biggest business challenge for your restaurant?

In my opinion, the toughest business challenge in Singapore is manpower. Despite being blessed with fantastic and very loyal employees for many years, it’s extremely difficult to find new local staff.

(Love local.)

How has Quandoo helped in your restaurant operations?

Quandoo has been fantastic when it comes to the creation of additional brand awareness and the generation of new business for Dallas. In fact, over 70% of our reservations come through Quandoo. For these reasons, we’re now ready to speak to Quandoo Australia with regards to our Australian operations.

(That’s nice to hear.)

Is there a dish on your menu that you’re most proud of and is there a story behind it?

Our slow-cooked prime rib steak is the most popular signature dish at Dallas and I’m very proud of it.

We’ve been offering this succulent steak for nearly 10 years now. We use Black Angus 100-day aged, grain fed ribeye and cook it slowly overnight in a special oven. When ordered, we take it out of the oven, quickly carve off a tender 250g piece and serve. Priced at just $40, it is, without a doubt, the best and tastiest prime rib steak deal in town.

(Sounds amazing!)

What are your food trend predictions for the coming years?

Consumers are rapidly becoming more health conscious when they’re deciding what and where to eat. This is also a reflection in the fast food and casual dining scene. Processed and high-fat foods are losing favour whereby healthier food options are growing in momentum.

(We couldn’t agree more.)

We’d like to take the opportunity to thank Jason for giving us his time. If you’d like to give Dallas Restaurant & Bar a try, you can book yourself a table here:

Dallas Steakhouse & Bar – Boat Quay

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Dallas Restaurant & Bar – Suntec City

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Dallas Café & Bar – Marina Bay Sands

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Have you been to Dallas Restaurant & Bar? Let us know what you thought of it in the comments below.