snackwire: opening ritz-carlton dallas

Back in 2005, when chef Dean Fearing announced he was the leaving the Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas, it was a big surprise. He'd been there for 21 years. The deal he could not refuse was with Ritz-Carlton. The new hotel (the first new RC to open in the US in the past four years) and Fearing's Restaurant open tomorrow. Full press release after the jump.

THE RITZ-CARLTON, DALLAS WILL OPEN ON AUGUST 15

First Ritz-Carlton Hotel Opening in the United States in Four Years

DALLAS, TEXAS – July 13, 2007. The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas and Fearing’s Restaurant are scheduled to open August 15, 2007 in the heart of stylish Uptown, bringing a new level of luxury and guest service to the sophisticated and fast-growing Dallas market.

The 218-room Ritz-Carlton is set in a new 21-story Regency-style building designed by renowned Robert A.M. Stern Architects and located on historic McKinney Avenue, the vibrant shopping, dining and entertainment enclave attracting increasing numbers of new business and leisure visitors to Dallas. The location is home to a newly-announced stop for the picturesque McKinney Avenue Trolley, providing complimentary passenger service to Uptown’s popular shopping and dining attractions. The American Airlines Center, home to myriad sports and entertainment events including Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Stars games, is within walking distance of the new hotel.

The Ritz-Carlton features the largest luxury ballroom in Dallas, an opulent 12,000 square-foot Ritz-Carlton Spa and Fearing’s Restaurant, created by beloved celebrity chef Dean Fearing, one of the fathers of Southwest cuisine. Seventy elegant Residences at The Ritz-Carlton also occupy the block-wide complex, a project of Fort Worth-based Crescent Real Estate Equities Company.

Guest rooms and suites at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas promise the most sumptuous stay in the city, with oversized five-fixture baths, Frette bed and bath linens, upgraded Bulgari bath amenities, flat-panel Sony High Definition televisions with HD movies and HD TV programming, DVD players, iPod® docking stations, wired and wireless Internet access and sleekly-designed coffee and tea-making facilities. Hotel suites and The Ritz-Carlton Club Level rooms and suites also feature in-mirror bathroom televisions.

The exclusive Ritz-Carlton Club Level will deliver an opulent guest experience currently not available in Dallas, including private secured access and an exclusive Club Lounge offering dedicated concierge service and five complimentary food, beverage, wine and champagne presentations per day.

HIGHLIGHTS

Fearing’s Restaurant

• The creation of charismatic celebrity chef Dean Fearing
• Elevated American Cuisine -- bold flavors, no borders
• Celebrating farm-to-market
• Seven dining and gathering venues including the Sendoro open-air pavilion, fine dining in the elegant Gallery, a lively interactive display-kitchen experience in “Dean’s Kitchen,” the colorful Rattlesnake Bar, the intimate high-ceilinged Wine Cellar, the outdoor Live Oak Bar and unique patio dining surrounding lush water and garden features in the Ocaso
• Menu standouts: Barbecue Shrimp Taco with Mango-Pickled Red Onion Salad and Smoky Citrus Vinaigrette; Prime Cut Rib Eye Mopped over Live Mesquite with Cauliflower Twice Potatoes and Crispy Asparagus; Griddled Day-Boat Scallops on Wilted Brussels Sprout Leaves and Smoked Kentucky Ham with Tangerine Essence; Caramelized Peach and Almond Crisp with Mascarpone Ice Cream and Ginger Peach Sauce
• Chef Fearing will be on-site full-time, readily identifiable by his larger-than-life friendly persona, his ever-changing pairs of custom cowboy boots and, on occasion, his willingness to put on a show with all-chef alternative country band, the Barbwires. The Barbwires will release their first CD in time for the August 15 hotel and restaurant opening.

The Ritz-Carlton Spa

• Introducing the larger-than-life Texas Eight-Hand Massage and regional specialty treatments including Dean’s Margarita Salt Glow, Texas Rain Bath and Hill Country Aromatic Manicure and Pedicure
• Comprehensive men’s programs, executive stress and jet lag therapies
• Prada Beauty. Six sumptuous men’s and women’s skin treatments offered nowhere else in Texas and at only 12 Ritz-Carlton Spas nationwide
• Joyous Aging, Touch of Glamour, Shirodhara Journey and Passage to exotic spa experiences
• Spa 101 package for newcomers to the spa experience
• State-of-the-art fitness center and scheduled fitness/movement classes
• Mama Mio spa therapies especially for expectant and new mothers
• 12 oversized, highly-upgraded treatment rooms, men’s and women’s Healing Waters, Vichy therapy, relaxation areas, retail boutique and full-service salon

Meeting Facilities

• 14,000 square-feet of meeting space including board and meeting rooms, large pre-function areas and two oversized Club Level hospitality suites
• The largest luxury-hotel ballroom in central Dallas, enhanced by windows and generous natural lighting. At 9,500 square-feet,The Ritz-Carlton Ballroom is ideal for large corporate events and the city’s many upscale galas and weddings
• An expansive culinary catering operation that supplements Fearing’s is directly adjacent to meeting space and includes a unique Chocolate Room built for the creation of the hotel’s signature chocolate artistry
• High-technology meeting space features, from wireless Internet access to cable television in meeting rooms and an in-building cellular repeater antenna to ensure uninterrupted service in periods of high business usage.

Opening Ceremonies and Upcoming Events

• Formal ribbon-cutting ceremony and first check-in at 10:30a.m. on August 15, 2007

Note to Media: September 14-16, 2007 marks the date for The Opening, a new philanthropic culinary event to be based at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas. The Opening will be a foodie’s fantasy – a culinary arts extravaganza presented by Bon Appétit Magazine and Fearing’s Restaurant. The weekend series of dining events, seminars and entertainment will feature opportunities to meet, dine and cook alongside Chef Dean Fearing, Bon Appétit editor-in-chief Barbara Fairchild, and Cat Cora, founder of Chefs for Humanity and the first female Iron Chef. The event is a fundraiser and Dallas unveiling for Chefs for Humanity, a coalition of celebrity chefs and culinary professionals working to battle hunger, provide community nutritional education and assistance, and supply humanitarian and emergency feeding relief during times of disaster. To purchase Sept. 14-16 event tickets, go to www.acteva.com/go/theritzcarltondallasopening or call 877-683-3082. Ticket-holders wishing to book rooms at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas during the September culinary event may contact The Ritz-Carlton Reservations at 800-241-3333 and request “The Opening” event rate, Group Code “OPE.”

The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas and Fearing’s Reservations

Room reservations for The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas may be booked at http://www.ritzcarlton.com, by dialing 1-800-241-3333 or through a travel professional. Group booking, spa appointment and event/catering inquiries may be directed to the hotel at 214-922-0200. Fearing’s Restaurant reservations may be requested at 214-922-4848 beginning August 1, 2007.

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