Dallas’s Restaurant Beatrice to Celebrate Legendary Chefs for Women’s History Month | Eater Dallas

"Chef-owner Michelle Carpenter and co-owner Hanh Ho are staging a women’s gastronomy dinner on March 20 to spotlight pioneering women in dining; Carpenter explains, "We wanted to bring awareness to and highlight the people who pioneered dining culture and the way we eat food today — everything we think about farm to table and cooking within the season," and Ho adds that her research showed that "every one of their accomplishments ended up being pioneering or game-changing." Ho also notes, "The innovation isn’t just happening now, but the documentation [of women] is happening now." The six-course tasting menu pairs each course with woman-owned wines or spirits and begins with a Ramos gin fizz by Condesa Clasico Gin, followed by a silken turnip and potato soup in tribute to chef Edna Lewis (the "grand dame" of the Southern cooking movement and one of the first Black women to write a cookbook that didn’t obscure her race or gender). Next is an endive, grapefruit, and avocado salad as a twist on chef Alice Waters and California cuisine; then a fish cake with citrus beurre blanc honoring chef Leah Chase (whose restaurant Dooky Chase received a 2025 America's Classic award from the James Beard Foundation and famously fed Civil Rights leaders). The menu already includes a gumbo named for Chase that draws inspiration from her classic gumbo z'herbes. The two main courses are a crab lasagna nodding to chef Alzina Toups and a brisket Bourguignon in homage to Julia Child—Carpenter says, "We’re doing her dish but with a brisket, to make it contemporary and local. While its not her exact recipe, its an homage to her." Dessert is a triple chocolate mousse made with Valrhona chocolate in the style of pastry chef Nina Métayer (named the best in the world by the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2024). The restaurant will produce a booklet for diners with the history of the chefs, dishes, drinks, and featured vineyards and distillers. The dinner is $150 per person with various seating times available on OpenTable. Beyond the special event, the kitchen serves Louisiana-style cuisine that encompasses Cajun and Creole dishes; on a first visit diners are advised to order Mamaw’s fried chicken (made from juicy dark meat and developed from Carpenter’s grandmother’s recipe) and the charbroiled oysters topped with Parmesan and andouille crumbles. The establishment became B-Corp certified this year—the first restaurant in Texas to receive that title—and has been recognized as Eater Dallas’s best restaurant for 2022 and a James Beard Awards best new restaurant finalist in 2023." - Courtney E. Smith