Menu Sneaks, Price Points Emerge on Billy Lawless' Upcoming Dawson

New details about Dawson, the latest from Billy Lawless (The Gage, Henri) have emerged, including some specific details of the menu executive chef Rene De Leon will be creating. Set to open late August or early September, Dawson will be, according to Lawless, "cheap and cheerful" with $10 cocktails, cheap American beer on draft, $6 to $7 appetizers and $26 entrees. There will be late-night snacks until 1 a.m. once opened, with a weekend brunch to follow in the weeks after.

De Leon has plans to serve up tacos al pastor eschewing leaner cuts of pork for the belly, a Waldorf salad with light mayo and pureed walnut vinaigrette, prime rib eye dredged in buttermilk batter and then deep fried (which De Leon admits might be "against some people's religion") to be served with mashed potatoes and white gravy and homemade buttermilk biscuits with honey butter sauce. De Leon, whose resume
includes time as a pastry cook at Alinea, will also handle desserts, including a Bananas Foster flambéed tableside.
· First look: Billy Lawless' new venture [Crain's]
· After Leaving Next, Rene De Leon to Run Kitchen at The Gage's West Town Project [-ECHI-]
· All Billy Lawless Coverage [-ECHI-]
[Photo: Devin David]
—Brett Hickman