Alberto Lombardi’s newest Dallas restaurant, Mar y Sol Cocina Latina, brings flavors of Mexico, Peru, Brazil and Argentina to an iconic spot on McKinney Avenue.
Dallasites will recognize it as the former site of Abacus, which was open for about 20 years and closed in 2019. Lombardi’s new restaurant reads like an upscale restaurant on the beach, with gauzy curtains covering big windows and blonde wood on the walls. It opens July 20, 2024.
![Alberto Lombardi, owner and founder of Lombardi Family Concepts, created Mar y Sol Cocina...](https://dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/2NXQFJUWONFNTKQDKRATX3ZP54.jpg?auth=b9c3d510024cddb4e17dda5028a0ffba4f5d6a95471da7488afb6215c3115801&width=430&quality=80)
Lombardi knows a thing or two about restaurants, having opened his first in Dallas nearly 50 years ago, in 1977. He now has more than 20, including include Bistro 31, Lombardi Cucina Italiana, Toulouse, Taverna and the new contemporary Chinese restaurant Maison Chinoise and its speakeasy Regines in Dallas.
Mar y Sol is inspired in part by Lombardi’s vacation home in Akumal, Mexico, near Tulum. The room might immediately transport diners there, with its nest of branches reaching out over the bar in the middle of the dining room, and the oversized Mexican pots holding leafy indoor plants. It’s the first Dallas restaurant project for architectural designer Filipao Nunes.
The look of the restaurant is as important as the food, Lombardi said.
“My generation, we used to go into a restaurant and just eat,” he said. “Today, the restaurant has to be alive.”
Executive chef Ty Thaxton’s menu takes inspiration from Latin American countries. (We’ll overstate it: There is no Tex-Mex here.) Thaxton’s approach is to take the flavors of the street food he ate while living in Mexico for 10 years and traveling to Latin American countries. Then, he’ll “refine those classic dishes.”
![Yellowtail ceviche, center, is served almost like it's inside of a terrarium. Other menu...](https://dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/O4DVWXGXHJGFPICRVJQ2VTBW6U.jpg?auth=6d3a7f7fba4c5fc9e52b290f5357a91548d13aba836b314c9556e83fb175a70a&width=830&quality=80)
Mar y Sol’s menu starts with crudos — cold, raw dishes — made with tuna, yellowtail and the like. Those are Lombardi’s favorites, and they seem like a light, bright way to start.
![Dinner theater is part of the fun at Mar y Sol, its owner said. Tequila cocktail La Diabla...](https://dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/CIYDA4AUJ5A37GWGWJPOXCCIWU.jpg?auth=728fdda001edb0b8cae343ebeedd1c961b7a589bdfbf37bb29338347ffe55ebd&width=430&quality=80)
Most items are designed to be shared, and indeed, a section called “To Share” lists octopus, empanadas, arepas, patatas bravas, queso fundido and duck flautas. Chef Thaxton likes the chaufa, a fried rice dish inspired by the Chinese immigrants who settled in Peru. Each bowl of rice comes out sizzling with brisket and mushroom or pork belly and shrimp, mingled with vegetables. It could make for a hearty single serving, but don’t do that, Lombardi said: Grab a spoon and scoop some for your tablemates.
Chaufa and a shareable tomahawk steak will be presented to customers from a cart that rolls through the restaurant.
![A dessert of piña colada crème brûlée is served inside a cored-out half pineapple.](https://dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/4KZ27GZUQRBLNMUMVAUKGNRXN4.jpg?auth=ef9601e6a5f6782062ff394e6f97ca5d7014639f4f7a1d0796b140dcf7aafa85&width=430&quality=80)
Much of the “Land” and “Sea” menu items are cooked on a wood-fired grill in the restaurant’s open kitchen. That includes the butterflied red snapper with lemongrass chili crisp, the pollo a la brasa dish with charred sweet snap peas, and the cuts of beef that take inspiration from Argentinian and Brazilian steakhouses.
Like many of Lombardi’s restaurants, Mar y Sol has a jovial spirit, like you can steal away to Cabo for an evening. The restaurant has an air-conditioned front patio, a private dining room and three bars. Ah yes, that’s the other thing: “I don’t want people to wait too long to get a drink,” said Lombardi, always a host.
Mar y Sol is at 4511 McKinney Ave., Dallas. It opens July 20, 2024. Dinner only, at first.