TexMike

Abacus is great. The owner (I forget his name) really knows what he's doing. Haven't been in a while, but I would definitely recommend it.

I say that because I've seen many pretty good restaurants fall flat on their face. Pretty much there are so many good restaurants in Dallas that people won't look twice if they're not impressed. And it's not just the food. People want to be impresssed by the whole thing. As for opening a place, I'm not an expert, but I would say that an Asian cuisine restaurant (maybe Nobu-esque) would do well here. There are some good Japanese restaurants in Dallas, but they are all very traditional. You could go to one just like it anywhere else. Steel is the only one of the genre that I would consider "on the edge". They're more experimental w/ their food, they've done it well, and it's been a huge success. Indian food also. I can't name a single well-known Indian restaurant in Dallas. Just my two cents.

I would definitely consider Dallas a fine dining town. As of a few years ago (and it still may be right) Dallas had more 5 star restaurants than New York per capita. As for support, if it is a truly good restaurant, Dallasites will pack it. There are restaurants of every type in Dallas, especially steakhouses. Some of the more famous and great places in Dallas are the Mansion on Turtle Creek (the gold standard in Dallas), the French Room, Riviera, Nana Grill, Old Warsaw. Check out www.guidelive.com to get a feel. Good wine lists are definitely appreciated. Age depends on the type of restaurant - the Mansion draws an older crowd (45+), while Steel (newer, trendy but very good) brings in a younger crowd (late 20's, early 30's). Any good restaurant would be a welcome addition, except a steakhouse. To say that market is saturated would be an understatement. WARNING: Restaurants may be the most competitive industry in Dallas. If you don't know what you're doing, you'll be gone in no time. It's not NYC or LA, but it's not far behind.