Stroll through Nieman Marcus, find a new smell in the perfume department, then take a photo in front of The Eye before dining in one of downtown Dallas' great restaurants. Here are some of our lunchtime favorites.
The Kati Roll Company
1322 Elm St.The Kati Roll Company is a small, New York-based Indian street food chain. Everything on the menu is under $10 and made in-house, including the mango lassis. The kati rolls, a spicy mixture of meat and vegetables rolled in Indian flat-bread, is a nice grab-n-go option, or you can dine inside with quick service.The Crafty Irishman
1800 Main St. The Crafty Irishman on Main Street has a nice sidewalk patio and Irish pub vibes inside. Expect Irish favorites like fish & chips and a corned beef sandwich. The Monte Cristo ($17) isn't something you see often. It comes stuffed with turkey, ham, Wexford cheddar and Swiss and is beer-battered and fried with a shake of powdered sugar and raspberry preserves. Beehive
1514 Elm St. Beehive is a place for hand-crafted cocktails and new American cuisine. The happy hour (or late lunch) is a bargain for its downtown location. Monday through Friday, 2–6:30 p.m., chicken bao buns are $7, shrimp or brisket tacos go for $8 and a variety of sushi rolls is under $10. Since food priced that low is basically free in this economy, go ahead and order the frozen margarita with popping boba, too.Twisted Trompo
1211 Commerce St. Twisted Trompo is the quintessential gas-station-taco success story. It started inside a Chevron at Bachman Lake in 2008 and moved to downtown Dallas in 2018, where it continues to serve traditional pork trompo, along with slow-roasted al pastor and chicken, all tucked inside soft flour tortillas. A three-taco plate with rice and beans is $9.99. Twisted Trompo takes online orders and offers curbside delivery.Taco City
600 Jackson St. We recently wrote about chef Sabian Sanchez and his birria tacos at Taco City downtown. There's a small patio out front where you can stuff a giant Hot-Cheeto-crusted burrito down your gullet. Specials are usually posted outside, but we highly recommend the birria tacos, which you can get with a side of rice and beans for $14. 
The Metropolitan on Main
2032 Main St. Formerly the quaint Metropolitan Cafe, the revamped bougie The Metropolitan on Main offers an upscale ambiance to graze over a big charcuterie tray with a lovely burrata. The three-cheese grilled cheese on sourdough is quite heavenly. We can also recommend the spicy Italian with cured meat, sun-dried tomatoes, brie and cherry peppers. Before you leave grab a cappuccino, which is one of the best we've ever had. The full bar can comes in handy as well. Elm Street Cask & Kitchen
1525 Elm St. Elm Street Cask & Kitchen serves Southern-inspired food and over 150 different bourbons. The spot offers great lunch specials with views over historic Elm Street and The Eye. The Farmers Market and Deep Ellum flatbreads go for $13. The latter has Dr Pepper barbecue sauce. Other staples are the mac n’ cheese for $11 and C&K chili for $16.SushiYa
1306 Elm. St. Remember TikTok grandpa? This was the spot that trended a couple of years ago after the grandson of the owner of SushiYa posted an absolutely adorable video of his grandpa at the restaurant. This casual Japanese spot is a gem. Sit at the bar for a quick meal while watching ESPN highlights on the TV overhead, or sink into a dim booth to slow down a bit. The service is doting and quick. Chicken teriyaki is $15.65. Also here: udon noodles (the tempura is $16.75), rice bowls, fried rice and sushi. Plus a full bar.
Sky Blossom Bistro
1514 Elm St.Sky Blossom Bistro is one of our favorite rooftops in the city. Look for an elevator up to the sixth floor in a hallway near Campisi's (there is normally a sign on the sidewalk). The lunch menu has rice and vermicelli bowls for $14. The most expensive items on the menu are shaken beef and Korean barbecue for $17. Blossom Tacos are sushi-style tacos served on seaweed shells, three for $14. Happy hour is 3–6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and includes different specials each day of the week, like half-off glasses of wine on Wednesdays.Uno Mas
1525 Main St.This bright, cheerful Tex-Mex restaurant next to The Eye has lots of outdoor seating on the second-story deck as well as indoor seating. Service is fast and attentive. Uno Mas offers big lunch bowls for $13 along with the typical Tex-Mex offerings like a two-enchilada plate ($15), quesadillas ($16) or chicken tortilla soup ($10).City Tavern
1514 Elm St. City Tavern is an old-school downtown sports bar that opened in 2003. The specials are updated weekly and might be some of the best deals around. For example, Thursday is "Armando's Choice" for $10. Not a typo. Ten dollars. Friday is a power lunch with a burger and fries for $8. Taco Tuesday is a couple of tacos with rice and beans for $10. You get the picture.Campisi's
1520 Elm St.If these walls could talk. Well, maybe not this spot specifically but the original Campisi's location definitely has some stories to tell. This downtown location is located along the Stone Street Gardens, a red brick walkway between Elm and Main streets (also near The Eye). At happy hour, look for $5 pizzas and cocktails and $2 off all beers. But before that, head over for a lunch special from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. Get a small two-topping pizza for $11.99. Spaghetti with marinara or red sauce is $9.99 and comes with Joe's Toast and a salad. A meatball or sausage sandwich is $11.49.
