Top Dallas Restaurateur Completes His Knox District Trifecta with Georgie, Lures Michelin-Star Chef

From the sunny and elegant Le Bilboquet — the go-to destination for ladies and gents who lunch and cocktail at night — to neighborhood bistro Up On Knox, restaurateur Stephan Courseau has brought much to the Knox District. Now, between the two restaurants on Travis Street, Courseau has partnered with Michelin-starred chef Curtis Stone and his brother Luke to open Georgie, which focuses on seasonal dishes and an on-site butcher shop.

The restaurant marks the first outside of Los Angeles for the Australia-born brothers and is largely inspired by their popular Hollywood restaurant, Gwen. In fact, it was at Gwen that Courseau approached them about partnering on the Dallas project.

“Stephan was in for dinner one night and mentioned he was doing another restaurant in Dallas and that we’d be perfect for it,” Stone says.

Executive chef Toby Archibald, a New Zealand native who spent time in Daniel Boulud’s kitchen at Café Boulud, worked with the partners to create an enticing, ingredient-driven menu. Standouts include horseradish beet tartare peppered with red grapes and Kapiti Coast blue cheese; chestnut agnolotti with brown butter, ricotta, and parmesan; and Georgie rotisserie chicken, served with crispy baked mash and rosemary jus.

“As a chef, if you’re any good, you’re constantly telling stories,” Stone says. “Sometimes that’s honoring a farmer or an ingredient, and sometimes that’s creating a nice time, or a feeling you get when you smell or taste something.”

Just as sumptuous are the interiors, designed by Brooklyn firm GRT Architects. Plush booths in a warm, velvety orange slink around the space to form the majority of the seating. The seductive serpentine complement curves carved into the bar and coffered ceilings, creating the feel of a 1970s Riva yacht.

Though based in Los Angeles — and often on the road traveling for his latest PBS show, Field Trip with Curtis Stone — the chef was involved in every aspect of the restaurant’s planning and loves the competitive nature of the industry.

“In the restaurant world, when you go in to service every night, it’s either going to go really well, or it’s going to go terrible — there’s not much in between,” Stone tells PaperCity. “To me, that’s always still really exciting. I get that rush every time I open a restaurant — I’m pretty sure it’s going to work, but is it? Did we make the right choice on the color of the banquettes?”

To that question at least, the answer is a definite yes.