Major Food Group opens Carbone Vino in Dallas' Design District
Vino, the first concept of its kind within Major Food Group, is a winery and restaurant that integrates with Carbone, located next door.
“Carbone’s a week old, and we’re starting to wear it in a little bit, like a new pair of shoes. We’re starting to figure it out. Get our sea legs. Tonight’s our first night here, but we’re making our new home,”
Mario Carbone has only been home once since arriving in the city to open three restaurants in quick succession. It's not the first time he's spent a month in a hotel, and he says he enjoys Dallas's Southern hospitality, which he considers unlike anywhere else. "Carbone has been here a week, and we're already getting used to him, like new shoes. We're starting to understand him. To get used to the journey. Tonight is our first night here, but we're making this our new home," he says.
Unlike Carbone's ostentatious dishes and decor, Vino has a brighter, fresher outdoor space, complete with striped awnings and an ice cream cart. Designed by Ken Fulk, Carbone incorporated 200-year-old oil paintings, in their original frames, by unknown Italian artists. Those who remember Wheelhouse, the previous location, might recognize the wheel-shaped handle and garage door-style windows, but the rest is entirely different.
Carbone anticipates that diners will first come for an aperitif: "I expect that diners, before enjoying their dishes at Carbone, will come here for an aperitif and then return for a digestif when they're satisfied and fancy an Amaro." Regarding the two restaurants, he explained: "They need each other."
The wine list focuses exclusively on wine: "We have a list of approximately one thousand bottles." The main offering is wines by the quart, which is equivalent to one and a half glasses, allowing diners to sample a wide variety without buying a whole bottle. Guests can pair their dishes with wines with the assistance of the staff. According to Carbone, many tables are available without a reservation.
Vino serves Carbone's three most popular dishes: the ZZ Caesar salad, spicy vodka rigatoni, and veal Parmesan. Its menu is more flexible than the one next door, with seasonal changes, ravioli, and daily pizzas. Carbone describes it as "a spin-off of Carbone" and adds, "This style of cooking is constantly evolving. It's not static."
The menu includes antipasti ranging from $18 for whipped ricotta with grilled bread to $32 for spicy Manhattan clams. Salads, pizzas, and sharing platters, known as "Misti, Mista, Misto," cost between $22 and $36. Main courses include rigatoni, a 340-gram ribeye tagliata with balsamic vinegar, Parmesan, and artichoke, and a rosemary and garlic bisteca fiorentina, also known as a 1.3-kg porterhouse or "Florence's official steak."
A whole steamed lobster, Mulberry-style, is topped with spiced Italian sausage prepared in a Chinese style, a nod to New York's Mulberry Street, which connects Little Italy and Manhattan's Chinatown. "We make a lot of gelato here," explains Carbone. His recommended dessert is a vanilla sundae with soft-serve gelato, crushed almonds, and maraschino cherries in syrup, served from a cart. Vino also offers Italian zeppole, whose powdered sugar is sprinkled from a can onto a sheet of paper bearing the restaurant's logo.
Major Food Group's debut in Dallas has been well received. "We've had an excellent reception and great enthusiasm from both industry professionals who want to work with us and from our customers. I feel very welcome; Dallas has welcomed me with open arms," says Carbone.