New restaurant in Reunion Tower set to open on April 17
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) – Reunion Tower is one of the most iconic buildings in Texas. This month it will celebrate its 45th birthday and then once again, you will be able to dine there! A brand-new restaurant is bringing a whole new experience.
"Virtually everything you see up here is different, except for the view," Tyler Kleinert said.
Kleinert is the grandson of Ray Hunt, who helped originally develop Reunion Tower.
He said when COVID hit and Five Sixty by Wolfgang Puck permanently closed, Hunt Realty began brainstorming.
"We wanted to bring out the heritage of Dallas and Texas into this new concept," he said.
They landed on the name Crown Block.
"Crown Block is actually the highest point of an oil rig and here we are at the top of Reunion Tower," Kleinert said.
To bring the vision to life, they brought in a husband-and-wife duo with decades of experience in the restaurant industry.
"That being Kim and Elizabeth," Kleinert said. "They're based out of Las Vegas. They stood out for a lot of reasons. They've done some amazing work all across the world. Notably the Rainbow Room in New York, another iconic landmark, and they've just shown an excellent history of operations and execution."
We asked how much of the menu is Texas-inspired.
"A lot of the menu," Crown Block Executive Chef and Managing Partner Kim Canteenwalla said. "Quite a bit of the menu. We looked to the farms in Texas, we looked to the cattle ranches and the distilleries and the wine makers of Texas."
"Really, it's the experience and combining everything and then really doing our due diligence to sort out those ingredients from around the state that I think are really going to make it special," Crown Block Managing Partner Elizabeth Blau said.
As guests enjoy, they will still get the 360-degree view of the city but the restaurant will no longer spin.
"We wanted to create a reason for people to come up here and experience something different," Kleinert said. "This marks a new chapter for Reunion Tower and we're so excited for Crown Block to open!"
Crown Block officially opens on Monday. They're currently taking reservations.