..:: Dean Fearing ::..

Dean Fearing

The creator of “Elevated American Cuisine – Bold Flavors, No Borders,” and chef/partner for Esquire Magazine’s 2007 “Restaurant of the Year,” Dean Fearing has served celebrities, presidents and rock stars. He has been featured in culinary media worldwide, has cooked on every national morning television show and, when not in his restaurant, leads his own all-chef band, The Barbwires, who have recently-released their first CD.

Long known as the “Father of Southwestern Cuisine” and now the creator of a new generation of highly-flavorful dishes, Chef Dean Fearing has spent his life cooking for people who love good food. After 20-plus years at The Mansion on Turtle Creek, he opened his own acclaimed restaurant, Fearing's in August 2007 at the new Ritz-Carlton Dallas. The lively, comfortable restaurant offers seven stylish dining settings, including the most distinctive alfresco experience in Dallas, as well as a hugely popular interactive display kitchen offering ringside seating for true foodies. Fearing’s Restaurant was nationally reviewed in just its first few days of operation and received its first major award just weeks later, winning America’s “Restaurant of the Year” and “Table of the Year” ratings in the November, 2007 issue of Esquire Magazine.

The son of a Kentucky innkeeper, Dean Fearing grew up with grandmothers who knew all about food and who appreciated the finer details of Southern cooking and barbecue. He still uses and treasures their recipes, and they remain one of the most important inspirations of his culinary life. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, he can be seen these days in Fearing’s wearing a crisp white chef’s coat with colorful boot embroidery, blue jeans and brightly-hued, custom-tooled Lucchese cowboy boots. When not in the kitchen, he is often found strumming his vintage Fender Telecaster guitar, one of an impressive such collection, or searching the countryside for farm-to-market Texas culinary inspiration. The state’s rich variety of peppers, dried chilies, jicama, cilantro, tomatillos, fruits and vegetables, cheeses, Gulf seafood and Hill Country wild game play a major role in his ever-changing cuisine.

The exuberant, ever-friendly Dean Fearing was winner of The James Beard Foundation Restaurant Award for “Best Chef in the Southwest” and led a team winning the Mobil “Five-Star Award” from 1995 to 2001 and the AAA “Five Diamond Award” from 1990-2006. Fearing’s Restaurant has staked early claims in Dallas for “favorite local dish” designation, with its Barbecued Shrimp Taco, Rib Eye Mopped Over Live Mesquite (and featuring a memorable beer and molasses glaze), Scallop with Tangerine Essence and Chicken-Fried Maine Lobster with Queso Fresco Mashed Potatoes all vying for first place as the area’s favorite new menu item.