Eclair Bistro on Historic McKinney Square is a True Gem

by Steven Doyle

First opened in the Cedar Hill area for about five years, French inspired Eclair Bistro moved just off the square in McKinney about six months ago. The restaurant owned by chef Aaron Thomas and his family are excited to be in the area, and are now closer to their family. The new location also gives chef Thomas a fresh perspective on his cooking, and enjoys a new audience for his special brand of plating.

“This is a family run business, and my mother, who is retired, is helping in the kitchen. She is a pitbull of sorts, but does a tremendous job helping with the pastries and such” said Thomas.  

When pinned down to describe his style of cooking, Thomas offered that it was a New Orleans-style of cooking, not to be confused with Cajun, but contemporary American with a strong bit of French undertones.

When at the Cedar Hill location Eclair’s was ranked among the highest in fine dining for that area. It was much smaller then, about 45 seats. The new McKinney restaurant is much larger with 75 seats downstairs, and boasts an interesting bar upstairs complete with a bar and a band stage that seats about 70. The new top space makes for a fantastic area for large groups and special events.

Thomas was a musician for about 20 years and can still be found on stage when he hires a band to play that he is familiar with. He stays in contact with plenty of singer song writers and has his friends play.

As far as dining at Eclairs, it is all fresh, with everything hand-made, including sauces, pastas and especially the pastry.

“We have some nice items on the menu such as our salmon. People might think it is just salmon, but we hot smoke the fish to order. It is fresh, wild caught Atlantic salmon. Incredibly delicious,” offered Thomas. We particularly enjoyed the heirloom tomato and burrata salad. that is extremely fresh.

As far as desserts, they do a namesake double chocolate eclair with a chocolate custard center and features a little chewy chocolate ganache on the outside. Then there’s the white chocolate cheesecake that is especially wonderful and is sided with a sea salt caramel sauce. Go for a trio of flavors by ordering the pineapple bread and butter pudding that features a meringue topping and a whiskey cream sauce.

Eclair Bistro is located at 216 E. Virginia in McKinney. Make your reservation by calling 214.701.4409.