The old brick building at 2912 McKinney Ave., near Howell, was Theory Nightclub for a while. Today it opens as Marlowe, a lounge that would like to handle your entire night, from a 6 o’clock martini to closing time at 2 a.m.
It isn’t quite a restaurant and it isn’t quite a club. Come early for drinks and a few plates, swing by after dinner somewhere else, or settle into a banquette and stay while the lights come down and the music comes up.
Duncan Design Group did the room, and it’s a looker. Wood-vaulted ceilings, marble, antique mirrors, brass, and velvet everywhere you sit. A velvet-draped stage holds down the center, and music director Garrett Swain plans the sound so it builds as the night goes on.
About that penguin on everything. Partner Alon Abramov and his wife, Cara, take their son to the Dallas Zoo a lot, and the penguins are his favorite. Abramov liked that a penguin always looks ready for black tie but can’t help being a little goofy. That’s the mood Marlowe is after.
Chef Vidal Cantu came over from Gemma, and his menu is small plates that go as well with one cocktail as they do with four. Nothing is cooked in seed oils. Start with the cappelletti in brodo, little pasta stuffed with braised short rib and ricotta, floating in beef consommé. The mini bourekas get potato, caviar, and brown butter aioli. The Lil’ Schnitz is thin, crisp chicken breast with three sauces, and the skewers come off a charcoal grill. Finish with tiramisu. Even the plates are local, made by Dallas ceramic artist Marcello Andres Ortega.
Beverage director Kyle Buckelew runs a bar with a sense of humor. The Breakfast Club is brown butter-washed rum with crème de banane and maple. Stacy’s Mom mixes strawberry tequila, cacao, and Ancho Reyes. The Tokyo Hi-Fi uses sesame-infused Japanese whisky and toasted rice. Bring friends and order Something to Take the Edge Off, a dirty vodka martini service for up to four that shows up with a Caesar salad and fries.
Uptown has lost a lot of its late-night spots in recent years. Marlowe is betting people still want a dressed-up night on McKinney, with food and drinks that hold up as well as the room does.
Marlowe is open Wednesday through Saturday, 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Book through its website or follow along on Instagram at @marlowelounge.
