Ahhh yes. The soft open. They should really call it a hard open because, well, you know. Okay, I’ll say it. Soft opens get me excited. Yep. In that kind of way.

I snagged a table (thank you, sweet baby jesus!), brought two friends along (Ooh! A threesome!) and headed to the much-anticipated Rapscallion on Friday night. A mere four days prior to its actual opening night.

Notice the meat locker at left. This is for aging meats like the 44 Farms steak you will see momentarily. This means you should eat these meats when you go to Rapscallion. YES. MEATS.

Drinks! They’re great at Rapscallion. Of course they are. Because cocktail slinger extraordinaire Eddie Eakin of Boulevardier fame is the man behind the bar and the brain behind the cocktail menu. But you may want to bring along your Pocket Guide to Cocktail Vernacular. Which is not a real thing because I just made it up. Perhaps Eddie should write it. It’s a bit of a complicated menu. Just go with it. And get a bit sloshed in the process. That’s the fun part. Or, WINE. Lots of it. Because brothers and business partners Brooks and Bradley Anderson are the owners of Rapscallion, the owners of Boulevardier, and the owners of Veritas sooooo they are, like, really good at wine. Duh.

I found some cocktail words I knew and ordered a tequila-based beverage called the Sel, Sol y Limon. I like salt, sun and lemon. Sold! Oh, and tequila. I love tequila with steak. This drink was strong and gooood. Perfect with everything I ate that night. And I ate EVERYTHING. See below:

Beet salad is a good way to shake off the hangry and get your palate prepped to enjoy some deliciousness. The flavors are intense at Rapscallion, so get ready…

Pickled green beans were then fried and served with a delicious dipping sauce. The sweetness of the green beans with a hit of acidity was awesome. There wasn’t too much salt like fried pickles, so we weren’t left feeling all dried up. Great crunch, too.

I always go for crudo or raw fish, something cured or ceviche. I can’t stay away. And this did not disappoint. Rapscallion Chef Nathan Tate is kicking ass with this menu.

This ribeye carpaccio is SEXY. Yeah that’s a thing. George Costanza was wrong. Pastrami is not the most sensual of all the salted cured meats. THIS is. Though, technically, it’s not salted nor cured. Okay I’ll start over. EAT THIS EFFING CARPACCIO. Yeah it’s raw. Eat it anyway. Then taste the explosively delicious mushrooms next to it. They’re vinegary enough to make your eyes water but damn it’s a good time.

Quack quack MFers. What could be better than cornbread? Cornbread with duck fat and more duck inside! Duck makes everything better. Duck is the new bacon. You heard it here first, kids.

This herby, mediterranean small plate is spicy and good. Share it with someone you like a lot. I did.

The short rib dish was sweet somehow. I didn’t even know you could make short ribs into steaks like this but I’m so glad Nathan Tate did. This was delicious.

Yeah, you’re going to want to order the Market Steak. I recommend it with a Sel, Sol y Limon to sip along with it. Steak + Tequila: Don’t knock it ’till you’ve tried it.

Because horchata ice cream. Also, this cake was unexpectedly great. Like, really, really great. I don’t usually order chocolate cake at restaurants. I’d rather just have more meat. But this was delightful. My recommendation? Get your ass to Rapscallion and eat all the damn things.

Rapscallion  | 2023 Greenville Avenue  |  dallasrapscallion.com