Dallas has no shortage of standout dining experiences and hard-to-score reservations that ignite excitement and intrigue, but few have stood the test of time like chef Mansour Gorji’s simple, yet refined, eponymous restaurant, Gorji. With a no walk-in policy, only five tables, and one seating per night, it is among the most exclusive tickets in town.
The Chef
Raised in Iran, Gorji learned the basics of food preparation during family outings, hunting and fishing, and cleaning and cooking up what was caught. As a result, he began to prioritize showcasing the purity of ingredients like fresh vegetables and seafood over relying on heavy seasoning. As an adult, his background in engineering gave him further insight into the science of food. He saw cooking as a formula, in which heat, texture, and timing were key components and every ingredient had a purpose.
Gorji made the move to Dallas in 1987, and has been cooking at the location of the intimate, 20-seat table establishment in Village on the Parkway in Addison for 22 years, since he purchased it as Yoshi Sushi Restaurant. In 2004, it became Canary, a place that put the spotlight on Gorji’s simplistic approach to Mediterranean cuisine using carefully sourced, top tier ingredients. Over the years, he gained notoriety in Texas, earning countless local accolades, winning back-to-back titles of the Texas Steak Cook-Off Championship, and releasing a cookbook called “Zing! By Gorji”
By 2018, the restaurant was fully rebranded to Gorji and it was a far cry from the Texas establishments that catered to the masses. Gorji’s strict set of guidelines promised no rush, no crowds… and no compromise. He eliminated tipping, relieving both guests and servers of that pressure; he enforced a strict no walk-in policy, as each meal was intentional and meant for those who reserved a table; and by hosting only one seating per night, he welcomed guests to dine at their leisure with no time restraints to consider.
The Restaurant
For guests dining at Gorji, the experience begins once they enter the restaurant, but for Gorji himself, it begins long before. “Nobody delivers my produce,” he admits. “I go myself, and pick it by hand. If I need more, I’ll go again.” The chef spends the time leading up to service scouring local markets seeking the freshest bounty, and keeping an eye on what is most cost effective at any given moment.
He goes to great lengths to put only what is fresh and in season on the table for his guests, and if that means it is only offered for a limited time, then so be it. In lieu of serving farm-raised fish, he sources Copper River salmon during its peak season, which lasts not more than three months. “That is my first choice that I look for. When it comes, I go.”
A menu, built around the ingredients Gorji is most inspired by, is created weekly, and guests are given the option to choose from a three- or four-course experience that includes appetizers, salads, entrees, and desserts. An evening may begin with prosciutto and sheep’s cheese with arugula or Texas quail legs with pomegranate reduction, then lead to pizza with pomodoro sauce and buffalo mozzarella or three-cheese spinach lasagna with housemade ricotta.
“I am a minimalist, not a maximalist,” he shares. “When something is minimalist, you can not hide anything—it is out to be seen. I don’t want to put sauce on my steak; I want the steak to speak for itself.”
While many restaurants prep food in the hours leading up to service, Gorji says he leaves as much as possible to the moments before dishes are plated and served. With no heat lamps to rely on in the kitchen, guests are served immediately, as dishes are made.
The Takeover
Following this simple ethos has worked for Gorji, who wanted his restaurant to feel like a special destination within the city, in lieu of it packing people in night after night. “I don’t like to compete with the whole world,” he admits. “I’d rather do things my way, the way that I see fit.”
Gorji is giving DiningOut readers the opportunity to witness his minimalistic ways of cooking and operating his restaurant during an Instagram takeover on Thursday, September 4. The seasoned chef plans to give viewers a peek at simple tasks like flowering the plants on the patio, tidying up the dining room, and setting the seat assignments—all of which he does before each service with great pride and care.
He teases shopping visits to Central Market, Whole Foods, and other local cultural markets in search of ingredients, and looks forward to explaining the different sauces he creates for various dishes featured at Gorji. He says he has a small, but mighty staff, and he is very much hands on during each seating. “If someone is off, I serve the food,” he admits. “I will show people how simple it all is.”
Check out the Instagram takeover on Thursday, September 4 to get an inside look at a day in the simple life of chef Mansour Gorji, and tune in for the chance to win a $100 gift card to Gorji.
