DALLAS — On the edge of Oak Cliff, in a tired brown building, is a restaurant believed to be unlike any other in North Texas.
"It's an adventure," Marcelo Matamoros, a patron. "You don't know what you're going to get. I brought my own wine glass!"
Candles sit atop canned goods in the eclectic eatery. Furniture is donated by the Salvation Army. But the food is the main appeal.
"Tonight your chef is Marc Cassel," announced Chris Zielke, one of the restaurateurs behind the venture. Cassel is the Executive Chef at Park on Henderson. But he's among two dozen top chefs who volunteer here at this restaurant named "48 Nights."
It's aptly named because the restaurant at Sylvan Avenue and Interstate 30 will only be open for 48 nights.
It's a "pop-up" restaurant — temporary.
"Apparently it's something they do in Europe," explained Janet Davis, Mass Care Task Force. "It's a guerrilla restaurant. You know, G-U-E... guerrilla, and they do it all the time with temporary buildings."
Four course meals cost $75 a person but every dime outside the utility costs will benefit the Mass Care Task Force which is a union of the Red Cross, North Texas Food Bank, Salvation Army and Volunteer Center of North Texas.
"It's just another smart way for people to give and get something in return," added restaurateur Chris Jeffers.
When 48 Nights closes, the building will be demolished — replaced by a six-and-a-half acre residential and retail development.
Reservations are available through the restaurant's Web site; check the link in the sidebar box.
E-mail jwhitely@wfaa.com
