Kersten Rettig: A Quick Look at Bobbie’s Airway Grill

Lucky you, Preston Hollow. The intersection of Preston and Royal is rebuilt and thriving since the October 2019 tornado and you have another excellent neighborhood restaurant to call your third place.

Bobbie’s Airway Grill quietly opened a few weeks ago, just as the temps started to rise faster than the wheels of private jets carrying our fancy neighbors to cooler climates. The upscale diner is from the team that brought you Il Bracco, Western Addition, led by CEO and president Robert Quick and COO Matt Gottlieb.

Quick, an SMU grad and former People Newspapers’ 20 Under 40 pick (a Quick pick, if you will), is a graduate of the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, California, and did time working in some of the country’s most prestigious kitchens. Gottlieb is from California, where he earned his stripes working for Hillstone Restaurant Group.

Bobbie’s Airway Grill sits in the former Dougherty’s Pharmacy location, where it’s gotten an elegant makeover with exterior arches that elongate the façade and resemble the spectacular Philip Johnson-designed Beck House that’s just across town. The interior is wide open and spacious, very warm and welcoming.

Perhaps the most intimidating kitchen Quick has performed in belongs to his mother, Bobbie, for whom the restaurant is named and from whom many of the recipes originate.

The menu isn’t ambitious. It’s straightforward yet distinctively upscale diner fare served on branded diner dishes. Each section of starters, sides, salads, sandwiches, and mains are succinct, with no more than six options from which to choose.

There is plenty of seafood on the menu but don’t pass up the rotisserie chicken, either as a main or in the Moroccan Salad. It’s first brined and then cooked on a French Rotisol brass rotisserie perched in the front window to entertain window shoppers.

The salads are a blend of classic but updated menu items, such as the Prime Wedge, which adds filet to the steakhouse classic, and a Caesar, which adds Bobbie’s beloved crispy oysters.

As a fan of Fritos, I was delighted to see them on the menu to scoop up the Oaks Dip, a sharp cheddar dip that has a faint hint of horseradish and heat, reminding me of the shrimp dip my Louisiana grandmother would make.

Bobbie’s Airway Grill is a welcome addition to Preston Hollow. For residents south of Northwest Highway, like me, it’s not too far to go for upscale, approachable food that offers to-go drinks, doggie bags, and genuinely warm hospitality. Another plus is that Bobbie’s Airway Grill accepts reservations via Resy, so there’s no need to wait two hours for a great burger.

Bobbie’s Airway Grill
5959 Royal Lane
@bobbiesairwaygrill