Executive Chef Andrew Bell says he knows what diners who eat at The Reserve want.
Photography by Ethan Good
The new steakhouse — inside The Highland hotel at the corner of Mockingbird Lane and US-75 — replaced Knife, which was run by well-known chef John Tesar. Knife closed at the end of August, and The Reserve opened about a month later.
It could be difficult for The Reserve to distinguish itself from Knife while serving the same kind of food, but Bell is confident about what he’s bringing to the table.
“I know this clientele,” he says. “A couple of the very affluent families were customers of mine when I was doing catering, so I know what they’re looking for. I have a lot of background in fine dining, and this is my first steakhouse, per se, but I’ve certainly had my experience cooking steaks.”
Bell started working in restaurants in high school when his mother nudged him to get a job and learn responsibility. His first jobs in the industry were bussing tables at Parigi in Oak Lawn and waiting tables at Sam’s Cafe in the early 1990s as well as at Katz’s Deli in Austin when he moved there to attend the University of Texas. (He eventually studied at The Culinary Institute of America at Copia in Napa.) Bell transitioned from front to back of the house for a simple reason.
“I love to eat,” he says. “And I love the feeling of hospitality when you make something nice, and it either triggers a memory or creates a memory for a guest.”
Bell brought his culinary talents to the Austin fine dining establishment Wink Restaurant & Wine Bar when it first opened in 2001. After that, he worked at elevated Japanese eatery Uchi in Austin when that concept was still new as well. In Dallas, he has also held positions at the fondly remembered farm-to-table restaurant Bolsa in Oak Cliff, Saint Ann in the Harwood District and the former Aurora in Oak Lawn.
What makes Bell a fitting choice for his position at The Reserve is his experience running culinary operations at hotels and venues — the Mansion on Turtle Creek, The Joule, the Arts District Mansion and The Crescent Hotel in Fort Worth. Earlier this year, he took a step back to reactivate his catering company, which he started during the pandemic, and to be a consultant for other caterers and restaurants. Then, The Reserve job came to his attention.
To set The Reserve apart from other steakhouses, Bell emphasized its vegetarian options — like the whole smoked cauliflower ($26) and the butternut squash agnolotti ($28) — and the dry-aged meat program using beef from Texas ranches. Diners can order 24-ounce bone-in ribeye dry aged for 30 days ($125), 60 days ($145) and 90 days ($160).
“Most of (the other restaurants) are running prime beef and Kobe or Wagyu beef, which is great quality, but if you take that great quality and give it a little bit of time to mature, it’s a completely different experience,” he says.
The chef also says the pork tomahawk ($38), lobster Amatriciana ($68), Dover sole meunière ($76) and the steak tartare appetizer ($23) have been popular among guests.
“When I saw this position open up so close to home, my kids go to school right here, so it was a really good fit,” he says. “It was serendipitous.”
So what do The Reserve’s customers want?
“They’re looking for something that’s recognizable but reimagined, reinterpreted for contemporary times,” Bell says. “They’re looking for true hospitality, generosity, gracious service, professional service, kind of all the points we’ve really worked on, reestablishing the basics of hospitality from front of the house to back of the house.”
The dinner menu includes a few options for soups and salads (like the Reserve Wedge with bacon steak, red onion, tomato, blue cheese and togarashi ranch for $24 and the lobster bisque for $13.) Recognizable sides are also available, including Parmesan and lemon asparagus, red wine demi-glace mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese made with cavatappi and mornay sauce.
In addition to dinner, The Reserve has a bar bites menu with dips, wings and deviled eggs, a lunch menu with sandwiches and more salads, and a beverage menu with some signature cocktails, beer, wine and nonalcoholic drinks.
At Bolsa, Bell enjoyed the opportunity to reinvent the menu. At The Reserve, he plans to continue switching things up by adding seasonal fare alongside the mainstays.
“We’re looking forward to 2026,” he says. “This year (2025) has been good. It’s been a lot of change for the hotel and for the restaurant. Moving forward, we just want to build on that and keep the consistency and just keep elevating and getting better.”
The Reserve at The Highland, 5300 E. Mockingbird Lane, 214.443.9339, thereserveatthehighland.com
