For Arthur's owner Mohsen Heidari,
it must have been like receiving that initial invitation from the American Association of Retired Persons.

"May I be the first to congratulate you on reaching your 50th Business
Anniversary in 1996," began the letter from the Stephen Fossler Co. of Crystal Lake, Ill. "It's an accomplishment you should
be very proud of."

Had his steakhouse
passed the half-century milestone
without his knowing it? Mr. Heidari,
the fourth owner of Arthur's,
started doing some research.
Someone recalled that the restaurant used to celebrate its anniversary in June. This was learned in July; it appeared that
the 50th birthday would have to
be after the fact.
Happily, it turns out that the
Stephen Fossler folks, who make
personalized foil "anniversary
seals," were as premature in launching their sales pitch as the AARP is. (Believe me,
you'll get your first card from the
retirees' organization long before
you expect it.) Arthur's won't be
50 until 1998, so Mr. Heidari
has a couple of years to
plan its golden-anniversary bash.
It should be a good one, but don't
wait until then to visit.
An ordinary night at Arthur's can
be extraordinary.Since buying
the steakhouse eight years ago,
Mr. Heidari has given
it a glamorous face lift. The old
Arthur's was a dark, carpeted,
masculine place. The new boasts
black-and-white Italian marble
floors, high-backed mauve chairs,
banquettes covered in a floral
pattern, lots of sheer pale curtains
and two stunningly oversize chandeliers that were made for a California hotel.
Four circular booths are set into alcoves and partially curtained. You can't move the curtains for more privacy, but those tables still have
to be among the most romantic in town. And it doesn't hurt that the soft background music is all
Nat King Cole.
Or that the staff performs its tasks
so smoothly and discreetly that you're barely aware when a water glass is being refilled. There are
nice flourishes, too. A pre-dinner gimlet is brought in a small carafe, embedded in ice, so you can fill
your glass as you wish.The
food by executive chef Fred Amari
and chef de cuisine Peter Cristobal
equals the setting and service.
Mr. Heidari says he still considers
Arthur's a steakhouse, but the menu goes far beyond most steakhouse fare, with lots of seafood, veal, fowl and a couple of pastas. Prices are below those of most upscale steakhouses and entrees come with vegetables. Appetizers include all the oldies but goodies: escargot, smoked salmon, shrimp cocktail and our pick, steak tartare, an oval of freshly minced, lightly seasoned raw beef sided by heaps of chopped red onion, egg, capers and perfect toast points.

Crab Lorenzo was an indulgent casserole of crabmeat, mushrooms
and cheese. Bluepoint oysters tasted as briny fresh as any
oysters I've had in Dallas.
Their cocktail sauce was accompanied by all the things
that people add to it -
lemon, grated horseradish and so on.More unusual, the waiter also brought a tiny bowl of red wine vinegar and suggested we try dipping our oyster in it. Different. And delicious. Lobster bisque, floated with a puff pastry crouton, was burnt orange in hue and intensely flavored by bothcheese
vinaigrette was nicely balanced.
Steaks start at $17.90 for a
rib eye and go up to $19.90
for a T-bone. Medallions of Beef Arthur, rosy twins of tender meat, wore crowns of flaked
crab and were lapped with dual sauces - bearnaise and madeira.
The meaty chops in a rack of lamb were herb crusted and cooked exactly to the medium-rare requested. Grilled snapper, a
thick, firm fillet, was finished
off with lemon and capers.
Crisp-skinned roast duck with peppercorns and brandy sauce
was excellent, too. All entrees
came with a tiny, slightly waxy potato and a mix of vegetables.
At lunch, I told my companion
that since Arthur's is a
steakhouse, one of us should try
another steak. There's a grilled sirloin and a filet mignon. But
osso buco in Marsala sauce over fettuccine was a special I couldn't pass up (and that veal shank
was every bit as meaty and moist
with gelatinous bits here and
there as I'd hoped). My companion couldn't resist boned trout with garlicky scampi sauce.

Dinner desserts included delicate, high-rising souffles that soaked up chocolate and Gran Marnier sauces like sponges. You also can
choose a fresh berry sauce.
For any souffle, order ahead.

An Arthur's classic is the almond ball, a globe of vanilla ice cream rolled in freshly toasted almond slivers and drizzled with chocolate sauce. Cream caramel was pale
but silky; cheesecake was light
and pleasantly undersweet.

Arthur's has two racks of wine in
the dining room plus two small
wine rooms with tables.
Accordingly, the wine maven
should be able to find something pleasing on the lengthy list and there are reasonably priced wines for the less demanding.

If the Nat King Cole music has
been replaced by live music
coming from the bar, you might
want to move there for your
after-dinenr coffee. Arthur's has long been known as a meeting
place for older adults (weekend nights bring out many AARP
members, I'd wager; midweek,
the crowd was slightly younger). Any night, the scene is lively with dancing and flirting.