Eighteen-O-One at the Dallas World Aquarium Serves Delicious, Beautifully Presented Cuisine

A sea dragon at DWA

Eighteen-O-One is a hidden treasure for Dallas that serves attractive, delicious meals that will please the entire family and the most discerning diner. Integrate dining into a visit to the Aquarium in Dallas to experience a full, fun day. Be prepared to pay to get into the aquarium!

We decided to head to the Dallas World Aquarium (DWA) on a school holiday. The DWA is located at 1801 North Griffin Street in Dallas, just blocks away from the American Airlines Center and on the edge of downtown Dallas. Mapquest made it easy for us to find the aquarium.

Our first observation was that parking and entrance into the DWA was pricey, especially with a less-than-impressive entryway. Admission for children 3–12 was $12.95 plus tax (plus tax?), and over 12 years is $20.95 plus tax. A basic family membership is $140–$195 a year but does not include parking. I was hoping that, at this price, the DWA would be amazing.

One of many penguins at the DWA

We spent 5 hours wandering through the climbing rainforests, observing different varieties of birds, monkeys, and other creatures. We saw fish, snakes, insects, sloths, and manatees. The penguins were a highlight of the day, particularly Pogo, who is 21 years old and blind and would not survive in the wild. We watched the shark feeding (and N says it was pretty gross) from within a glass tube within the shark tank. We watched the penguins get fed, which was entertaining. We saw sea dragons (gorgeous!) and sea horses and jelly fish and more cool creatures than we had expected.

At about 1pm, we decided to break for lunch. Eighteen-O-One was the closest restaurant within the DWA, so we stopped there, not knowing what to expect. With the crowds at DWA, we anticipated a line, but there was no wait for a table. We were seated at a small table next to window overlooking aquarium tanks. The table was dressed in a clean, white cover with cloth napkins and a basket of warm rolls. The menu was simple, but the selections sounded delicious. And we were not disappointed.

Kids fish-shaped pizza (delicious and pretty)

N had the cheeseburger, which was "delicious" and came with a nice garnish and French fries. R had the kids pizza, which delighted her (see photo) because it came in the shape of a fish with pepperoni scales and was complete with a black-olive eye—truly a work of art! E had the salad plate with salt-water crackers. She said the fresh fruit was sweet and the chicken salad was delicious. C had the "Shrimp on the Barbie," which included a house salad with a citrus-and-oil dressing (delicious) and four large shrimp skewered on a bed of seasoned rice. We finished with a piece of cake, which we shared. Lunch for four of us was $40 with tip, which I thought was incredibly reasonable, particularly because the food was attractive, tasty, and plentiful.

Shrimp on the Barbie

We give Eighteen-O-One eight thumbs up (two from each of us) for family friendliness, tastiness, attractiveness, freshness, price, and service. (Yes, the service was terrific.) I hear there is an Eighteen-O-One outside the DWA, and I suspect we will visit one of the two restaurants again in the near future!