Many of the less expensive - and least extravagant - of Dallas's five thousand restaurants are concentrated in Lower Greenville Avenue , which runs northeast of downtown parallel to I-75, and trendier Deep Ellum , where even the excellent New American cuisine won't break the bank.

Café Brasil 2815 Elm St tel 214/747-2730). Open 24hr on weekends with great omelets, crepes and enchiladas.

Deep Ellum Café 2706 Elm St tel 214/741-9012. The first restaurant in the area and still the benchmark for the rest. Very popular, serving delicious, casual food (think waffles, crepes, sandwiches) for around $10. Open until 2am on Fri and Sat.

El Fenix 1601 McKinney Ave tel 214/747-1121. Don't let its ubiquity within the Metroplex stop you from trying out this ultra-reliable Tex-Mex favorite; don't miss the tortilla soup.

Firehouse 1928 Greenville Ave tel 214/826-2468). Inventive (if a bit pricey) menu - think antelope tenderloin - smack in the middle of Lower Greenville.

The French Room   The Adolphus 1321 Commerce St tel 214/742-8200. Perhaps the best restaurant in the state, with prices to match the top-notch French food and exquisite decor (hand-blown crystal chandeliers, marble floors and so on).

Gloria's 600 W Davis St tel 214/948-3672. Catfish ceviche, hot banana-leaf tamales and other low-priced, top-quality El Salvadorean dishes.

Green Room 2715 Elm St tel 214/748-7666. Post-modern decor, with up-to-the-minute American cuisine downstairs, and pizzas on the roof with views across Deep Ellum to downtown.

Mia's 4322 Lemmon Ave tel 214/526-1020. A family-run Mexican restaurant, a favorite with the Dallas Cowboys.

Monica's Aca y Alla 2914 Main St tel 214/748-7140. Wood-grilled nouvelle Mexican food, with dashes of Mediterranean and Asian influences, in a Deep Ellum hot spot jumping with live salsa and mambo on weekends.

Samba Room 4514 Travis Walk tel 214/522-4137. Sexy, Cuban-themed space with fabulous mojitos and a beautiful patio.

Sonny Bryan's Smokehouse 2202 Inwood Rd tel 214/357-7120. The original location - it still looks like a shack - of a favorite local barbecue chain, but get there in good time as the meat can be all snapped up by early afternoon.