An early peek at Thanksgiving in Fort Worth-area restaurants, from Luby’s to the Ritz

Now is the time to book a family reservation for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest holidays and toughest tables to book, for two reasons:

▪ Big families want to sit together, and

▪ Everybody wants to eat before the Dallas Cowboys game.

To beat the mob, sign up for turkey lunch in late morning or wait until midafternoon, when the game starts. (You might not miss much.)

Generally, the list of restaurants with tables bookable online includes most prime steakhouses and hotels, particularly the city’s signature Cast Iron buffet at the Omni ($74).

A few selected choices:

▪ Blue Mesa Grill , 612 Carroll St., is the popular family buffet every holiday. It opens at the right time: 8 a.m., leaving time to watch plenty of football or to join a second gathering later.

The menu includes turkey and stuffing, brisket, ham and salmon, plus Blue Mesa’s usual Southwestern enchiladas, tacos and breakfast items. It serves until 4 p.m.; $40.

▪ All the hotels are open, but the premier buffet in Northeast Tarrant County is always at Zeppole or the Riverwalk Cantina in the Gaylord Texan .

Zeppole promises a traditional brunch with a liquid nitrogen gelato bar. Riverwalk Cantina is slightly more South Texas with a mariachi band. Either buffet costs $110.

Also, the new Ritz Carlton Dallas, Las Colinas in Irving promises a Texas-themed brunch. The price is (cough, cough) $165.

▪ That makes the Live! by Loews — Arlington buffet look like a downright bargain at $95. A turkey plate in Farena at the Loews Arlington is $35.

(Or wait and have dinner later at the hotel’s Cut & Bourbon for $49 while the Cowboys crowd leaves.)

▪ More reasonable: Luby’s , the timeless Texas cafeteria, is open and serving turkey and dressing plates with dessert for $13.99.

Luby’s is at 3312 SE Loop 820 on Interstate 20 in Forest Hill, with other locations in north and south Dallas.

▪ In the Stockyards, 97 West in the renowned Hotel Drover is serving lunch or dinner for $75 with steak or roast turkey, smoked meatloaf, lobster mac-and-cheese and other sides.

▪ Truluck’s , 1420 Plaza Place, Southlake, has a typical prime steakhouse lunch at $59. Same for Capital Grille, Eddie V’s and almost all the prime shops.

▪ CRÚ Food & Wine Bar , 5188 Marathon Ave. in the Shops at Clearfork, rolls out a three-course turkey, prime rib or salmon platter with a complimentary Angry Orchard hard cider; $55.

▪ New to this market, the California-based Black Bear Diner chain will be open and serving turkey, ham or prime rib dinners. The two locations are in far north and south Fort Worth.

▪ Simply Fondue , 111 W. Fourth St. in Sundance Square, is open from noon serving fondues and tenderloin, chicken, ham and pork loin; $59.

▪ For a small-town Thanksgiving, Paradise Bistro in Granbury is serving Cornish hen with dressing and sides, $21.

▪ Del Toro BBQ , 109 S. Main St., Mansfield, will be open until 3 p.m. No word whether the menu will include a Thanksgiving dinner, but smoked turkey is available every day.

▪ For a change of pace or for big families, all Meso Maya or El Fenix locations will be open for lunch until 3 p.m. El Fenix now serves chicken enchiladas in mole sauce, not exactly traditional for Thanksgiving but different.