BBQ News

New BBQ restaurant fires up ribs and TVs in Duke's spot in Addison

Barbecue is ON in Addison.

Photo courtesy of FB/Jackie Don Loe

Addison has a new barbecue restaurant run by a husband-and-wife couple who have hospitality experience — and barbecue experience, too. Called Austin's Bar-B-Que, it's at the northwest corner of Keller Springs and Addison roads, at 16101 Addison Rd., in the space that was previously Duke's Icehouse.

Old-timers might remember there was once an Austin's Bar-B-Que in Oak Cliff, but there's no relation. This restaurant is called Austin's because it's the last name of Robert and Valerie Austin, who are running the show.

Robert says they came in on the invitation of the owner, who wanted a restaurant in the space. They've been open for two weeks, and have barely had a chance to catch their breath.

Brisket and ribs are their specialty, with a crunchy, barky exterior and tender inside. But they do all the smoked meats, including brisket, pulled pork, chicken, turkey, and sausage, including regular and jalapeño.

They do meat by the pound, plus sandwiches featuring their smoked meats. Robert says they're using a smoker by Patterson Pits.

Sides are homey and mostly made in-house, including mac 'n cheese, a mustard potato salad, and a black-eyed pea salad with corn kernels mixed in.

"We're doing jalapeno pinto beans, fresh green beans with new potatoes, smoked baked beans with meat, and a good coleslaw," Robert says. "We'll also do some specials like wasabi coleslaw."

Valerie has tended bar at high-end spots including Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Palomino's at the Crescent Hotel.

Robert is a familiar name in the barbecue world, having worked for the Baker's Ribs chain for more than 25 years. In 2018, he got his feet wet when he opened Uptown Bar-B-Que, a stand set up at Old Warsaw restaurant, which he was running with his son.

"We left that last year, and now we're in Addison," Robert says.

They've spiffed up the space, which they're fashioning as not only a barbecue joint but also a sports bar, for the old Duke's regulars. When the weather's nice, they roll up the garage doors.

barbecue

Tres chic

Deep Ellum bar duo to open bohemian French restaurant in Bishop Arts

Courtesy Peter Novotny

The in-progress exterior of Trapeze

A new French-inspired restaurant and bar from the team behind two Deep Ellum hot spots will soon make its debut in Dallas' Bishop Arts District: Called Trapeze, it will open this spring in a cute bungalow at 240 W. 8th St.

Trapeze is from Peter Novotny and Dan Murry, who operate popular Deep Ellum haunts Ruins and Armoury D.E. They have been remodeling the old Bishop Arts bungalow extensively for their newest restaurant venture.

“It’s basically going to be kind of a French bohemian bar and restaurant, with real emphasis on the bohemian,” Novotny says. “It will kind of feel like an old-fashioned bohemian artist’s enclave.”

Matt Battaglia, the founder of the now-defunct Denton music festival Oaktopia and current tour manager for musician Marc Rebillet, is also involved in the project.

The space itself underwent a massive revamp that’s been in the works for months, including a few weather-induced delays. And because Trapeze is located in a conservation district, that construction had to be done in a way that would maintain the home’s original look.

“It’s basically a complete renovation,” Novotny says. “They had to rebuild the entire structure. The whole exterior is all new.”

Novotny says that the inspiration for Trapeze comes from Oak Cliff’s own historical French influence. That will be reflected in the space’s “quirky” vibe, which he says will be very colorful and in keeping with the bohemian theme.

The neighborhood was once home to the French utopian community La Reunion, which sprouted up around 1855.

“We’re trying to do a tribute to the French history of Oak Cliff and Bishop Arts, and our goal is to capture the things we love about regional French cuisine and culture,” he says.

To head up the kitchen at Trapeze, Novotny and Murry tapped Jeremy Spector, a New York chef who’s worked in much-lauded kitchens like Balthazar and Gramercy Tavern, along with owning and operating his own restaurants in the city, as culinary director. Spector is developing the menu for the restaurant, which will serve classic dishes from the different regions of France, along with flavors inspired by France’s once-vast colonial empire, including Moroccan cuisine.

As one might expect from two Deep Ellum bar experts, the cocktail program at Trapeze will be serious. Expect classic French cocktails, New Orleans-influenced libations, and an extensive list of cognacs, rhum agricoles, and “many other classic French spirits and liqueurs,” Novotny says. The bar will also offer a solid menu of aperitifs and digestifs, along with cocktails mixed with absinthe, cognac, and Chartreuse, and French and “French-adjacent” cider and beer.

Novotny and Murry are shooting for an opening date in April, just in time for what will hopefully be good spring weather.

bishop arts deep ellum openings