New-Age Grocery Store

5 things you need to know about Artizone artisan food delivery

Buying local artisan food while in your PJs in front of your laptop seems counterintuitive. And expensive.

Shouldn’t you have to beat the crowds early Saturday morning at the farmers market before you traipse all over town to buy Deep Ellum Blue from Mozzarella Company, beer brats at Kuby’s, beef tenderloin tamales from Tamale Company, whatever irresistible treat they’re selling at Dude, Sweet Chocolate or Emporium Pie, and then drag your way through Green Grocer to pick up all the odds and ends you missed?

You can. Or you can buy your favorites at Artizone.com and get a most satisfying message when you place your order, explaining how many miles you didn’t drive, how many gallons of gas you didn’t use and how many hours of traffic you didn’t endure.

Artizone debuted in Dallas in November of 2010 after a nationwide search for the perfect market: a foodie city with a solid community of artisan shops. Four of the 10 cities originally identified were in Texas, so the founders did a big city tour — Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin — and found what they liked here.

“It just felt like the vibe of the city was right,” says Amber Dietrich, vice president of market operations.

If you’re new to Artizone, you’re welcome. Here are five things you should know about this artisan lovers digital paradise:

You don’t pay extra for the food, and delivery is just $5.95 — or free, if you spend more than $120.
You can shop by recipes, then add all the ingredients to your cart.
You can get Wild About Harry’s (one of 87 local vendors) delivered to your door. We know it’s worth it to fight the Knox-Henderson traffic, but now you don’t have to.
The company delivers as far north as McKinney and Frisco, down through all the usual suburban suspects, as far south as Oak Cliff, and little pockets of Mesquite and Garland to the east. It’s biggest growth right now is in Irving.
It’s not all magazine-worthy, local food your grandma can’t pronounce. Want to wrap up your amazing menu with a 12-pack of A&W root beer? Mrs. Baird’s white bread? Skippy peanut butter? Bisquick? Rotel tomatoes? An actual cake mix (gasp!)? Do it. Nobody is there to judge you.

You can even order strawberries.

Photo courtesy of Artizone

You can even order strawberries.

Yes, cheese

Nashville gourmet grilled cheese shop melts into Texas with Plano debut

Photo courtesy of Cheese Lab

Pimento Mac 'n' Cheese Melty at Cheese Lab.

A Nashville restaurant that puts gourmet twists on grilled cheese sandwiches has made its Texas debut in Plano. Called Cheese Lab, the shop has opened inside Legacy Hall, the three-story food hall at the Legacy West complex at 7800 Windrose Ave.

Plano is just the second location for Cheese Lab, and its first outside of Tennessee.

Founded by restaurateur Youssef Koutout, Cheese Lab serves elevated comfort food built around artisan cheeses, premium ingredients, and inventive flavor combinations, a release says. The concept debuted at Assembly Food Hall in downtown Nashville before expanding to North Texas.

Rather than sticking to the standard grilled cheese, the menu features a lineup of "melty" sandwiches with creative fillings.

The Cheese Lab offers creative twists on grilled cheese sandwiches. Photo courtesy of Cheese Lab

Signature options include the Nashville Smokehouse Melty with slow-smoked brisket; the Pimento Mac 'n' Cheese Melty; the Pulled Pork Meltstorm; the Southern Heritage Grilled Ham Duo; and the Brie & Fig Grilled Melty.

Sure to be a Texas favorite: The Birria on Broadway Melty, featuring slow-cooked chuck roll beef braised in-house for six hours, Monterey Jack cheese, onions, cilantro, and consommé dipping soup.

The menu also includes loaded mac and cheese, house-made soups, crispy Cheetos Balls, and breakfast items such as buttermilk biscuits, breakfast burritos, and bagel sandwiches.

BBQ Brisket Mac n Cheese Melty.Photo courtesy of Cheese Lab

"At Cheese Lab, we took one of America's most recognizable comfort foods and completely reimagined it," Koutout says in the release. "Every sandwich starts with quality ingredients and is built to bring unexpected flavors to a classic sandwich. We're excited to bring our second location to Legacy Hall and become part of the Plano community."

Amanda McFarland, executive vice president of FB Society, which operates Legacy Hall, says the concept fits the venue's focus on chef-driven dining.

Cheetos Ball.Photo courtesy of Cheese Lab

"Cheese Lab brings exactly the kind of creativity we look for at Legacy Hall," McFarland says. "Their menu takes something everyone knows and loves and turns it into a new culinary experience. We think guests are going to have a lot of fun working their way through the menu."

Cheese Lab is open 10 am-9 pm Monday-Wednesday, 10 am-10 pm Thursday, 10 am-1 am Friday-Saturday, and 10 am-9 pm Sunday.

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