Big-Shot Ramen

Las Vegas' Monta Ramen plots first Texas noodle shop in popular Dallas suburb

Dallas' emerging ramen scene is about to welcome a big-deal newcomer. Monta Ramen, one of the top ramen joints in Las Vegas, is coming to Texas, with a branch opening in Richardson, on Coit Road just south of Arapaho.

Monta comes from restaurateur Takashi Segawa, who has a growing empire of restaurants that includes highly regarded Las Vegas sushi restaurant Kabuto.

Monta has two locations in Las Vegas, including the original in the city's Chinatown district that opened in 2010. One publication credits it with setting ramen on fire in Las Vegas; another called it "some of the best ramen outside Tokyo."

Monta serves "Kurume-style" ramen, with large planks of pork, broth made from pork bones and soy sauce imported from Japan. The menu is small, with the archetypal tonkotsu ramen with pork in a milky broth, plus a few alternatives such as shoyu ramen (with a clear, soy-based broth) and miso ramen (in which miso is added to the tonkotsu).

A bowl runs $6.95 to $7.25. Other menu options are limited to dumplings and fried rice.

Once open, it will join a small, newly-gathering group of restaurants in Dallas offering ramen that includes Tanoshii in Deep Ellum and Tei An at One Arts Plaza.

Segawa, who also owns an all-you-can-eat sushi chain called Sushi-Mon, was unavailable for comment. But a manager at the Las Vegas branch confirmed that Dallas would be the first Monta outpost in Texas, and that a remodel was underway. The decor at the Las Vegas outlets includes lots of pale woods, including a large irregularly shaped bar formed out of a slab of wood.

"We're hoping to be open this summer," she said.

That space has seen a string of short-term failed tenants in the past few years, from Kel's Kitchen to a deli called Stuie's to a healthy-food restaurant called Vitality House to something called H & D BBQ & Grill to the most recent tenant, a Chinese place called Lin Express that was locked out for nonpayment of rent.

A spokesman for the shopping center said that the space fit Monta's requirements to a T, and that the company was looking to open other branches in the area down the road.

Monta Ramen has applied for a liquor license at 800 N. Coit Road in Richardson.

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Burger News

Austin favorite Hopdoddy Burger Bar to open location in McKinney

Hopdoddy Burger Bar/ Facebook

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Austin's favorite burger is coming to McKinney: Hopdoddy Burger Bar, a pioneered of the better burger movement, is opening a location in Mckinney at 8565 W. University Dr. in the West Grove development.

According to a release, it'll open in mid-November.

Founded in Austin, Texas in 2010, Hopdoddy Burger Bar pioneered the better burger trend — doing better versions of a burger than what you'd get at a fast-food restaurant, and with an in-house bar.

The McKinney location will observe Hopdoddy’s standard menu with not only burgers, but also fried chicken, hand-cut fries, and loaded Brussels sprouts.

Their most popular items include:

The Cadillac Burger: half-pound Wagyu beef, Swiss cheese, bacon, fried onions, steak sauce, truffle aioli, roasted tomato, arugula, on house-baked bun
The Goodnight / Good Cause Burger: Grass-fed beef, Tillamook cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, jalapeños, caffeinated BBQ sauce, Mayo, lettuce, tomato
Wagyu Smash: Double Wagyu beef smash patties, American cheese, shaved onions, pickled jalapeños, HD secret sauce
Crispy Chicken Bacon Ranch: fried chicken, bacon, white American cheese, crispy onions, ranch slaw, chipotle aioli, pickles
Parmesan truffle fries: tossed with truffle oil, Parmesan, chives, truffle aioli
Hot Honey and Sage Brussels Sprouts: Brussels sprout leaves tossed with hot honey sauce and fried sage

Every month, Hopdoddy introduces a "Burger of the Month," which in November will be the Mountain Moon made with an elk blend burger, Swiss cheese, braised rotkohl red cabbage, whole grain mustard aioli, microgreens, and cumberland sauce (spiced red wine jelly) on a coriander seed bun. McKinney will be open in time to serve this creation.

Hopdoddy’s bar serves boozy drinks, draft beer, and milkshakes such as frozen margaritas, tres leches shake, boozy double chocolate brownie shake spiked with Frangelico Hazelnut Liqueur.

Hopdoddy has 47 locations and counting across Texas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida and Louisiana including Uptown Dallas, Addison, Euless, Fort Worth Alliance, Fort Worth Left Bank, Uptown Dallas, Preston Center, and Plano.

“We’re thrilled to bring Hopdoddy up north to McKinney,” said Hopdoddy Burger Bar CEO Jeff Chandler. “North Texas has always shown tremendous love for our brand, and we can’t wait to share our signature burgers and craft cocktails with even more guests in the area.”

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