This Week in Gluttony

Chinese New Year celebrations top best food and drink events in Dallas

The Super Bowl is this weekend, so everything else is largely irrelevant. But bosses sometimes disagree with that sentiment, so here are five foodie things to do this week that are not Super Bowl related. We should mention there are two different Chinese New Year events, because dumplings should be served with every meal — even Super Bowl parties.

There’s also a pretty fresh dinner going on at Urban Acres in which a lot of notable Dallas chefs are making their favorite dishes. You might taste these dishes and experience a revelation because fresh, local ingredients are awesome, especially at a Super Bowl party.

Holy Grail Pub in Plano hosts a two-day Chili-pa-looza, and chili is always excellent, so maybe go and take notes on the kind of chili you might like to prepare on Sunday for your Super Bowl party.

Super Bowl? Super Bowl.

Tuesday, January 28

Second Annual Steward’s Dinner at Urban Acres
Urban Acres hosts farmer Joel Salatin and a stable of local chefs for its second annual Steward’s Dinner beginning at 7 pm. The indoor fair features small plates prepared by Dallas chefs Graham Dodds, Chad Houser, Matt McCallister and more, as well as live music, activities and open bar. Tickets are $90 and can be purchased online.

Wednesday, January 29

Frog's Leap Wine Dinner at Olenjack's Grille
Olenjack’s teams up with Frog’s Leap Winery for a four-course wine dinner beginning at 7 pm. Pairings include grilled Texas shrimp with cilantro, lime and peanuts with 2012 Sauvignon Blanc Rutherford-Napa Valley, as well as pork paillard with acorn squash, red onions, basil and roasted beet with 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. Reservations are $70 and can be made at 817-226-2600.

Friday, January 31

Chinese New Year Menu at Five Sixty
Celebrate the “Year of the Horse” at Five Sixty beginning January 31 as Wolfgang Puck and company introduces a five-course tasting menu during the Chinese New Year. Courses include horse mackerel tartare, Chinese New Year dumplings, whole roasted quail, Wagyu NY strip and Maine lobster, and Chinese New Year tangerine cake and house-made fortune cookies. The tasting menu is $135, and there is an optional wine pairing for $50. Reservations can be made at 214-741-5560. The tasting menu is available through February 13.

Third Annual Chili-pa-looza at Holy Grail Pub
Holy Grail Pub hosts its third annual Chili-pa-looza on January 31 and February 1. The house-made chilis include smoked brisket, green chile chicken, white turkey hominy and vegetarian three bean. Each bowl is $9, or you can order a flight of all four for $15. The looza goes from open to close both days and doesn’t require a reservation.

Saturday, February 1

Date Night: Chinese New Year at Sur La Table
Sur La Table teaches you and a date how to create classic Chinese New Year plates, including pork and ginger dumplings with sesame-soy dipping sauce, Chinese barbecue pork tenderloin with sautéed bok choy, Kung Pao shrimp, and green tea fortune cookies. The class begins at 5 pm and costs $79 per person. Spots can be reserved online.

Get your dumpling fix at Five Sixty beginning January 31 to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

Photo courtesy of Pixabay

Get your dumpling fix at Five Sixty beginning January 31 to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

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Steak & Ale News

Local opening of Dallas chain Steak and Ale gets derailed

Steak and Ale

The long-in-the-works return of Steak and Ale in Dallas is being shelved for now: The casual steakhouse chain which in its heyday had nearly 300 locations is no longer opening a location it planned for in Grand Prairie.

According to a May 11 post from company owner Paul Mangiamele, the restaurant is definitely now a no-go.

"After years of very hard and exhausting work for making the Grand Prairie side by side S&A and Bennigan’s happen, the rug has been yanked out from under us," Mangiamele said in his post.

Often referred to as a pioneer in casual dining, Steak and Ale debuted in 1966, offering an affordable steakhouse experience with rustic Tudor design that included wooden beams and stained glass. In addition to steak and a signature salad bar, the menu featured then-fancy items such as steak Oscar, baby back ribs, and Hawaiian chicken with pineapple teriyaki sauce.

The chain remained a buzzy destination throughout the '70s and '80s, but by 2008, the parent company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and the remaining locations closed.

In 2023, businessman Paul Mangiamele, chairman and CEO of Legendary Restaurant Brands (which includes Monte Cristo sandwich purveyor Bennigan’s and Bennigan’s On The Fly, which he has also revived), launched a long-held plan to revive the Steak and Ale concept that included opening a new Steak and Ale in Burnsville, Minnesota, as well as partnering with a franchisee to open a location in Grand Prairie, side-by-side with a Bennigan's.

The Minnesota location opened in August 2024, but Grand Prairie will not be so lucky, and according to Mangiamele, it's due to the shenanigans of the franchisee.

"For years, we were being told by the developer and owner of the land how he was going to be our franchise partner," Mangiamele says. "He shared with me numerous times how he grew up with the brands and wanted to do his part in honoring Norman Brinker and would be a proud franchise owner. Well, after he finally (3 years later) received his money for selling some of his land, instead of being our franchise partner, he changed his tune, and wanted to instead, sell his land to us!!"

According to Mangiamele, not only did the franchisee try to sell back the land, he tried to make a profit.

"Our special deal was a ‘discounted’ price per foot on the land we’d need," Mangiamele says. "After a few due diligence calls, the discounted ’deal’ price was 20% higher than the comparable prices in the same area!! Simply unbelievable!"

Mangiamele says they are still talking to other interested parties in the greater DFW area and should have more news soon.

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