If you like brisk restaurant action — if you like news about openings and closings and new menus — you have come to the right place. This chapter of Dallas dining dish is filled to the brim.
Here's what's happening in Dallas restaurants:
Crudo Italian, an acclaimed Italian restaurant that was previously in Frisco, gets a second lease on life at 8411 Preston Rd. in Dallas. Crudo Italian observes the traditions of Northern Italy, taking a lighter and more sophisticated approach to the cuisine, with house-made pastas and gnocchi, seafood flown in daily, and a robust baking program with breads made in-house. Executive chef and partner Javier Perez’s signature entrees include rack of lamb, lobster ravioli, roasted chicken al limone, beef carpaccio, calamari fritto misto, pizza, and flatbreads.
Ascension Annex is a new offshoot of Ascension coffee, opening in the Fountain Place building on February 19. It'll serve paninis, mini quiches, paleo bowls, coffee, and to-go food.
Uchiba, the new concept above Uchi Dallas replacing Top Knot, is open. It has a full sushi bar and yakitori grill, so guests can order items like short rib meatballs and pork belly uakatori along with sushi favorites from Uchi and the fried chicken buns for which Top Knot was known.
El Corazon de Tejas, the Tex-Mex restaurant that was once in Oak Cliff, has opened in McKinney, at 1222 N. Central Expy. in a former El Chico's. They've brought some of the fixtures from the Oak Cliff store, including its signature mural.
Tavolo Italia, the bistro in Frisco, closed after a two-year run. The restaurant was from Jeff Frankel, owner of Mattito's next door, and took over a space that had been Go-Go Burgers.
Arepa TX closed its location in Frisco. Owner Susana Arce says that the restaurant was doing well until the Shops at Legacy, the Star, and the Legacy Food Hall opened. "It's going to take some time until Frisco gets enough residents for the amount of restaurants in the area," she says. "It was a very hard decision, we had put all of our savings in building that restaurant, but we are doing very well at our new location at 5940 Royal Ln., at the corner of Preston Road. They've just introduced a new brunch with $2 mimosas, gluten-free ricotta lemon pancakes, egg arepas, chilaquiles, fried chicken and maple arepas, plus live music on Sundays.
AC Lounge is the new bar at the AC Hotel by Marriott in downtown Dallas, which opened in fall 2017 in the historic Mercantile Commerce Building. Eager to entice the downtown set, the Lounge has introduced a limited happy hour menu with cocktails, red and white wine, and prosecco for $8 each and under, available from 4-7 pm Monday-Saturday. A selection of tapas-style small bites includes toasts, meatballs, olives, charcuterie, and cheeses.
Beau Nash is the re-opened bar at the Hotel Crescent Court in Uptown Dallas; the original was open from 1986-2004. In its current iteration, it has more than 30 champagnes and sparkling wines, Texas craft beer, wine, cocktails, and what it calls "one of the largest selections of scotch and whiskey in Dallas." The food is American classics with a Texas twist, such as truffled caviar eggs, tuna poke, and braised short rib tagliatelle.
City Tavern, the popular downtown Dallas bar, is moving to Mid Elm Lofts, a new historic redevelopment with retail and restaurant space at 1512 Elm St. It's a block away from its original location at 1402 Main St., where it has been since 2004. The new location will open in June 2018.
Local, the Deep Ellum fine-dining restaurant, is celebrating its 15-year anniversary with a month full of special offerings including a special tasting menu with French wine pairings. Dishes include Vidalia French onion soup, polenta cake, seared scallop, pork tender, smoked filet, cheese and jam, and flourless chocolate cake. The tasting is $75 plus $35 for wine.
Meso Maya, the upscale Mexican concept from El Fenix owners Firebird Restaurant Group, has opened a location in Addison at 5280 Belt Line Rd., at the intersection of Belt Line and Montfort Drive in Addison. This is the seventh Meso Maya in DFW.
Trinity Cider is a cider company opening in May in Deep Ellum at 2656 Main St., next to Pecan Lodge. It will offer a full spectrum of ciders, with an emphasis on dry to semi-dry craft ciders using variations of traditional apple and pear, as well as unique flavors, spices, and aging techniques such as dark cherry barrel-aged tart cider.
Snuffer's Restaurant & Bar has opened a location in Mesquite at 3726 Towne Crossing Blvd., near Town East Mall. This makes 13 Snuffer's across North Texas.
Village Burger Bar opened its newest location at 1845 Woodall Rodgers Fwy., Ste. 200, near the Perot Museum.The Village Burger Bar chain was acquired in 2017 by Firebird Restaurant Group, which also owns Snuffer's. This is the fifth location, following the original in Dallas' West Village, Watters Creek in Allen, the Shops at Legacy in Plano, and North Dallas at Inwood Road and the Tollway.
3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House has a new menu and management team, including chef-partner Pete Rukes, managing partner Andrew Wilkinson, and pitmaster Bryan Shanahan, who join owner Jason Hall and VP Andrew Golden. The five-year-old restaurant will reopen February 5 with additional dishes from Rukes, such as jalapeño-cheddar sausage corn dogs, Texas poutine with brisket chili, a BLT with pork belly and fried green tomatoes, and doughnut bread pudding.
Pōk the Raw Bar at Dallas' West Village is relaunching its coveted five-seat raw bar with a 30-minute omakasé tasting for $24. Called "Trust Me," the menu features six pieces of nigiri and two hand rolls.
Cicis has a new-ish create-your-own personal pizza. Any guest who purchases a buffet can order a custom pizza with up to four toppings at no extra charge. The personal pizzas start with a traditional 9-inch crust or flatbread and can be topped with choice of sauce from options that include red pizza sauce, alfredo, Buffalo, honey BBQ, zesty ranch, mac & cheese, or spinach alfredo. The pizza is ready in 10 minutes. The offer is limited to one personal pizza per person, for dine-in only.
Top Round Roast Beef has opened at Toyota Music Factory in Irving with roast beef sandwiches, fried chicken sandwiches, ice cream custard, and curly fries. Sandwich options include beef & cheese, beef with horseradish and caraway, and beef with lettuce, tomato, avocado, and ranch. Fries are fried in 100 percent beef fat and can be ordered curly, cheesy, "dirty," or with gravy. Vegetarian options include grilled cheese, a veggie sandwich, kale slaw, and salad. Breakfast is served daily from 8-10:30 am including combos such as roast beef and egg on a bagel. Roast beef for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Empire Baking Company has a new bread of the month for February: peasant bread, an elongated two-pound white Italian country bread. Good for sandwiches, sliced for dips and spreads, or simply to be enjoyed as a table bread, a loaf is $6.99.
Hide, the Deep Ellum cocktail bar, has 150 bottles of special Wild Turkey 12-year-old single barrel reserve bourbon, said to have a silky, lush texture with an initial taste of rich butterscotch, vanilla, and baking spices, developing into hints of stone fruits and coconut on the finish. It's $14 a pour and it won't be around long. Hurry.
III Forks Steakhouse has three new cocktails that are made tableside, $12 each. They include a stirred martini with 1888 hand-pressed olive juice; an old-fashioned with Maker’s Mark Bourbon, Angostura bitters, and Luxardo Maraschino cherry; and the Hanky Panky with gin, Fernet Branca, and vermouth.
Kenny's East Coast Pizza has quick lunch combos starting at $8, the combo being that you get a salad. Options include a slice of pizza, half an Italian or meatball hoagie, half lasagna, or half chicken parmesan. With salad.
Kenny's Burger Joint in Plano and Frisco has two Girl Scout cookie-themed shakes: Thin Mint shake and Samoa shake, both available in "adult" and non-alcoholic versions through the end of February.
Hopdoddy Burger Bar brings back its Thin Mint shake with vanilla ice cream, mint white chocolate sauce, and Thin Mint cookie pieces. It's $6, from February 7-27.
El Fenix is celebrating its centennial anniversary by hosting a create-your-own-margarita contest. You must use Sauza Hornitos tequila (Plata or Reposado) as your main ingredient. Submit your recipe to ElFenix.com/Enter by February 14; winners will be announced via social media on February 22.
City Works in Frisco and Fort Worth is doing special New Orleans-inspired menu items from February 9-13 including alligator gumbo, shrimp po'boy, shrimp and grits, and a king cake made with cinnamon brown ale cake, nut crumble, and cream cheese frosting.
