Rock Band Beer

Martin House Brewery mixes up some suds with Toadies for Rubberneck Red

Fort Worth rock band the Toadies plans to reissue their seminal 1994 album Rubberneck in a way that is sure to please beer drinkers: with a new signature limited-edition craft beer.

Called Rubberneck Red, the beer is made by Fort Worth brewery Martin House, which will release it on March 15, timed to preview the upcoming reissue of the album.

The beer boasts an easy-drinking 5 percent ABV, and it will be available in cans and on tap at a few local bars. And lest you think this is just a beer with a celebrity endorsement, then think twice, says Martin House spokesman David Wedemeier.

"People love the Toadies, so their stamp means it's probably going to be kick ass," says Martin House spokesman David Wedemeier.

"This is a real legitimate collaboration," he says. "This was them coming into brewery a few times and us developing the kind of beer they wanted. We started with the Imperial Texan, our double red, which they all liked. But that's a 9 percent ABV beer. They said, 'Can we do something along those lines, but not such a high alcohol percentage?'

"[Brewer] Cody Martin did a few iterations on the Imperial Texan and dialed that down to 5 percent," Wedemeier says.

Release of the Rubberneck Red is going to be state-wide.

"Up until now, we've always gone grass roots and been present when the beer is poured," Wedemeier says. "That's not possible for us if we want to release this simultaneously in Houston or Austin or San Antonio.

"But the Toadies have been around for more than 20 years," he says. "Having the name Toadies on it is enough for people to want to try it. People know the Toadies and love the Toadies, so their stamp means it's probably going to be kick ass. And it might introduce craft beer to people who haven't discovered that yet."

The Toadies, who've launched a national spring tour to commemorate the re-release of their most successful album, posted the label of the beer on a Jigsaw puzzle. It's a cute little spin-off of the album cover, first painted by artist Dan Lightner.

The only limitation regarding the beer will be Martin House's ability to produce enough. "We're at 120 barrels, so we'll be at full capacity," Wedemeier says. "This is probably as much as our little brewery can handle."

And it'll only be available through the spring.

"It's about celebrating the re-release of Rubberneck as an album; it's going to be limited supply," Wedemeier says. "We bought a certain number of cans. As soon as those are gone, the beer is gone."

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Spring Arrival

West Dallas gets new Spanish-Peruvian restaurant with big-name chef

Photo courtesy of Ulloa's

Paella will be on the menu.

A new restaurant with a high-profile culinary director will bring Spanish and Peruvian flavors to West Dallas: Called Ulloa’s, it is coming to 727 Fort Worth Ave., with a projected opening in March 2027.

The concept is from philanthropists Susan and Woodrow Gandy, who were previously investors in the historic Belmont Hotel just around the corner. They've teamed up with Dallas celebrity chef Kent Rathbun as culinary director, along with Christopher Tunnell as general manager to lead the front of the house.

Rathbun is a name Dallas diners know well, with a resume that includes The Mansion on Turtle Creek, the Landmark Restaurant at the historic Melrose Hotel, Seventeen Seventeen at the Dallas Museum of Art, Abacus, Jasper's, Rathbun’s Blue Plate Kitchen, and more. He's won numerous awards and made multiple appearances on Food Network. He was most recently behind the launch of On The Rocks, an Italian bistro in Burleson.

Chef Kent Rathbun will be the culinary director of Ulloa's. Photo courtesy of Kent Rathbun

Tunnell’s background spans both culinary direction and front-of-house operations. He worked at Los Angeles hot spots Ketchup, Geisha House, and Les Deux, as well as the Mandalay Bay and The Mirage in Las Vegas, before moving to Dallas to open The Mexican, the upscale restaurant in the Design District.

“I am truly excited to partner with Chef Kent Rathbun, whose reputation is amazing — not only in the DFW Metroplex, but in the culinary world,” Tunnell says. “He has been with this project since the beginning, helping develop it; this will be a very chef-driven, culinary-forward restaurant.”

The team's vision for Ulloa’s is both culinary and urban, with hopes of anchoring the corridor and attracting other businesses to Fort Worth Avenue — a stretch connecting downtown Dallas with Oak Cliff that remains somewhat underdeveloped despite its panoramic skyline views.

The restaurant is named for Spanish explorer, astronomer, and scientist Antonio de Ulloa, who spent extensive time in the Mexican peninsula before becoming Louisiana’s first governor. During his travels, Ulloa documented a fogbow — a circular rainbow formed when sunlight meets mist that causes silhouettes standing between the sun and fog to appear ringed in light, a phenomenon known today as “Ulloa’s Rings.”

That vibrant phenomenon inspired both the restaurant's identity and logo. The concept promises "bold, worldly flavors in a welcoming neighborhood setting inspired by exploration and discovery,” the owners say.

Ulloa's Rendering of Ulloa's.Rendering courtesy of Ulloa's

While the menu remains in development, Tunnell describes the culinary direction as “Spanish soul with a Peruvian heart.” The kitchen will merge the coastal flavors of both traditions — ranging from paellas and ceviches to crafted cocktails and signature adaptations by Rathbun.

The 200-seat, two-story space will feature a downstairs dining room, a large bar, and an outdoor patio. Upstairs, plans call for a secondary bar, a private dining room, a patio, and an expansive balcony patio, offering views of the city's skyline and of the Margaret Hunt Hill and Margaret McDermott bridges.

While the upstairs space will be available for private events, the owners intend for it to operate primarily as an organic extension of the main restaurant. The buildout will include a guest elevator along with ample parking, including both self-parking and valet options.

The team says the restaurant will have have an aesthetic that's “warm, theatrical, generous, elegant but alive, with the energy of a great Spanish tapas bar and the soul of Peruvian hospitality.”

Ulloa’s plans to launch with dinner service first, followed by lunch and weekend brunch.

restaurants bars peruvian flavors west dallas oak cliff kent rathbun