News You Can Eat
Happy hour deals burst out in this crop of Dallas restaurant news
All of the restaurant news in this Dallas restaurant news roundup is good. There are openings, new cocktails, new brunches, and new selections of Rosé; there can be never be too much Rosé. We shall put special focus on happy hours, because the words "happy hour" make us happy.
Here's what's happening in Dallas dining news:
Street's Fine Chicken, the fried chicken concept born on Cedar Springs Road, has a second location in the works at Forest Lane and Inwood Road. This is a neighborhood the Street family knows well, since they have a Liberty Burger right next door. This Street's Fine Chicken will have fast-casual service; owner Marco Street proclaims it's here to stay. That has to be good news for chains like Pei Wei, who have done fast-casual service since 2000. The new branch will serve marinated grilled chicken, fried chicken, roast chicken, and chicken-fried steak, plus whole chickens for sale, spatchcock style, which means it's flattened out.
Another Broken Egg Cafe opened its third Texas location in The Colony at the mixed-used development Grandscape on March 13. Local franchiser Stuart Ottinger calls Grandscape "one of the most unique mixed-use developments in the country." Another Broken Egg Cafe is open for breakfast and lunch, or what they like to call "the daytime sector." Menu includes seven omelets, peach cobbler pancakes, cinnamon roll French toast, bananas foster Belgian waffles, black bean Benedict, huevos rancheros, and biscuits & gravy. Grandscape is being developed by Nebraska Furniture Mart, a Berkshire Hathaway company, and affiliates. Another Broken Egg has 60 cafes across the southeastern United States, California, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky.
On The Border reopened its newly remodeled store at 1350 Northwest Hwy. in Garland on March 3. This is the OTB with the upscaled décor and layout, featuring large rustic stonework framing, wood-slat walls, beer-bottle chandeliers, and a state-of-the-art kitchen with open views of sizzling fajitas being prepared over a Mesquite wood-burning grill. Seating is large and comfortable, far preferable to small and cramped, good for parties with many guests. The patio is the place to welcome cooler spring temperatures with toasty hot appetizers and entrées while watching a local college or pro football game.
Quesa, a Mexican restaurant on Cedar Springs that never got much attention, is closing to be replaced by a taco stand called Q Tacos and Machos Cantina. The owners of Quesa have partnered with cocktail specialist Michael Martensen to do a reset. The new concept will have a walk-up window and a bar that serves, OMG, frozen vodka Red Bull.
Quincy's Chicken Shack in Old Town Coppell is open for lunch with menu items from Chef Graham Dodds. In addition to rotisserie and fried chicken, there is cornbread, chicken salad, barbecue chicken sandwich, Nashville spicy fried chicken sandwich, chicken tenders, and seasonal sides. Desserts include fried pie and grandma's cookie dough. Lunch runs Monday-Friday, 11 am-2 pm, and Saturday, 11 am-5 pm. Dinner service starts at 5 pm every day except Sunday.
Nikkei, the Japanese-Peruvian restaurant on Cedar Springs Road, is now offering an izkaya menu weekdays from 5-7 pm. Izakaya is Japanese bar food. Small bites include sushi rolls, mochi ice cream, fried chicken, salmon ceviche, edamame, and raices fritas, which are fried root vegetables. For drinks, there's sake, beer, wine, and cocktails such as the Nikkei margarita, made with Pisco Acholado, lime juice, and yuzu.
CiboDivino Marketplace had added a section dedicated to Rosés, called Rosé Row. Chef-owner Daniele Puleo loves rose for spring and summer. He and his wife, Christina, are even developing their own Rosé, which will be the fourth addition to their Puleo wine label along with Pinot Grigio, Chianti, and Prosecco. They'll also offer Rosé by the glass. Rosé all day!
Dolce Riviera, the Harwood District restaurant, debuts brunch on March 18, with hours from 12-3 pm. Menu highlights include Italian turnovers, omelets, English muffins with prosciutto, and more. It'll also be instituting a DJ brunch series, where you can pair brunch and bubbly with beats from Dallas' best DJs every Saturday, at different Harwood restaurants, be it Dolce Riviera, Mercat Bistro, or Saint Ann Restaurant and Bar. The DJ schedule is available at HarwoodDistrict.com/events or HarwoodDJBrunch.com.
Ocean Prime Dallas has happy hour specials including $5 off small plates and sushi offerings from a menu that includes ceviche, short rib tacos, shrimp pot stickers, sliders, lamb lollipops, crudo, and sushi. Happy hour takes place in the lounge, Monday-Friday, from 4-7 pm.
Cook Hall has a new happy hour menu with half-price appetizers, $5 cocktail of the day, and $5 bloody Marys. Hours are Monday-Friday, 4-6 pm, and Saturday-Sunday, 11 am-3 pm.
Rio Mambo is doing $2.99 margaritas from now thru Cinco de Mayo. These margaritas are made with the same premium tequila, same strength (no diluting!), and the same size. To get these $2.99 margaritas at any of the six locations (Addison, South Arlington, Ballpark, Colleyville, Fort Worth, and Weatherford), you must first download the Rio Mambo app. Come on, it's a small price to pay for $3 margaritas for the next 50 days!
Malai Kitchen has installed a sugar cane juicer at its Uptown Dallas location and has another on order for the third location opening in Fort Worth in September. Owners Braden and Yasmin Wages already brew their own beer, press their own coconut milk, and make sriracha from scratch. The sugar cane juice is used primarily in a refreshing non-alcoholic drink called House Pressed Sugar Cane Juice with Ginger & Lime, but they'll also incorporate it into seasonal cocktails and entrées.
Empire Baking Co. has two specialty breads for March: Irish Soda Bread for $9, made correctly with the raisins and the caraway seeds, and multigrain croissants for $3.49.
Pok the Raw Bar, the new poke place in the West Village, has cool new sake cocktails. There's a sake drink with jalapeño, cucumber, yuzu, and lemonade, and a sake drink with grapefruit, yuzu, and lime. There is sake sangria; lychee-infused sake; sake with matcha, lime, lemonade, and honey; and a drink combining sparking sake and Sauvignon Blanc.
Starbucks has new ready-to-drink beverages, including a dulce de leche Frappuccino bottled drink combining caramelized milk and coffee, and three new Doubleshots: Cubano Starbucks Doubleshot Espresso inspired by Cuban-style coffee, Espresso and Salted Caramel Cream, and Caramel Starbucks Doubleshot Coffee & Protein.
La Madeleine, the Dallas-based bakery chain, is switching over more of its company-owned locations to franchised status. Owner Le Duff America, which also operates Bruegger's Bagels and Mimi's Cafe, wants to grow the brand bigger and more quickly; the company has historically grown slowly, with 87 locations since it was founded in 1983.
Victor Tangos, the Henderson Avenue restaurant-bar, has a new chef: Jeff Harris. You can already find some of his dishes on the menu including roasted beets with avocado puree, goat cheese, orange and hazelnut crumble; and roasted cauliflower with green mole, grapefruit, parsley, mint, and charred tortilla. Sounds divine. VT also recently welcomed Heather Borges, formerly of Filament, as general manager.
