Hot Chicken News

Dallas seafood chain tacks on takeout hot chicken in Lake Highlands

This chicken is so hot right now.

Photo courtesy of Sarah's

Hot chicken is well established as one of Dallas' hottest current dining trends, and now Lake Highlands gets a taste: Called Sarah's Hot Chicken, it's a delivery-only "virtual" concept that does Nashville-style hot chicken, and is now ready to take your order.

Sarah's is an offshoot of Fish City Grill, whose specialty is of course seafood — a novelty that Fish City Grill cofounder Bill Bayne acknowledges. Fish City Grill is the neighborhood seafood chain with 20 locations in Texas, Arkansas, Florida, and Oklahoma, plus two locations of its sibling Half Shells in North Texas.

"For a dyed-in-the-wool seafood company to create a new virtual concept that offers a menu line that is completely out of its wheelhouse is unique," Bayne says in a release. "We strategically developed the Sarah's Hot Chicken concept to reach a new and broader clientele, and to drive sales during these challenging times."

The concept was devised by staffers at a Fish City Grill in Lakeland, Florida, who launched it in December (Sarah Ceretto is the managing partner at that location). Lake Highlands is actually the second outpost in the DFW area. They first launched it here in February in Plano, operating out of the Half Shells at the Shops at Legacy.

It won't stop there; they plan to expand to additional Fish City Grill and Half Shells kitchens soon.

The menu centers on a hot chicken sandwich, with chicken that's brined for 24 hours before cooking. It comes in four heat levels, which come with the requisite cutesy names, as hot chicken sauces always do: Naked, Sissy, Hot & Spicy, or Damn Hot.

Other entrées include chicken tenders with fries, shrimp po'boy, and chicken salad, priced from $9 to $11.

Sides include fries, coleslaw, and mac & cheese – available hot or not. There's also a slew of dipping sauces such as ranch, blue cheese, honey mustard, BBQ, and a signature "Hollerback" sauce.

Orders can be placed at Sarah's Hot Chicken’s website, or through delivery partner DoorDash. For info, call 214-428-3474.

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Churro News

Global churro chain Churro Mania takes hold of Dallas with 3 locations

Churro Mania

A delicious new dining treat has come to Dallas: Called Churro Mania, it's a chain of places dedicated to churros and it opened a location in Lewisville at 801 W. Main St, where they're promising the best churros around.

They have basic churros covered with sugar or cinnamon; bites, both crispy and filled with caramel. They have an oversized fat single churro called Big Mania. You can also get them stacked up in a churro cake, or in an ice cream sandwich, with ice cream set between two circular piped churros.

There's another category called "salted" that features tequeños, AKA cheese sticks: dough filled with melted cheese, in either mini or jumbo sizes. A Churro Dog is as it sounds: a unique salty churro topped with a sausage, which you can get topped with potato stix.

There are also savory empanadas, filled with choice of cheese, shredded meat, or chicken, for $3.50 each. The churros range from $8 to $13.

Churro Mania launched their first location in 1997 in Venezuela. They developed a franchise operation, and subsequently opened more than a dozen locations across Venezuela.

They made their U.S. debut in 2001 with a location in Miami, then in 2012, they formed a partnership with Walmart to open outlets inside Walmart stores.

They currently have five locations in the Miami area and one in Houston.

Founder and CEO is Ariel Acosta-Rubio, who worked in industries such as collections, sales, and real estate, where he learned valuable traits such as customer service, marketing, and how to create a sustainable business.

Happily for DFW, the churromania won't stop in Lewisville. According to a spokesperson, they're opening at least two more locations starting with Dallas at 3636 Frankford Rd. #320, and Irving, at 4100 W. Airport Fwy.

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