Henderson Avenue Shakeup
Honky-tonk closure on Henderson Avenue makes way for popular wine bar
A Henderson Avenue bar has closed, sadly. But the space won't be empty for long: Henderson Avenue Country Club, the quaint honky tonk-style bar, closed in late March, making way for Pera Wine & Tapas, the casual Mediterranean concept with tapas and a big wine list.
A spokesman for Pera confirmed that they would be taking over the spot at 2905 Henderson Ave., with an opening targeted for May. It follows the original Pera Wine & Tapas, located at Belt Line and Preston roads near Addison.
Henderson Avenue Country Club was a "smokin' honky tonk" when it opened in January 2015 in what was previously the Nick Badovinus restaurant Tried and True. Managing partners Martin Corboy and Tim McEvilly, who also run Henderson Avenue Tap House and McFadden's in Addison, renovated the space themselves with personal touches that included hardwood floor they'd reclaimed from a church.
The menu was not shabby, thanks to a custom smoker which afforded a barbecue focus with brisket, chicken-fried steak, ribs with bacon mashed potatoes, catfish, pork chops, and smoked quail with habañero cheddar grits.
Corboy says that the honky-tonk concept was probably not the right fit for the neighborhood.
"We were doing alright there, but my landlord was trying to find a spot for Pera, and asked if we were amenable," he says.
Pera is the brainchild of chef Habip Kargin, who first made his mark in Dallas with Pera Turkish Kitchen, his well-regarded Mediterranean restaurant. He launched Pera Tapas & Wine in 2014 as a way to showcase creativity beyond Turkish cuisine, with dishes such as butternut squash soup, short ribs, cheese plates, and duck salad.
In late 2014, he opened another related concept in Uptown called Pera Mediterranean Grill, in the old Sharaku Sake Lounge space next to Yutaka.
