Tastemaker Tournament

Best new restaurants in Dallas-Fort Worth square off in Tastemaker challenge

For our first-ever CultureMap Dallas Tastemaker Awards, we are celebrating the talent in the local food and drink community. Our editors selected the nominees, and a panel of experts chose winners in nine categories — which will be revealed at our big event on May 6.

In the coming weeks, we will continue to introduce you to the deserving nominees, but right now we need your help: You get to choose the winner for Best New Restaurant.

This is no ordinary poll. It's a big field, with 16 nominees listed in alphabetical order below that get matched up, bracket-style, in this competition. You pick your favorite in each matchup, and the winners go on to the next round, until one winner finally emerges.

You can vote once a day for the duration. Round one runs from April 17-22. Round two spans April 23-28. The finals round takes place April 29-May 2. Winner is announced May 6.

In the meantime, read all about the competitors:

AF+B
AF+B, which stands for American Food and Beverage, is a chic, comfortable tavern in Fort Worth's West 7th district from Consilient Hospitality. Reflecting the finicky focus of Consilient's Tristan Simon, every element speaks of precision, from the meticulously trimmed cut-outs on the menu to the golden crispness of the French fries to the accompanying house-made ketchup, better than Heinz. The menu changes often; chef Jeff Harris has been observing seasonal cooking longer than most.

Amberjax Fish Market Grille
Family-run seafood restaurant at Trinity Groves feels like an upscale shanty with large, prominently positioned chalkboards displaying the fish of the day. The menu leans toward Louisiana with oysters, po' boys, gumbo, and red beans and rice. Owners Karen and Larry Williams give the place a personal, hospitable cheerfulness.

Barter
Brothers Patrick and Michael Halbert tapped chef Tim Love for menu consultation and direction for their new concept in the Private Social space. With chef Andrew Dilda behind the wheel, Barter skews younger than its predecessor with an emphasis on snacks; pick-up items like tacos; and a fun, kitschy, tiki-themed Sunday brunch.

Bird Cafe
Fort Worth cousin to Meddlesome Moth has same menu overseen by chef David McMillan, including signature ricotta cheese "moth balls," fish and chips, and meaty pot pies. Beer selection is broad, as is the case at every Shannon Wynne-owned restaurant. Spacious patio overlooks beautifully renovated Sundance Square.

Bite City Grill
Former Pakpao chef Eddy Thretipthuangsin headed west to Montgomery Plaza in Fort Worth to open his own place. The menu is divided into "Big Bites" and "Small Bites" and includes short ribs, burgers, lamb meatballs and flatbreads, with influences from Asia, America and Europe. Cocktails have a unique theme: They're inspired by the signs of the Zodiac.

Blind Butcher
Matt Tobin and Josh Yingling, owners of Goodfriend Beer Garden & Burger House, took over the old Service Bar space and opened a meat-centric restaurant. The menu features sausage, pastrami and corned beef made by chef Oliver Sitrin. Dedication to craft beer extends to 20 taps, including not just Texas and American beers but also European. Beer is also sold by liter and half-liter.

BonChon Chicken
Glorified chicken wings with what passes for cosmopolitan elan for the under-30 foodie. Menu options are few: wings, drumsticks or boneless strips, which you can get with a choice of spicy hot or soy garlic sauce. A side of coleslaw bolstered with kimchi is highly recommended. Although most come for the chicken, there are a few Korean dishes such as bibimbap, rice served in a hot pot topped with vegetables and meat.

Casa Rubia
Casa Rubia has emerged as the shining star of Trinity Groves, with lots of critical raves for its modern tapas and dark, trendy atmosphere. Menu from chef Omar Flores includes charcuterie, as well as many seafood options such as mussels and octopus. Paella is the signature dish; it changes daily. Drinks are unique: There's a long Spanish wine list, plus sherries and beers from Spain and South America.

CBD Provisions
Located at The Joule hotel, CBD Provisions is an American brasserie developed and operated by Consilient Restaurants serving American comfort food with an artisanal sensibility. Menu items range from coddled eggs with house-baked bacon bread for breakfast to seasonal salads for lunch to pan-fried organic chicken for dinner. CBD is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day of the week. It serves Sunday brunch and a complete menu until midnight on the weekends.

Chino Chinatown
Trinity Groves restaurant fuses Chinese and Latin cuisines. Owners Adrian Verdin and Uno Immanivong were inspired by "barrio Chinos," which translates to "Chinatown" in Latin American cities. Their menu includes lamb tacos, sea bass with a Thai chili glaze, and a banh mi sandwich with steak. For dessert, there's a pina colada upside down cake and a Mexican chocolate cake with coconut ice cream and mole ganache.

CrushCraft
Bright, colorful and fun, CrushCraft serves spicy Thai "street food" from drunken noodles to the comforting curry noodle dish called khao soi. The level of execution is high, reflecting the four-star experience of chef Paul Singhapong, who has worked at the French Room, Beau Nash, Melrose Hotel and Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek. CrushCraft might be the perfect restaurant: It stays open late, and prices are incredibly low.

Gemma
Seasonal American restaurant comes from husband-and-wife California transplants Stephen Rogers and Allison Yoder. Rogers is a native of Dallas; both worked at Napa Valley restaurant Press. Notable wine program includes boutique labels and a glass-enclosed wine refrigerator that keeps both whites and reds at the proper temperature.

The Rustic
The team behind Bowl & Barrel and Mutts Cantina partnered with singer-songwriter Pat Green and local businessman Brian Manion to open a full-service restaurant and bar with a Texas theme. Dishes are mostly down-home, with a few foodie flourishes, prepared using farm-fresh and local ingredients. Think chorizo empanadas, burgers and Gulf crab melt. Not surprisingly, it's a great live music venue too.

Savor
Klyde Warren Park's main restaurant is a breathtakingly designed modern gastropub. Chef John Coleman's menu includes shared plates plus pub fare, such as deviled eggs, cheese board, flatbreads, crab cakes, shrimp and grits, and flat-iron steak. Desserts come in whimsical mini-versions and range from German chocolate cake and caramel ice cream sandwich to yuzu tart and chocolate peanut butter pretzel bite.

Souk
Souk is a sibling to Medina in Victory Park and Baboush in West Village, all owned by restaurateur Yaser Khalaf. At Trinity Groves, he's created a bistro and bazaar with the street food flavors of Morocco, with influences from the Mediterranean, Middle East and Western Europe.

Tanoshii Ramen
Dallas finally got the ramen restaurant it longed for, in hip Deep Ellum, from Wicked Po'Boys owners Joey and Chi Le. Ramen comes in many options, from the classic tonkotsu to an all-vegetable ramen with mushrooms. There are also dumplings, steamed buns and, from the bar, a sake sampler. Menu has been a work in progress; new items such as the okonomiyaki fries – French fries topped with bonito flakes, tonkatsu sauce and Japanese mayo – rotate in and out.

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Come celebrate the Tastemakers with us on Tuesday, May 6, at Seven for Parties in the Dallas Design District. To learn more about the event, including information about our beneficiaries, judges, participating restaurants and ticket sales, visit our Tastemakers website.

BonChon Chicken

Photo courtesy of Bonchon

BonChon Chicken

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Flair News

TGI Fridays files for bankruptcy, all 6 Dallas locations now closed

TGI Fridays

Restaurant chain TGI Fridays filed for bankruptcy protection on November 2, saying it is looking for ways to “ensure the long-term viability” of the casual dining brand after closing many of its branches in 2024.

The Dallas-based company's Chapter 11 filing in a Texas federal court accelerates a gradual decline for an iconic chain that was once near the center of American pop culture but has seen its customer base dwindle as tastes changed.

TGI Fridays executive chairman Rohit Manocha said in a statement that the challenges were a result of COVID-19.

"The next steps announced today are difficult but necessary actions to protect the best interests of our stakeholders, including our domestic and international franchisees and our valued team members around the world," Manocha said. "The primary driver of our financial challenges resulted from COVID-19 and our capital structure. This restructuring will allow our go-forward restaurants to proceed with an optimized corporate infrastructure that enables them to reach their full potential."

Until recently, Dallas-Fort Worth had 11 locations including five at DFW Airport. Those airport locations are the only ones still open. The remaining six are all now closed — some closures very recent, most after being in business for a decade or more: 4951 Belt Line Rd. in Addison; 311 N. Clark St. in Cedar Hill, southwest of Dallas; 3700 Towne Crossing Blvd. in Mesquite; and 220 Cornflower Dr. at Firewheel Town Center in Garland.

A Plano location at 2444 Preston Rd. closed in 2022 and is now home to Rise Souffle, while the flagship in Dallas' West End at 1713 Market St. closed in 2020 after 32 years.

Privately owned by TriArtisan Capital Advisors, TGI Fridays has been a beloved dining destination since its inaugural bar opened in Manhattan in 1965. It expanded over the following decades to become a ubiquitous suburban gathering spot known for its ribs, potato skins topped with cheese and bacon, and a decor bedecked with red stripes and Tiffany-style lamps.

The company has boasted that its bartenders trained Tom Cruise for his role in the 1988 film Cocktail, while its serving staff's button-filled uniforms, meant to evoke a fun atmosphere, were later parodied in the 1999 satire Office Space, starring Jennifer Aniston.

Its empire peaked in 2008 with 601 restaurants in the U.S. and a $2 billion business, according to Kevin Schimpf, director of industry research at Technomic. Its sales in the U.S. were $728 million in 2023, down 15% from the prior year, according to Technomic.

It now counts 163 restaurants in the U.S., down from 269 last year and 213 from a week ago. It closed 36 in January and dozens more in the past week. TGI Fridays Inc. said it only owns and operates 39 restaurants in the U.S, a fraction of the 461 TGI Fridays-branded restaurants around the world.

A separate entity, TGI Fridays Franchisor, owns the intellectual property and has franchised the brand to 56 independent owners in 41 countries. Those are independently owned and not part of the Chapter 11 process, and remain open.

A United Kingdom-based franchisee, Hostmore, also sought debt protection in September and abruptly closed locations throughout that country after a failed takeover deal to acquire TGI Fridays.

During the pandemic TGI Fridays made an effort to expand into the delivery market by making itself a hub for ghost kitchens, which have no storefront and only prepare food for delivery. Among the major creditors owed money by TGI Fridays is the delivery service DoorDash, according to Saturday's bankruptcy court filings.

Sit-down chain restaurants more broadly have faced challenges in recent years as diners choose to get food delivered or visit upscale fast-food chains like Chipotle and Shake Shack. In September a U.S. bankruptcy judge approved a reorganization plan for the seafood chain Red Lobster after years of mounting losses. Italian American food chain Buca di Beppo filed for bankruptcy protection in August. PAnother iconic U.S. sit-down restaurant, Denny's, announced in October that it is closing 150 of its lowest-performing restaurants in an effort to turn around the brand’s flagging sales. Wendy’s is also closing up to 140 restaurants, according to a statement from The Wendy's Co. on October 31.