Lots of new things are happening in the world of Dallas restaurants, from reopenings after the pandemic to new menus celebrating spring.

Here's what's happening in Dallas dining right now:

Empire Baking Co. has opened a second retail outlet at its facility at 5614 E. University Blvd. between US-75 and Greenville Avenue, where it's selling the breads, pastries, and sandwiches they're known for, plus R&D experiments and less formalized items they wouldn't bother bringing to the Inwood store, that will be sold exclusively at the new space. They'll have croissants, cookies, bread, coffee, and grab-and-go sandwiches.

Punch Bowl Social has reopened its Dallas location in Deep Ellum with dining, drinking, bowling, arcade games, foosball, ping pong, ParTee putt putt, shuffleboard and more. New seasonal cocktails included Catalina Sangria and Topolma (Topo Chico paloma). Happy hour is also back, on Sunday and Wednesday-Friday 4-7 pm with drinks and bites from $3-$7, as well as brunch Saturday-Sunday from 10 am-3 pm.

KSP Henderson, a new bar on Henderson Avenue is now open. Owner is Ryan Ferguson, who worked for Knox Street Pub for many years before becoming the owner. He's re-opened at 1921 Henderson Ave., in the space that was most recently Taco Heads, but has been home to Gin Mill. They have an extensive selection of bourbon, plus 20 taps with a dozen dedicated to beer and the rest to wine on tap.

Rōti, the fast-casual Mediterranean concept offering bowls, salads and pitas, has reopened its Preston Center location after closing due to the pandemic. They're debuting a new menu and revitalized look.

Ascension Coffee has a new spring brunch menu, with pimento grilled cheese with smoked tasso, shrimp & ancient grain bowl, house-cured lox + bagel, smoked salmon benedict, burger, mushroom toast, and French toast brûlée. The menu is served Saturday-Sunday, all day. They've also made two new hires: Jessica Keenan, as managing director of the roastery, formerly of Allegro Coffee; and Jason Connelly as culinary director, former executive chef of The Adolphus.

Perry's Steakhouse & Grille has a new selection of spring menu dishes including artichoke-potato-leek soup, vegan spring rolls, chargrilled oysters, fennel-crusted salmon on braised fennel and leeks (served under a dome of roasted fennel seed smoke, presented tableside), and orange-vanilla cream cheesecake. A steak market special with choice of trimmed filet mignon or Prime NY strip steaks comes with steak seasoning and steak butter, shipped to your door, for $149.

Fireside Pies is officially launching a new brunch menu on the weekends. They've always been open at 11 am but now there is a special brunch menu. Dishes include Elvis French Toast with banana, peanut butter maple syrup, and candied bacon; Frittata with spicy sausage, red pepper, caramelized onion, bacon, and smoked provolone; frittata with kale & cremini mushroom; pancetta & egg pie with ragu; chorizo & egg calzone; and chicken & waffles. Brunch cocktails include mimosa, bloody Mary, maple bacon old fashioned, and espresso martini. Brunch will run Saturday-Sunday from 11 am-3 pm at the Fort Worth, Grapevine, Lake Highlands, and Plano locations, with Henderson and Inwood to follow.

Coolgreens Old Town at 5500 Greenville Ave., is the first location in the chain to introduce two new plant-based offerings. The Bold Balsamic is a plant-based burger with feta cheese, balsamic roasted cherry tomatoes, and spring mix. Spicy & Fiesty is a plant-based burger with Daiya cheddar, jalapeño, tomato, salsa, lettuce, and spicy aioli. Both are served on a wheat ciabatta bun.

Son of a Butcher has a new slider of the month for May: The Juicy Lucy Slider features cheese-stuffed Wagyu, lettuce, pickle, Son of a Butcher sauce, and fried onion strings. Their featured shake flavor is Strawberry Chocolate Shake, with layers of chocolate sauce, whipped cream, cookie crumbles, and strawberries. At both Son of a Butcher locations at Legacy Food Hall and Lower Greenville.

Torchy's Tacos has a new Taco of the Month for May: The Tokyo Drifter features teriyaki glazed pulled pork, fried wonton strips, sweet & sour veggie slaw, sesame Sriracha mayo, and cilantro on a flour tortilla. Their featured May margarita is the Raspberry Meltdown with 100 percent agave tequila and a float of Razzmatazz Raspberry Liqueur, available frozen or on the rocks.

Dickey's Barbecue Pit has new seasonal dishes available this summer: Sweet King's Hawaiian Pulled Pork Sandwich with Dr Pepper Barbecue Sauce, with pulled pork on a King's Hawaiian bun topped with Dr Pepper-infused barbecue sauce; and Texas Sweet Corn, with a dash of Dickey's rib rub seasoning.

Salata, the built-to-order salad kitchen, has new salads and wraps for May including jalapeño avocado salad, Cobb, Greek chicken salad, chicken Caesar, harvest salad, Southwest wrap, and Mediterranean veggie wrap.

East Hampton Sandwich Co. has launched five new Breakfast Sandwiches available during all business hours at all locations. The Classic BEC has eggs, bacon & American cheese. The Hash BEC has eggs, bacon hash browns & American cheese. The Crescent has eggs, ham, sautéed onions & Cooper's white American cheese. The Mulberry has eggs, sausage, bell pepper, & Cooper’s white American cheese. The Health Nut has egg whites, avocado, tomato, onion, feta.

Booty's Street Food at the Deep Ellum hostel has a new Passport Series spotlighting a different world cuisine each week. They've already done Vietnam and Turkey. From May 5-16, it's India. May 19-30 is Poland. June 2-13 is Argentina.

Taco Del Mar has brought back one taco and is introducing another. The new Tropical Lobster Taco has lobster & seafood salad, onions, and serrano pepper, topped with cabbage and mango salsa, on corn tortillas. The Classic Lobster and Seafood Taco is topped with cabbage, pico de gallo, and Taco Del Mar’s iconic tangy Baja white sauce. These are limited-edition tacos, available through July 12.

Newk's Eatery has two new salads for spring: Red, White & Blueberry Salad with chicken, spinach, feta cheese, strawberries, blueberries, and watermelon; and Strawberry & Avocado Spinach Salad with strawberries, feta, spinach, avocado, and bacon.

La Madeleine has new menu items for spring: strawberry-almond-goat cheese salad, and an individual cheesecake topped with strawberry, blueberry, & whipped cream. They're also bringing back three favorites: lemon-white chocolate chunk cookie iced with lemon glaze, lemon blueberry Danish, and mini liberte individual tart topped with glazed raspberries, blueberries and whipped cream.

Thirsty Lion Gastropub in Irving and Euless has launched their new spring menu featuring Moroccan meatballs, blackened salmon caesar salad, bison burger, Korean baby back ribs & kimchi fried rice, whiskey apple crumble, plus cocktails modern whiskey sour and jalapeno paloma margarita, and a new slate of rotating taps including SanTan Devil’s Ale American Pale Ale.

Mod Pizza has four new salads: Greek, Garden, Caesar, and Italian chop with arugula, Romaine, mozzarella, parmesan, salami, red onion, black olives, green bell pepper, and chickpeas. The salads are customizable and one price with unlimited toppings.

Toppers Pizza has four new items with a Nashville Hot twist: Signature Topperstix with grilled chicken, jalapenos, and bread & butter pickles, drizzled with Nashville Hot sauce. Nashville Hot Chicken Topper on a garlic buttery crust, with Wisconsin mozzarella, chicken, jalapenos, garlic-roasted tomatoes, bread & butter pickles, drizzled with Nashville hot sauce. Vegan Nashville Hot Topper with Nashville Hot sauce, dairy-free mozzarella, plant-based crispy chicken, tomato, and bread & butter pickles drizzled with dairy-free ranch sauce. And wings; breaded, oven-roasted, and then tossed in Nashville hot sauce.

Chick-fil-A has a new lemon kale Caesar salad, with warm grilled nuggets on a bed of Romaine and kale with shaved parmesan and lemon wedges. It's one of several seasonal flavors set to join menus this year. They're also adding a new beverage that until now has been an off-menu item: Chick-fil-A Sunjoy combining lemonade and  sweetened iced tea. The drink is a permanent menu item.

CBD Provisions Bar at the Joule Dallas Hotel has a new happy hour with drink specials and oysters. Prosecco, French 75, and Ranch Water are $9. Oysters with horseradish are $42 for dozen, which mathematics tells us is $3.50 each. It runs Monday-Friday 4-7 pm.

Beyond Meat is debuting a new version of its plant-based burger at Klyde Warren Park on May 1-2 from 11 am-5 pm. They'll be handing out samples of their "Better-Than-Ever Beyond Burger," said to be meatier and juicer, with 20 grams of protein, no cholesterol, 35 percent less fat than 80/20 beef, fewer calories, and yet comparable B vitamins and minerals. Dallas is one of only six cities where they'll be hosting freebie sampling, along with Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York. We are so special.