Greenville Ave Grub

California’s Laurel not Yanny Tavern opens on Dallas’ Greenville Ave

Come on people, it's definitely Laurel Tavern that's serving this beet and burrata salad.

Photo courtesy of Laurel Tavern

California-based Laurel Tavern has chosen a fine time to open a location in Dallas. The restaurant will open on May 23 at 1920 Greenville Ave., as a casual but elevated modern American bar and restaurant with high-quality but approachable food, cocktails, and hospitality.

The timing seems right given modern society's current dilemma over whether an obscure recording of a robot says "Laurel" or "Yanny." The internet needed something to obsess over, and this is the topic du jour.

But this dilemma should in no way overshadow Laurel Tavern's arrival. (And it's definitely Laurel Tavern, not Yanny Tavern.) Nor should it overshadow Laurel Tavern's menu of items, which a release says are mostly made fresh daily onsite and from scratch. Whatever they don't make, they source from the highest quality purveyors possible.

This seems not unlike what most restaurants do: They make it themselves or try to find good sources. But this should in no way overshadow Laurel Tavern's efforts to do all of the above.

The menu includes pork belly skewers with maple glaze, and a duck club with duck confit, smoked bacon, pickled green tomato, and cherry mustard which is made in-house, like so much (but not all) of what Laurel Tavern serves.

The decor has tin walls, low ceilings, an L- shaped bar made of black walnut, and banquettes with diamond-tufted leather. A patio features a bar with an inside/outside seating element.

Laurel Tavern was created by William Shamlian and Mark Leddy who have been joined by current partners Michael Leko, Jonny Valenti, and Hardy Edwards.

The group came to Dallas on a social visit and decided to stay. Leko, who moved to Dallas, says in a release that he fell in love with Lower Greenville and East Dallas in particular.

The team describes the concept as the fusing of a contemporary gastropub with an elevated food and cocktail program — and one where you can eat multiple times a week, Leko says. They'll be open nightly for dinner, from 5 pm to midnight.

"We are consistent," Leko says. "We aren't reinventing the wheel here, just doing it the right way and hopefully doing it well."

greenville-avenue

Coming soon

Cuban-style burger chain Frita Batidos to make Texas debut in Dallas

Photo by Noah Fecks

Frita Batidos' signature burgers and milkshakes, along with crispy fried plantains.

An acclaimed Cuban-inspired burger restaurant from Michigan is making its Texas debut in in Dallas' buzzy McKinney-Knox neighborhood: Called Frita Batidos, it will open at 4620 McKinney Ave., just off the Katy Trail, on August 17, a release says.

Founded by chef Eve Aronoff Fernandez, Frita Batidos debuted in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 2010 and has since expanded to Detroit and Brooklyn. The Brooklyn location earned national attention after its signature Frita was named one of New York City's best burgers by The New York Times.

The restaurant serves Cuban-style street food and takes its name from two Cuban staples that are the focus of its menu: fritas, the island's signature burgers, and batidos, tropical fruit milkshakes.

Their fritas are served on a soft egg bun and topped with shoestring fries. Options include beef, housemade chorizo, chicken, black bean, and Gulf redfish, with toppings such as cilantro-lime salsa, avocado spread, tropical slaw, Muenster cheese, and a sunny-side-up egg.

Frita Baditos Frita, a Cuban-style burger.Photo by Noah Fecks

Their batidos are made with vanilla bean ice cream and fresh fruit in flavors such as coconut cream, passion fruit, fresh lime, hibiscus, chocolate español, and cajeta. Guests can also order a lighter version made with mango, pineapple, and crushed ice, or add a splash of dark rum to any shake.

Other menu highlights include crisped plantains with dipping sauces, loaded plantains topped with black beans and cheese, coconut-ginger rice layered with black beans and Muenster cheese, churros, cinnamon-sugar plantains, and rotating housemade paletas.

The beverage menu features cocktails such as a margarita, mojito, piña colada, daiquiri, sangria, and pisco hibiscus lemonade, along with housemade tropical sodas, fresh juices, and nonalcoholic versions of its cocktails.

"Frita Batidos emphasizes fresh, high-quality, locally sourced ingredients, served with care in a warm and welcoming atmosphere to create a community gathering place," the owners say in the release.

The Dallas restaurant occupies a bright, airy space designed by architect Neal Robinson, a longtime collaborator on the brand's restaurants. The dining room features communal picnic-style tables, outlets for guests who want to work while dining, and dominoes for customers to play. A mural by graffiti artist FEL3000ft emblazoned with the phrase "Por Que No?!" serves as the centerpiece.

Frita Baditos Badito, a tropical milkshake.Photo by Noah Fecks

Frita Batidos founder Aronoff Fernandez is a a Le Cordon Bleu-trained chef who previously owned the acclaimed Ann Arbor, Michigan restaurant Eve and authored the cookbook Eve: Contemporary Cuisine/Methode Traditionelle. She founded Frita Baditos in 2010, she says, "grounded in the tenets of the Slow Food Movement, following the seasons, cooking from scratch, working with small, local purveyors and farmers and most importantly fostering warmth and conviviality around food."

Frita Batidos will be open Sunday-Wednesday from 11 am-10 pm and Thursday-Saturday from 11 am-11 pm.

uptown openings mckinney ave knox district burgers