Pink Magnolia

Trinity Groves incubator hatches permanent Oak Cliff restaurant with naughty chef

After an extended eight-month stint at Kitchen LTO, chef Blythe Beck will open a Southern cuisine restaurant in partnership with LTO owner Casie Caldwell. Called Pink Magnolia, it's slated for a summer 2015 opening at 642 W. Davis St., in the former Driftwood space.

Inspired by the magnolia flower as a symbol of Southern strength and hospitality, combined with Beck's fondness for the color pink, Pink Magnolia will serve "comfort food with swanky Southern flair in an upscale casual dining atmosphere," according to a release.

"I'm very excited to be opening up my first restaurant with my longtime friend and now business partner, Casie Caldwell," Beck says.

Caldwell says she's grateful Beck got the time at LTO to test her concept. "Pink Magnolia gives Blythe a permanent home to display her larger-than-life personality and is going to be a great opportunity for us to remind her fans why they first fell in love with her cooking," Caldwell says.

Trinity Groves founder Phil Romano won't have a stake in the new restaurant but says the two make a great team. "This is exactly what we hoped would happen," he says. "The incubator program encourages a culture of innovation and entrepreneurism, and it's exciting to be able to foster that growth."

Beck worked at the Mansion, Hector's on Henderson and Central 214 in the Hotel Palomar (now Highland Dallas). During that time, she got her own reality show on the Oxygen Network called The Naughty Kitchen with Chef Blythe Beck. She left for Arkansas in 2013 to take a consulting position for MovieLounge before returning to Dallas to serve two terms as executive chef of Kitchen LTO where her stint will end on May 31.

Her menu included such signature dishes as shrimp and grits, chicken-fried rib-eye and deviled eggs.

Caldwell founded the first Greenz restaurant chain in 2004, which currently has four locations in Texas. She opened Kitchen LTO in September of 2013. The concept recently announced its latest rotation with chef Anastacia "AQ" Quinones, whose reign begins on June 2 and extends through the end of 2015.

Driftwood sputtered to a close in November 2014, following a takeover by Misery Loves Company, the restaurant group that also owns Proof + Pantry, who claimed that customers did not like the location.

Blythe Beck will open a restaurant in Oak Cliff called Pink Magnolia, with partner Casie Caldwell of Kitchen LTO.

Courtesy photo

Blythe Beck will open a restaurant in Oak Cliff called Pink Magnolia, with partner Casie Caldwell of Kitchen LTO.

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Opening News

Dallas diner & music venue will open in former Ferris Wheeler space

Courtesy

Pancakes

A new restaurant has been unveiled that will take over the former Ferris Wheeler space near Dallas' Design District at 1950 Market Center Blvd.: Called AM/FM, it'll be an all-day diner and lounge with a big backyard and a stage for live music, and it's from Spune Productions, the music and event production company.

According to a release, it'll open in early January initially with evening hours, cocktails, and a few afternoon soccer matches. Music acts are already booked beginning January 8. More hours will be added down the road.

Ferris Wheelers BBQ, which was also a restaurant with a big backyard and a stage for live music, closed in November after eight years. Spune had already been involved since 2023 to help ramp up the live music side. Now they'll take it over with a fresh new personality and long hours.

They were famous for having a Ferris wheel on-site; an inquiry on its status went unanswered.

The diner will open daily at 7 am, serving "musicians coming off late nights, workers heading into morning shifts, and neighbors who want a place that remembers their name," says the release very poetically.

They've redecorated the interior with a new bar and banquettes that wrap the room. Alongside the renovations inside, the set-up outdoors will evolve over the coming weeks, with extra care given to the concert experience,

Menu
The food at AM/FM will be rooted in elevated Diner classics, with a menu overseen by chef Anastacia Quinones-Pittman (Oh, Hi! Hospitality) that's influenced by Mexican-American kitchens and Nuevo Southern traditions.

Breakfast offerings include huevos rancheros, breakfast tacos, breakfast empanadas, French toast, avocado toast, pork belly toast, and an intriguing twist on pancakes called masa pancakes, made using masa harina AKA corn flour.

Lunch includes a chicken Milanesa Caesar salad, Sonoran hot dog, fried catfish po'boy, kale salad, Cobb salad, and a Mexican twist on chicken noodle soup with fideo noodles.

Entree plates include pot roast, meatloaf, fried chicken, and a weekly pot pie.

The beverage program will aim for accessibility with coffee, cocktails, and craft beer, says Victor Rojas, Quinones-Pittman's partner at Oh, Hi! Hospitality.

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