Luby's For Sale

4 Dallas-area Luby's cafeterias remain open despite chain's uncertain future

Fewer families are gathering at Luby's.

Luby's/Facebook

The days of square fish and LuAnn platters could be coming to an end. Luby's, the popular Texas cafeteria, announced it will pursue a sale of all its assets, including real estate, to pay off debt and raise money for its shareholders.

During the period while the company looks for a buyer for its three restaurant brands — Luby's, Fuddruckers, and Cheeseburger in Paradise — some locations will remain open to serve customers.

Currently, the company owns 78 Luby's, 39 Fuddruckers, and one Cheeseburger in Paradise; of those, only 98 are currently open due to restrictions stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, according to second quarter fiscal results the company released on Wednesday.

Dallas-Fort Worth has 10 locations of Luby's. Their website shows four open and six temporarily closed as follows.

Open:

Desoto: 801 North Beckley Rd.
Forest Hill: 3312 Southeast Loop 820
Ft Worth: 1200 Bridgewood Dr.
Ft Worth: 3801 Northeast Loop 820

Temporarily Closed:

Dallas: 6221 East Mockingbird Ln.
Dallas: 13455 Midway Rd.
Dallas: 5600 South Hampton Rd.
Duncanville: 926 East Highway 67
Plano: 5040 West Park Blvd.
Rockwall: 2235 S Goliad St.

DFW has 7 Fuddruckers. Their website shows three open and four temporarily closed, but customers report that none are open.

Frisco 2947 Preston Rd.
McKinney: 2045 N. Central Expy.
Plano: 741 N. Central Expy.
Dallas: 4520 Frankford Rd.
Fort Worth: 5601 SW Loop 820
Grapevine: 2001 N. Highway 121
Rockwall: 2235 S. Goliad St.

That Luby's could shutter has been a possibility for some time. In 2019, the company fended off a challenge from an activist investor that sought to replace members of its board of directors. The restaurant has seen sales decline as consumers choose fast-casual restaurants over cafeterias. It made the decision to pursue a sale after a special committee of its board of directors reviewed the company's operations.

Founded in San Antonio in 1947, Luby's relocated its corporate headquarters to Houston after Pappas Restaurants owners Chris and Harris Pappas bought a majority stake in the company in 2001.

At this time, the company's future is unknown. It could find a buyer that purchases the entire business outright or it could sell off its substantial real estate holdings one-by-one and fade into obscurity. In the meantime, diners may want to contemplate making their next visit sooner than later.

news-you-can-eat

Ice Cream News

Cult ice cream brand Salt & Straw makes Texas debut in Dallas

Salt & Straw

A big name in ice cream is coming to town: Cult-favorite artisan ice cream chain Salt & Straw will make its debut in Texas, opening its first locations in the state in Dallas and Fort Worth.

According to a release, the Oregon-based brand will open two shops in the DFW area this spring, both located in buzzy neighborhoods, as follows:

Dallas: 2323 N. Henderson Ave. #107, in the same center as Gemma
Fort Worth: 1305 W. Magnolia Ave., in the former Great Harvest Bread Co. space

Salt & Straw started out as a pushcart, founded by cousins Kim and Tyler Malek in 2011 in Portland. They've now grown to 57 locations with a huge presence in California and an expansion to the East Coast — from New England and New York to Florida to even Disneyland.

Wild flavors and collaborations
They're famous for their hyper-creative, often unexpected flavors including a never-ending rotation of monthly specials, overseen by head ice cream maker Tyler Malek. A recent Thanksgiving Series is typical: It included Parker House Rolls with Salted Buttercream; Turkey Stuffing and Cranberry Sauce, which featured a salt-and-pepper ice cream studded with bread pudding, turkey sausage, & cranberry jam; Pumpkin Pie Tiramisu; and Cranberry Orange Sorbet.

They also do partnerships such their 2024 collaboration with Taco Bell on a flavor called Tacolate, featuring a waffle-cone taco shell filled with cinnamon ancho chili ice cream, dipped in chocolate, and topped with toasted brown rice, served with two custom Taco Bell-inspired sauce packets: Mango Jalapeño Sauce and Wildberry Cinnamon Sauce.

Why DFW
In a statement, Kim says that DFW was a natural fit.

“We’ve spent meaningful time in Texas and have been inspired by the depth and momentum of its food and creative communities," Kim says. "Dallas and Fort Worth, in particular, stood out as places where craftsmanship, entrepreneurship, and hospitality intersect in a really genuine way, making them natural homes for Salt & Straw’s first shops in the state."

Dallas-Fort Worth has also in recent years embraced ice cream in a way it never did before, with incoming chains such as Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream, Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, and Handel's Ice Cream, as well as emerging local concepts such as Melt in Fort Worth.

Both Dallas and Fort Worth Salt & Straw locations will feature chef-driven classics such as Double Fold Vanilla and Salted Malted Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, featuring a house-made cookie dough, made with the same malt you'd use to brew amber ale, and inorporating two types of salt, with thick malted fudge as a sweet counterpoint.

The shops will also serve as platforms for hyper-local collaborations that celebrate each neighborhood’s character, and gathering spaces for the community, where guests are encouraged to linger and try free samples of as many flavors they desire.

desserts ice cream openings