There's a whole lot going on in Dallas restaurants right now, with what feels like a giant comeback from COVID-19. Let's remain optimistic that the pandemic keeps fading, and it sure feels that way from all the openings, new menus, and other activities that seem to indicate that restaurants are ready to get back to normal.

Here's what's happening in Dallas restaurant news right now:

Wicked Bold Vegan Kitchen is a new vegan eatery in Flower Mound at 3347 Long Prairie Rd. from husband-and-wife Deric and Brooklynn Cahill, as a spinoff of Wicked Bold Chocolates, a vegan chocolate company they founded in 2019. The menu features charcuterie, snacks, and fancy non-alcoholic drinks such as a Blood Orange Sour with Ruitual zero proof whiskey, blood orange, ginger syrup, and lime juice. Food options include a Fondue Board with fruit and pretzels you can dip in chocolate; and the S'Mores Board, with ingredients for s'mores and a tabletop fire pit.

Torchy's Tacos, the popular Austin chain, opens a new location in Frisco at the Shops at Stonebriar at 2947 Preston Rd. on June 16. This is the chain's 18th DFW location and 90th nationwide. (They just opened a location in Mansfield on June 2.) The first 100 guests in line at 10 am on opening day get a limited-edition T-Shirt which also gets a year of Free Queso each time they wear their special shirt to the Frisco location.

Zalat Pizza opened its 12th location in Flower Mound at 5801 Long Prairie Rd. #690, serving takeout only through Zalat’s website or delivery via third party delivery apps.

Capriotti's Sandwich Shop, the national sandwich chain with cheesesteaks, turkey subs and more, opened a location in Frisco at 1612 FM 423, #100. It will offer an order-ahead option, in addition to third-party delivery services. It's the first to serve beer, wine, and French fries. It's owned by Valerie and Jeff Johnston, who plan to open two more locations in the next year.

Dillas Quesadillas, the Texas-based quesadilla chain, opened a location in Denton at 1715 A Loop 288 #10. Husband-and-wife Kyle and Maggie Gordon debuted Dillas in Plano in 2013, then opened Frisco in 2018, and McKinney in 2019.

Cotton Patch Cafe, the Southern chain, has opened its first ghost kitchen, located in Garland’s Revolving Kitchen. They'll offer the full menu, from chicken fried steak to salads and steaks. To order, visit cottonpatch.com or order through one of their delivery partners: DoorDash, Favor, and UberEats.

Fat Shack, the Colorado-based chain known for sub sandwiches, cheesesteaks, wings, and late-night hours, is opening a location in Plano, at 6205 Coit Rd. #364. It's the fifth Fat Shack in Texas and the third in Dallas-Fort Worth, where there are locations in Fort Worth and Denton.

Auntie Anne's has opened its first drive-thru in a co-branded restaurant with Jamba Juice, located at 809 Woodbridge Pkwy. in Wylie. This is the first Auntie Anne's drive-thru and a big step in their commitment to move beyond its traditional mall location, including drive-thrus, co-brands, locations near colleges and universities, and mobile food trucks. Currently, more than a quarter of Jamba's locations have a drive-thru and the brand is looking to add drive-thrus to 50 percent of new locations.

Dunkin' & Baskin-Robbins opened its newest Next Gen Combo restaurant in Frisco at 3555 Legacy Dr. They opened their first Next Generation restaurant in 2018, featuring a new design with a modern atmosphere and innovative features such as digital kiosks, contactless ordering, and a dedicated mobile order pick-up area for those who order ahead via the Dunkin’ App.

Reverie Bakeshop, the vegan bakery in Richardson, is relocating a few blocks away, moving to 980 N. Coit Rd. #2850 in Richardson, from its previous location at 1930 N. Coit R. #140. They hope to reopen in the new location in late June or early July.

Trinity Hall Irish Pub & Restaurant at Mockingbird Station has re-opened after COVID-19, and have updated their menu with the addition of a vegan section with crostini, cheesy fries, avocado toast, Buffalo cauliflower, veggie curry, shepherd's pie, veggie burger, and Reuben sandwich.

Old Chicago is debuting a new Detroit-style deep dish pizza, topped with sauce, toppings, and smothered from edge to edge with Wisconsin brick cheese. Varieties include Pepperoni, Farmer's Daughter (mozzarella, tomatoes, pesto sauce, brick cheese, arugula), Honky Tonk (cheddar and brick cheese, pickled jalapeño, chili, tortilla strips), meatball-mushroom, and Buffalo chicken.

Dave & Buster's is introducing a new menu with 23 items and four new summer-inspired drinks, including Chimichurri Bowl with asparagus, cauliflower, and avocado; Burrata Mozzarella Bruschetta; Mushroom Stout Burger; Garlic Parmesan Truffle Fries; and Strawberry Shortcake.

Fish City Grill and Half Shells have added 16 new food and beverage items for summer including shrimp & watermelon arugula salad, Georges Bank scallops & bacon-wrapped shrimp, shrimp & mushroom linguini, and a fresh crab tower. There are also new cocktails including a watermelon margarita and an espresso martini.

Sprouts Farmers Market has rolled out 11 unique products for June, with eight exclusives available only at Sprouts that include: Nutpods creamer, Like Meat Chick'n, Truth & Dairy Artisan Gelato, Carbonaut Gluten-Free Bread, Healthy Crunch Crispy Squares and Sunseed Butter, and Vegan Robs Veganpop, a new popcorn exclusive to Sprouts.

Vitality Bowls has introduced savory entrees in the form of salads, grain bowls, wraps, and toasts. The new menu will be available only at Vitality Bowls locations in Dallas, Irving, Southlake, Plano, and McKinney. Supergreen Goddess Salad includes super greens, chicken, egg, and avocado. Chimichurri Steak and Roasted Potato Bowl has super greens, grass-fed steak, grains, and potato. The Vitality Wrap has hummus, avocado, super greens, grains, and potato. Its unique take on avocado toast has avocado, grape tomatoes, feta cheese, superseed crunch, and flaky salt on whole grain toast.

Fount Board & Table in Uptown has new seasonal items including Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes (Sundays only), a BLT with tenderbelly bacon, arugula, tomato relish, dukes mayo, and Roasted Tomato Soup with roasted cabernet cherry tomatoes, labne, and dill pollen. Fount is also doing a unique spin on aged teas, creating drinks inspired by classic cocktails including the Puerh Old Fashioned with waffles, luxardo cherry, and house bitters cubes.

Logan's Roadhouse, the Nashville-based steakhouse chain, has added waffle fries, in choice of salt and pepper or with Logan's Smokehouse BBQ spice. The waffle fries are available as a side, or as a Loaded Pulled Pork Waffle Fries appetizer topped with pulled pork, cheddar cheese, jalapeños, green onions and drizzled with Roadhouse Ranch. They also have a new Summer Menu with BBQ sides that include coleslaw, okra, baked beans, BBQ brisket rice, and boneless wings with Teriyaki, Buffalo, Chipotle, or BBQ sauce.

Tacodeli is offering two limited-time menu items that are old favorites: The Akaushi Picadillo + Egg has scrambled eggs, HeartBrand akaushi ground beef, chile de arbol salsa, and cilantro; the Tikin Xic has achiote-marinated salmon, spicy salsa negra, habanero onion escabeche, and cilantro. Available through July 1.

Salad and Go has the 1000 Island Salad/Wrap for summer, with Romaine, red cabbage, dill pickles, and grape tomatoes; and Chicken Corn Chowder with corn, red potatoes, garlic, celery, poblano peppers, yellow onions, and chicken in a creamy broth.

Chick-fil-A has brought back the Peach Milkshake, combining Chick-fil-A Icedream and peaches, topped with whipped cream and a cherry, and available through the summer.

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams has a new limited-time flavor for the summer called Wedding Cake featuring vanilla cake ice cream with lemon, blackberries, and buttercream icing.

Tous les Jours, the French-Asian bakery café chain, is launching new cakes and pastries including the Mango Cloud Cake, a light and soft sponge cake layered with mango-flavored whipped cream and fresh mango slices; Long Cheese Pastry, with cream cheese filling and savory parmesan sugar topping; Potato Cheese Bread, chewy potato bread with cream cheese filling; Milk Pillow Bread, a pillow-shaped bread made with a milk-only recipe; and Honey Cheese Mochi Pancake, a new signature bread that debuted in South Korea last year. It's a unique twist on a classic sweet breakfast pancake made with tapioca flour, giving it a unique chewy texture.

Ohla! Foods, a Dallas-based health food brand, debuted its Almond Flour Tortillas and The Ch!pOhla! almond-flour chips at Central Market. Ohla! Foods was founded in 2020 by Lauren Schwalb, who saw a lack of healthy alternatives to traditional household staples. Her chips are gluten-free, dairy-free, and grain-free. The tortillas can be ready to serve in minutes by heating in a skillet. The chips can be eaten with dips or solo.

Cowboy Chicken, known for wood-fired rotisserie chicken, has a new refreshing cucumber jalapeño lemonade that's delicious on its own or spiked at home for more spirited occasions. It consists of fresh-squeezed lemonade infused with fresh cucumber and jalapeño, and it's $2.50 for a regular size, $3 for large, and $6 for a gallon.

Sixty Vines is spotlighting Tablas Creek Vineyard of Paso Robles, California. Certified organic since 2003, Tablas Creek’s viticulture practices emphasize quality through dry-farming and moderate crop levels. They also incorporate biodynamic techniques across the vineyard. Through mid-August, Sixty Vines will feature the Tablas Creek Exploratory Tap with a rotating tap of wines made exclusively for Sixty Vines.

Reddy Vineyards, the Texas grape growing pioneer, is now selling its 100 percent estate-grown wines including the 2019 Hardpress Italian Red Blend, 2019 Grand Vitis French Red Blend, and the 2019 TX Lovers Semi-Sweet Red, at Albertsons, Tom Thumb and Randall’s, United Supermarkets, Market Street, Central Market, H-E-B, and Total Wine & More, as well as local wine bars, liquor stores and restaurants throughout the state.

Ocean Prime, the Uptown-adjacent seafood/steakhouse, has its most popular cocktails available in cocktail kit, with a side of truffle popcorn. The kits include a year-round fizzy favorite, Berries and Bubbles for Two, with Chandon Brut and fresh fruit; and the Prime Manhattan for Two with Woodford Reserve Private Selection, Carpano Antica Vermouth, Amaro Nonino, and Rosemary Grapefruit Peppercorn Bitters. The kits are $45 and come with the supplies to shake and serve the cocktails at home.

Twin Peaks just launched its new high-end bourbon program, named Grandpa’s Stash, featuring the rarest allocated bourbons available in each market. Grandpa’s Stash is currently available at Twin Peaks locations throughout DFW. Each market's selections vary depending on the availability of bottles in the area, ranging between 10 and 40 extremely rare bottles on each menu. It could include Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 20 Year, William LaRue Weller, Eagle Rare 17 Year, and more. Served neat or with a crystal clear ice ball, prices range from $9-$90 for a 1.25-ounce pour.

Chef Julian Barsotti (Nonna, Sprezza, Carbone's, Fachini), is opening two new restaurants in fall 2021: One is a Tex-Mex place called Odelay in the former Cafe Express on Lovers Lane near Inwood Village; the other is Bacari Tabu, opening next to Nonna with pizza and Venetian snacks. Barsotti dabbled in Tex-Mex during the pandemic with his "Ritas and Queso" to-go concept, which is still in operation.

The Starbucks Foundation has selected 14 Dallas nonprofits for a Neighborhood Grant, all nominated by Dallas store partners, amounting to nearly $90,000. Recipients include Brother Bills Helping Hand, Cafe Momentum, Carry The Load, City Year Dallas, Dallas County Master Gardener Association, Dallas Hope Charities, Dallas Metro Kidz, Genesis Women's Shelter, Good Samaritans Of Garland Groundwork Dallas, Jonathan's Place, Minnies Food Pantry, Rebirth Empowerment Education, and Resource Center Of Dallas.

Come to the Table is a charitable cookbook benefiting Ronald McDonald House with contributions from 40 chefs such as Granny Fearing’s fried chicken from chef Dean Fearing and Duck Fat Fried Rice from Honorary Chef Chair Uno Immanivong. The book is available for pre-order for $40, with delivery planned for early July 2021. To order the book, go to rmhdallas.org/events/40th-anniversary.