Cheers to Change

Celebrated sommelier Michael Flynn departs Mansion on Turtle Creek for new wine adventure

After more than three decades in restaurant service, Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek sommelier Michael Flynn is leaving his post as one of the city’s best wine stewards for a job with Favorite Brands, a small fine wine distributorship in Texas. A new division and position were created especially for him.

Flynn will be working with high-quality wines from Europe, Italy, France, Spain and Austria. “I’ll be the manager of a collection of wines that get less attention than they deserve,” he says. “I guess you could call them ‘geeky wines.’ They’re suitable for someone who’s been a sommelier for 26 years.”

“I’ll be the manager of a collection of wines that get less attention than they deserve,” Flynn says. “I guess you could call them ‘geeky wines.’”

Flynn, who has an advanced diploma from the Court of Master Sommeliers, began working at the Mansion in 2007. There he oversaw the wine inventory and beverage programs, trained the service staff and led wine events like the popular wine chats. He arrived in Dallas after a remarkable stint at Kinkead’s in Washington, D.C., where he was nominated three times for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine Service.

On his Facebook page, Flynn wrote that he had no idea that his first job as a waiter during graduate school in Georgetown would ignite a lifelong passion in the hospitality business. For many years he triumphed, even during times of great change — computerized point-of-sale systems and OpenTable, culinary revolutions and James Beard Awards, celebrity chefs and movie star sommeliers — but he decided a change was in order as he approached his 60th birthday.

“Looking ahead to this landmark next year, I had to ask, ‘How long can I continue to do this?’” he says. “It is extremely physically demanding. Being on your feet for 10-11 hours a day, running up and down the stairs, you’re covering a lot of ground. I’m blessed I don’t have back or foot problems, but I’m going to be slowing down.

“I thought, with my knowledge and experience and contacts, there has to be another role I can play. So I began speaking to a few people, and things started to congeal around a couple of ideas.”

Flynn, who says he has been “overwhelmed” by the outpouring from friends and colleagues, departs the Mansion on July 12. Then he’ll spend a much-deserved week off at a lakehouse in New York before starting his new gig.

“Late summer is a downtime in the market, so I’ll be on the learning curve for a few weeks and then go right into Texsom, the wine conference, where I’ll play a good-size role with Favorite Brands,” he says.

He is also finishing a book, a professional memoir. “I began writing it about a year and a half ago,” he says. “I’m almost 200 pages into the manuscript. I’m getting into the back stretch.

“The working title is “Vintage Gifts: My Life as a Sommelier. It’s not a tell-all. It’s a tell-some.”

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Fried Chicken News

Dallas restaurant chain re-emerges as Mr. Wong's Chicken & Rice

Mr. Wong's

Mr. Wong's Chicken & Rice

A Dallas restaurant chain known for hand-battered chicken fingers and wings has officially re-emerged with a new lease on life: Now called Mr. Wong’s Chicken & Rice, it's a family-owned concept with six locations across DFW, including one at 2415 W. Illinois Ave., which just reopened following a two-week renovation.

Oak Cliff was the final stroke in a company-wide refresh and rebranding, with floor-to-ceiling upgrades, new furniture, and updated dining rooms.

Founded by Nick Wong — dubbed "Mr. Wong" by customers — the chain debuted in 1989 at 2878 W. Northwest Hwy., just above Dallas Love Field.

They became known for their menu of fried chicken with an Asian-Polynesian theme including "Hawaiian" wings in sweet & sour sauce, stir-fried dishes, and fried rice, available plain or with choice of beef, chicken, or shrimp.

The food is a bargain: A chicken tender meal starts at $7 for four fingers, or $9 for Hawaiian wings. A family meal with 15 chicken fingers starts at $17. It's also made to order, so you're advised to order ahead or else expect to wait 15 minutes before it's done.

Fried chicken Mr. Wong's Mr. Wong's chicken tenders, fried rice, egg roll.Mr. Wong's

Their chicken tenders are unique in that the batter is almost like a tempura batter. It results in a golden crust that's lighter, crunchier, "shaggier" than the usual fried chicken crust. According to Mr. Wong's marketing officer Jon Rice, they still use the same family recipe they've used since they were founded in 1989.

Back then, they were known as "The Original Chicken-N-Rice," and they went on to open locations in Pleasant Grove, North Dallas, and Irving.

Namesake Mister Wong died in 2021 but the business is now run by his daughter, Alisha, who has helped steer the company through a rebrand that began in 2020. Their new name celebrates the man who founded the company — while injecting some personality that sets them apart from the competition.

“We did an entire rebrand, from 'The Original CNR' to Mr. Wong’s Chicken & Rice,” Rice says.

At the same time, they began upgrades that included toning down the red-and-yellow color scheme seen in their decor and marketing materials for a more modern palette, with wide bench seating and a black tiled ceiling in their dining rooms, differentiating them in color and design from the many similar-appearing chicken-and-rice restaurant chains.

They've overhauled all of their locations. Some involved updates to the dining room and cashier area; others were relocated and underwent full construction.

Oak Cliff is the last Mr.Wong's to get an update. They’re still waiting for artwork, featuring two framed pictures of food and a two-wall mural illustrating the history of Mr. Wong's, starting with Wong's immigration to the U.S. following college graduation in 1971.

Not every location is the same — and that means that curious customers who want a glimpse of the "Who is Mr. Wong?" wall which features a portrait and bio of the trailblazing founder, will need to drive to the location in Pleasant Grove. Fortunately, the wings and tenders are the same.

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