Dallas' Design District is in line to get a cool new neighborhood bar from a team with lots of experience: It's called Double D's — short for "Design District," what were you thinking? — and it's from This and That Hospitality, whose brimming portfolio of bars includes High Fives, The Whip, Tiny Victories, Alice, Dibs on Victory, and Ferris Wheelers.

Leading the charge on the bar will be Jermey Elliott, previously of Parliament and Milkshake Concepts fame.

Elliott was in Arizona working at Bitter & Twisted, an acclaimed cocktail lounge in Phoenix, but came back to Dallas for the opportunity to develop the new bar. It's opening at 1404 Riverfront Blvd., in an address previously occupied by a decade-old bar called Dolphin Lounge that closed in 2020.

"I knew This and That founders Brandon Hays and Phil Schanbaum from being in the industry," Elliott says. "A few years ago, we had talked about doing something together. When this came up, they let me know they had found a cool space that would fit exactly and thought I'd be perfect for the project."

Double D's will be first and foremost a neighborhood bar that serves the Design District. No gimmicks there, just a great comfortable bar, Elliott says.

"I'm from Dallas, I love the city, and hope we'll create a place where people can come to relax," he says. "There's so much residential moving into that area, and quite a few people who live over there are in the service industry as well. There are great restaurants nearby like The Charles and Town Hearth, but not too many bars yet, and no one that stays open late. We'll be open until 2 am. So people who live in the area won't have to go across the bridge if they want to go out and get a drink."

They're still working on the menu but they'll definitely have cocktails on tap, as well as a bar program that's approachable with well-made classics, without compromising ingredient or flavors. They'll have a light menu of food, as well, including pizzas.

The bar's aesthetics will be '70s lounge — "not in a kitschy way, but with a lot of wood and neon and plants," he says. "I'm in love with older spaces, and love the idea of a dope lounge with a '70s feeling but not too forced. The city is growing so much, with big build-outs and a lot of modern stuff, and we want something that's homey and welcoming, getting to the reason why people come to bars."

"When I was 24, I had an epiphany: I love hospitality," he says. "I love what bars and restaurants do for cities. My philosophy when it comes to being a bartender is to be a human first. It's about people coming and having a good time with friends and family, having good memories involved in those spaces, and I think one of the most rewarding things is helping contribute to those memories."