This week in gluttony

These are the 8 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Dine out cheaper at some of Dallas' priciest restaurants, like Nobu, during DFW Restaurant Week.

Courtesy of Nobu

This week marks the beginning of DFW Restaurant Week, where more than 100 area eateries will offer specials to benefit a good cause. August also means Hatch chile season is here, and one gourmet grocery chain is ready to celebrate the piquant pepper with a month-long festival. Also on the schedule: a wine dinner, taco and margarita tour, and a hangover brunch to end the week.

Tuesday, August 3

Evil Cooks & Metalachi at José
It's an exclusive night of tacos with Evil Cooks, the dynamic husband-and-wife duo of Chef Alex and Chef Huerta, known for their trompo style tacos and flan dessert tacos. They don't do set menus, so you won't know what's being served till they arrive at José and plan the night with Chef AQ. Margaritas, cocktails, beer, and wine available for purchase at the outside bar or inside at the main bar. Metalachi, a metal, fiddle-swinging, trumpet-blasting, guitar-strumming Mariachi band, will also perform. It's from 7-10 pm, and tickets are $75, available here.

Wednesday, August 4

Annual Hatch Chile Fest at Central Market
Hatch peppers are here, and the gourmet grocer will feature the popular pepper in everything from crab cakes and brioche to mac and cheese and tortillas. Named for their origin of Hatch, New Mexico, the pepper is harvested only a few weeks out of the year and more 250,000 pounds will make their way to Central Market stores across Texas. The festival will run through August 26 at all locations.

Thursday, August 5

Prisoner Wine Dinner at The Ranch at Las Colinas
The four-course dinner will be paired with wine from the popular Napa Valley label. Menu items include grilled and chilled peach soup with goat cheese and basil, yellow tuna tartare, coffee-infused filet, and peach mousse with Italian meringue. Dinner is $95 per person, plus tax and gratuity, and begins at 6 pm.

Friday, August 6

DFW Restaurant Week
The 2021 edition of the annual dine-out fundraiser kicks off its preview weekend on Friday, with the official “week” running August 9-15. Patrons can indulge in a pre-set, multicourse dinner for either $39 or $49 per person — a bargain for some of Dallas’ priciest establishments like Nobu, Al Biernat’s, and Mansion on Turtle Creek. A two-course lunch option is available for $19. There are dozens of restaurants in Dallas and surrounding areas participating in the 24th annual event, which benefits the North Texas Food Bank and Lena Pope Home. Note that some restaurants are extending their specials through September 5.

Saturday, August 7

La Cruda Brunch at Four Corners Brewing Company
The Dallas brewery and taproom will launch brunch this week, set for the first Saturday of every month. La Cruda means “hangover” in Spanish, and menu items follow the theme. Go for hangover-curing dishes like breakfast tacos with fillings including migas, beef fajitas, or chorizo; and burritos with eggs, queso, avocado, and potatoes. There’ll also be coffee, micheladas, and boozy kombucha seltzer. Brunch will be served from 10 am-1 pm.

Dallas’ Best Tacos & Margaritas Tour
Hop aboard a motorcoach for a four-stop tour of tacos and margs around Dallas. There’ll be street tacos and gourmet tacos (four total) along with two margaritas and some taco trivia along the way. (More margaritas available at additional cost. Participants may also BYOB on the motorcoach.) Tickets are $70 per person and the tour begins at 12:30 pm.

Black Bourbon Society Bourbon-Q Paired Tasting at Sandaga 813
Black Bourbon Society, in partnership with Jim Beam, is bringing The Open Door Tour to Dallas, and the featured event is a family barbecue that allows adults to sample the Beam portfolio paired with BBQ small bites. The tour spotlights Black-owned bars and restaurants in the community; the barbecue will take place 3-4:30 pm at Sandaga 813 (813 Exposition Ave., Dallas). For more information and other events through the weekend, visit the tour's website.

Sunday, August 8

Bubbles & Brunch at The Whiskey Spot
In addition to a brunch buffet that includes bottomless bubbly and mimosas, there’ll be a local vendor market and even DIY crafting at this Sunday brunch event. Menu highlights include house-cured smoked salmon and fig balsamic-glazed chicken. Tickets are $50 per persona and brunch begins at 11 am.

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Ramen News

Dallas' acclaimed Ten Ramen to open in Cru Wine spot in West Village

Ten Ramen

A highly acclaimed ramen spot is coming to Dallas' West Village: Ten Ramen, one of Dallas' most celebrated ramen spots, will open a location in the former Cru Food & Wine Bar space at 3699 McKinney Ave. #107.

According to a release, Ten Ramen will open in spring 2026.

In related news, the concept was acquired by Vandelay Companies (Hudson House, Jack & Harry's, East Hamption Sandwich Co., El Molino), led by CEO Hunter Pond, who counts himself a big Ten Ramen fan.

“I’ve been a longtime fan of who is arguably one of Texas’ most respected chefs — founder and creator Teiichi Sakurai — and what Ten Ramen embodies,” says Pond.

Vandelay also owns Tei An, the award-winning authentic Japanese restaurant and Ten Ramen sibling which Sakurai opened at One Arts Plaza in 2008.

Ten Ramen debuted in March 2015 at the Sylvan | Thirty mixed-use project in West Dallas — a pioneering concept at the time, and one that quickly earned a devoted following with its tiny 10-seat setup and uncompromisingly authentic flavors.

Back then, it was a ground-breaking concept for Dallas and is still one of the most beloved ramen spots in the city. Diners flocked to wait in long lines for its menu of Mazemen, Shoyu, Tonkotsu, and Lobster Ramen — recipes that will remain intact, Pond says.

“We haven’t touched the recipes, they’re perfect just as they are,” he says. “After many months under our ownership already, it remains clear that the magic is in the food, the service, and the experience. Our goal with this new location is simple: bring what we feel is the best ramen in Dallas to more people, in a space that feels both fresh and familiar.”

Ooooooh, so Vandelay has owned it for many months. Well well well.

“When the opportunity came to bring this incredible concept into our family of restaurants, I jumped at it," Pond says.

He's the one shepherding it into the West Village — a location he says will give more diners the chance to experience the concept.

The location has an impressive track record: Cru Wine Bar closed in August 2025 after an unparalleled 23 years at that address.

The new 1,480-square-foot space will be a fresh take on the Ten Ramen experience, with a full-service bar that seats 7, and an intimate dining room seating 28 — versus the impromptu stand-up situation at Sylvan Thirty.

Their goal is to make a space that feels approachable and lively while staying true to the dishes that made Ten Ramen a local favorite.

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