Fried Chicken News
Chicken restaurant from Dallas chef Omar Flores soars the suburbs
The second location is set for Whistle Britches, the Southern restaurant with fried chicken from chef Omar Flores. According to CBRE, the restaurant will open in February 2018 at 6121 W. Park Blvd. in Plano, at The Shops at Willow Bend.
Whistle Britches will be one of six to eight new restaurants at Willow Bend's expanding "restaurant district," part of a $125 million renovation and expansion at the mall.
CBRE senior VP Greg Pierce says Willow Bend is a prime spot. "With the addition of great tenants such as The Crayola Experience, Equinox health club, and the Plano Children’s Theatre, we believe Starwood will be able to pull off something exceptional at Willow Bend," he says. "To be an integral part of the great mix of restaurateurs coming into this project is a testament to the creative mind and dedication to exceptional, high-quality dishes Chef Omar is regarded for."
Whistle Britches opened its first location in 2016 at 6110 Frankford Rd., Dallas, in the former Spork space, which was a converted Sonic Drive-In with large roll-up doors leading out to an inviting wood-decked patio.
A James Beard semifinalist and critical favorite, Flores can now focus on Whistle Britches full-time since Casa Rubia, his tapas-style restaurant at Trinity Groves, was shut down in July.
Whistle Britches is a full-service, dine-in restaurant with biscuits, chicken and waffles, and chicken wings. One of the most popular dishes is a sandwich made with fried chicken and a biscuit. There is brunch on Saturday and Sunday, and a full service bar with local beer and cocktails.
For Whistle Britches, Flores is partnered with Alec Marshi, who also owns Carmel Restaurant in Coppell, an American-Mediterranean spot he opened with his parents in 2014. The expansion won't stop with Plano, Marshi says, and there's a menu expansion in the works as well, with some salads and dishes that are a little healthier than fried food.
"The Frankford location has done well, and we've been fortunate that a lot of landlords have approached us," Marshi says. "After Plano, we're looking at Southlake. We almost have a location, we're very close. We're liking the suburbs."
