This Week in Gluttony

Charitable pastry pop-up shop tops best food and drink events in DFW

If you didn't get reservations last week, you still have time to experience DFW Restaurant Week. If you've moved on, there are plenty of satisfying events in the next few days, from a downtown sausage fest to a pop-up pastry sale for a good cause.

Dig in.

Wednesday, August 20

Craft Beer Dinner at Chill Bar Grapevine
Sip on brews from Grapevine Craft Brewery while noshing on dishes such as lettuce leaf topped with hummus and grilled shrimp, craft beer BBQ brisket sliders with fried onion shoestrings, marinated steak stuffed with sausage served on a bed of wild rice, and a Sir Williams Brown Ale float. Tickets cost $35, which includes food, beer and live music. Reserve your spot by calling 817-310-6610 or emailing julia@chillgrapevine.com. The event starts at 6:30 pm.

Greek Night at Urban Acres Farmstead
In this demonstration class, chef Nicole Gossling teaches students how to make a classic Greek salad, chicken souvlaki gyros with fresh tzatziki sauce, and halva (a traditional Mediterranean semolina dessert). All recipes are included in a take-home packet. The event runs from 6:30-9 pm and costs $65 per person. Reserve your seats online.

Friday, August 22

"Show Us Your Wiener" at Samson's Gourmet Hot Dogs
Get your mind out of the gutter, dirty birds. This party kicks off the "Show Us Your Wiener" contest. For $5, attendees can build and name their own dogs and take pictures of them, to be posted on the Samson's Facebook page for a week. The photo with the most likes will be added to the menu, and the winner gets a free dog a month for a year. Even if you don't want to participate in the contest, there are still sangria, beer and wine specials. The fun starts at 7 pm.

National Wine Release Dinner at III Forks
III Forks presents an exclusive wine dinner featuring special guest Agustin Francisco Huneeus of Quintessa. The menu includes seared diver scallops, rabbit confit pot pie, grilled USDA Prime strip loin and death by chocolate dessert. Happy hour starts at 6:30 pm; dinner starts at 7. Seats are $145 a pop. Call 972- 267-1776 for reservations.

Saturday, August 23

Sausage Fest at Main Street Garden
Head to Main Street Garden to get your sausage fix. In addition to eating more meat than you ever thought imaginable, there is an endless supply of cold adult frosties, the obligatory hot-bod bikini contest and sausage games for prizes. Sausage Fest also features music from DJ Melissa Richey, Guns for Roses, Sam Lao and Rhymin-n-Stealin. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online.

Pop-Up Pastry Bake Sale at Empire Baking Company
This pastry chef showcase gives the public a chance to meet the people behind the desserts. This pop-up features CultureMap Tastemaker Award nominee Laurel Wimberg from AF+B. One hundred percent of the proceeds go to the beneficiary selected by the chef, and Wimberg's charity of choice is Duck Team 6. The event lasts from 10 am-2 pm.

Seared scallops are on the menu during a special dinner at III Forks on August 22.

III Forks, scallops, asparagus, October 2012

III Forks Houston Facebook

Seared scallops are on the menu during a special dinner at III Forks on August 22.

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Closure News

Buzzy Komodo from Miami closes restaurant in Deep Ellum Dallas

Komodo

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Dallas' Deep Ellum has suffered another loss with the closure of Komodo, the buzzy restaurant and bar from Miami-based Groot Hospitality, located in The Epic office tower at 2550 Pacific Ave. #120, where it closed on May 18.

A Komodo spokesperson confirmed it had officially closed, but said that the company was not issuing a statement.

The closure came three years after it opened in April 2023, on the ground floor of the Epic mixed-use development at the southwest corner of Good Latimer Expressway, and originally intended to house Uber's corporate hub. Unfortunately, Uber bailed during the pandemic, and the building struggled to find tenants.

Komodo is only the latest restaurant in the Epic to close; Harper, the global restaurant from Dallas-based Milkshake Concepts, closed in 2024 (and is now home to Paparazzi Chophouse); and Biscuit Bar, the local chain of biscuit restaurants, shuttered at the end of 2025.

Founded in Miami by hip entrepreneur David Grutman, Komodo is known for Southeast Asian-inspired cuisine, cocktails, eye-catching decor, and a buzzy atmosphere. The first location opened in Miami's Brickell neighborhood; there's also a location in Las Vegas.

Dallas was its second location, opening as one of an array of Miami concepts that migrated to Dallas at the time. While it boasted a flashy exterior, it was also really good, with a menu that was both innovative and solidly executed featuring a full sushi bar, Peking duck, salmon tacos, plant-based Kung Pao chicken, and stellar desserts such as the chocolate peanut caramel bar, which earned Komodo a spot on CultureMap's list of Best Desserts in February 2025.

They also made CultureMap's list of Best Patios in 2023, and received two nominations for CultureMap's Tastemakers Awards including Best New Restaurant in 2024, followed by a nomination in 2025 for "Best Eatertainment," thanks to its combination of good food and a lively bar scene.

The Dallas opening was a case of perseverance on the part of Groot Hospitality: In the works since 2019, and originally forecast to open in 2022 until the pandemic intervened. A representative from the company who asked not to be named stated that the situation at the Epic did not help, nor did the deteriorating situation in the neighborhood, with the most recent example being two shootings that took place on Cinco de Mayo in which five people were injured and a security guard was killed; but that "Groot Hospitality loves Dallas" and even hinted that it might return.

deep-ellum closings