Sam Fox News

Flower Child restaurant sibling Culinary Dropout to debut in Dallas

Dallas is getting its own Culinary Dropout.

Courtesy photo

A new restaurant from a highly successful restaurant group is making its Dallas debut: Called Culinary Dropout, it's a casual gastropub with a quirky, rock 'n' roll atmosphere, comfort food, and cocktails, and it's opening in Dallas' Design District.

The opening is a ways off: According to a release, it'll debut in early 2024 at The International, a high-end showroom center at 150 Turtle Creek Blvd.

Culinary Dropout is part of Fox Restaurant Concepts (FRC), the same group that owns The Henry and Flower Child, which all have locations in town. Dallas loves Fox concepts.

FRC was founded by Sam Fox, a restaurant whiz who has created a dozen brands that also include not-in-Dallas concepts such as Zinburger, Blanco Cocina + Cantina, and Doughbird.

In a statement, he says the concept is a good fit for the Design District. "I was inspired by the new growth and development of this area, it's just a really cool place to be," he says.

Food
The Culinary Dropout menu contains an edgy mix of meals done with attitude that include:

Pork ribs slow roasted for 36 hours and basted in jalapeño BBQ sauce
Buffalo hot wings
Fried chicken drizzled with honey
Soft pretzels with Provolone cheese fondue

Drinks
Cocktails feature house-made syrups, infused liquor, and fresh-squeezed juices, including:

El Matador with añejo tequila, elderflower liqueur, ginger agave, and orange bitters
Room Service with gin, lemon, strawberry, and bubbly

Atmosphere
The concept is said to radiate an irresistible welcome, with an eclectic mix of rockstar art, grand chandeliers, and leather booths. It includes a stage for live music and TVs for sports, and is inclusive for families, date night, a quick beer, or after-work food and drink.

There are eight Culinary Dropout locations: six in Fox Restaurant Concepts' home state of Arizona, plus one in Denver and one in Austin, which opened in 2016.

According to Fox, Dallas will be the first location with a rooftop bar, which will undoubtedly feature Dallas skyline views.

Setting
The International on Turtle Creek is an architectural icon and adaptive reuse office/showroom project created in 2005. It was acquired by Quadrant Investment Properties (QIP), a Dallas real estate investment firm that focuses on development projects in urban centers, in 2021.

QIP founder Chad Cook says that having a showpiece restaurant like this was a priority.

"The acquisition strategy for The International was centered around attracting a world class food and beverage operator," Cook says. "From the project's inception, Culinary Dropout was the ideal fit for this space. We couldn't be more excited to partner with Sam Fox and his team."

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In A Pickle

Dallas-based Smoothie King chain debuts puckery new pickle smoothie

Smoothie King

Pickle flavored smoothie from Smoothie King.

The ever upwardly trending pickle flavor is surfacing in the unlikeliest of places: Smoothie King, the Dallas-based smoothie chain, is releasing a new limited-edition Pickle Smoothie — for those who love pickles so much they could drink them.

Smoothie King is partnering with Grillo's Pickles, a Boston-based pickle company, on a beverage that combines Grillo’s Pickles with bananas, kale, and coconut water for what they describe as a refreshingly tangy drink infused with electrolytes designed to support hydration.

The drink is $5.99 for a 20-ounce serving, and will be available through the summer. They'll be giving out free 4-ounce samples on May 16, while supplies last. A Today writer who ran out and tried it found that the banana and pickles both had an equally strong presence, and that it was "not bad." That's some reporting.

Grillo's Pickles was founded in 2008 by Travis Grillo, who launched the business as a small wooden pushcart in Boston Common, using his family's 100-year-old recipe. It has since grown into a nationwide brand, with their bottles topped with kelly-green lids sold in the refrigerator section of major grocery chains such as Walmart, Target, Whole Foods, Kroger, and Aldi.

Smoothie King is based in Dallas and is owned by Wan Kim, who opened the first Smoothie King franchise in Korea before eventually acquiring the national chain. He's also a major presence in Dallas' restaurant scene, opening the acclaimed Asian-themed Nuri Steakhouse in Uptown Dallas in 2024, and more recently debuting a chicken tenders concept on Dallas' Greenville Avenue called Flock & Fresh on May 2.

Pickles have emerged in recent years as one of the buzziest flavors, including Fort Worth's own craft beer brewer Martin House Brewing Co., a pickle pioneer that has released a number of pickle-flavored beers. H-E-B just joined the pickle party with a new Pickle Chamoy Sherbet, and national boutique grocery chain Trader Joe's is about to reprise its annual Pickle Season onslaught of pickle-flavored products such as Dill Pickle Mustard and Pickle-Flavored Potato Chips.

Beyond their flavor, pickles are a fermented item which can offer nutritional/probiotic benefits, although Smoothie King VP of R&D and Product Marketing Lori Primavera focuses primarily on the hydration aspect.

"At Smoothie King, every recipe starts with delicious nutrition in mind," Primavera says in a statement. "Pickles are not only delicious and having a cultural moment, they also offer real nutritional benefits, especially known for their enhanced hydration. That combination gave us an opportunity to explore them in a new format and push our innovation into new territory, reimagining how a beloved flavor can deliver both function and taste."

Grillo's Pickles Chief Commercial Officer Mark Luker calls them "functional benefits."

"We love to do unhinged collabs at Grillo's," Luker says. "With that, we don't always get to talk about the functional benefits of pickles. When we partnered with Smoothie King for a hydration smoothie, we knew this was a great opportunity to do both. Those who are willing to try will be pleasantly surprised (and hydrated)."

And if pickles are not your thing, Smoothie King is also simultaneously unveiling five watermelon smoothies including fan-favorite Watermelon Hydration, Watermelon X-Treme, Gut Health, The Activator Recovery Watermelon, and Power Meal Slim Watermelon.

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