Brewery Down

Dallas craft beer innovator Union Bear closes at West Village

Union Bear in West Village has thrown in the towel.

The unique beer-centric bar Union Bear has closed at West Village. It served its final meal on August 31.

Chef and co-owner Matt Spillers founded Union Bear not only as a place to celebrate craft beer, but also as a home-brewer haunt, with the idea that beer aficionados could come in and try experimenting with unique brews. When Spillers dreamed up Union Bear in 2012, it was a pioneer in the craft beer world and came far ahead of the current explosion.

"It was probably too early in the craft beer trend," says spokeswoman Stacey Rives. "It opened a year and a half before the changes were made in the legislation regarding brewpubs, and I think that made the journey more difficult. The brewing concept never got off the ground."

Rives says the concept has been sold to restaurateur Preston Lancaster, founder of 33 Restaurant Group and owner of Taverna Rossa, the pizzeria in Plano that featured recipes devised by Brian Luscher, chef-owner at The Grape. Lancaster has plans to relocate it.

Uptown is currently seeing a great wave of new openings, many of which have a craft beer presence, from Public School 214 and Eureka to LYFE Kitchen. Union Bear gets points for paving the way.

"We'll miss being part of Uptown, and it's been a pleasure to work with the people of West Village," Spillers says, polite to the finish. "But the sale of Union Bear allows us to focus on what we're doing in Oak Cliff with Eno's Pizza Tavern and Oddfellows."

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Sweet shop

Dallas chef Tiffany Derry debuts sweet dessert shop in Grand Prairie

Photo courtesy of Syrup + Sno

Syrup + Sno snow cone.

Dallas' most prolific celebrity chef, Tiffany Derry, is making things sweeter in Grand Prairie. Her latest concept, called Syrup + Sno, is a whimsical dessert shop at EpicCentral in Grand Prairie.

Syrup + Sno is located at 2951 S. State Hwy. 161, Grand Prairie, near other restaurants from Derry's TD2 concepts, The Landing (which is next door) and Radici. It debuted on Memorial Day and is open weekends only, Thursday-Sunday.

The shop offers snow cones that promise to be as tasty as they are colorful, a release says.

Flavors include:

Banana Fosters with caramelized banana, cinnamon, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla sno
Mangonada with fresh mango, Tajín, and chamoy candy
Halo Halo layered with ube, coconut, strawberries, red bean, mochi, and soft serve
Customizable sno with flavors ranging from hibiscus and tamarind to matcha green tea and tiger’s blood

In addition to shaved ice, Syrup + Sno serves macaron ice cream sandwiches, warm cookies, and soft serve topped with everything from pop rocks and mochi to Texas pecans and sweet red bean.

Syrup + Sno features a freezer case stocked with vibrant macaron ice cream sandwiches.Photo by Gabrielle McBay

Derry says she wants it to be an elevated, global-inspired take on an American classic.

“Growing up, some of my favorite memories were the simple treats that brought people together like sno cones, soft serve, cookies," she says in a statement. "With Syrup + Sno, I wanted to create a place that feels fun and nostalgic, while also reflecting the global influences that inspire so much of my cooking. "From classics with a twist to flavors inspired by cultures and ingredients from around the world, I wanted every item to feel both familiar and unexpected."

The shop is built with families in mind, she says, and sits in a dynamic development with family-oriented attractions such as TopGolf, a karting run and arcade, and an indoor waterpark.

"It’s a spot where families can hang out after a game, friends can grab something sweet by the water, and everyone can feel like a kid again," she says.

Derry, a Beaumont-native, rose to fame after appearing on Season 7 of Bravo’sTop Chef and has since gone on to become a Food Network staple. In addition to Radici (both the Grand Prairie location as well as the original spot in Farmers Branch) and The Landing, and now Syrup + Sno, Derry owns Roots Southern Table in Farmers Branch and Roots Southern Shak in Addison. She was nominated for a 2026 CultureMap Tastemaker Award for Chef of the Year.

Syrup + Sno is open 3-8 pm Thursday-Sunday.

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