News You Can Eat
Check out this burger joint by SMU and more Dallas restaurant news
This roundup of Dallas restaurant news is stuffed with good eats. There are new openings, anniversary celebrations, and loads of new menus and new dishes to try. There are bowls, juices, and smoothies, and last but not least, there is pumpkin. Plenty of pumpkin.
Here's what's happening in Dallas restaurant news right now:
Solo Burgers & Wings is an excellent mom-and-pop across from SMU at 6413 Hillcrest Ave. from Tom Hammam, who left his native Middle East for New York, where he ran restaurants for years before he and his family moved to Dallas in 2018. They opened this burger joint a year ago, and earned some local fame when they heroically stayed open during the February freeze, still serving food to hungry students and neighborhood residents.
Their menu features burgers, turkey burgers, chicken sandwiches, wings, tenders, fried seafood baskets with choice of cod, shrimp, or catfish, salads, fries, onion rings, fried mushrooms, fried pickles, Wisconsin fried cheese curds, and fried spicy green beans.
You'd be hard pressed to find better-quality food. The buns are soft and glossy. The fries are thick and tasty. The vegetables are crisp and fresh. Here's a thing: The celery and carrot sticks they serve with wings are actually worth eating.
They're BYOB, and they're also one of the few places in Dallas currently serving Beyond plant-based chicken items including chicken tenders and chicken "wings," which they handle with care. In fact, they handle everything with care, and are super doting with attentive and kind service.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe is opening a cafe in Flower Mound. This is a landmark as it is the chain's 1,000th cafe. There are 13 other Tropical Smoothie Cafes in Texas and 70 more in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. They plan to open 15-20 new cafes in 2021.
Clean Juice, an organic juice bar focused on juices, smoothies, açaí bowls, wraps, toasts will open at The Hill the first week of October. Their claim to fame is the Organic Juice Cleanse — a 1- to 5-day cleanse using their signature cold-pressed juices.
Craftway Kitchen, the tavern at Plano's Lakeside Market, will open a second location in Frisco's Starwood neighborhood at 5729 Lebanon Rd. in early 2022.
El Patio Mex-Tex Grill & Bar in Lewisville has been open for one year and to celebrate is debuting a rooftop lounge called Arriba. They'll host a week-long party starting September 15 at 6 pm, with drink specials, street tacos, and a photo wall.
Mendocino Farms is branching out beyond sandwiches and salads for the first time with a new line of grain bowls, as follows:
- Chimichurri Steak & Shishito Bowl, with steak, ancient grains, caramelized onion jam, chimichurri, spinach, shishito peppers, broccolini, tomatoes, red onions, and grilled lemon
- Smoky Chicken Elote Bowl, with al pastor chicken, corn & guajillo broth, zucchini, ancient grains, shredded cabbage, and tortilla strips
- Mediterranean Chicken Bowl, with chicken, cracked whole-grain bulgur, lemon-dill vinaigrette and tahini yogurt sauce, spinach, roasted Romanesco broccoli with tomatoes, yellow peppers, and red onions, pickled golden raisins, and sumac
Jinya Ramen Bar, the California-based chain with a location in Dallas near Victory Park, is heady with success over the recent expansion of its vegan offerings, and has a new menu of dishes made with Impossible Foods' plant-based meat as follows:
- Impossible Tacos – Impossible meat, guacamole, and cilantro on bite-size crispy taco shells
- Impossible Bun – Impossible meat, guacamole and cucumber, served with vegan mayonnaise
- Impossible Rice Bowl – Impossible meat, crispy chickpeas, kale, pickled red cabbage, crispy garlic, and roasted pine nuts over steamed rice with vegan curry ranch dressing
Grimaldi’s Pizzeria has launched a seasonal fall menu with new pizza, salad, desserts and cocktails including a Buffalo Chicken Pizza with chicken and spicy Frank’s RedHot sauce; a twist on the wedge salad with Romaine lettuce; chocolate cheesecake (available through October only); caramel and green apple cheesecake; a Green Apple SangriaVodka Peach Mule with vodka, Monin peach purée, lemon juice, Gosling’s Ginger Beer, and diced peaches.
Einstein Bros. Bagels has a new Bacon & Queso Egg Sandwich featuring queso dripping over whipped jalapeño salsa, green chilies, bacon, and eggs on a bagel. The queso can be added to any sandwich.
Impossible Chicken Nuggets are a new product from the folks who make Impossible burgers, said to be so good, they beat animal chicken nuggets in a blind taste test. They're available at Fatburger and other select restaurants across the country.
Sprouts Farmers Market has added three new products from Good Catch plant-based seafood: Breaded Fish Sticks, Breaded Fish Fillets, and Breaded Crab Cakes. They're made with a six-legume blend (peas, chickpeas, lentils, soy, fava beans, and navy beans), providing a good source of protein without mercury, microplastics, dairy, or GMOs. They join Good Catch's New England Style Crab Cakes, Thai Style Fish Cakes, Classic Fish Burgers, and Plant-Based Tuna.
Golden Chick, the Texas-based chicken franchise, has new Boneless Wings available in Classic Buffalo, Korean BBQ and Garlic Parmesan, for a limited time, how long that time is, they do not say.
Bowl & Barrel is offering a "Back to Business Bundle" with two hours of bowling, shoe rentals, beer, wine, and choice of three appetizers — tomato caprese skewers, meatballs, spinach & artichoke dip, giant pretzel, and dogpile — for $35 per person.
The Melting Pot has brought back Forever Fondue, Monday-Wednesday through September 29, which consists of a 3-course "endless entrée" with herb-crusted chicken, filet mignon, shrimp, and teriyaki-marinated steak, with salad and chocolate fondue. For an extra $10, add cheese fondue. They've also launched gluten-free cocktails such as Main Squeeze with Absolut Citron Vodka, Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur, Fresh Lemon Juice, Simple Syrup, and Raspberries; and Pêche, Please! with Martell VS Single Distillery Cognac, Grand Marnier, Peach Purée, and Lemon Juice.
Carrabba's is hosting a wine matchup featuring wines from Italy and California. You get two 3-ounce pours, 1 Italian and 1 Californian, from match-ups such as Italian Pinot Grigio vs. California Sauvignon Blanc; Italian Allegrini Valpolicella from Italy vs. Conundrum Red Blend from California; and Gabbiano Chianti from Italy vs. J. Lohr Cabernet Sauvignon from California.
Son of a Butcher has a Texas State Fair-themed slider called the Little Tex. It's a wagyu patty with comeback sauce, caramelized onions, pickles, and sharp cheddar, between a doughnut bun, topped with powdered sugar. The Little Tex is available at both Lower Greenville and Legacy Food Hall locations for $3.95, from September 24-October 17.
Rodeo Goat Ice House has a State Fair of Texas-themed burger called the Big Tex, with a 44 Farms beef patty, chicken fried mashed potato cake, bacon, fried onion ring, and chorizo gravy for $12.50, available September 21-October 18.
Tacodeli is offering a limited time special menu item in celebration of Mexican Independence Day: the Chile en Nogada ($4.50), a roasted Anaheim chile stuffed with Heartbrand beef, Akaushi picadillo, pomegranate seeds, walnuts, cilantro, and topped with goat cheese sauce. Available through October 15.
The Cheesecake Factory is now serving its seasonal pumpkin cheesecakes: Pumpkin Cheesecake is a creamy pumpkin cheesecake in a graham cracker crust topped with whipped cream. Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake has a layer of pecan pie topped with a layer of pumpkin cheesecake, finished with caramel and chopped pecans, in a pastry crust. Available through Thanksgiving, by the slice, or as whole cakes.
Fairgrounds Coffee and Tea has launched a limited-time-only fall menu with Autumn Spice Latte, spiced with cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and turmeric; Maple Cinnamon Matcha Latte, a Matcha drink with maple and cinnamon kick; and Sweet Potato Toast, featuring mashed sweet potato, spiced goat cheese, and candied grapes. They'll be available until November 10.
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams has added another flavor to its beloved dairy-free lineup: Banana Cream Pudding, made with real bananas, coconut cream, and vanilla wafers. They're also bringing back a fall flavor: Pumpkin Cake Roll - pumpkin ice cream swirled with spiced sweet cheese and cake. They'll be available September 23 online and at the scoop shop in Deep Ellum.
DQ restaurants are offering two Blizzard of the Month choices: Pumpkin Pie Blizzard Treat, with pumpkin pie pieces and vanilla soft serve, whipped topping and a sprinkle of nutmeg; and Pecan Pie Blizzard Treat, with roasted pecans, brown sugar pie crust pieces, and caramel blended with vanilla soft serve. They run through October.
7-Eleven has two pumpkin-flavored coffee drinks: Fall Pumpkin Coffee and Pumpkin Spice Latte.
Hawthorn Sushi & Grillhouse in downtown Dallas has appointed a new chef: Aaron Redlitz, a native of Los Angeles fluent in steak and sushi who's already creating new dishes.
Hai Hospitality has promoted Rhonda McCullar to chef de cuisine at both Uchi Dallas and Uchiba. A former teacher, McCullar joined the Hai team in 2015.
