Lupe's love

Street tacos and family recipes coming soon at Soleo Mexican Kitchen onHillcrest

Soleo Mexican Kitchen is set top open at Hillcrest and Northwest Highway.
Photo by Marc Lee
Paintings on wall of Soleo Mexican Kitchen depict owner Lupe Rodriguez'sgrandfather working in the fields.
Photo by Marc Lee
Shelves behind the bar will display a collection of tequila.
Photo by Marc Lee
Soleo Mexican Kitchen manager and owner Lupe Rodriguez.
Photo by Marc Lee
The interior of Soleo Mexican Kitchen is adorned with blown glass imported fromMexico.
Photo by Marc Lee
Stacked slate comprises the archway.
Photo by Marc Lee

Maybe you've seen the construction for the past few months at the northwest corner of Hillcrest and Northwest Highway, and now the butterfly has emerged: Soleo Mexican Kitchen, a Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurant from Lupe Rodriguez, of the Velasquez family, which runs the El Paisa chain of fast-casual taquerias.

They're still adding finishing touches, but you can see it's a handsome place with artwork imported from Mexico, a granite taco bar, open kitchen, patio with seating for up to 60, and a full bar with 30 tequilas. "We didn't want to overdo it and get too many," Rodriguez says. Slated opening is in about a week.

It's quite a leap from the modest taco stands her parents opened after moving here from California in the early '90s.

"We started out in 1998 with one little taco stand," Rodriguez says. "This pre-dated the whole taco craze — 13 or 14 years ago, you could have a taco stand just like in Mexico, where you just had a grill and could do tacos. You could sell the tacos for a dollar, and 14 years ago, a dollar went a long way. But then it got stricter. They made it so that you had to have a full kitchen."

Rodriguez, 33, graduated from the University of North Texas where she studied early childhood education, but she'd always worked in the restaurant business. Soleo is her attempt at a more serious venture, with a kitchen big enough to accommodate the family's catering business. The menu is her pragmatic combination of specialties from El Paisa, such as tacos, but also family favorites with a Jalisco influence, including pozole and seafood dishes like seared tilapia and grilled salmon.

And then Tex-Mex. "I have to do Tex-Mex because of where we're at," Rodriguez says. "If you don't do queso, people wonder where it is. And we do a hamburger because there's going to be that guy who doesn't like Mexican food."

But you can see the little rays of innovation if you look hard enough. For example, some menu items are marked with a (V / VG), indicating vegan or vegetarian, and that's something you don't see at your typical Tex-Mex joint. Veg items include a vegan lentil soup, a quartet of entree salads that can be ordered with or without meat, and enchiladas with tofu that Rodriguez really likes.

Everything in the restaurant has been considered, from the use of slate to the sturdy, comfortable wooden chairs to the quartet of paintings on the far wall, showing a worker in a field, set against a backdrop of agave plants.

"Agave plants — that's what you saw where we came from, and that's my grandfather working in the field," Rodriguez says.

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Pizza News

Donatos Pizza debuts in Texas with first opening in Frisco

Donatos

Donatos Pizza

An anticipated pizza chain is about to make its Dallas debut: Donatos Pizza, the franchise famous for spreading its toppings to the very edge of the crust, will open its first location in Texas at 8990 Coit Rd. in Frisco.

According to a release, it'll open on November 12.

Donatos is so into its method of distributing toppings all the way to the edge that they have registered a phrase: Edge to Edge® pizza.

Their menu features more than a dozen varieties of pizza such as veggie, four cheese, and pepperoni with hot honey. Their signature crust is a thin-crust but they also offer thicker alternatives as well as a cauliflower crust. Pizzas come in a 7-inch individual and go all the way up to a 14-inch large. Prices range from $15 to $25.

Fans appreciate their better-than-average ingredients and describe it as more flavorful compared to other corporate pizza chains, with a crisp thin crust and generous toppings.

In addition to pizza, Donatos' menu includes oven-baked wings, sub sandwiches, including meatball and Italian cold cuts, plus appetizers and salads.

“Opening a Donatos Pizza location in Texas is a dream come true for us. As lifelong fans of Donatos, we’re thrilled to bring this beloved Ohio-based brand to the Frisco community,” said Casey Dennis, co-owner of Donatos Pizza Frisco. “We can’t wait for everyone to experience great pizza and join us for some fun at the grand opening on November 12th.”

Bringing Donatos to Frisco are two three natives of Ohio, all with a connection to Donatos: Dr. Rico Singleton, Casey Dennis, and Cameron Hopkins — all eager to share their long-time love of Donatos in their new home in Texas. They also share a brotherhood through Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., which emphasizes initiatives like Bigger and Better Business, reflecting their entrepreneurial spirit.

Singleton is a native of Zanesville, Ohio, with a background in Information Technology who has lived in Texas for 8 years. Dennis is from Columbus, has a degree in pharmacy, is lifelong friends with Singleton, and has also lived here for eight years. Hopkins is also a native of Columbus, with a background in software engineering and real estate investing and has lived here five years.

They're also opening another location in the Dallas area in Flower Mound, coming later this year.

“Bringing Donatos Pizza to Texas marks a historic milestone as we begin this exciting journey to expand the brand throughout the DFW area,” says Donatos President and CEO Kevin King. “We look forward to becoming an integral part of the Frisco community through our promise to serve the best pizza and make your day a little better.”

Donatos Pizza was founded in 1963 when Ohio State sophomore Jim Grote bought a small pizza shop in Columbus, Ohio, where the company is headquartered. At one point, Donatos was bought out by McDonald’s in 1999. By 2003, Grote bought it back.

Ther are currently 470-plus locations in 28 states. That includes 175 stores plus nearly 300 non-traditional locations nationwide, including select Red Robin restaurants.

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