Lush lush Allen Texas

Lush suburban Dallas complex expands with salad and seafood eateries

Salads will be snappy at Watters Creek.

Photo courtesy of Snappy Salads

Two popular Dallas-area chains are headed for Allen, where they'll open branches in a new expansion of Watters Creek at Montgomery Farm, the popular center off US-75 and Bethany Drive.

The restaurants are Snappy Salads and Fish City Grill, and both will open in spring 2018.

The center is expanding its footprint, with a newly built extension on the southern side of DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse. Watters Creek marketing director Debra Martinez says that the two restaurants were chosen not only because they're Texas businesses and local favorites, but they'll also fill a niche at the center that is not currently being filled.

"We were looking for something to complement what we have, which includes PF Chang's, Brio, Cheesecake Factory, and Mi Cocina," she says. "We wanted something in the fast-casual vein, for people who want to come in and out more quickly, and for lunch. These two concepts were perfect choices."

Built in 2008, Watters Creek at Montgomery Farm is distinctive in that its terrain incorporates naturalistic elements including a village green and running creek. The mixed-use development includes retailers, restaurants, a Market Street grocery, office space, and loft apartments.

Snappy Salads is the gourmet salad chain with a strong environmental stance that includes tables made from salvaged wood, and energy-efficient lighting. Like its other locations, this will offer recycling of batteries and compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) at no cost. Their cups, utensils, and take-out containers are made from annually renewable resources and are compostable, and the straws are made from paper.

Fish City Grill’s friendly, neighborhood seafood joint will serve up menu favorites like their famous Oyster Nachos, fresh seafood entrees that change daily, a variety of shrimp, catfish and oyster dishes, as well as soups and salads plus a full bar. Giving back to the community is a big part of the Fish City Grill brand. The First Tuesday Benefit occurs on the first Tuesday of each month and a portion of the day’s proceeds are donated to a local charity.

Watters Creek plans to break ground on the south end of the lifestyle center by the end of this month. Martinez says that the center is nearly full.

"To add more restaurants, we definitely had to expand at the end of the property," she says. In addition to Snappy Salads and Fish City Grill, they'll add third restaurant, as well as another green space for events.

openings

Coffee News

French cafe Maman from New York to open location in East Dallas

Maman

Cookies and cappuccino from Maman

A French cafe chain from New York is bringing its ritzy fare to East Dallas: Maman, a celebrated spot with coffee and brand-name pastries, will open a location in Casa Linda Plaza at 1152 N. Buckner Blvd. #124, in the former Schlotzsky's Deli, which closed in 2025.

Signage is already up in the space. According to a spokesperson, renovations will commence in April with a targeted opening date of November.

Maman was founded in Soho in 2014 by partners Elisa Marshall and Benjamin Sormonte, and has expanded across the U.S, with 50-plus locations in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and Canada.

They made their Texas debut in November 2025 when they opened a location in the Plaza at Preston Center. There are also plans for another location in Frisco at the new Fields West mixed-use center.

Beyond the cafe operation, they have expanded into a lifestyle brand, selling merchandise in the culinary, design, and entertainment spaces; there's also a cookbook, Maman: The Cookbook, All Day Recipes to Warm Your Heart.

Expanding to Casa Linda Plaza is a big deal for East Dallas, which has its share of coffee shops but precious little in the way of precious upscale businesses.

The cafe will be open during daylight hours with coffee, breakfast and lunch: espresso drinks, tea, and pastries such as croissants, kouign maman, Bundt cakes, tea cakes, and cookies. Heartier breakfast and lunch items include quiche, a breakfast bowl (with potatoes, arugula, bacon, caramelized onions, avocado, and egg), chicken Caesar wrap, and Mediterranean steak sandwich.

They also partner up on brand collaborations with food & beverage names such as Martha Stewart.

Their drinks can be elaborate with rarefied ingredients; for example, a vanilla honey butter latte with sweet corn foam & cornbread crumbs, or a salted tahini honeycomb latte.

Known for their rustic-chic décor, hanging plants, and Nutty Chocolate Chip Cookies, Maman will equip the former deli space with a new kitchen and the installation of their signature interior touches to create a cozy, European garden atmosphere. They boast a French provincial aesthetic with vintage furniture, wood floors, imported tiles, signature blue toile that extends to the custom espresso machine. These furnishings have made Maman a favorite for bridal showers, luncheons, and celebrations.

coffee openings