This Week in Gluttony

These are the 6 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Pakpao Thai is one of the food vendors participating at Chefs For Farmers.

Photo courtesy of Pakpao Thai

Don't fill up on too much Halloween candy early in the week. Why? The latter end of it is jam-packed with some pretty tasty treats. From wine dinners to the most epic foodie fest of the year, there is no chocolate candy in the Dallas that can compete.

Thursday, November 2

El Dia de los Muertos Celebration at Taqueria La Ventana
In the tradition of El Dia de los Muertos, the taqueria's four locations are serving complimentary Mexican hot chocolate paired with pan de muertos, a type of sweet roll typically baked for the holiday. There also will be beverage samples galore and even professional face painters. Admission is free, and the fun starts at 10 am.

Switchback Ridge Wine Dinner at Next Bistro
Enjoy dinner and wine pairings with old and new friends at one of Colleyville's favorite restaurants. Ashley Peterson, winery owner for Switchback Ridge, is the special guest guiding attendees through the pairings. Tickets are $136, and the dinner begins at 6:45 pm. Call 682-325-4046 to reserve your spot.

Beer Dinner for Wine Lovers at Lark on the Park
In honor of North Texas Beer Wine, enjoy four courses paired with pours of both beer and wine. Courses include mosaic beer cheese with pretzel bread, halibut rillette with crispy pigs ear, smoked duck breast with foie-apple emulsion, and pan d'epicese pear tatin. This event is happening on both November 2 and 3 and tickets are $65. Call 214-855-5275 to reserve your seat.

Friday, November 3

Brewer's Ball at Union Station Dallas
This fourth annual event gives guests the opportunity to rub elbows with the owners, brewmasters, and founders of more than 40 breweries while enjoying bites from over a dozen local restaurants. Think 18th & Vine, BrainDead Brewing, Eureka!, Wolfgang Puck, and more. Tickets are $125 and doors open at 7 pm.

Sunday, November 5

Chefs for Farmers Main Event at Oak Lawn Park
We've said it before and we'll say it again: if we could only attend one food festival this year, we'd pick this one. Support both chefs and farmers by exploring the more than 120 food vendors from all over the country who set up shop alongside DJs and other live entertainment at Oak Lawn Park (formerly Lee Park). Tickets are $100, and the event starts at 2 pm. Can't make the Main Event? Other fun Chefs for Farmers events are happening throughout the week.

Monday, November 6

Live Oak Session: Best of Texas Wine and Film at Fearing's
This popular event series combines food, drink, entertainment, and conversation, with a spirited tribute to Texas films. It is led by Dallas favorites Hayley and Gary Cogill, hosts of the podcast Cogill Wine & Film, A Perfect Pairing. The event includes an interactive discussion of some of the best films made in Texas, matching up each region with a different wine from around the state, or from wineries and winemakers with Texas connections. Tickets start at $75, and the event kicks off at 7 pm.

craft-beer dinner wine festivals

Dumpling News

Asian soup dumpling chain Ugly Dumpling to open location in Allen

Ugly Dumpling

Colorful dumplings from Ugly Dumpling

A new dumpling concept is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth: Called Ugly Dumpling, it's a chain specializing in Chinese soup dumplings, and it's opening its first DFW location in Allen, at 213 N. Central Expy., near the intersection of McDermott Road, where it will debut in early fall.

Ugly Dumpling is from Vertex Hospitality Group, a national restaurant franchise organization whose portfolio includes two other Asian chains, KPOT Hot Pot & Korean BBQ (which has a location in Arlington and another coming to Fort Worth), and Kinya Ramen.

Buoyed by the success of those two brands, Vertex launched Ugly Dumpling in 2023, opening the first location in Edison, New Jersey. They now list 26 locations on their website, in Virginia, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Texas, although 14 are "coming soon," including one in Austin that's been in the works since 2024.

Soup dumplings — official name, xiao long bao — are a dish of Shanghai origin that are popular due to their unique combination of a delicate dough wrapper enclosing a tender filling and savory broth, which releases when you take a bite — making for an indelible comfort food experience.

Ugly Dumpling's menu includes six varieties of dumplings, accompanied by a savory soup broth, as follows:

chicken
pork
pork & crab
pork & truffle
pork, shrimp, & spinach
Szechuan pork

Porky! They can be ordered in a dumpling sampler, one of each variety, for about $14. No vegetarian options, although they do have a couple of vegan dishes such as vegan wonton soup.

There are also Chinese classics like spring rolls, cream cheese wontons, hot & sour soup, salt & pepper popcorn chicken, garlic green beans, orange chicken, beef & broccoli, Mongolian beef, Kung pao chicken, and fried rice; plus tempting Asian favorites like edamame and bao buns, and even chicken wings.

They also serve boba tea and other beverages.

Bringing the concept to DFW is Grace Zhao, who previously owned Zhao Star Chinese Bistro in Frisco, which she sold. She's all in on Ugly Dumpling — "we're hoping to open more than one location, but Allen comes first," she says.

A statement from marketing head Margaret Farrell says that "when we created Ugly Dumpling, we wanted to tap into the historical Shanghai street food movement but do so in a way that caters to the modern palette. [Surely she means 'palate'?] Our menu respects Shanghai's centuries-old cooking techniques while cultivating an exciting experience for today's restaurant goer."

openings