Where to Drink

Where to drink in Dallas right now: 5 new bars with must-try cocktails

A new over-the-top cocktail is in town.

Sugar Factory

With all of the recent openings and new drink menus, there is no shortage of candidates for the November edition of Where to Drink in Dallas right now, CultureMap's monthly feature that offers suggestions on where to drink in Dallas. Right now.

This month includes two brand-new places, a third that's almost brand new, and one place that has a tempting new cocktail menu for the holidays.

Here's where to drink for November:

AC Hotel Dallas by The Galleria
Marriott hotel by the Galleria opened about three years ago and has an in-house eatery-bar called the AC Lounge, where they serve Spanish tapas, wine by the glass, and a full ba of cocktails. They just rolled out a seasonal drink menu, incorporating fall ingredients such as allspice, pumpkin, pecan, orange and star anise. Cocktails include the Spiced Pear Gin Fizz with Anjou pear, allspice, star anise-infused Dripping Springs Gin, lemon juice, Fever Tree club soda, and egg white; and the Pumpkin Bourbon Smash with Makers Mark Bourbon, spiced pumpkin, lime juice, Demerara syrup, and pecan bitters made in-house. The proximity to the Galleria makes it a perfect apres-shopping drop-in (or before, if that's how you roll).

Parterre
Newly opened downtown venue is a coffee shop and a cocktail bar in one from coffee guru Mike Mettendorf, and like its siblings La Reunion and State Street Coffee, it takes what it does very seriously: from carefully sourced coffee beans and impeccable coffee drinks, to a crafty approach to cocktails, including coffee-based cocktails such as he Espresso Martini with vodka, Kahlúa, espresso, and vanilla; and the irresistible Carajillo with Pierre Ferrand Ambré Cognac, Licor 43, and espresso. No detail gets overlooked, and there's a staff with pedigrees to deliver the best. Wine drinkers are advised to drop in on Wednesdays when they half-off wine bottles from 3-6 pm.

People's Last Stand
There's been lots of coming and going at Mockingbird Station, but this pioneering craft cocktail haunt has shown superpower endurance, cycling in new menus nearly every week, being extra creative, and just bringing their A game every day. All menu cocktails are $11, which is a deal by current craft cocktail standards, and they host a happy hour daily until 7 pm featuring a selection of $8 cocktails. Right now, they're one of three bars in town (along with La Reunion in Oak Cliff and Shoal's in Deep Ellum) who are featuring a special "Gold Fashioned" starring Aberfeldy Single Malt Scotch Whisky, a fruity, Highland-style of whisky that's dubbed "the Golden Dram" because of its water source, the Pitilie Burn, a river known for its deposits of gold. The drink combines Aberfeldy 12 year old, honey syrup, Angostura bitters, and Orange bitters.

The Stix Icehouse
Full-service restaurant and bar sprawled out over 14 acres of land in McKinney, features a menu of indulgent comfort food: catfish n chips, nachos, chicken-fried chicken, soups, and salads. Guests can wash down their delicious comfort food with specialty cocktails, like the AppleMoon Magic Cocktail (moonshine spiked with apple cider) or one of 24 beers on tap. In addition to great food and drinks, The Stix features a nine-hole disc golf course, wiffle ball, corn hole, ping pong, swings, a tree house and a large event space perfect for group outings and large family events.

Sugar Factory
Buzzy restaurant-candy store opens with fanfare this weekend, with over-the-top food and drink including their dry-ice-smoking cocktails served in crazy-big goblets. The Lollipop Passion comes garnished with lollipops and candy necklaces, while the Watermelon Patch features Pitbull’s Voli 305 Vodka and sour watermelon gummies. Many of their cocktails have a celebrity tie: The Rock's Soul Man with his Teremana Tequila; 50 Cent’s Candy Shop with Branson Cognac; the Mamitas Hurricane made with Mario Lopez’s Casa Mexico Silver Tequila and Brody Jenner’s Mamitas Seltzer; Bruno Mars’ Watermelon Piña Colada and Mai Tai made with SelvaRey Rum; Nick Cannon’s Big Clouds Goblet; Snoop Dogg’s Tropical Fruit Punch made with his Indoggo Gin; and Nick Jonas and John Varvatos’ Strawberry Cadillac Reposado Margarita made with Villa One Tequila.

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News you can cheers to

Assembly Icehouse in Plano adds swanky adults-only cocktail lounge

Photo courtesy of Assembly Icehouse

Espresso martini at Assembly Icehouse.

An east Plano restaurant and entertainment venue is expanding with a chic new lounge aimed exclusively at the 21-and-up crowd: Assembly Icehouse, the sports bar and family-friendly restaurant at Assembly Park, is adding a cocktail lounge, giving the mixed-use development its first adults-only destination.

According to a release, the 2,200-square-foot lounge will go in the former Tacoro Tacos & Tequila space, which has closed.

The lounge will offer a more upscale atmosphere than the adjoining icehouse, and will focus on premium cocktails, spirits, music, and socializing, the release says. Features will include a vinyl listening station with an extensive record collection, a pool table, and private spirit lockers where regulars and members can store personal bottles for future visits.

Yes, memberships will be available. So swank.

The lounge's name, opening date, membership details, and beverage program will be announced later, the owners say.

Assembly Icehouse, announced in fall 2024, opened in November 2025 as one of the anchor restaurant concepts at Assembly Park, the redevelopment of the former Plano Market Square Mall at 1717 E. Spring Creek Pkwy. Developed by Triten Real Estate Partners, the project has transformed the aging shopping center into a mixed-use destination with apartments, offices, restaurants, and a central park.

The 4,850-square-foot restaurant was developed by Dallas hospitality group Blender Brands and features elevated bar food, more than 30 TVs, live entertainment, and expansive indoor-outdoor spaces overlooking the property's lawn. The menu includes smashburgers, chicken and waffles, double-fried wings, and sandwiches such as the Tejas Philly.

Assembly Park in Plano. Rendering courtesy of Assembly Park

The adjoining lounge will mark the latest evolution for Assembly Park, which also includes Cliff Coffee and other food-and-drink concepts from Blender Brands. (The now-closed Tacoro had operated as a quick service, pick-up and go Mexican restaurant and taqueria.)

"Assembly Icehouse has been embraced by the community in a way that exceeded our expectations," says JR Muñoz in the release. "As we looked at what was next, we saw an opportunity to create something completely different within Assembly Park. This lounge will offer an elevated adults-only experience where guests can relax, enjoy great music, share exceptional spirits and feel like they're part of something special. It's designed to be a destination for connection and conversation."

Blender Brands, founded by Dallas-Fort Worth entrepreneurs Jacob Cox and Danny Wilson, also operates Select Start Arcade & Bar in Deep Ellum, Good Side Pizza Pub, and other hospitality concepts across North Texas.

Assembly Park's location, the former Plano Market Square Mall, was a 300,000-square-foot shopping mall that was built in the 1980s. Triten acquired it in 2021 with the goal to create a walkable mixed-use neighborhood featuring dining and retail, creative office, and urban-style living options with a connection to the outdoors, centered around a freshly planted park and event space. It includes the Annabel at Assembly Park, an apartment community with 304 units that opened in summer 2024.

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