Oak Cliff Closure

Venerable Dallas restaurant Tillman's in Bishop Arts to close for good

The signature chicken-fried steak.

Tillman's

UPDATE 12-16-2019: Tillman's will close for good on New Year's Day. According to a release, owner Jeffrey Kollinger did not lightly approach the decision to shutter the location. “We have worked with our landlord, Jim Lake Companies, and after much discussion, we’ve decided not to continue our lease here in Bishop Arts,” he says in a statement. But meanwhile, FREE S'MORES. The restaurant will host a special prix fixe menu for New Year’s Eve and will give one free s'mores per table from December 24-31.

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UPDATE 12-10-2019: Tillman's is open for business as usual.

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A longtime North Oak Cliff restaurant has been locked out by the landlord: Tillman's Bishop Arts, which has been doing Southern food on West 7th Street since 1992, is sporting a letter on its front door from landlord Jim Lake Companies stating that the landlord has taken possession of the premises as of December 9.

Current operator Jeffrey Kollinger has owned the restaurant since 2016. A spokesperson for the landlord said that the disposition of the restaurant was unresolved, but Kollinger says it was all a mistake.

"It's just a confusion in a payment and it's all going to be fixed in the morning, we'll be right back in business," he says.

Tillman's Facebook page was still posting on December 8 about Sunday brunch. The restaurant is usually closed on Mondays.

Tillman's first opened in 1992 as Tillman's Corner, from husband-and-wife Ricky and Sara Tillman, who established the restaurant's reputation as a warm and inviting place with comfort food and Texas tradition.

Kollinger and his brother Ross Kollinger, of Carrollton-based Spice of Life Catering and Innovative Hospitality Group (IHG), purchased Tillman's from Dallas-based event planner Todd Fiscus who'd partnered with Sara after Ricky Tillman died.

Fiscus helped oversee a name change to Tillman's Roadhouse and a major redesign in the space and the menu, including chicken-fried rib eye and table-side s'mores.

According to a representative from IHG, Ross Kollinger is no longer involved.

Meanwhile, Jeffrey Kollinger has been busy: He's part of a group opening a new cocktail-forward bar with bites called Dallas Proper, going into the old Mister Rich space at 2918 Henderson Ave., which is scheduled to open on December 31.

Kollinger was also recently appointed to update the restaurants at the Statler Dallas hotel, including expanding the menu at Fine China.

He's also partnered with Mehrdad Moayedi, who renovated the Statler, to re-open Primo's on McKinney Avenue.

oak-cliff closings

McKinney News

Acclaimed restaurant team to open Centro on the Square in McKinney

Photo courtesy of City of McKinney

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There's an exciting new restaurant coming to McKinney from a team with serious cred: Called Centro on the Square, it'll open in Historic Downtown McKinney at 112 E. Louisiana St., across from the McKinney Performing Arts Center.

Centro on the Square is a collaboration between restaurateurs Brian Dunne, owner of Mexican Bar Company in Plano; and George Stergios, owner of Knife Steakhouse Plano.

After six-plus years as neighbors in the restaurant district at The Shops at Willow Bend, the two decided to pool their considerable expertise and open a new concept together in McKinney.

Dunne logged many years in the hospitality industry, working in cities such as Washington DC, New York, and Chicago, before relocating to Allen and opening Mexican Bar Company in 2018.

Stergios is currently famous as the owner of Knife Steakhouse, and was previously head of food & beverage at the Highland Dallas hotel, where the original Knife opened. But he's also the son of Basil Stergios who, with his brother, owned the venerable seafood institution Vincent's Seafood, which closed in 2015 after a century. George has grown up in the Dallas dining scene.

With these combined credentials, Centro surely seems promising. Opening day is a ways off — they're looking at early spring — and details on the menu and concept are still in the works. But they're planning on an exceptional dining experience with an inviting menu, serious craft cocktail program, historical setting, and top-notch service.

The menu will feature standout starters and salads, fresh seafood, locally raised steaks, and house-made pasta prepared daily. They'll start out with dinner, then add lunch and brunch.

Centro is going into a renovated 100-year-old building, in a space that was previously home to acclaimed restaurant Harvest, which relocated in 2023. They'll do a space blending historic charm with modern touches.

Dunne and Stergios are both longtime locals: Stergios has lived in McKinney for more than six years, while Dunne has resided in nearby Allen for nearly a decade.

In a statement, they say they've always been drawn to the energy of Historic Downtown McKinney, and watching the steady foot traffic and vibrant activity on the Square during construction reinforced their decision to open a restaurant there.

"The Square is truly unique and has a pulse of its own," they say.

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