Restaurant Casualty

Days are numbered for this Greenville Avenue chef's restaurant

There's only one place you can find this catfish dip.

Photo courtesy of Clark Food & Wine Co.

Greenville Avenue suffers another restaurant loss with the closure of Clark Food & Wine, the chef-driven bistro from Randall and Courtney Warder. The last day of operation is December 27. That gives you exactly two more days to get a taste of their smoked catfish dip with Saltines.

The couple decided to close after they were approached by a restaurant group who wanted to take over the space. It follows the closure of C'Viche, their restaurant next door, which they shut down on November 29.

"When C'Viche closed, we confronted how difficult this environment is, and I don’t see 2017 being any different," Randall says. "We feel like there are so many questions out there, and when these guys came along, it was kind of a no-brainer."

Warder's resume includes experience at five-star properties with the Rosewood group including the Mansion on Turtle Creek and La Ventanas al Paraiso in Cabo San Lucas. He'd been working as a corporate chef for a few years before he and his wife Courtney decided to tackle the ultimate challenge of opening your own place.

They opened Clark Food & Wine in 2014, and their menu of casual fare, with memorable dishes such as their smoked catfish dip with crackers, earned positive reviews, including the Best New Restaurant title in CultureMap's 2015 Tastemaker Awards.

You don't put your heart and soul into something like this and not have a little bit of sorrow," Warder says. "We were open for two years and two months, but I've been working on this for three years."

And as thronged as Greenville Avenue gets, it can be a dicey location for restaurants, with lots of churn. Qariah, the Lebanese restaurant, closed during the summer, after four years. Cafe Brazil closed its Greenville Avenue location in May. Knuckle Sandwich, barman Eddie Campbell's sandwich shop, closed in October. Remedy will shut down on December 31.

"I think there's a lot of great potential for restaurants in Dallas in the proper location," Warder says. "You see restaurants out in Plano and Frisco that are not serving great food, and yet are packed all the time."

Warder says they'll take stock of their future plans after they close, and he hasn't heard what is being planned for the space after Clark closes. "We're just going to do a farewell blowout today and tomorrow, we'll keep making food until we run out," he says.

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Taking the field

Dak Prescott-backed Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux kicks off in Wylie

Photo courtesy of Walk-Ons

Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux is opening in Wylie on August 10.

A Louisiana sports bar chain that counts Cowboys QB Dak Prescott as a partner continues to build its fan base in Dallas-Fort Worth: Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux is set to open a new location in Wylie on Monday, August 10.

Announced earlier this year, the restaurant is at 906 FM 544, near the intersection of Highway 78 and FM 544. The opening marks the chain's 20th Texas location and its second operating restaurant in the DFW area.

Founded in Baton Rouge in 2003 by former LSU basketball "walk-ons" Brandon Landry and Jack Warner, Walk-On's has grown to more than 80 locations nationwide. The company is co-owned by former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (an Austin native), and franchise partners include Prescott, along with former NFL player Derrick Brooks, and college football coach Dabo Swinney.

Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux Wylie The new Walk-On's is at 906 FM 544, Wylie.Photo courtesy of Walk-On's

The menu is centered on seafood and classic Louisiana dishes: fried seafood platters, pastas, burgers, sandwiches, po'boys, fried oysters, gumbo, fried alligator, and boudin balls. Prices range from $10 to $20.

Starters include waffle cheese fries, fried pickles, boneless wings, cheeseburger sliders, spinach-artichoke dip, and venison nachos. They have a bread pudding made with Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

There's also a plentiful selection of beers on tap, plus margaritas and other crafty-ish cocktails.

The Wylie restaurant is owned by franchisee Cooper Thomson, who says the community made the city an appealing place to expand.

"I am thrilled to expand Walk-On's presence in Dallas, and particularly in the community of Wylie," Thomson says in a release. "To be a part of the growth in this area - to serve families and be a place where little league teams celebrate and football fans cheer on their team - is such a special opportunity."

Although Walk-On's has been in the DFW market since pre-pandemic times, Wylie will be its second restaurant in DFW open currently, joining a location at Grandscape in The Colony. Earlier Dallas-area locations in Irving and Arlington have closed, although the company has previously said it plans to reopen the Arlington restaurant at a new location.

The Wylie restaurant features a sports bar with dozens of TVs, a large outdoor patio, and a family-friendly dining room designed for game-day crowds.

Grand opening festivities will kick off at 10:30 am on Monday, August 10, with a ceremony featuring Walk-On's founder Brandon Landry, franchise owner Cooper Thomson, Wylie Mayor Matthew Porter, city officials, and representatives from Wylie High School and Wylie East High School.

The celebration will include donations to the two schools' athletic departments, followed by a ribbon-cutting at 10:45 am. Doors open to the public at 11 am, and the first 100 guests to dine will have a chance to win free Walk-On's for a year.

Walk-On's will be the second sports bar concept with celebrity cred to open in DFW within a few days' time. Shark Club, from Dallas Stars owner Tom Gaglardi, opened Friday, August 7 in Northlake.

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