Sandwich News

Artisan vegan sandwich shop opens in unusual Lewisville setting

Sandwiches from Beyond the Bun

BTB

A new sandwich shop is opening in Lewisville that is not like the other sandwich shops: Called Beyond the Bun, it opened on January 15 at 1165 S. Stemmons Fwy. #128, inside an antique mall at the Lakeland Plaza Office Building where it's serving a lineup of classic artisanal sandwiches — roast beef, Buffalo chicken, a BLTA — but all plant-based.

The shop is from Danielle and Mason Strokes, an adorable young couple who are striking out as entrepreneurs and wanted to create a vegan-friendly destination with great sandwiches.

They are starting with a limited menu they plan to expand as they go. Current offerings include:

Italian Cuban with ham, provolone, Dijon, and dill pickles on focaccia bread
Buffalo Chicken with fried chicken, buffalo sauce, bleu cheese, and ranch on a sub-style brioche bun
Dill sandwich with turkey, ham, Swiss cheese, dill pickle aioli, lettuce, & tomato on white bread

Sides include a spicy Dijon potato salad and an unusual dill coleslaw. All of their breads are made in-house by Danielle’s sister Gabrielle Hernandez.

And one major selling point: They are using meats and cheese imported from The Herbivorous Butcher, the acclaimed vegan butcher shop based in Minneapolis.

“We experimented with the recipes for months to create our menu," Danielle says.

They're also offering a selection of desserts including chocolate chip cookies, white chocolate coconut cookies, and two cool "cake sandwiches" — to keep the sandwich theme — featuring slices of cake that sandwich a filling of icing, available in vanilla or chocolate.

They're open for lunch Monday-Friday 11 am-4 pm, and their set-up is also unique: It operates like a ghost kitchen where customers place their order at a self-serve kiosk. Customers get a text when the order is ready and can pick it up from one of eight cubbies. The side benefit of being in an antique mall is that you can look around and shop while the order is being prepared.

"When it comes to eating vegan, there is not really a niche option," Danielle says. "My hope is to give everyone a great plant-based choices."

vegan openings

Bagel News

Buzzy Northeast chain PopUp Bagels ready to debut in Dallas

PopUp Bagels

PopUp Bagels coming to Dallas.

A buzzy bagel concept founded in the Northeast is coming to Dallas: Called PopUp Bagels, it famously started as a backyard project during the pandemic, and will open a location at Inwood Village, in the former I Heart Yogurt shop (which only just closed), next to the Inwood Theatre at 5450 W Lovers Ln. #143.

Signage has already gone up on the location and according to a spokesperson, the shop will open in early spring.

PopUp Bagels was founded in Westport, Connecticut by entrepreneur and home baker Adam Goldberg, with his cousin Jeff Lewis, as a side project during the pandemic, when everyone was baking at home. The bagels earned such a warm reception that Goldberg started hosting bagel popups in various locations near his home.

The concept's success has been helped by a national surge of interest in bagels, as well as viral moments on TikTok and other social media. Goldberg sold the concept to equity growth firm Stripes in 2023, who drew celebrity investors such as Paul Rudd and Michael Phelps, with plans to open hundreds of locations across the U.S. Talk is cheap but for now, there are 23 locations in New York, Maine, Florida, Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, and North Carolina.

One of their selling points for a seamless expansion is that they've kept things simple including a compact menu of bagels, spreads, and a pound of smoked salmon. There's a minimum purchase of three bagels, along with a mandatory tub of cream cheese or butter, for $12, and they only offer five flavors: plain, salt, poppy, sesame, and everything.

Bagels are sold whole only, no sandwiches and also not sliced — leading to their nickname "rip and dip," in which customers rip the bagels and dip them into spreads. Their texture is softer and lighter than the classic New York dense bagel, making them easier to "rip."

They're also known for their collaborations on over-the-top schmear flavors — beyond their regular original cream cheese, scallion cream cheese, and vegan cream cheese — which they rotate in with frequency. Recent specialty schmears include Honey Chipotle Cream Cheese, Salted Maple Banana Bread Schmear, Cheez-It Schmear, and a Lemon Pepper Schmear just announced with WingStop that summons the wing chain's Lemon Pepper sauce.

bagels openings