Bar News

Dallas to get its own location of San Diego Mexican hangout El Chingon

El Chingon is coming to Dallas.

Photo courtesy of El Chingon

A Mexican hangout from San Diego is expanding to Dallas: El Chingon, which serves Mexican food, cocktails, and a clubby atmosphere, will open a location near downtown at 3404 Ross Ave., with an opening set for Friday, May 1.

A release describes El Chingon as a high-energy restaurant, bar, and nightlife destination known for its “Bad Ass Mexican” cuisine. The concept was founded in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter in 2017, where it has built a following for its lively programming and street-food menu of tacos, burritos, and shareable bites.

It's part of GBOD Hospitality Group, a San Diego outfit founded by brothers Raymond and Patrick Davoudi, with third partner Joe Santos who own San Diego bars such as Havana and Prohibition Lounge. Dallas is the third El Chingon, following San Diego and Fort Worth, where a location opened in 2020 and is host to many festive events.

As part of the opening celebration, the first 100 guests will get free tacos.

Food
The location will feature an indoor-outdoor dining experience anchored by a patio-based taco truck kitchen housed in a repurposed shipping container, serving tacos, mulitas, and quesadillas with house-made corn masa tortillas and a choice of proteins including carne asada, al pastor, pollo asado and birria; alongside burritos, loaded fries, and nachos.

Signature dishes include:

quesabirria: Guajillo-braised beef wrapped in Oaxaca cheese in a flour tortilla, with consommé on the side
roasted green chile chicken burrito with pinto beans and Oaxaca cheese
California burrito with carne asada, french fries, guacamole, crema Mexicana, and Oaxaca cheese
Combination plates with tacos, burritos, and fries

Drink
El Chingon's cocktail program is rooted in tequila and bold, fruit-forward flavors. Highlights include:

Madero with house-made watermelon cordial and Tajín
Pancho Villa with lime and Jarritos
Border Crossing Fruit Cart with tamarind and chamoy
Battle of Juárez with guava and fire bitters

Other cocktails include margaritas, Texas Ranch Water, frozen drinks, and large-format shareable towers. All cocktails are available with the “Bad Ass” upgrade, served in a goblet with a Tajín rim, candy straw, and Mexican paleta.

Location
The Dallas location, which was previously a wholesale florist shop, has been in the works for at least four years. It will span approximately 5,000 square feet, with decor that fuses Mexican cultural motifs with contemporary nightlife elements, including large-scale artwork by Juan Velazquez, colorful sombreros, illuminated lucha libre masks, and multiple TVs — creating an environment equally suited for game days, group outings, and late-night experiences.

They'll be open 11 am-9 pm Monday-Wednesday and 11 am-2 am Thursday-Sunday.

“El Chingon has always been about creating a place where people can come together for great food, great drinks and a great time,” says GBOD Hospitality Group president and CEO Raymond Davoudi in a statement. "Dallas is a natural next step for the brand, and we’re excited to bring that energy to one of the city’s most dynamic neighborhoods."

tex-mex nightlife cocktails openings

Egg Roll News

Crimson Dragon Cafe brings Asian fusion family touch to Richardson

Crimson Dragon Cafe

Chicken wings at Crimson Dragon Cafe

An Asian fusion restaurant with a personal touch has opened in Richardson: Called Crimson Dragon Cafe, it's located at the CityLine complex on the ground floor of The Riley apartments, at 1450 State St. #400, a space previously occupied by Pho Dangki Fusion, which closed in early 2026.

Crimson Dragon is from Stephanie Nguyen, a spirited 33-year-old entrepreneur who got into the restaurant industry when she was 20. She was most recently a stay-at-home mom who is leaping back into the restaurant world with this cafe, serving everything from her grandmother's egg rolls to her twist on American favorites like her crispy chicken wings.

"Crimson Dragon is an homage to my mom," Stephanie says. "Her birthstone is a ruby, so that's where Crimson is from, and her Chinese zodiac sign is a dragon."

Skewers are a theme, offered as an entree with choice of fried rice or garlic noodles; or as an appetizer, in options from shrimp, chicken, beef, or mushroom.

Starters include spring rolls, wings, and Dragon Bombs, an original creation she compares to the Juicy Lucy, the famed burger with a core of molten cheese inside.

"For the Dragon bombs, we use ground chicken and shrimp, rolled into a meatball that's stuffed with mozzarella cheese, then dusted in crumbs and fried," she says.

Grandma's Egg Rolls are a signature dish she learned to make by her grandmother's side.

"I grew up watching her make egg rolls over the span of many years," she says. "We make three variations: pork, chicken, and vegetarian which has two types of mushroom, and tofu skin for a meaty texture. We take the vegetarian option seriously."

Nothing on the menu is more than $15, and for the large workforce in the area, they offer $12 lunch specials with classics like chicken teriyaki on jasmine rice; garlic noodles; Golden Fried Rice; and chicken katsu sandwich which they serve stacked tall on Texas toast.

The space is pretty and bright, with nice touches like gleaming wood-top tables and curvy modern metal chairs.

They're about to add breakfast, with earlier hours and a menu featuring breakfast croissants, sandwiches, and burritos — as well as Asian-themed chicken katsu with waffles, and what she called "our little Asian twist on an English breakfast" with hash browns, tomato, and king mushrooms.

"Breakfast was something we planned when we first opened," she says. "We're here to serve the demand for good fresh food at a reasonable price. We put in a lot of love and make sure everything is as fresh as can be."

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