Opening news

Bistro with big names to open at Dallas' Preston Hollow Village

Ella

Kathy Tran

An intimate American bistro with a rockstar team is opening at Dallas' Shops at Preston Hollow. Called Ella, it will open with a menu of modern comfort food in an upscale setting, in the former Chido Taco Lounge space at 7949 Walnut Hill Ln #130. According to a release, Ella is from restaurateur Blaine McGowan, who also founded Chido Taco Lounge, and will open for dinner on June 17, with lunch and weekend brunch to follow.

Team
Executive Chef is Kyle Farr (Sachet, Boulevardier) oveseeing a menu that spans elevated comfort fare and chef-driven classics, combining familiar dishes with sophisticated flair. General manager and beverage director is Julian Shaffer, formerly bar manager at Rye, who recently won an award in the 2024 Michelin Guide Texas for Exceptional Cocktails — the first time this award has ever been given.

“We wanted to bring something to the neighborhood that wasn’t there—something welcoming and refined. We want to hit on all cylinders with this concept: exceptional food, drinks, and service,” McGowan says. “With Julian and Kyle leading the way, we have an opportunity to do something very special and bring a new experience to Dallas. Service is of the utmost importance to us, and we plan to provide guests with an amazing experience all around. Our focus is on the people, both employees and guests.”

Ella EllaKathy Tran

Food. Standout dishes include:

Shrimp and Masa Dumplings are a vibrant starter, with roasted peppers and tomato with charred broccolini
Steak Tartare, made with tenderloin, Dijon, cured egg yolk
Pork Cheeks, with orange jus, roasted carrots, and sunchokes
Bolognese, with fresh pappardelle tossed in house-made sauce
Short Rib, slow-braised in red wine and accompanied by smoked sweet potato and charred broccolini
Salmon with roasted beet purée, chickpeas, parsnips, and roasted carrots.

Drink. Cocktail highlights include

Chocolate Raspberries - brandy, raspberry, and cocoa butter
Poached Pear - brandy and Riesling with miso brown butter and fresh pear
Summer Daiquiri - Charanda (a Mexican sugarcane spirit) with watermelon and mint
Salsa Verde Ranch Water - tequila and mezcal with tomatillo and citrus
Shiso Gin and Tonic - gin, shiso, Szechuan peppercorn, and tonic

Decor
The 2,500 square foot space with 63 seats, including bar seating — plus an additional 600-square-foot mezzanine. The release says the space has a "female-forward feel" 🙄 blending modern design with an inviting atmosphere. Guests arrive through a romantically lit patio into an interior that feels warm and polished with earthy green paneled walls, 12-foot globe chandeliers, a red tile bar, and cozy booths. Hidden behind drapery lies a semi-secret staircase that leads guests to the mezzanine, where the existing Customs Speakeasy will remain open, offering craft cocktails crafted with premium Mexican spirits from bartender Jairo Castillo.

awards openings

Ice Cream News

Kwality Ice Cream shop to bring creamy exotic desserts to Frisco

Kwality

Kwality Ice Cream

An ice cream chain with an Indian flair is dipping into Dallas-Fort Worth: Called Kwality Ice Cream, it's a concept founded in New Jersey that specializes in traditional Indian ice cream and cold drinks, and it's opening a location in Frisco, at 13089 Main St. #500, in a new shopping center.

According to franchisee Raju Vikey, the shop will open sometime in 2025. It joins two DFW locations already open: Irving at 8600 N. Macarthur Blvd., and Euless, at 1060 N. Main St. at Harwood Crossing shopping center, which opened in April.

Kwality Ice Cream was founded by food scientist Dr. Kanti Parekh and his son Anand, in New Jersey in 2003. It has expanded with 38 locations in 14 states including Pennsylvania, Florida, and Texas, where there are three locations in Houston and one in Austin.

“The idea was to create a South Asian-specific ice cream, which is more known for fruits and nuts,” Anand says. “As a Ph.D. in food and nutrition, my father’s background and expertise were in flavor. He used that to create very unique flavors and top notes to give a really good mouth feel and experience.”

They have close to 50 ice cream flavors with classics like cookies & cream, chocolate supreme, and butter pecan; but South Asian and Indian flavors dominate the menu with exotic options like green guava, lychee, and Nuttie Tuttie Fruitee, a berry-flavored ice cream with nuts and candied fruit.

There is also kulfi, a frozen dessert that's like ice cream but with less added air so it has a stiffer, creamier texture. It's served in slices and comes in popular Indian flavors like pistachio, mango, and rose.

Other novel frozen treats include cassata, an ice cream cake with three flavors of ice cream layered over sponge cake.

As with many Asian desserts, they're often less sweet than American-style confections. Wild inventions include the mawa rabdi cup, with ice cream, rice noodles, basil seeds, and rose syrup, topped with nuts and candied fruit; and Thandai ice cream, a staple at Indian festivals, consisting of almonds, fennel seeds, poppy seeds, watermelon seeds, rose petals, pepper, cardamom, saffron, milk, and sugar.

Rabdi is like a pudding, believed to have originated during the 1600s. Kwality makes it following the traditional method of slow-cooking milk until it thickens and reduces, enhancing its sweetness and creaminess, then adding ingredients like cardamom, saffron, and pistachios.

Pints of ice cream and frozen desserts range from $8-$11, and cassata ice cream cake slices are $7.

ice cream openings desserts