Magazine lists

Only one Dallas eatery earns spot on Esquire best new restaurant list

Yakitori at Mabo Dallas

Photo courtesy of Joey Stewart

One Dallas restaurant has made a prominent annual list: It's the 2024 rendition of Esquire magazine's Best New Restaurants in America and the only Dallas entry on the list is Mābo, the Asian restaurant in Preston Center from acclaimed chef Masayuki Otaka.

The newly released list has 35 restaurants, with the majority of the entries in New York and California, including the top restaurant of the year: Four Kings, a Cantonese restaurant in San Francisco.

The list is dominated by Asian cuisine: Of the 35 restaurants, fully one third are Asian.

The authors are "Jeff Gordinier and The Esquire Editors," which includes Omar Mamoon, a San Francisco-based writer (who calls himself not a critic but a "curator" oh dear) who got dispatched to Dallas. In his writeup of Mabo, he waxes on about chicken being his favorite before hailing Mabo as the best place in America to eat chicken yakitori, a Japanese grilling technique.

"… When you consider the Japanese art of yakitori, in which skewered chicken parts grill over binchotan coals until they achieve maximum smokiness and juiciness—well, this is where the bird gets transcendent," he writes. "At Mābo, his eight-seat counter, chef Masayuki Otaka prepares a two-hour meal in which poultry is the star. He sources free-ranging heritage breeds from Pennsylvania, and he lets you order additional skewers—maybe you’re in the mood for more tail, or for the fatty triangular nub known as the pope’s nose—when the planned courses have reached their completion."

Otaka is the former chef/owner of Teppo on Greenville Avenue (which closed in 2022 and is now home to sushi restaurant Kaiyo) who opened Mabo in spring 2024. It's an omakase-style spot with a 14-course tasting experience, with two tastings per night at 5:30 and 8:30 pm, only eight guests per seating, for $200. Otaka has a devoted following, and his version of omakase is less about raw fish and more about the yakitori-style of cooking for which he was famous at Teppo, featuring grilled meats, mushrooms, and other bits on a skewer.

Despite its coastal focus, the list does not completely ignore Texas: Houston restaurant Late August also earns a spot on the list along with nods to Tavel Bristol-Joseph and Karla Espinosa, owners of Nicosi in San Antonio who are pronounced Pastry Chefs of the Year.
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Eric Sandler contributed to this story.

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Spicy News

Spicy Korean chicken bowls from California make Texas debut in Prosper

Flame Broiler

Korean chicken bowl from Flame Broiler

Spicy chicken is coming to Texas with a debut in Prosper: Called Flame Broiler, it's a California-based concept specializing in rice bowls topped with spicy Korean chicken, and will be located at 4580 W. University Drive #30, next door to the Cold Stone Creamery in Windsong Ranch Marketplace.

According to a Flame Broiler representative, it will open in spring 2025.

Flame Broiler was founded by South Korean immigrant Young Lee and his wife, Sarah, in Orange County, California in 1995. Their aim was to make it a spot combining South Korean and Los Angeles flavors.

They began franchising in 1999, and there are now more than 130 Flame Broiler locations across the country in California, Arizona, Florida, and Oklahoma.

The Prosper location will be the first in Texas.

The menu is designed to be a healthy take on South Korean dishes. True to the name, all the meats and vegetables are charbroiled, as they opt not to use fryers. Their spicier chicken items, such as the spicy Korean chicken bowls and plates, are prepared on a hotter than usual 550-degree grill.

Their signature is the chicken bowl with rice, featuring dark meat chicken tossed in a Korean spicy sauce that's a fiery blend of spicy peppers and sweet sesame, with your choice of white or brown rice, veggies, or salad.

Other options include white meat chicken, Angus steak bulgogi, or tofu.

You can also order in half-sizes as well as a plate version, featuring the same proteins and rice, with a side of coleslaw. Prices range from $8 for a bowl to $17 for a steak bulgogi plate.

Previously, Flame Broiler’s franchise program was on a five-year pause. The expansion to Prosper marks the first steps back into franchising, with VP of Restaurant Operations Gregg Rotcher leading the renewed efforts.

"I've devoted my entire career to restaurant leadership and operations, and I'm thrilled to play a part in Flame Broiler's expansion and success," says Rotcher in a statement. "I'm eager to assist our franchise partners and empower them to reach their objectives."

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