Margarita Crisis

Family Tex-Mex shutters and more Dallas restaurant news

Fernando's

This roundup of Dallas restaurant news has one tragic closure, but also some upbeat reopenings and relocations. There are also new sandwiches and lots of new lunch action, from expansions to great new deals.

Here's what's happening in Dallas restaurant news this week:

Fernando's Mexican Cuisine is closing both locations in Preston Hollow and Richardson after 20 years on May 18. The restaurant was founded by Fernando Padilla and his wife, Anna, who first opened the restaurant on Midway Road in Preston Hollow in 2005, serving enchiladas, fajitas, and margaritas. According to a post, the owners couldn’t reach an agreement with the landlord at the original location and the Richardson location lease is expiring soon.

Van Leeuwen, the gourmet ice cream chain, will open a new location at 8061 Walnut Hill Lane #C-928 in North Dallas on May 1. Van Leeuwen ice cream is inventive, with flavors such as Hidden Valley Ranch and Honeycomb, and they also do excellent vegan options. This is their fifth location in Dallas-Fort Worth, and their eighth store in Texas. Their pints are also sold at upscale grocers such as Sprouts.

Dog Haus, the hot dog restaurant and biergarten, has reopened its Richardson location under new ownership at 744 S. Central Expy. #210. The California-based restaurant made its DFW debut at this location when it opened in 2017, bit closed in 2024. Aside from hot dogs, they're also known for burgers and sausages, all served on Hawaiian rolls.

Moriya Shokudo, a Japanese ramen shop in Richardson, relocated to a new address — a brick and mortar — at 1920 N. Coit Rd. #250. Owner Tadashi Nakazawa first opened the restaurant as a food stand inside a Korean grocery store at 11422 Harry Hines Blvd. in 2023. They serve small plates, like seaweed salad and pork gyoza, and a range of curries, ramen, and rice bowls.

Dee Lincoln Concepts, the Dallas-based hospitality group behind Dee Lincoln Prime and Dee’s Table Burgers & More, has appointed Julian Rodarte as culinary director. Rodarte co-founded Trinity Groves restaurant Beto & Son and was also CEO of Trinity Groves. He most recently served as executive chef at COSM at Grandscape. Rodarte aims to introduce immersive programming at Dee Lincoln Prime, including an exclusive chef’s table experience and an omakase experience led by Dee Lincoln’s sushi chef.

Nikki Greek Bistro is launching a new "six under $20" lunch menu featuring seasonal dishes such as meze combo platter with hummus, beet-whipped feta, tiropita, dolmas and a Greek salad, chicken souvlaki, Greek meatball, and chef’s daily pasta. Available Tuesday-Friday from 11 am-3 pm.

Rose Cafe at LePasSage has expanded to lunch and patio dining including papaya salad with peanuts and tamarind sauce, coconut rice noodle bowl with fried spring rolls, pork shoulder bao buns, summer rolls, and Cambodian lemongrass beef skewers. Lunch is Monday-Friday from 11 am-3 pm.

North Italia has a spring and summer menu available featuring garlic knot sliders, chicken scarpariello, and brunch items like strawberries & cream French toast and poached eggs & polenta. They've also added cocktails such as Cacio E Pepe Dirty Martini and Alta Rossa.

Corner Bakery Cafe has three new sandwiches on the menu: roast beef bleu, DC chicken salad, pretzel with turkey or ham, and ham or turkey and Swiss and croissant. Sandwiches range from $8-$13.

Bourbon & Banter, the underground speakeasy at The Statler, has a new menu featuring charcuterie board, pretzel sticks wrapped in prosciutto, Knob Creek bread pudding, and ice cream with a choice of vanilla bean, salted chocolate chunk, caramel, or raspberry sorbet. Additionally, new cocktails include Cold Brew Martini and The Pompadour.

Socorro Tequila, the Dallas-based liquor brand, has a limited-edition release of Reserva de Pablo, a five-year Extra Añejo tequila made from forgotten barrels. It features agave notes followed by notes of oak aged maple, prunes, and smoked spices.

Tom Thumb stores now have strawberry madeleines, the French-inspired shell-shaped soft cookie, from Sugar Bowl Bakery, a San Francisco-based company that supplies hotels, cafes, restaurants, convention centers, and colleges. They're made without artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, and contain no high-fructose corn syrup.

FB Society, the Dallas hospitality group, is opening a food hall in the historic Lord & Taylor building at 424 Fifth Ave. in New York City. Called Shaver Hall, it features 11 food stalls including an omakase concept, wine and cheese bar, steakhouse, and bodega.

lists

Burger News

Family-owned Patty Lou's Smashburgers will open in old downtown Plano

Photo by Sara Aurora Cimminiello on Unsplash

Smashburger

A new restaurant starring a buzzy burger is coming to old downtown Plano: Called Patty Lou's Smashburgers, it will feature the namesake smashburger, and will open at 1004 E. 14th St. #105, in a historic location that was most recently home to a Starbucks.

Patty Lou's is a new concept from Urban Family Concepts, the hospitality company whose other restaurants include Urban Seafood Co., Urban Rio Cantina & Grill, and Italian restaurant Urban Crust, all located in the downtown Plano area.

Patty Lou's is their burger entry, a quick-service spot serving smashburgers, the flattened version of a burger with crisp edges that's been a hot trend for the past year.

According to Urban Family Concepts partner and spokesperson Dana Blaugrund, the restaurant will open in late spring.

Patty Lou's is also a sweet homage to a family member — named for Patty Lou Peters, of "Patty Lou and her Texas Sweethearts" fame, an all-female country & Western / Western swing group founded in the '40s, when female groups were a rarity.

Patty Lou was the mother of Bonnie Shea, who co-founded Urban Family Concepts with her husband Nathan Shea. Infusing the personal touch into everything they do is part of the company DNA, says Urban partner Michael Lee.

"Urban is generally driven by what we like," Lee says. "Urban Rio, our Mexican concept, came about because Bonnie loved that cuisine, and Urban Seafood Company, Nate loves seafood. Burgers are a favorite of their son-in-laws."

Their version of the smashburger will feature American cheese and onions that melt into the meat, Lee says. They'll be served on potato buns, and there'll be some toppings — but they won't go too crazy.

"It'll have onions, lettuce, and pickle, but we're going to stay minimal, with additional toppings on the side," he says. "Going overboard with ingredients can get complicated. Our goal is, very simple burgers that taste very good, at a value price, so that everyone can enjoy coming back and getting a burger."

The menu will also feature smashed chicken burgers, hand-cut French fries skin on, lightly battered onion rings, and milkshakes. They'll also serve alcohol, including bottled beers, wine by the glass, and a signature frozen cocktail. Eventually, they'll add specials like a burger of the month.

The location was originally home to the Ice House, built in 1917, an institution that provided ice products to Plano residents and businesses, says Urban partner Payton Hickey.

"You could pull up and get a block of ice from workers with tongs," Hickey says. "During remodeling, we could still see the raised floor where the freezer was, where they kept the ice."

They operated a licensed location of Starbucks in that space until 2024, when Starbucks opened a store nearby with a drive-thru in the former longtime Jack in the Box at 15th Street and US-75.

Decor at Patty Lou's will embrace a diner feel with counter seating, while incorporating elements from Patty Lou Peter's life, Blaugrund says. (It's a nice coincidence that her name syncs up with "hamburger patty.")

"We'll have her original guitar and some memorabilia in the restaurant — a cool mixture of country music and burger restaurant," Blaugrund says.

burgers openings