Pizza News

Fireside Pies pizza chain closes location at northeast Dallas center

Fireside Pies pizza and salad.

Fireside Pies/Facebook

Dallas pizza chain Fireside Pies has closed a location in the Lake Highlands neighborhood, in the Creekside Shopping Center at 6750 Abrams Rd.

The restaurant, which had been there since 2019, closed on October 2.

A statement from Golden Tree Restaurants, which owns the chain, blamed the closure on the pandemic.

“It’s with a heavy heart that we have decided to close the doors to our beloved Lake Highlands Fireside Pies restaurant. Not all stories surrounding restaurants following the pandemic are good ones–unfortunately, this location did not bounce back after COVID-19 closures. The decision to close was a tough one, but solely based upon business needs. We hope to re-open with another location in the future supporting the awesome Lake Highlands community!”

The closure leaves the chain with three locations: the original on Henderson Avenue, plus Grapevine and Fort Worth, which opened in March 2023.

Fireside Pies, originally founded by chef Nick Badovinus in 2004, was acquired by Golden Tree in 2018, purchased from Dallas-based Chalak Mitra Group who'd owned them since 2014. Golden Tree also owns the Golden Chick chain.

The Lake Highlands location opened in October 2019, which puts them at exactly three years. Customers who tried to visit the restaurant found a For Lease sign on the front door.

>Anchored by an Alamo Drafthouse Cinema movie theater, the Creekside Shopping Center has experienced some turnover with closures that include Surefire BBQ, which closed at the end of 2022; and Yogi's Home Plate, which closed in 2021 and was replaced by a location of seafood chain Shell Shack.

closings

Snack Local

Snap Kitchen adds market to stock fresh local groceries in East Dallas

Photo courtesy of Snap Kitchen

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A healthy to-go shop in East Dallas is expanding its offerings beyond prepared entrees to include goods from regional bakers, small food makers, and more: Snap Kitchen is transforming its store at 4115 Skillman St. (at Mockingbird Lane) into Snap Kitchen & Market.

Dallas is the first to get the new market format, where customers can still pick up Snap's chef-prepared entrées, proteins, and breakfasts, but now they'll find a larger selection of groceries, including seasonal organic produce, sourdough, refined-sugar-free treats, honey, spreads, and dairy from Texas farmers, bakers, and creameries. Even the new snacks, sauces, and beverages have a shop-local focus, a release says.

New offerings include:

Specialty pantry: Snap-prepared sauces and spices, honey, jams, ferments and spreads
Artisan bakery: Fresh Sourdough and refined-sugar-free treats from Texas bakers
Marinated proteins: Ready-to-cook premium cuts, prepped in Snap's own kitchens, free of seed oils
Dairy: Local creameries and clean-label staples
Fresh produce: Seasonal organic fruits and vegetables
Expanded snacks and drinks: A wide variety of better-for-you Texas-based brands

The East Dallas health food mainstay will include more fresh groceries at Snap Kitchen & Market. Photo courtesy Snap Kitchen & Market

The new format reflects how customers are using Snap Kitchen, store leaders say - not just for prepared meals, but also to stock their own pantries with healthy staples and snacks.

"Our Skillman customers already trust us with their weekday meals, so we asked what else we could take off their plate," CEO Steve Bloom says in the release. "Snap Kitchen & Market is our answer: bringing the same standards we apply to our own meals to a broader selection of Texas-grown, Texas-made and thoughtfully sourced foods. We've done the vetting, so our customers can shop with confidence."

On a happy comeback from a number of pandemic-era closures, Austin-based Snap Kitchen continues to operate stores across Dallas-Fort Worth Houston, and Austin, preparing every meal from scratch in its Fort Worth kitchen.

To celebrate the launch of the new Snap Kitchen & Market concept, the Skillman-Mockingbird store will host a grand reveal on Sunday, October 4, from 9 am-8 pm, followed by a series of free in-store events throughout the month including chef tastings, meet-and-greets with local food makers, and a Q&A with Snap’s registered dietitian.

Founded in Austin in 2010, Snap Kitchen offers in-store shopping, pickup, delivery, and long-distance shipping.

snaps kitchen & market grocery stores healthy living east dallas openings expansion plans