and the winners are...

2 Dallas restaurants earn star status in new 2025 Texas Michelin Guide

Sushi Kozy

The Texas restaurant scene is once again basking in an international spotlight. The Michelin Guide has revealed its statewide selections at an invite-only ceremony held Tuesday, October 28 in Houston.

The 2025 edition features three new One Michelin Star restaurants:

Isidore in San Antonio
Mamani in Dallas
Nicosi in San Antonio, which was promoted to One Michelin Star

This brings Texas’ total number of Starred restaurants — their highest ranking — to 18, as follows:

Barley Swine, Austin
BCN Taste & Tradition, Houston
CorkScrew BBQ, Spring
Craft Omakase, Austin
Hestia, Austin
InterStellar BBQ, Austin
Isidore, San Antonio
La Barbecue, Austin
Le Jardinier Houston, Houston
Leroy and Lewis Barbecue, Austin
Mamani, Dallas
March, Houston
Mixtli, San Antonio
Musaafer, Houston
Nicosi, San Antonio
Olamale, Austin
Tatemo, Houston
Tatsu Dallas, Dallas

Michelin Stars are awarded to “establishments serving exceptional cuisine that’s rich in flavor, remarkably executed, and infused with the personality of a talented chef.”

The second-highest rating is the Bib Gourmand, awarded to “restaurants that offer good quality food for a good value.” A third ranking, Recommended, is for quality restaurants that aren't good enough for either a Bib Gourmand or a Michelin star.

With this new 2025 Guide, they've added 24 new Texas restaurants: eight for the Bib Gourmand award, and 16 for "Recommended."

Of the new restaurants, 14 are from Houston, eight are from Austin, and five are from San Antonio.

Other Dallas awards
One Dallas restaurateur earned a Michelin Special Award: Chas Martin, co-owner of Mister Charles, won a Michelin Exceptional Cocktails Award.

One Dallas newcomer was added to the "Recommended" list: Sushi Kozy, at 2000 Ross Ave., from former Uchi chef Paul Ko.

Second round
This is the second round of Michelin Guide awards in Texas, following their 2024 debut which resulted in 117 restaurants across Texas winning some kind of nod, including more than two dozen restaurants across Dallas-Fort Worth. All of those restaurants that were on the 2024 list remained. Once you're on, you're golden, apparently.

Six Dallas restaurants and one Fort Worth restaurant kept their Bib Gourmand rankings from 2024 are as follows:

Cattleack
Gemma
Goldee’s (Fort Worth)
Lucia
Mot Hai Ba
Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen
Nonna

Dallas restaurants that earned Recommended status are as follows:

Barsotti's
Crown Block
El Carlos Elegante
Fearing's
Georgie
Harvest / McKinney
Knox Bistro
Mercat Bistro
Monarch
Mr Charles
Quarter Acre
Rye
Sachet
Stillwell's
Stock & Barrel
Sushi Kozy (new)
Tei An
Written By the Seasons

Fort Worth restaurants that earned Recommended rankings are as follows:

Birrieria y Taqueria Cortez, 2220 E. Rosedale St., Fort Worth
Panther City BBQ
Smoke 'N Ash

awards media news-you-can-eat michelin guide

Ice Cream News

Global ice cream brand Kelvin Scale makes creamy U.S. debut in Frisco

Kelvin Scale

Ice cream cones by Kelvin Scale

A unique new ice cream shop has made its U.S. debut right here in the Dallas area: Called Kelvin Scale Ice Cream, it's a dessert shop featuring ice cream, waffles, shakes, brownies, and ice cream cakes and it's now open in Frisco at 2650 King Rd. #750, in a former spa business near the intersection of Main Street.

Kelvin Scale was originally founded in India, where it has approximately 40 locations. The name comes from a temperature scale used by scientists that starts at zero — which they wink at with a motto that says "the Absolute Zero of additives."

Bringing it to the U.S. is a team of entrepreneurs who were impressed with the premium quality of the ice cream and other menu items, says spokesman Ram Bonda.

"We make the ice cream from scratch, not from a mix, with none of the additives or stabilizers used by some ice cream brands," Bonda says.

They also tout their use of A2 milk, a whole milk that has become popular because is supposedly causes less gas or digestive discomfort than regular milk — a claim that has yet to be proven. Nonetheless, A2 milk is more expensive.

They also do not whip in much "overrun" — the industry term for infusing air to make ice cream lighter (and less costly to produce).

"The texture of our ice cream is very creamy and rich, and you definitely get more with each scoop," Bonda says.

They offer an unusual selection of flavors, with global influences such as Belgian chocolate, Biscoff cookie caramel, cotton candy, and blueberry cheesecake. More exotic offerings include chikku, made from the sapota fruit which has a distinctly caramel flavor; lychee, from the floral fruit that's popular in Asian cuisines; and Rajbhog, a flavor that pays homage to an Indian dessert featuring almonds, pistachios, and saffron.

"We'll feature 24 flavors in the store, pulled from a total bank of 70 to 80 flavors, with flavors rotating in and out according to what's in season and trending," Bonda says. The company enjoys keeping tabs on social media and weaving in flavors that turn viral.

One scoop is $4.50, but additional scoops are a dollar, making it irresistible to get two scoops instead of one.

There are sundaes of all kinds, brownies solo or with ice cream, and an entire menu of waffle treats: waffles with Nutella, waffles with fruit, a red velvet waffle, and a waffle sandwich with ice cream sandwiched between two waffles.

Frisco was a natural place to introduce the brand in the U.S., Bonda says.

"It's one of most rapidly growing cities in the U.S., and it seemed like the ideal place to launch our flagship location," he says. "The location has an open kitchen so you can see the ice cream being made."

ice cream openings

and the winners are...

2 Dallas restaurants earn star status in new 2025 Texas Michelin Guide

North Texas-based breastaurant chain Twin Peaks files for bankruptcy

Dallas hot spot Hudson House debuts newest restaurant in West Village

Longtime craft beer bar in Dallas' Deep Ellum to close after 10 years

Ice Cream News

Global ice cream brand Kelvin Scale makes creamy U.S. debut in Frisco