Peking Duck News

Glam Dallas Chinese restaurant to replace Pei Wei in Casa Linda Plaza

Dumplings from MiYa, coming to Casa Linda Plaza.

MiYa

East Dallas shopping center Casa Linda Plaza has scored an exciting new Asian restaurant: Called MiYa, it will open at 9450 Garland Rd. #383, in the former Pei Wei, which closed in December 2023 after a decade.

MiYa is from food & beverage pro David Romano, whose previous ventures include Wok Star Chinese, which debuted at The Hill shopping center in 2021; and Sum Dang Good Chinese, which he helped his uncle Phil Romano open at Trinity Groves in 2020. Romano also served as president of Local Favorites, the hospitality company that owns chains such as El Fenix, Snuffers, and Meso Maya.

MiYa represents the next rung on his Asian restaurant journey, with a discerning eye for authenticity. Romano says he plans to have it open in the fall.

"This is going to be a step up from anything I've done," he says. "It'll have staple Chinese dishes like kung pao chicken and Mongolian beef — everything you'd get at a Chinese restaurant — but with a respectful attitude towards the cuisine that includes chefs from China in the kitchen."

The menu will feature Peking duck, the Chinese classic, as well as dim sum, a tradition in which many small dishes are served at brunch, sometimes on push carts.

"We'll be doing a heavier focus on dim sum with items like siu mai steamed dumplings," he says. "If you want to be an authentic Chinese restaurant, you've got to have the dishes."

His quest for authenticity does not stop at the menu.

"Instead of getting furnishings from the U.S., we bought our cooking equipment, chairs, and tables, in China," he says. "The light fixtures, our uniforms, our to-go bags, chopsticks, our host stand, everything that didn't have to be built in the U.S. is literally on a slow boat from China."

MiYa Interior of MiYa, opening in East Dallas in the fall. Rendering courtesy of Coeval

Interior design will feature fabulous furnishings like floral wallpaper and statement light fixtures, with no expense spared.

"Creating Sum Dang Good was like buying my first house out of college — comfortable but I didn’t want to live in for the rest of my life. Wok Star is a concept that was a nice home to raise my family and served a great purpose, but MiYa is the house I always wanted to build," he says.

There'll be a full bar, as well as a small physical bar inside the restaurant that seats about six. Plus a separate door for to-go orders, so essential at Chinese restaurants. He's also adding a major patio presence, which the 3,300-square-foot space did not have previously.

"We're putting in a patio that's about 800 square feet of outdoor dining on the side of the property that faces the rest of the center," he says. "It will be conditioned so that people can enjoy it year-round."

MiYa is going into the southeast corner of Casa Linda Plaza, joining restaurants such as the similar-sounding Maya's Modern Mediterranean; Chili's; and a new place not yet open called Be Home Soon. On neighborhood pages, Casa Linda residents are still lamenting the loss of Pei Wei even while simultaneously noting the inexorable decline of that location, which was owned by someone from out of state.

Romano says he feels lucky to have procured the space, which was sought after by numerous national chains. And his desire to do Chinese food also meshed with the feedback from the community.

"I always try to do things based on what the community needs," Romano says. "I could do Italian, I'm Italian, but everybody wants Chinese and if you do it right and treat people well, you get a loyal following. And I feel like you're not going to see another Chinese restaurant like this in Dallas."

All the Restaurant News

Holiday week is not slowing down this round of Dallas restaurant news

Shogun

This may be a holiday week but the Dallas restaurant scene is not slacking, with a whole wave of restaurants that are newly open or are just about to. There are also new menus, special dishes, and a nice celebrity tout for a local celebrity beer.

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

Sidelines Sports Tavern, a short-lived sports bar in Frisco just closed. It was the latest occupant of a space at 307 Main St. #105 at the corner of 423, which has had its share of turnover, starting out as Woody's Bar Kitchen, which closed in 2024. Sidelines opened in February 2025, and now it is gone.

Ateliê, a new restaurant from chef Wyl Lima, opened in Bishop Arts on December 15 at at 365 W. Jefferson Blvd. — a permanent home following years of underground dinners. It opens with a 12-item menu including vegetable-forward dishes such as Roasted Carrots with tofu curry, Garden Salad with frisée, fried egg, & radish, Mushroom Croquettes, Turkey Hot Pocket with truffle mornay & smoked gouda, Wagyu Melt with pastrami & caramelized onions, Fried Rice with egg yolk, garlic crisp, & nori, Cacio e Pepe, Lamb Shank with pomegranate & couscous, skirt steak with piquillo salsa and yuca, and Half Roasted Chicken with sweet plantains and Mediterranean chutney.

Noodle One is a new Asian restaurant in Frisco, 3311 Preston Rd. #1 in the former Nations diner space, serving dishes like beef noodle soup, stir-fried noodles, and wok-tossed fried rice. They specialize in handmade noodles — including a guy making them in plain view — along with lamb skewers, dumplings, and fried rice. owners are from Lanzhou, capital of the Gansu province in China. Nations closed that location in October but still has locations in Sunnyvale, Denton, Arlington, and Sachse.

Flying Fish, the Dallas-based mostly-Cajun seafood chain, is opening a location in Plano, in the former Dickeys space at 4032 Preston Rd., across from the H-E-B just south of Spring Creek Parkway. According to a spokesperson, they're in the thick of a remodeling with a grand opening coming in early 2026.

Caffe:in is a new restaurant and boba shop in Plano at 101 Spring Creek Pkwy. #735 on the northwest corner of US-75 in the same shopping center as 99 Ranch, taking over the space previously occupied by Tiger Sugar, another drink chain. The concept hails from California and specializes in authentic Taiwanese and Malaysian boba, desserts, and snacks such as Taiwanese popcorn chicken, a Malaysian street burger, and shaved ice topped with mango and cream — bringing back memories for California transplants.

Hoja Bubble Tea and Asian Street Food, an Asian restaurant that opened at 812 W. Spring Creek Pkwy. #208 in Plano in 2023, is another purveyor of Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken. Surely there is a third, so we can make it an official trend. Often called Taiwan’s favorite street food, the chicken comes in bite-size pieces, featuring a crunchy coating made with potato flour and flavored with five-spice seasoning and basil leaves.

Shogun Japanese Grill & Sushi Bar, a chain based in Houston, just opened its first DFW location in Plano, at 3916 Dallas Pkwy., in the space left vacant by Pappas Delta Blues Smokehouse, the upscale barbecue restaurant from Houston-based Pappas Restaurants which closed in 2024 after five years. Shogun, which is no relation to the Shogun in McKinney, or any other Shogun in the DFW area, serves sushi, sushi rolls — with a big selection of both cooked and raw — plus hibachi, hotpot, skewers, tempura, yakisoba noodles, plus favorites like teriyaki chicken and bento boxes. They're part of Shogun group from Houston which has 22 locations across Texas including Houston, Austin, and San Antonio — all cities which coincidentally have CultureMap bureaus as well.

Elm & Good, the restaurant at the historic 1916 Kimpton Pittman Hotel in Deep Ellum, has a new menu from newish chef JV Hernandez, which features a "modern American tavern" identity, with shareable plates and comfort-driven mains. Highlights include koji-aged Manhattan steak, cider-braised pork shank, Texas wild boar bolognese, hamachi crudo, and a warm sticky toffee cake based on his grandmother’s recipe. A native of Puerto Rico native and Dallas-trained chef, Hernandez grew up working on his great-grandmother’s farm, trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Dallas, and cooked in fine-dining kitchens from Maine to Denver to Salt Lake City alongside Michelin and James Beard recognized teams. A signature dish is the Puffy Potatoes — crisp, hollow potatoes with gribiche, parmesan, and chives, designed for the center of the table.

Soy Cowboy, the modern pan-Asian restaurant at Loews Arlington Hotel, has launched a new Dim Sum menu featuring sharable dishes like chicken dumplings, lobster wontons, Wagyu gyoza, crab tacos, Korean BBQ ribs, a variety of sushi rolls, plus sake flights and brunch cocktails available during daytime service.

Mirador in downtown Dallas is debuting new menus for weekday lunch and Saturday brunch which they say have a healthier slant for after the holidays. Highlights include chef’s selection of pickles, Caesar salad, farro bowl, lobster Cobb — although that dish has egg yolks and bacon, so can you really call that healthy? — wild mushrooms, chicken paillard with carrots & pickled golden raisins, ube bowl with fruit, and scrambled eggs with rosemary ham, also not particularly healthy, but whatever.

Grimaldi's, the pizza chain, has a new menu of winter specials, available through March 2 featuring the Duo Pizza with tomato and pesto sauce, topped with pepperoni and spicy cup ‘n’ char sausage; Cherry Pecan Salad with spinach and goat cheese; Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake; and Black Cherry Cheesecake.There are also drinks including a mocktail with cranberry juice, and a black cherry spritz with Aperol and Prosecco.

Mister O1 Pizza, the artisan pizza chain, has teamed up with Terry Blacks BBQ on the limited-edition Terry Black’s Brisket Pizza featuring Mister O1’s signature thin crust topped with brisket, tomato sauce, mozzarella, red onions, jalapeño, dill pickles, barbecue sauce, and cilantro — available at all Texas Mister O1 locations through February 28.

The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill has a new limited-edition dish: Loaded Feta Fries, topped with choice of chicken or gyro meat, crumbled feta, and garlic sauce. Available through December 31. The chain has four locations in the DFW area — Lewisville, Fort Worth, The Colony, and McKinney — and is opening two more locations in early 2026 in Burleson and Coppell.

Sunny Street Café launched a new winter menu featuring shareable dishes and seasonal sweets: There are breakfast nachos (housemade tortilla chips with queso, egg, chorizo, & avocado); Queso Breakfast Burrito with cheesy eggs, bacon, potato, avocado, & queso; Turkey Melt with Monterey Jack, cheddar, tomato, & chipotle mayo on sourdough; Maple Pecan Muffin; Butter Pecan Pancakes with caramel sauce; and Salted Caramel Cold Brew with vanilla cold foam. DFW locations include Carrollton, Keller, Little Elm, Haltom City, North Richland Hills, and Weatherford.

Salad and Go has introduced its first sweet treat: a Chewy Marshmallow Bar. They've also added Cold Foam, which can be added to any drink. Plus two limited-edition beverages: Toasted Marshmallow Lemonade and Toasted Marshmallow Cold Brew. Last but not least, they've added pulled chicken which can be added to any salad or wrap.

DQ restaurants in Texas have new breaded chicken tenders, which can be ordered solo or in a new Chicken Tender Country Basket, with fries, Texas toast, and choice of creamy gravy or DQ Texas sauce.

Cheba Hut has a new limited-time cocktail called Sleigh’d and Confused featuring Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka, lemon juice, and Coconut Berry Red Bull, available through December 31 for $10, but $3 off all day on Fridays.

The Salty doughnut shop has holiday doughnuts: From December 22—24, they have a Gingerbread Cheesecake Donut, a 24-hour gingerbread-man-shaped brioche filled with gingerbread cheesecake; and the “Not Little Debbie” Christmas Tree Donut, a 24-hour tree-shaped brioche filled with marshmallow fluff, dipped in white chocolate glaze. Both are $4.95. From December 31-January 1, they have an Espresso Martini Donut for $4.50 with a 24-hour mini brioche dipped in espresso glaze, filled with whipped coffee cream, and topped with dark chocolate drizzle and espresso beans.

Luckys, the diner on Oak Lawn Avenue, will feature a special spiked eggnog the week after Christmas, from December 26-January 1 made with milk, cream, sugar, eggs, Makers Mark, and rum for $9.75.

Frenchie, the bistro at Preston Center, has a new executive chef, Reilly Brown, who was previously executive sous chef at Georgie. His new menu items include Hiramasa crudo, bluefin tuna with tomato-soy glaze, and Castelfranco salad with duck confit, candied walnuts, pickled pear, and shallot vinaigrette.

Eight Beer, the craft beer label founded by Troy Aikman, got a serious shout-out on Landman, the Taylor Sheridan TV show that's been filming around the DFW area. Aikman shared the clip which shows series star Billy Bob Thornton ordering the beer "just out of respect" to Aikman for founding it.

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