Duffer News

Ice House beer garden and golf lounge swing into PGA Frisco Resort

Drizzle that sauce on your BBQ at PGA Frisco.

Kathy Tran

PGA Frisco, the golf-themed entertainment district located in, yes, Frisco, is welcoming two new dining concepts, including a buzzy Austin-style beer garden and a lounge.

Located at 3255 PGA Pkwy., they offer a casual, indoor/outdoor venue, to as well as indoor space featuring simulated golf.

PGA Frisco is the public/private partnership between the PGA of America, Omni Hotels & Resorts, the City of Frisco, and the Frisco Independent School District. The campus includes golf courses, Omni hotel, and the Monument Realty PGA District, an entertainment and retail zone.

On to the new venues!

Ice House
Ice House is a casual indoor/outdoor beer garden open for lunch and dinner daily with frozen drinks, draft beers, BBQ, and burgers.

Monument Realty PGA District executive chef Adam Solowitz describes it as "a space meant for families and friends to kick back and relax, play games, sip on cold drinks and enjoy delicious food meant to be shared."

They have an in-house pitmaster, along with frozen margaritas, spiked iced tea, and lemonade. Menu highlights include

Smoked meat plate - half pound of smoked ribs, sausage, brisket, or chicken
Smothered fries with choice of smoked meat, brazos gouda, fennel slaw, sour pickle, chipotle-pineapple kewpie
Pitmaster Burger with slaw, bacon jam, fried onion, pepper jack, kewpie, on brioche bun

Chopped Salad contains iceberg, Romaine, avocado, river whey bleu, cherry tomato, pickled onion, charred corn, and blackberry vinaigrette. Dessert is a Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwich.

"Texas-sized" frozen drinks include the Frozen Transfusion with Tito's Handmade Vodka, Owen's Transfusion mix, and concord grape juice; and the Frozen Palmer with Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka and Kelvin Slush Citrus plus tea mix.

Regular cocktails include the Dirty Shirley with Tito's Handmade Vodka, Liber & Co. grenadine syrup, lemon-lime soda, and cherry popsicle.

There's seating for 300 inside and outside, overlooking the Toptracer driving ranch and The Swing short course; yard games including cornhole and connect four; and six hitting bays with Toptracer technology and stunning views.

Lounge by Topgolf
The Lounge by Topgolf is an indoor elevated sports bar equipped with Topgolf Swing Suite technology and a library of virtual games. The menu includes craft cocktails, chef-driven fare, in a atmosphere designed to be fun for golfers and non-golfers alike.

The menu features salads, pizzas, local draft beer, and elevated cocktails. According to chef Solowitz, they pulled inspiration for the menu from popular foods where golf courses are located around the world.

Standouts include:

Deviled Eggs with pickled beets, pork belly and harissa remoulade
Queso Fundido - chorizo, heirloom tomato, pickled onion, pepitas
Green Pea Hummus - labneh, spring vegetables, dukkha, served with grilled naan
Smokehouse Pizza - house BBQ sauce, brisket, brazos smoked gouda, escabeche
SmashBurger - brazos cheddar, LTO, pub sauce, on a brioche bun
Salmon - served with couscous, pea puree, vadouvan, tzatziki

Cocktails include the Rabbit Hole in One, with Rabbit Hole Boxer Grail Rye, Amaro Montenegro, Liber & Co. Caramelized Fig Syrup, black walnut bitters, and Filthy Black Cherry.

Games offered include hockey, golf, and bowling with simulation bays for small gatherings with friends and family.

The space seats 200 people and features modern interpretations of traditional golf elements. It's also open daily for lunch and dinner.

PGA Frisco
The restaurants are part of PGA Frisco's 660-acre campus, combining playability, practice, and fun programming, centered on The Home of the PGA, and which includes:

Fields Ranch, with two 18-hole championship golf courses and a state-of-the-art clubhouse
Omni PGA Frisco Resort, with 500 guest rooms, suites, 10 four-bedroom villa-style Ranch Houses, three pools, a spa, and a meeting/event space
Monument Realty PGA District, which features The Swing, a lighted 10-hole short course; The Dance Floor, a lighted 2-acre putting course; and a retail and entertainment district, including outdoor area for concerts and events.
The Jerry J. Ransom Northern Texas PGA Golf House.

Wine Bar News

Sultry Mexican wine bar-cocktail lounge to open in Dallas' Bishop Arts

Valle

Valle Bishop Arts

There's an exciting new bar spinoff coming to Dallas' Bishop Arts: Called Valle, it'll open at 509 North Bishop Ave. #C, in the former Bishop Cider Taproom, where it will serve as a sultry Mexican wine bar and cocktail lounge.

Valle is a sibling to Vinito, the Mexican wine and beer shop that opened at 939 W. Jefferson Blvd. in 2023, from partners Arturo Flores and Eduardo Mendoza.

With Vinito focused on retail sales, Flores & Mendoza decided to spread the love for Mexican wine by offering a place where patrons could sit down and enjoy a glass or bottle, plus beer, agaves, and craft cocktails as well.

"We've loved championing Mexican wines at Vinito and thought we could take our customers to the next experience," Flores says.

Vinito offers more than 100 labels of Mexican wine in every varietal: tempranillo, malbec, rose, sparkling, chardonnay, chenin blanc. Prices are reasonable, with many bottles in the $30 range, topping out at $120 for a Monte Xanic Gran Ricardo vintage 2021. They also have all the classic Mexican beers: Modelo, Bohemia, Corona, Dos Equis.

At Valle, they'll offer wines by the bottle plus a dozen wines by the glass, and flights that celebrate regions of Mexico. The menu also has a special category dedicated to "Agaves," with tequilas, mezcales, and sotol; and a handful of craft cocktails such as a margarita, paloma, and a carajillo de olla, a coffee cocktail with tequila, Spanish liqueur Licor 43, and cold brew.

"We know that not everybody drinks wine, and we want people to feel welcome and have options," Mendoza says.

They'll do snacks and finger foods, like chips & salsa and nuts, but the space has no kitchen and the focus will be on the bar. They'll be open daily from 4 pm to midnight, and until 2 am on weekends. They're hoping to launch their soft opening in the next week.

Mendoza has a strong hospitality background, and was previously general manager at Meso Maya, where they met; Flores worked there while pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. During the pandemic, they started having conversations over wine and became inspired.

"When people think about Mexico, they think about beer, mezcal, tequila, but not wine, and we wanted to change that," Mendoza says.

The bar is named for Valle de Guadalupe in Mexico, the "Napa Valley of Mexico" and the region where the majority of wine in the country is grown. They're planning to offer a wine club, with exclusive tastings, events, and new bottles available to participants.

They've also partnered with relevant businesses such as Santitos, a syrup company based in Oak Cliff that makes syrups with Mexican-inspired flavors; and Four Corner Brewery, whose Firme Azul beer they'll serve and donate the proceeds to a Hispanic scholarship fund. They're getting coffee beans from Caffetio Co., based in Austin but born in Monterrey, Mexico.

“We are big advocates for the Hispanic community, and our partnerships reflect that," Flores says.

For the location, they were aided by Amanda Moreno-Lake, President of Redevelopment and Partner at Jim Lake Companies, and a big supporter who helped them find their spot for Vinito as well.

"I saw the vision and plans and knew I wanted to help Eduardo and Arturo," she says. "Sometimes small businesses need that chance to grow and succeed."

Flores says they've completely redone the 700-square-foot space, with bar seating for 10, four high-top tables, and a lounge area with leather chairs and coffee table.

"It's intimate," Flores says. "Where Vinito is light and warm, Valle is dark and cozy, with a deep green and gold palette — like the evil sister of Vinito."

oak cliff openings wine

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Wine Bar News

Sultry Mexican wine bar-cocktail lounge to open in Dallas' Bishop Arts