Food Park News

South Dallas food park debuts at Fair Park with new name and vendors

Vendor Bri's Bakes specializes in brownies and bundt cakes.

Courtesy photo

A food park for and by South Dallas is making a comeback. Now called The Sunny South Dallas Food Park, it's debuting at Fair Park on November 13 with a lineup of Black-owned food trucks and trailers, with plentiful options including vegan and non-vegan foods.

Previously known as MLK Food Park, the event first debuted in April 2022 as a month-long pop-up park on 1611 Martin Luther King Blvd. In June, it relocated to Fair Park, where it held court through the end of July.

Now it's rebranded by Do Right By The Streets (DRBTS), its organizer, to highlight its representation of the South Dallas community, paying homage to its nickname, Sunny South Dallas. DRBTS is a Black-owned urban planning and place creation group founded by urban planner Desiree Powell that focuses on land use, zoning, and placemaking in communities of color.

"The name change represents a new chapter of the Food Park's growth as we continue expanding the vision of a permanent safe space at Fair Park," Powell says in a statement.

"The MLK Food Park began as a temporary pop-up park collaboration between TREC (Texas Real Estate Council), Better Block, and DRBTS,” Powell says. "The shared goal was to bring South Dallas residents together to gather in fellowship, all while supporting local Black and Brown-owned food trucks and vendors and providing a space for economic mobility."

Vendors include Dallasized Cookies, The Confectionist Factory, Bri's Bakes, Banomnom Pudding, Candles By Mezique, Smith Spot BBQ, Happy Vegan, Moe's Delights, Royalty Soy Candles, Khristian's Lemonade, Sunshine's Wings & Catfish, Sacred Instruments Jewelry, The Cat Shack, Read with Dr. Wade, and more.

"The food park is way more than bringing a bunch of food trucks and vendors out for a singular event that brings a lot of attention then leaves," DRBTS' website notes. "We're dedicated to building trust through this space that respects the past to build the community South Dallas' Black residents truly deserve."

The schedule for The Sunny South Dallas Food Park will be monthly, with a break in the winter, running from November 2022 to July 2023, on the following Sundays from 12-4 pm:

Sunday, November 13
Sunday, December 11
Sunday, March 26
Sunday, April 16
Sunday, May 21
Sunday, June 18
Sunday, July 30

Parking is free at Gate 6/Lot 6 at Robert B. Cullum and MLK Jr. Boulevard.

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Boots & Booze

New Deep Ellum venue vows to win hearts with food, fun, and wedding chapel

Photo by Kathy Tran

The Window at Boots & Booze will serve Deep Ellum early morning through late night.

A new all-day hangout will soon bring comfort food and cocktails, a dog-friendly courtyard, live music stage, and even a whimsical wedding chapel to Dallas' Deep Ellum. Boots & Booze, a new concept from Dallas-based Wush Hospitality Group, will debut its first phase on Friday, October 23 at 3014 Main St., across the street from Terry Black's Barbecue.

The first phase includes The Window, a walk-up kitchen; The Courtyard, an outdoor bar and gathering space; and its signature Shotgun Wedding Chapel.

“This is meant to be a place where you can grab breakfast or coffee before work, bring your dog for the afternoon, meet friends for a drink, catch live entertainment or celebrate something completely unexpected,” Sherry Hazrati, co-founder of Wush Hospitality Group, says in a release. “You don’t need a special occasion to come here. We want people to feel welcome the minute they walk in.”

The Window will serve coffee and breakfast starting at 6:30 am on weekdays, with brunch beginning at 11 am on weekends. The menu, developed by Hazrati and the group's culinary team, changes throughout the day.

Breakfast options include the Crispy Potato and Egg Sandwich and Quick Shift Meals. Lunch brings the Golden Honey Chicken Breast Sandwich, Double Onion Chopped Beef Sandwich, Main Street Philly, and Garlic Bread Grilled Cheese. Dinner offerings include Hearty Chicken, Crispy Potatoes, and After Hours Potatoes.

Weekend brunch features Hot Honey Chicken French Toast and shareable brunch boards, along with lighter and gluten-free options.

The beverage menu includes coffee drinks, sodas, cocktails, wine, and beer, including a gluten-free option. One signature drink is the Cold Fashioned, a frozen take on the Old Fashioned made with Still Austin Whiskey.

Guests can grab to-go meals or settle into The Courtyard, which has a bar, stage, and flexible seating for everything from game-day gatherings to live entertainment and community events.

The Shotgun Wedding Chapel is a "playful” element, says the press release, which is not to say it isn’t a functional wedding venue for couples eager to tie the knot. The team expects ceremonies and other pageantry year-round inside Shotgun.

Sherry Hazrati Boots & Booze Sherry Hazrati and her Wush Hospitality Group are behind Deep Ellum's new Boots & Booze venue.Photo by Kathy Tran

Hazrati says the goal is to make guests feel welcome and give them a reason to return.

“We want people to leave remembering how we made them feel and come back because they feel like they belong," she says.

The group plans to expand the concept with Boots & Booze Scratch Kitchen, a full-service restaurant led by executive chef José Luis Rodriguez Perez, former owner of Dallas restaurant Mixtitos Kitchen. Details and an opening date have not been announced.

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