Celebrating culinary all-stars

Toast Dallas' top restaurant and bar stars at 2025 Tastemaker Awards

The Tastemaker Awards return May 1.

Photo by Ashley Gongora

Save the date for the tastiest food and drink event of the season: The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards return this spring to celebrate Dallas' top restaurant and bar talent — and discount tickets are on sale now.

Join us May 1 at Astoria Event Venue for our signature tasting event and annual awards ceremony. You'll enjoy a full evening of chef-driven bites, perfectly paired sips, and the big reveal of the Dallas Tastemaker Award winners for 2025.

The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards program shines a spotlight on the people and places that make Texas' top cities world-class culinary destinations.

Mark your calendars for our other 2025 events:

Houston: April 3 at Silver Street Studios
San Antonio: April 10 at The Briscoe Western Art Museum
Fort Worth: April 23 at The 4 Eleven
Austin: May 8 at Fair Market

This year in Dallas, we'll present awards for Restaurant of the Year, Chef of the Year, Bar of the Year, Rising Star Chef of the Year, Pastry Chef of the Year, Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year, Best New Restaurant, Best Eatertainment, and Best Coffee Shop.

Our panel of industry experts — including past Tastemaker winners — selects all nominees and winners, except for the Best New Restaurant winner, which will be determined by you, our readers, in a heated online tournament.

The 2025 Dallas Tastemaker Awards nominees will be unveiled soon, and readers will get to know all of our nominees in a special editorial series leading up to the big event in May.

A limited number of pre-sale tickets are on sale now at discounted rates of $50 for general admission and $85 for VIP (includes early access to the event, dedicated bar, and more perks). Prices will go up soon.

More delicious details about each event are coming soon. But don't delay: Nab tickets for Dallas — and all of our 2025 events — now.

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The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards ceremony is sponsored in Dallas by The Yuengling Company, Brioche Gourmet, Still Austin Whiskey, Whataburger, PicMe Events, and more to be announced. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Harvest Project Food Rescue.

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Taco News

Upscale Dallas taqueria Velvet Taco to open first McKinney location

Courtesy of Velvet Taco

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A Dallas taco chain is opening a new location in a booming Collin County metropolis: Velvet Taco, which specializes in globally inspired tacos, will open its first location in McKinney at 8565 W. University Dr. #150, on Monday, April 14.

The restaurant will open with 20-plus tacos and bowls, plus a signature rotating Weekly Taco Feature. Their number one seller is the Spicy Tikka Chicken Taco, but the Bacon Smash Burger Taco is also a popular dish, according to a release.

Everything is prepared in-house, including brisket roasted for 18 hours and their popular Backdoor Chicken marinated for 48 hours.

The menu features unexpected foodie-level ingredients like cilantro basmati rice, candied pepitas, and Thai basil — unusual in the fast-casual restaurant world.

They also serve alcohol, including margaritas, local, and Mexican beer, and they have one notable signature dessert: Red Velvet cake.

The chain was founded in 2011 with a location on Henderson Avenue at the intersection of US-75 — a location that's now closed. But there's no shortage, with 16 in the DFW area, stretching from Fort Worth on the west to Rockwall on the east, and more than 50 locations across the U.S.

The McKinney location, which is a newly constructed 2,939-square-foot space, will feature indoor seating for 64 guests and an additional 48 seats on its patio. The restaurant will feature a mural by local artist Paxton Grigsby, a 15-year-old freshman at McKinney North High School.

They'll open at 11 am with giveaways: The first 50 dine-in guests will get free Velvet Taco hats.

Monday April 14 seems to be a big day for tacos in the great white north, as Velvet Taco will not be the only restaurant with tacos to open in the 'hood: On that very same day, Chicago-based Cilantro Taco Grill will make its Texas debut in Prosper with a restaurant just seven miles away.

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