Celebrity Chef News

Carla Hall joins Dallas chef Tiffany Derry at star-studded food festival

Carla Hall will be one of the guests at Tiffany Derry's Shef F + W Festival.

Photo courtesy of Carla Hall

Dallas' celebrity chef Tiffany Derry is launching a new food festival, featuring some of her celebrity chef friends. Called the Shef F + W Festival, it'll take place at EpicCentral in Grand Prairie, which will also be home to Derry's newest restaurant.

According to a release, the festival will take place from November 8-10 and will feature appearances by TV-famous names such as Carla Hall and Michael Voltaggio, both of whom, like Derry, competed in the popular Top Chef series.

Grand Prairie will also be home to a second location of Derry's Italian restaurant, Radici Wood Fired Grill, which she debuted in Farmer's Branch in May 2024. The Grand Prairie spinoff will be located at 2979 SH-161, and is slated to open in late 2024.

The festival schedule is as follows:

Friday November 8, the festival will open with a four-course dinner at the Radici location in Farmers Branch (hmm that's not Grand Prairie) hosted by Derry and Tom Foley, the cofounders of T2D Concepts, along with Derry's special guests, who they are, the release does not say.

Saturday, November 9 will begin with a pickleball tournament where attendees can compete against chefs. There will also be whiskey and wine tastings, a panel discussion, and end with a Grand Tasting Experience — a walk-around style tasting event taking place on the Grand Lawn, featuring chefs, spirits and wine, and a performance by DreamSound. (VIP tickets provide early admission, lounge access, premium bar service, and a talent meet and greet.)

Sunday November 10 will feature a performance by chef Carla Hall, who will debut a one-woman show called Mimosas and Matinee in which Hall reflects on her evolution into her "Inner Auntie" persona, embracing the freedom of turning 60, blending personal anecdotes with real-time audience interactions.

The full lineup of celebrity chefs joining the festival includes:

Carla Hall – Chef, TV personality, and author
Kwame Onwuachi – James Beard Award-winning chef, author, and restaurateur | Tatiana
Michael Voltaggio – TV personality, restaurateur, and author
Erick Williams – James Beard Award-winning chef and founder | Virtue Hospitality Group
Silvia Barban – Top Chef Alum and restaurateur | Larina Pastificio e Vino
Tavel Bristol-Joseph – Top Chef Alum and restaurateur | Emmer & Rye Hospitality
Gabriele Bertaccini – Food Network Ciao House, chef, and founder | Il Tocco Food
Arnold Myint – Chef-owner and restaurateur | International Market
Tim Hollingsworth – Award-winning chef and restaurateur | Otium
Kelsey Barnard-Clark – TV personality, chef, and author
Kevin Bludso – Netflix Barbecue Showdown Judge, James Beard Award-winning chef | Bludso’s BBQ
Marcus Davis – Chef and restaurateur | The Breakfast Klub

Tickets range from $99 for the Mimosas and Matinee event to $175 for general admission. VIP tickets are $275.

Derry and T2D Concepts co-founder Tom Foley are also known for Roots Chicken Shak, Roots Southern Table, and a spice and apparel line called 'Shef Tiffany.

“I’m thrilled to bring some of the most talented chefs that I know together for a weekend to not only create and share great food and memories, but also create impact for our industry,” says Derry in a statement. “It’s going to be a special and delicious weekend – one that Tom and I hope will become a tradition for years to come.”

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News you can cheers to

Assembly Icehouse in Plano adds swanky adults-only cocktail lounge

Photo courtesy of Assembly Icehouse

Espresso martini at Assembly Icehouse.

An east Plano restaurant and entertainment venue is expanding with a chic new lounge aimed exclusively at the 21-and-up crowd: Assembly Icehouse, the sports bar and family-friendly restaurant at Assembly Park, is adding a cocktail lounge, giving the mixed-use development its first adults-only destination.

According to a release, the 2,200-square-foot lounge will go in the former Tacoro Tacos & Tequila space, which has closed.

The lounge will offer a more upscale atmosphere than the adjoining icehouse, and will focus on premium cocktails, spirits, music, and socializing, the release says. Features will include a vinyl listening station with an extensive record collection, a pool table, and private spirit lockers where regulars and members can store personal bottles for future visits.

Yes, memberships will be available. So swank.

The lounge's name, opening date, membership details, and beverage program will be announced later, the owners say.

Assembly Icehouse, announced in fall 2024, opened in November 2025 as one of the anchor restaurant concepts at Assembly Park, the redevelopment of the former Plano Market Square Mall at 1717 E. Spring Creek Pkwy. Developed by Triten Real Estate Partners, the project has transformed the aging shopping center into a mixed-use destination with apartments, offices, restaurants, and a central park.

The 4,850-square-foot restaurant was developed by Dallas hospitality group Blender Brands and features elevated bar food, more than 30 TVs, live entertainment, and expansive indoor-outdoor spaces overlooking the property's lawn. The menu includes smashburgers, chicken and waffles, double-fried wings, and sandwiches such as the Tejas Philly.

Assembly Park in Plano. Rendering courtesy of Assembly Park

The adjoining lounge will mark the latest evolution for Assembly Park, which also includes Cliff Coffee and other food-and-drink concepts from Blender Brands. (The now-closed Tacoro had operated as a quick service, pick-up and go Mexican restaurant and taqueria.)

"Assembly Icehouse has been embraced by the community in a way that exceeded our expectations," says JR Muñoz in the release. "As we looked at what was next, we saw an opportunity to create something completely different within Assembly Park. This lounge will offer an elevated adults-only experience where guests can relax, enjoy great music, share exceptional spirits and feel like they're part of something special. It's designed to be a destination for connection and conversation."

Blender Brands, founded by Dallas-Fort Worth entrepreneurs Jacob Cox and Danny Wilson, also operates Select Start Arcade & Bar in Deep Ellum, Good Side Pizza Pub, and other hospitality concepts across North Texas.

Assembly Park's location, the former Plano Market Square Mall, was a 300,000-square-foot shopping mall that was built in the 1980s. Triten acquired it in 2021 with the goal to create a walkable mixed-use neighborhood featuring dining and retail, creative office, and urban-style living options with a connection to the outdoors, centered around a freshly planted park and event space. It includes the Annabel at Assembly Park, an apartment community with 304 units that opened in summer 2024.

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