High-Rise News

High-rise in Dallas Design District comes with cool pool and restaurant

Do those pool floats look like avocados?

Urby Dallas

A new residential development has landed in Dallas' Design District, that comes with its own restaurant, open to the public.

Called the Urby, it's a 27-story building with 383 apartments located at 1930 Hi Line Dr., across from the Virgin Dallas hotel. According to a release, leasing is underway.

It'll also be home to a neighborhood bistro called Charley, opening in late November-early December.

Urby features studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments with rents starting at $1,956 for a studio on the low end, and topping out at $3,467 for a two-bedroom two-bath unit, with most rents in the $2,200-$2,600 range.

Amenities include a fitness facility with yoga studio, dog park, dog wash, and a prismatic pool inspired by pools found in Yellowstone National Park. Pool-wise, that is reaching pretty high.

Urby Kind of an MCM vibe going here.Urby Dallas

In addition to the restaurant Charley, there'll be an accompanying lounge for residents only called The Salon, plus a private dining room with communal table for foodie events or work meetings. A library, which residents can use as a workspace, will offer a menu serviced by Charley.

There's no info yet on chef or menu, but the design is by Shawn Hausman Design, a restaurant and boutique hotel designer whose portfolio includes The Standard, Chateau Marmont, Le Diplomat, and Little Doms, for groups like André Balazs Properties, Standard Hotels International, and Stephen Starr Restaurants.

According to a spokesperson, all Urby properties come with an in-house restaurant or cafe. For Charley, Hausman drew inspiration from Austrian cafes, from classic Viennese cafes to offbeat spots in Graz. Decorative features will include historic European furniture and an "unexpected" color palette.

Founded in 2016, Urby is part of a chain by president and CEO David Barry, a New York developer whose prior properties include the Standard East Village, Chiltern Firehouse in London, and W Hotel in Hoboken. Dallas will be the sixth Urby, but the first outside the New York area. Current Urby buildings are in New York, Jersey City, Harrison NJ, and Stamford, Connecticut, with Philadelphia, Miami, and Washington DC also in the works.

The Dallas property will ultimately include more than 900 apartments in three residential towers on a four-acre site. So two more buildings are coming.

Lots of windows create a light, bright space.Urby Dallas

Urby apartments include:

bright and airy floor plans
walk-in closets with built-in storage
sustainable flooring
upscale kitchen finishes and appointments
large, nearly floor-to-ceiling windows
smart technology systems, including Latch keyless smart phone entry and Amazon package lockers

Some units have balconies.

“We are delighted to officially begin leasing at Dallas Urby which we believe is a fantastic residential complement to the Design District,” David Barry says in a statement. “We look forward to welcoming our first residents this month and introducing them to our thoughtful design, engaging experiences and community connection.”

openings hotels

Catfish News

Family restaurant brings the catfish and Cajun to Seagoville

Doe Belly's

Good looking gumbo from Doe Belly's

A family-owned restaurant specializing in fried catfish has opened in Seagoville: Called Doe Belly’s, it's at 103 N. Kaufman St., in a former Goin' Postal shop where it opened on January 22.

This is a second location for Doe Belly's: Owners Patrick McCrea and his wife, Monica, opened the first in Forney in 2009. Prior to opening the restaurant, Patrick was in architecture and cooking meals for friends; Monica encouraged him to open a restaurant of their own.

They call themselves Southern and Creole with a menu that includes jambalaya, etouffee, fried catfish, and shrimp. At the new Seagoville location, they've added new dishes including smoked pork chops, smoked turkey legs, and grilled meats, and have also added beer and wine.

“We’re trying to get a little away from seafood and going more toward a comfort-food type space,” McCrea says.

Catfish is the signature as well as po'boy sandwiches, served on toasted buns, with a choice of shrimp, catfish, chicken, or sausage link. Sides include green beans, collard greens, potato salad, dirty rice, and black eyed peas.

Catfish & fries with two pieces of catfish is about $12. Nothing is over $25 and they offer weekday specials Wednesday-Friday.

According to McCrea, the City of Seagoville reached out to him about opening a location there, and it’s been in discussion for four years.

“We ventured out before to Kaufman, but it didn’t work out because COVID started and our lease was ending,” McCrea says. “So we decided we wouldn’t renew the lease knowing how COVID was going to affect everybody.”

There are also plans in the works to relocate the Forney restaurant — now in a former Sonic — to a new space.

"We'll have a bigger location coming this summer when we move the Forney location to a bigger space with a full bar," McCrea says. "We're working on that now, but I've got to go to city council to get the approval on that building."

openings