Casual Dining Restaurants

Pizza Patron Extending "Peso Gimmick" Indefinitely

Bennigan's Reducing Its Pieces of Flair

Tail Trot

The Revolution, One Slice at a Time

On the Brinker

Dallas' Food Friends Noodling Around With P.F. Chang

Cooling on Chili's

Sure, the Food at Bennigan's is Mediocre. But at Least It's Cheaper Now.

First the Stock's Downgraded. Then, Some Chili's Abruptly Close.

Folks Sue Brinker, Claiming Its Guiltless Food Is a Little Too Guilty

"There's My Flair."

Win, Win: Brinker Forum Swaps John Travolta for Carl Reiner, Martin Short

Reiner, Short & Brinker: Not a Law Firm, But a Love Fest

So, Bennigan's Lives? Steak & Ale Too? Good Luck With All That.

A Swanky Replacement: Brooke Shields?

For the second time in three months, the Brinker International Forum has had to swap out celebrity guests -- once again because of a "scheduling conflict." (Do these people not have calendars? Or assistants with calendars?) After already getting a two-for-one deal in September, when Carl Reiner ... More >>

Even in a Lousy Economy, Brinker Finds Someone to Buy Macaroni Grill

And then there were three. Eleven days after analysts predicted Brinker International would indeed unload Romano's Macaroni Grill despite the lousy credit market, it's happened -- for about $88 million, which doesn't seem like a lot of pasta for a chain with some 220 eateries worldwide (as in, Egypt ... More >>

Hash Over

And then there were three. Eleven days after analysts predicted Brinker International would indeed unload Romano's Macaroni Grill despite the lousy credit market, it's happened -- for about $88 million, which doesn't seem like a lot of pasta for a chain with some 220 eateries worldwide (as in, Egypt ... More >>

Of men, meat, and money

Capital Grille lays it on thick

Let 'em eat loin

1998 was a year of lusty carnivores, raw fish, and orgiastic indulgence

Fox in the Steakhouse

Silver Fox still has to work out the kinks

Tastemakers

Does atmosphere affect our appreciation of a drink?

Dude Food: Olive Garden

Olive Garden639 N. Cockrell Hill Road, DuncanvilleDude Factor: 3, or Roseanne (waitress/proprieter of loose meat sandwich specialty diner The Lanford Lunch Box), on a scale of 1 (Zach Braff in Garden State) to 10 (Jonah Hill in Forgetting Sarah Marshall)Last Saturday my lady and I--with tired bones, ... More >>

A Vow So Weak

Olive Garden639 N. Cockrell Hill Road, DuncanvilleDude Factor: 3, or Roseanne (waitress/proprieter of loose meat sandwich specialty diner The Lanford Lunch Box), on a scale of 1 (Zach Braff in Garden State) to 10 (Jonah Hill in Forgetting Sarah Marshall)Last Saturday my lady and I--with tired bones, ... More >>

Plano: Prim And Bookish

Olive Garden639 N. Cockrell Hill Road, DuncanvilleDude Factor: 3, or Roseanne (waitress/proprieter of loose meat sandwich specialty diner The Lanford Lunch Box), on a scale of 1 (Zach Braff in Garden State) to 10 (Jonah Hill in Forgetting Sarah Marshall)Last Saturday my lady and I--with tired bones, ... More >>

Training Day

Catch D-League action in Fort Worth

Eating for the Kids

Catch D-League action in Fort Worth

Best Seafood Restaurant

Oceanaire Seafood Room

Best Restaurateur to Party With

Dee Lincoln at Del Frisco's

Best Cheap(er) Steak Place

Y.O. Ranch Steakhouse

Norman Brinker, Dead at 78

Kristina BowmanThe News is reporting that Norman Brinker died this morning while on vacation in Colorado Springs; he turned 78 last Wednesday. Brinker, of course, is the Colorado-born chairman emeritus of Brinker International -- and the man who, in 1984, took Larry Lavine's Chili's concept public; ... More >>

The Wrestler

Kristina BowmanThe News is reporting that Norman Brinker died this morning while on vacation in Colorado Springs; he turned 78 last Wednesday. Brinker, of course, is the Colorado-born chairman emeritus of Brinker International -- and the man who, in 1984, took Larry Lavine's Chili's concept public; ... More >>

Steak and Ale's Dead. Long Live Steak and Ale!

​Seems like forever ago that Plano-based Metromedia Restaurant Group shuttered Bennigan's and Steak & Ale -- but, nope, it was just July of last year. A few Bennigan's locations resurfaced shortly thereafter, when Richardson-based Bennigan's Franchising Company, LLC assumed the position and re ... More >>

Days Gone Bite: Potato Skins

​Some say that T.G.I. Friday's invented the potato skin.This was back in 1974, with the country reeling from Watergate, the withdrawal of combat troops from Vietnam, inflation and--worst of all--the introduction of all those sluggish mid-70s cars. Chrysler was, in fact, buying up the world's produ ... More >>

In The (Olive) Garden Of Eden

​A couple weeks ago, a reader by the name of Beth posted an interesting comment under one of our stories. "May I inquire as to why it is common practice on these blogs to look down upon other so-called 'middle-class casual restaurants?'" she (assuming) wrote, mentioning Olive Garden as a favored ... More >>

Breadstick Birbiglia

​A couple weeks ago, a reader by the name of Beth posted an interesting comment under one of our stories. "May I inquire as to why it is common practice on these blogs to look down upon other so-called 'middle-class casual restaurants?'" she (assuming) wrote, mentioning Olive Garden as a favored ... More >>

Brinker Makes a Run for the Border and Offloads Yet Another Chain to SF Firm

​Surprising(ish?) news late today: Brinker International just announced that a year and a half after it unloaded its majority interest Romano's Macaroni Grill to San Francisco-based Golden Gate Capital, it's selling On the Border to the equity firm as well. For how much? The press release doesn't ... More >>

Food Festivals Like Taste of West Village Aren't Necessarily About Food

​Since news about Texas food tends to find its way to my inbox, I know way more than I should about Texas Roadhouse happenings. I don't usually find too much in the Roadhouse oeuvre that's worth sharing, but I was oddly riveted by a recent announcement regarding the restaurant chain's partici ... More >>

Eat Cheese Fries for a Good Cause

​At last, a way to feel virtuous while stuffing your gullet with chili cheese fries and "Triple Dippers" at Chili's restaurants. On Monday, September 27, the 25-year-old burger chain will donate 100 percent of its profits for the day to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, one of the world's lea ... More >>

Pizza Patron's New Line Gives
Franchisees the Chills

​Pizza Patron's newest product is distressing some franchisees, who fear the frozen pizza line will cut into their sales. "I'd say a number of them are concerned," concedes brand director Andrew Gamm. "But it's a great opportunity for the brand." Pizza Patron frozen pizzas are now available ... More >>

Pizza Patron Prez Wants to Light Mavs' Fire

​First it's ice, then it's fire. While chatting yesterday morning with Pizza Patron publicist Sandy Bell about frozen pie prices, she asked me whether I'd heard the other big Antonio Swad news: Apparently the culinary impresario -- he's president of Pizza Patron -- can't limit himself to one ... More >>

Seasons 52: Chain Food Minus Butter and Salt. What's the Point?

​First it's ice, then it's fire. While chatting yesterday morning with Pizza Patron publicist Sandy Bell about frozen pie prices, she asked me whether I'd heard the other big Antonio Swad news: Apparently the culinary impresario -- he's president of Pizza Patron -- can't limit himself to one ... More >>

TGI Friday's: No More In NorthPark; Yes More in the Middle East

​T.G.I. Friday's, a place known for its red-and-white stripes and flair for shrugging off the work-week, may be feeling the crunch just like everyone else -- or it may just be changing its game. Within the last week, the location at NorthPark Center shuttered its doors amidst numerous T.G.I. ... More >>

Sip, Savor and See How You're Making a Difference

​Sip wine and feel good about more than the antioxidants this week in Dallas. Read on. The Event: Savor Dallas The Cause: North Texas Food Bank The Scoop It will be a feel-good festival of premier chefs, food and drinks at the seventh Savor Dallas event on March 18 and 19. Said premier chefs ... More >>

Olive Garden Rolls Out Remodel in Texas

A plan to revamp Olive Garden restaurants nationwide is getting its start in Texas. Three Dallas area stores are among the nine "remodel locations" recently announced by the Italian-American restaurant chain. According to spokesperson Kristen Johnson, more than half of the chain's 700 stores will e ... More >>

SEC Sues, Settles With Brinker Financial Analyst, Husband Over Insider Trading

​Digging through Pacer this morning, looking for something unrelated, I came across this: In Dallas federal court yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Donna Hvidsten the manager of Planning and Analysis at Brinker International, and her husband Bruce, a former Brinker employee, f ... More >>

Irving T.G.I. Friday's Bites the Dust

​Even restaurants with God in their names aren't immune to the economy. (Or maybe God got shorted on his order of potato skins.) The T.G.I. Friday's chains Irving location at 1001 MacArthur Park has closed. Every piece of T.G.I. Friday's flair and signage has been removed and all that remain ... More >>

Break Out Your Bubble Gum: Maid-Rite Corporation Is Coming to Dallas

​Des Moines, Iowa-based Maid-Rite corporation promises to descend en masse upon the DFW metroplex, blanketing the area in its popular "loose meat" sandwich, tucked inside a mass produced white-bread bun. The 85-year-old corporation has targeted a Arlington's Green Oaks Shopping Center at the ... More >>

WhataFail: How Some Dallas Restaurants Treat Their Employees

​Restaurant Opportunities Centers United has released a new restaurant guide. The 52-page guide makes no mention of food quality, ingredient sourcing, or a customer's dining experience, but instead focuses on how well restaurants treat their employees. Wages, benefits and advancement opportuni ... More >>