U.S. Food Trucks, a company that builds, leases, sells and consults on mobile meal makers, recently announced what it’s calling the first-annual state-wide Food TruckFest. The event combines approximately 30 food trucks from as far as San Antonio with a 5K race. (As if 3.2 miles could put a dent…
Nation’s Restaurant News reported yesterday that eatZi’s will open two new spots in the ‘burbs. The first will open on May 17 in Grapevine and will occupy 10,000 square feet “of freestanding retail space in a former Luby’s Cafeteria site.” The Plano store will be a newly constructed 10,000 square-foot…
UPDATE: Earlier we sent an email Tim McCallum, owner of Vapiano, asking if they might open back up. “We hope so, we will send out info when we do,” McCallum replied. Vapiano at Mockingbird Station has, to put it delicately, closed. Or, if one were to read the sign on…
Chad Montgomery got a lesson in event promotion over the weekend. The operations manager by day, beer guzzler by night had never organized a large public event before, and he learned a few lessons with his inaugural Big Texas Beer Fest. One lesson is to take food truck commitments with…
Ben & Jerry’s annual Free Cone Day was scheduled for April 3, but tornadoes forced some local shops to play a make-up game, and that making up goes down today. Three local shops are partaking in the festivities: Plano, McKinney and the Shops of Highland Village. The Plano store has…
Julian Barsotti, chef and owner of the highly acclaimed Nonna, is set to open Carbone’s Fine Food and Wine at 4208 Oak Lawn today. The name Carbone is a relic of Barsotti’s past. His maternal grandparents (the Carbones) owned a deli and small grocery of the same name in New…
Crawfish season, which if you’re not from the South is not when crustaceans fall from the sky, is one of the few documented times when it’s totally OK to suck the hot brains from a tiny crustracean head. Mark Andresen, the illustrator who’s no stranger to Not-Eating-This-Shit Properly, provides this…
Changes are coming at Oak Cliff’s beloved Mesa. The restaurant opened just before my arrival and was the subject of my very first review. I loved the place, and the very same week Leslie Brenner did too. It went on to become one of the most notable openings of the…
The buzz for Big Texas Beer Fest on Saturday morning was palpable miles away from Fair Park. From the Mockingbird Station where I embarked, people of all stripes, many sporting T-shirts from breweries and the bars where they’re served, were packed like anchovies into the DART train. Despite the occasional…
The Deep Ellum Outdoor Market shut down Main Street over the weekend for a food truck rally. For some, especially the 10 or so trucks there, the night was a success. Cajun Tailgators ran out of food at 9:30 p.m. The Munch Box had a “sea of people” outside their…
“Pie North Bishop is ours!” I just got off the phone with Megan Wilkes, proprietor of Emporium Pies, who told me she and her partner Mary Gauntt signed the lease for their pie shop yesterday. Wilkes’ pie pun — there are always pie puns — is a riff on the…
Andrew Lostetter has been a bartender in Dallas for almost 15 years, serving at Fireside Pies, Neighborhood Services Tavern and Marquee Grill. Recently he was snowboarding in Breckenridge, Colorado, when he was hit by a wayward skier and propelled into a tree. The impact caused four fractures to his pelvis,…
It’s been a long time coming for Driftwood (642 W. Davis). The seafood spot in Oak Cliff was supposed to open months ago, but electrical and plumbing issues kept setting them back. Finally, last week, Chef Omar Flores and owner/operator John Baudoin planned a soft opening for family and friends…
When Paul Quinn College decided to transform its old football field into a massive garden, a bona fide food desert was transformed. In just two years since the field was tilled, thousands of pounds of vegetables have made their way to the campus cafeteria, neighborhood charities and a few local…
Downtown Dallas, Inc., announced this afternoon that Rusty Taco will take over the Main Street Garden Café space. Robert Wilonsky reported on the space’s need for a tenant over on Unfair Park back in February. Today’s release announces Rusty’s as the chosen vendor. The taco shack beat out a dozen…
The weekend is here, and it promises to be a good one with the Big Texas Beer Fest offering craft brews for the masses. I’m sure you guys want to get it started as much as I do, but first there’s a week to wrap. This week I reviewed Company…
You may have seen this week’s cover story, which is Cheap Bastard’s Guide to Being a Cheap Bastard in Dallas. If you read it, or are familiar with CB in anyway, you know that she has a black belt in Boobeuphemismskata. In honor of Bastard-y phrases like “your freezer will…
Since January of last year, chef Brady Williams has been manning the ship at the Spillers Group, the folks behind Union Bear, Oddfellows and Eno’s. But Williams told me today that he’s got a new gig: chef de cuisine for FT-33, the new Design District restaurant from Matt McCallister. “It’s…
Twisted Root has gone and made everyone in the metroplex over the age of 12 giggle by adding beaver burgers to its menu. In addition to beaver, the Root also serves beef, buffalo, turkey, venison, elk, lamb, ostrich, kangaroo, emu, boar and alligator burgers topped with all kinds of melty…
Don’t forget: Big Texas Beer Fest is 1 to 6 p.m. tomorrow, and noon for the VIPs who paid $25 more for the opportunity to be first at the taps and close down the event at the Deep Ellum Brewing Co. after-party. But if you haven’t gotten around to obtaining a…
Confession: I love cucumber drinks. Muddled with vodka, soaked in gin, even just sliced and floating in a glass of water, the addition of cucumber gives an unparalleled refreshing note, perfect for summertime patio sipping. Obviously I’m not alone in this — every cocktail bar in town has at least…
The Deep Ellum Outdoor Market is hosting its first food truck rally tonight on Main Street between Malcolm X and Crowdus, which will be shut down for the event. The party lasts from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m., and a few bands will provide tunes, including My Wooden Leg and Hares…
