Monkey King to Open Next Door to Il Cane Rosso in Carrollton

If there’s one thing Dallas needs, it’s not another burger joint or barbecue spot. As we’ve lamented plenty of times here, our city could use more culinary diversity and global flavor. Fortunately, Monkey King Noodle Co. will be bringing their unique brand of Asian noodles, soups and dumplings to — of all places — Carrollton.

As Teresa Gubbins first reported at CultureMap, owner and noodle-puller Andrew Chen will open the second location of the Deep Ellum noodle stand in the northwest suburb. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Carrollton outpost of Monkey King will be situated right next door to the already-open Il Cane Rosso. If there’s anything that could be considered a power team of restaurants, it would certainly be those two right together.

Restaurateurs have been flocking to the suburbs for the past couple of years (see: Smoke, Pakpao, Hickory), and for good reason. The Dallas ‘burbs were a wasteland of corporate restaurants in years past, and that isn’t really the case anymore. This influx of great restaurants into Plano, Carrollton and McKinney only means good things for the area’s diners.

As for the newest location of Monkey King, CultureMap reports that noodle enthusiasts can find “covered outdoor seating” along with indoor seating for comfortable noodle-eating, along with a menu that looks much like the one in Deep Ellum. They probably won’t decide to duplicate that death trap of a staircase (RIP) in any upcoming outdoor patio designs, but it certainly would lend a dose of authenticity.  Chen promises new “seasonal dishes,” but no word yet on just how much the kitchen will expand in size and in menu offerings. The noodles will still be pulled in-house.

The opening of Monkey King’s Carrollton location is tentatively scheduled for next summer, partly because the owners have to renovate a 1930s-era building.