Food News: Hot Joy is Opening a Two-Year "Pop-Up" Restaurant and Knox-Henderson Gets Stellar

One of San Antonio's quirkiest restaurants is opening in Dallas with an equally quirky business plan: Hot Joy, “a wild mash-up of China, Texas, Vietnam, Japan, Louisiana, Thailand, Mexico, Malaysia and anything else that lights up our brain," will open a "pop-up restaurant" at 3130 Lemmon Ave., in the former Texas Land...

By Beth Rankin

April 21, 2017

San Antonio's Hot Joy is opening a "pop-up" restaurant in Uptown that will be open for two years before moving elsewhere. Courtesy of Hot Joy

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One of San Antonio's quirkiest restaurants is opening in Dallas with an equally quirky business plan: Hot Joy, “a wild mash-up of China, Texas, Vietnam, Japan, Louisiana, Thailand, Mexico, Malaysia and anything else that lights up our brain," will open a "pop-up restaurant" at 3130 Lemmon Ave., in the former Texas Land & Cattle, according to a press release. "The plan is to stay in the space for two years, then move to a permanent location," the release says. Chef John Philpot, who served as sous chef when Hot Joy opened, now runs the kitchen and will bring several of Hot Joy's signature dishes to the pop-up: "Shrimp dumplings 'Chengdu-style,' Spam fried rice, and twice-fried chicken wings with crab fat caramel, as well as its extensive cocktail, sake, beer and Riesling list," according to the release. "Philpot is also creating several new dishes specifically for the Uptown location, and Hot Joy loves putting dishes on and off the menu with frenetic, ahem, joy." Hot Joy plans to open in Dallas by mid-July, but the space they're occupying will only be available for two years before it's redeveloped. After the two years are up, the idea is to find another location in Dallas, as long as the Big D warms up to this San Antonio export.
The team behind Trophy Ranch, The Trophy Room and Wholesome Grub is debuting a new concept in Knox-Henderson on April 29: Stellar, described as a restaurant with "mid-century modern décor with indoor and outdoor tables, American cuisine, a cocktail bar and a dog-friendly patio," according to a press release. Stellar takes over the former Vickery Park at 2810 N. Henderson Ave. and will serve dishes like "edamame hummus, ahi tuna nachos, Texas poutine with barbecue brisket and Oyster Oscar baked on a half shell. The restaurant opens to the public at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 29.
Lark on the Park let go of half of its chef team, GuideLive reports, with restaurant management telling Leslie Brenner that, "it’s competitive out there in the restaurant world, especially in our segment, and we simply couldn’t afford two chefs anymore." Husband-wife chef duo Dennis Kelley and Melody Bishop have been running the kitchen since it opened four years ago, but "business isn't great," Kelley posted on Facebook after he was laid off recently. The restaurant's ownership says no further big changes are in the works, but it's not certain that Bishop will stay on for the long haul.
Less than a year after he was hired as executive chef last July, Justin Box is out at Cedars Social, he said in a Facebook post. He was brought in, at least in part, to help the flailing Cedars bar and restaurant find its footing again, but it is unclear exactly why he's leaving or what's happening next for the chef, whose last day was yesterday. "Cedars Social is back on the map, and I'm honored to have been a part of that movement," he said on Facebook.
D Magazine recently held a poll asking diners the question: What is Dallas' most iconic dish? Options ranged wildly: Bubba's fried chicken, Keller's burger, Snuffer's cheese fries, Fletcher's corny dog (duh). The winner: Neiman Marcus' popovers with strawberry butter, which you can try at Neiman or make at home using a recipe posted by D.

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Beth Rankin is an Ohio native and Cicerone-certified beer server who specializes in social media, food and drink, travel and news reporting. Her belief system revolves around the significance of Topo Chico, the refusal to eat crawfish out of season and the importance of local and regional foodways.

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