Last night the sky above Dallas was draped with thick, dark clouds and the air was cool if not cold. It didn't rain, but it looked like it might at any second. In short, the weather wasn't exactly inspiring for an evening of dinner and drinks, though you'd never know that if you visited Trinity Groves.
At least two nights this week, the majority of the restaurants at the new West Dallas development were packed despite lackluster weather, hinting that the coming warmer weather will cause the place to be absolutely mobbed.
Daniel Pittman is the chef and co-owner of LUCK, a beer focused restaurant that might have the most crowded patio at Trinity Groves, and he doesn't sound the least bit surprised by the good business. Restaurants along the front side of the main building all have sizable areas for outdoor seating. "We were expecting it to bring in the Dallas patio crowd," Pittman says. "Everyone is doing pretty well."
Next door to LUCK, Souk's dining room is lively and the patio is packed, with many patrons pulling on hookahs and filling the air with sweetly scented tobacco smoke. But a patio isn't necessary to draw customers here.
If you want to score a table at Amberjax, you'll likely have to talk with Matthew Simmons who works the front desk there. Simmons says business has far exceeded expectations over the past few months, such that they've added an indoor/outdoor patio for additional seating and plan to add more outdoor seating in the near future.
Simmons says as the wait time for a table at Amberjax creeps upward, that some customers decide to check out the other restaurants instead. But often, "they come back and say put me on the list," Simmons says. Apparently the wait times aren't much better anywhere else.
