Food Critic Leslie Brenner Is Leaving The Dallas Morning News

Leslie Brenner, Dallas Morning News' food critic, is leaving the newspaper after eight years, according to DMN. She's leaving to take a senior management position with Rebees, a Dallas-based "place creation" company that was launched by a local developer in 2014. "We collaborate with partners and clients to develop real estate...

By Beth Rankin

August 7, 2017

Image: Leslie Brenner, the Dallas Morning News' longtime food critic.

Leslie Brenner, the Dallas Morning News' longtime food critic. The Dallas Morning News

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Leslie Brenner, The Dallas Morning News' food critic, is leaving the newspaper after eight years, according to the paper. She's leaving to take a senior management position with Rebees, a Dallas-based "place creation" company that was launched by a local developer in 2014. Brenner says she plans to stay in Dallas.

"We collaborate with partners and clients to develop real estate projects, restaurants, and hotels that conjure their own special reality," according to Rebees website.

That means Brenner could have a hand in the selection of restaurants that are an increasingly large part of the mixed-use developments spreading rapidly across DFW and beyond. Brenner's last day as food critic is Sept. 8, and the Dallas Morning News will lead a nationwide search for her replacement.

Brenner has been, at times, a controversial figure, engaged in public battles with Dallas chefs who disagreed with her reviews.

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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