It was dark and cold yesterday morning when I biked past the empty storefront alongside Press Box Grill, so I elected not to check out the brand new permits posted in the window. But D Magazine's Tim Rogers is obviously a better -- or at least warmer -- cycling newshound than I am, since he stopped to read the signs and discovered a new Vietnamese restaurant's destined for the location.
Pho Colonial, according to publicist Stephen Davis, is the latest venture from Khanh Dao, developer of The Drae and Steel. Dao, a Saigon native, "decided to go back to her roots," Davis says.
The restaurant hasn't revealed its menu, but Davis describes the concept as "authentic, street Vietnamese food." Pho Colonial's bare-bones website features photographs of pho, banh mi, spring rolls and bubble tea, among other dishes.
The website also cites a second planned location on Frankford Road, although Davis says "the North Dallas location's up for debate." He added Dao is "aspiring to expand by several stores over the year."
Davis says he hopes to announce an opening date within a few weeks, when he'll also be ready to reveal whether the restaurant will keep evening hours. (I put in a "please, please, please" on behalf of all my fellow downtown residents.)
"Everyone was like, 'Downtown, really?" Davis says. "But I think it's going to be gangbusters."
