Restaurants

JAXON Texas Kitchen & Beer Garden Reopens — A First Taste of AT&T Discovery District’s Debut Restaurant

Despite a Pandemic Interruption, The New Southern Spot Comes Back Strong

By Megan Ziots // Jun 11, 2020

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Favorite beer garden in downtown, JAXON is leaving AT&T Discovery District.(Courtesy of JAXON)

The hush puppies at JAXON come with jalapeno and cheddar cheese.

Celebrate National Rosé Day this Saturday with a watermelon froze from JAXON.

The shishito peppers are one of the best apps at JAXON.

The BBQ Plate at JAXON comes with brisket, pulled pork, and sausage. (Courtesy)

The quinoa bowl at JAXON is a great healthy option.

The griddled pound cake at JAXON is a must-try. (Photo by Megan Ziots)

I had been really looking forward to trying JAXON Texas Kitchen & Beer Garden, a new Southern spot that opened, unfortunately, just a few short weeks before Covid-19 forced businesses to close their doors. So, as soon as restaurants began to reopen, I put it on my to-do list to check out the first restaurant to open at the AT&T Discovery District.

Although some of the production of the new downtown green space has seemingly slowed (a giant, silver AT&T globe has still yet to be uncovered), it worked in JAXON’s favor, whose immense 10,000-square-foot outdoor patio is currently a standout in the developing area. We opted for a four-top table on the side, as their is so much room with patio space in front and on the side of the building. All servers wore masks and a hand sanitation station was readily available.

JAXON Beer Garden Dallas — New beer garden in downtown, JAXON has an expansive outdoor patio. (Courtesy of JAXON)

I noticed that the menu has evolved a bit since the Texas kitchen opened in March, so we opted for the newer additions of jalapeño and cheddar hush puppies and charred shishito peppers sprinkled with sea salt. Paired with the watermelon frozé, made with fresh fruit, it finally felt like summer in Dallas.

Out of the sandwiches, salads, and protein-focused entrees that made up the menu, we went for the barbecue plate with brisket, pulled pork and Andouille sausage, the spicy fried chicken sandwich, and — for a bit of balance — a quinoa bowl. The barbecue plate, which comes with potato salad, coleslaw, and beans, was the star the spread, and perfect for two people to share. If I had the room, the steak and fries with arugula and tomatoes also looked incredible and the Portabella “french dip” sparked interest, but we had to save any remaining hunger for dessert.

JAXON Texas Kitchen — The griddled pound cake at JAXON is a must-try. (Photo by Megan Ziots)

And thankfully we did, because you should not leave JAXON without trying the griddled pound cake. Covered in creme fraîche and warm blueberry compote, this dessert is completely worth however many calories it contains — some things are better left a mystery.