Restaurants / Openings

The Cheat Sheet to Texas’ Hottest New Restaurant Mecca: Why Foodies Suddenly Love North Texas

BY // 10.04.17

PaperCity taste tests North Texas’ newest restaurants. Here, our notes on where to go and what to order in the new emerging epicenter of Texas food.

North Italia

The Dish: The latest Fox Restaurant concept to hit Texas (the group already operates the beloved True Food Kitchen and Flower Child south of 635) constructs Italian cuisine the way it was intended — by hand. Downtown Dallas will have to wait until fall 2019 for its own location.

Order Up: Fresh pasta is made daily in-house to anchor dishes including a divine squid ink mafaldine and rich, short rib radiatori.

We Love: The Bottle & Board happy hour menu. Translation? A bottle of vino plus your choice of pizza, bruschetta, or charcuterie board, offered Mondays through Thursdays from 3 to 6 pm.

7501 Windrose Avenue, Suite D190, Plano, 214.291.6996, northitaliarestaurant.com

North Italia

City Works

The Dish: Eight massive video walls, 90 varieties of craft beer on draft, and a flavorful American menu make this pour house a winner in any sports fan’s eyes.

Set your Easter Table with Bering's

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  • Bering's Gift's Easter 2024
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Order Up: Dishes such as short rib poutine and crab fondue elevate sports bar bites.

We Love: Pre-selected or build-your-own flights, offering tasting portions of City Works’ expansive beer selection — almost half of which is sourced from Dallas-area breweries.

3680 The Star Boulevard, Suite 1300, Frisco, 469.850.1850, cityworksrestaurant.com/frisco

City Works

UP Inspired Kitchen

The Dish: The passion project of acclaimed Austin chef Todd Dulpechain, this cheery, concept (open for breakfast and lunch only) is the restaurant version of your uber-positive personal trainer.

Order Up: Avocado toast with edamame, lime, and Fresno-chili relish makes ordering grilled cheese off the “cheat day” menu slightly less tempting.

We Love: The steel-cut oats with sweet potato, cinnamon, pecans, Texas honey, and crème fraiche. No alarm necessary. We will rise and shine any time for this dish.

5285 North Dallas Parkway, Suite 400, Frisco, 469.579.4197, upinspiredkitchen.com

A toast tasting at UP Inspired Kitchen: Avocado Toast, Ham ‘n Cheese Toast, ‘Shroom Toast

Legacy Hall

The Dish: The 55,000-square-foot venue houses a food hall, brewery, and beer garden that’s designed to accommodate large gatherings and live entertainment.

Order Up: Good luck deciding which chef-driven food stall to pick from. There are plenty, led by the likes of Darren Cameron of Deep Ellum’s Glazed Donut Works, Julien Eelsen of Oak Cliff’s Whisk, and John Tesar of Knife Dallas, to name a few.

We Love:… that the Hall will serve as an experimental kitchen for established chefs testing new ideas and an incubator for up-and-coming food entrepreneurs.

7800 Windrose Avenue, Plano, 972.846.4255, legacyfoodhall.com

Tasty paglia e fieno at Taverna

Lombardi Family Concepts

The Dish: Legacy West welcomes a pair of Lombardi restaurant staples, including Italian fave Taverna (open this month) and French brasserie Toulouse (open November); plus a new concept dubbed Kai, set to open later this year and described as an Asian-fusion twist on Bistro 31.

Order Up: Taverna’s Legacy West location offers more grilled entrees, including a 30-ounce Fiorentina steak. (Bring your most famished friends, as this is a dish you must share.)

We Love: … that ambitious Alberto Lombardi, the restaurant group’s fearless leader who, with openings from Dallas to Houston to Laguna Beach, is the culinary world’s energizer bunny.

Toulouse, 7301 Windrose Avenue, Suite C150; Taverna, 7400 Windrose Avenue, Suite B130; Kai, 7301Windrose Avenue, Suite C200.

Part of the Special Series:

PaperCity - The North

Curated Collection

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