James Beard Honored Chef’s Long-Awaited New Southlake Restaurants are Finally Opening

Two new restaurants from Omar Flores are set to open soon in Southlake. Both have been in the works since 2019. You know, before 2020 happened.

Flores received two James Beard Award nominations at his first restaurant, the now shuttered Casa Rubia, which was one of Trinity Groves’ greatest hits. Flores tells PaperCity Fort Worth that his new Whistle Britches restaurant is on track to open within weeks “by the end of May.” He expects Muchacho — his other new Southlake restaurant — to open this summer, “possibly in July or August.”

“Southlake is a great community,” Flores says. “I have friends a here and spend a lot of time here. But I think the dining options still need more non-chain restaurants.”

There are currently two Whistle Britches restaurant locations. The first landed in North Dallas and the second is in Plano. The third Whistle Britches will open at 1230 Main Street in Southlake Town Square in a more than 4,000 square foot space. Flores describes it as having “bright colors and cool artwork.”

Way beyond a chicken joint, Whistle Britches has always had plenty of Southern charm. There’s even a salad on the menu named The Southern Charmer. Southern classics like deviled eggs, sweet corn hoe cakes and even fried green tomatoes rule the day.

As far as the menu for Southlake, Whistle Britches is currently chock full of chicken (especially Flores’ decadent fried chicken), but that’s about to change somewhat.

“We’ve swapped out some of our chicken dishes in an effort to diversify the menu,” the chef says.

When Southlake’s Whistle Britches opens, you can expect new items such as grilled pork chops, meatloaf and salmon tacos. But don’t worry, the top-selling chicken and waffles will still be the star. Flores expects the new menu to roll out in the first two Whistle Britches as well in the near future.

Omar Flores’ Tex-Mex Too

Flores’ Tex-Mex restaurant Muchacho is taking over a 4,475 square-foot space at 431 Grand Avenue, also in Southlake Town Square. Construction delays still have Muchacho in a holding pattern.

“It’s been very well received in Dallas and we won’t change much to start with, but we are looking at that menu as well with some possible updates over time,” Flores notes.

The queso Muchacho is a meal in itself. The three cheese queso has roasted poblano pepper and caramelized onion in the blend, and you can add chorizo, brisket or beef picadillo. You’ll find chefy varieties of tacos, tostadas and enchiladas. But the fajita selection is something else. Fajitas come in all varieties, including vegetarian with grilled portobello mushrooms, mojo marinated Spanish octopus, or carnitas style with crispy pork belly, just to name a few.

The wait in nearly over for Southlake foodies who’ve been promised a double dose of Omar Flores restaurants for so long.