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Where to Eat Now

Where to eat in Fort Worth right now: 10 restaurants to take out-of-town guests

Malcolm Mayhew
Dec 7, 2015 | 6:00 am

For many of us, the holidays mean getting out of town. But someone's gotta be on the receiving end of all those people.

If that someone is you and you're about to welcome a crowd, we've found the best restaurants in Fort Worth to soak in the holidays. We've found Christmas lights that would make the Flaming Lips envious. Christmas ice cream. Christmas pancakes. Plus lots of Christmas kitsch. Here are our suggestions:

Babe's Chicken Dinner House, Burleson
Communal tables and family-style fried chicken and all the fixin's make this small chain a smart choice for holiday gatherings. Hit the Burleson location, which is more Christmas-y than the others, thanks to its Hansel and Gretel-inspired décor. Life-size replicas of colorful cottages are strewn with streams of garland and twinkling Christmas lights. Singing servers randomly break out into Christmas carols, and diners are encouraged to carol along. Soak up the scene while nursing a ginormous slice of pumpkin pie, served only during this special time o' year.

Bird Café
With shops and restaurants aglow with Christmas lights, downtown Fort Worth is a must-see during the holidays. In the center of it all is Sundance Square's 59-foot-tall blue spruce Christmas tree. You and your clan can get a bird's-eye view at restaurateur Shannon Wynne's gastropub Bird Café. The patio offers prime views of the festively decorated Sundance Square Plaza, although good views can also be found inside the restaurant's bar overlooking Sundance Square. A menu loaded with shareable plates such as the signature moth balls is just the thing for a big group.

Café Brazil
The Fort Worth branch of this laid-back North Texas chain is always a safe bet for gatherings, but especially since it rolled out a new menu with seasonal holiday dishes. Consider cinnamon pumpkin pancakes, chai oatmeal served in a hot skillet, and pumpkin cheesecake with a brownie-walnut crust. Even better are the holiday-themed drinks: s'mores latte, pumpkin-spiced latte, and caramel apple cider topped with whipped cream.

Campo Verde
Many restaurants primp for the holidays but not like this Arlington Tex-Mex restaurant. Its beloved Christmas decorations are so dazzling, people wait up to two hours to sit among them. More than 100,000 lights dangle from the walls and ceiling. Everywhere you look, there's Christmas trees, garland, and a model train that chugs from one end of the restaurant to the other. The menu has combo plates, fajijtas, and a queso dip that's a festive orange. Margaritas are a must.

H3 Ranch
Whenever in doubt about where to go, there's always the Fort Worth Stockyards, and during the holidays, the area delivers big, with a mammoth display of Christmas lights and decorations that are best appreciated on foot. There are numerous restaurants to choose from, but one of the prettiest during the season is this long-running steakhouse, decorated head to toe in holiday lights. Carnivorous menu includes spit-roasted chicken and wood-fired steaks.

La Choza Fine Food
Be the person in the know and take your group to this New Mexico-inspired restaurant in north Fort Worth. Very casual-like, order the Christmas enchiladas, an off-menu special known only to regulars. The enchiladas get their name from the two kinds of sauce used to blanket the rolled or flat enchiladas: a mild red sauce, made with dried red chile pods, and a spicier green sauce, made with Hatch chiles.

Melt Ice Creams
Lick up some sweet cheer at this brightly colored family-friendly gourmet ice cream shop on the Near South Side, now serving special holiday flavors. Snowflake is white chocolate ice cream flecked with peppermint. Santa's Helper is vanilla ice cream spiked with Avoca espresso and housemade kahlua. Merry Marshmallow mixes Dude Sweet Chocolate's frozen hot chocolate with Melt's housemade marshmallows.

Parton's Pizza
Tiny, family-owned pizzeria on the west side is famously stuck in a time warp, circa 1968 — basically when the place opened. We're talking red and white checkerboard tablecloths, red booths, heart-shaped chairs, and a red tile floor. The restaurant fills the place with Christmas decorations that fall in step with the vintage vibe. Inflatable Santas, light-up reindeers, and vintage lights take you back in time to the '70s when Parton's was one of the only pizza games in town.

Social House
The West 7th district has initiated a holiday event called Starlight Symphony, with music, lights, animated holiday stars, and other seasonal sparkle synchronized to your favorite Christmas songs. A five-minute show on Crockett Street plays nightly on the hour from 6-10 pm and runs through January 4. For a great place to catch the action, hit Social House, a newish bar-restaurant which brings the spirit with new holiday drinks, including two martinis — candy cane and pumpkin pie — and peppermint hot chocolate, with or without booze.

Spiral Diner
These days, every family gathering seems to have at least one vegan in the crowd. Show off Fort Worth's award-winning Spiral Diner, home to grateful vegans from all over North Texas. The cafe brings back its annual Festivus sandwich, a unique play on boring ol' turkey and dressing. The sandwich comprises sliced faux-turkey, cranberry-pecan stuffing, cranberry sauce, dairy-free cream cheese, served on toasted multi-grain bread. It comes with a brown gravy dipping sauce and a side of whipped coconut sweet potatoes.

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Spiral Diner brings back its holiday Festivus sandwich.

Spiral Diner Festivus
Spiral Diner
Spiral Diner brings back its holiday Festivus sandwich.
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Palatial pampering

Texas' dreamiest destination spa unwraps regal $1,000 facial for 25th anniversary

Stephanie Allmon Merry
Oct 26, 2022 | 10:01 am
Texas' dreamiest destination spa unwraps regal $1,000 facial for 25th anniversary
Photo courtesy of Lake Austin Spa Resort

A red light mask is part of the $1,050 Regal by Valmont facial.

When the Lake Austin Spa Resort went shopping for a 25th-anniversary gift for guests, it aimed higher than traditional silver and picked treatments that incorporated gold, diamonds, and caviar. As a result, the dreamy destination spa now offers some of the most opulent, exclusive, and — at upwards of $1,000 — most expensive facials in the world.

In anticipation of its milestone anniversary in 2022, the Lake Austin Spa Resort’s LakeHouse Spa partnered with Swiss luxury skincare brand Valmont to introduce the new facials, which are as cutting-edge as they are indulgent.

Creme de la creme among them is The Regal by Valmont, which costs a jaw-dropping $1,050. The Regal was designed in Switzerland exclusively for LakeHouse Spa, and Austin is the only place in the world to get it.

“It’s definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a lot of people,” says Becky Bence, Lake Austin Spa Resort lead esthetician. “And it’s definitely worth it.”

The 135-minute facial begins with the high-tech deep cleanse of the HydroFacial and proceeds with seven masks, including four collagen masks, a papaya enzyme, and a medical-grade LED light mask. Every single product from Valmont’s ultra luxe “masterpiece collection” called l’Elixir des Glaciers is used; some products are made with an uber anti-aging essence of gold sturgeon fish. All are applied using a Valmont signature “butterfly” motion that helps to lift and sculpt the face.

What puts the Regal over the top, though, are 35 minutes of choreographed massage, including a 500-year-old technique called “kobido,'' developed for the empress of Japan. Touted as a “surgical facelift as a massage," Bence says, kobido was once reserved only for nobility and the empress, then later handed down from masters to disciples.

So rarified is the Regal facial, that just six of the 21 LakeHouse Spa estheticians are trained to perform it. They learned at a weeklong “bootcamp” conducted by two Valmont experts who flew in to Austin from Switzerland.

“It was kind of like the Navy Seal program of facials,” Bence says. “It was kind of like being handed down something from a true master.”

The $1K price tag hasn’t kept people away. Since the Regal was introduced several months ago, guests have come from all over the world — and from all corners of Texas — to experience what the spa calls “the ultimate in anti-aging perfection and cellular renewal.” (After all $1,000 is still far less than an actual facelift or even regular nick-tuck-plump-ups by a cosmetic surgeon.)

Why reach all the way to Switzerland for the palatial new treatments? After emerging from COVID shutdowns, Bence says, LakeHouse Spa personnel “auditioned” just about every single skincare line out there. The estheticians voted, and Valmont won.

“We wanted to add something really special, something luxurious but yet something out-of-this-world amazing that truly benefited the skin,” Bence says. “Something almost to replace Botox and fillers …that gave you basically a natural face-lift without being invasive but still being relaxing.”

In addition to the Regal, other new Valmont facials introduced in this 25th anniversary year include:

  • The 150-minute Gold & Diamond Trifecta Facial that involves three massages, four masks, infra-red LED, and a hydrogel mask with micronized gold and diamonds, which costs $990.
  • The Golden Aura Rose & Caviar Facial, a 100-minute treatment that incorporates marine products containing caviar extract and Diamond Collagen, costing $790.
  • Energy of the Glaciers, a 90-minute facial that features rare ingredients from Switzerland and deep, structural massage of the face, stimulating muscles to tone and lift; $750.
  • Luminosity of Ice Facial, a 90-minute treatment described as a “toxin-flushing, facial reflexology-inspired facial” that uses a cocktail of seven plants organically cultivated at high altitudes; $650.

The spa also has a complete menu of non-Valmont facials and dozens of other signature treatments.

Luxe but laid back
Lake Austin Spa Resort’s Dallas-based co-owner, Mike McAdams, says the new facials are indicative of how high the spa wanted to aim for its 25th anniversary.

“Our guest demands a luxurious, more refined experience, and Valmont helps us deliver on that objective,” he says.

And yet, Lake Austin Spa Resort remains a place where robed guests can emerge from a $1,000 facial and step over geckos skittering along the sidewalk while a speedboat whizzes by pumping Beyonce through the speakers. It’s upscale but unpretentious, luxurious but laid-back — almost like “spa camp.”

“We never wanted to create the ‘zen’ spa with stark lines and absence of color – we aimed to create just the opposite,” McAdams says. “Your surroundings absolutely have an impact on how your wellness journey can unfold and influence your daily life. The colors and textures that surround you mimic the vibe of the Texas Hill Country and pay homage to nature.”

The top-rated spa and resort is a far cry now from the place McAdams purchased on January 1, 1997. Located along the shores of scenic Lake Austin in the Texas Hill Country, the property had lived previous lives as a fishing camp, nudist enclave, rodeo ranch, and diet camp.

McAdams — at the time a commercial real estate developer for Dallas-based Trammell Crow — experienced a personal work-life-balance crisis that's wholly relatable in today's post-pandemic, "great-resignation" world two-and-a-half decades later.

“I was living on a plane, traveling a lot. It was high stress, and high energy and I loved it,” he says. “In 1984, I found a place that changed my life — the Ashram in Calabasas, California. It was a true bootcamp, with physical activities and dietary restrictions that were very intense… This experience forced me to come down from my hectic lifestyle of traveling, eating, drinking, and not exercising."

After adopting healthier habits in his own life, he and an LSU fraternity brother, Billy Rucks, seized an opportunity to buy and transform the Lake Austin Spa Resort; they still co-own it today. “It was a diamond in the rough," McAdams says.

More 25th anniversary offerings
One of the biggest challenges running the spa the last 25 years (besides navigating a global pandemic), McAdams says, has been continually evolving in an industry dominated by fleeting fads and headline-grabbing gimmicks.

“The changes in the last 25 years in the spa industry have been monumental,” McAdams says. “The global wellness industry is now a $4.5 trillion economy, with ‘spa’ being one small part of the bubble. We are all seekers looking for ways to look and feel our best, and I think the growth is due to a demand in wanting to take our health into our own hands.”

One of the resort’s newest touts (proudly stated on their home page) is that they’re Texas’ only destination spa on a lake. Recently they’ve introduced a full range of water activities, including a water taxi that transports guests to the spa and back.

“When we bought Lake Austin Spa Resort in 1997, our guests would put a toe in the water — but we’ve also evolved and now understand the power of being near a moving body of water and how it affects your health, happiness, and even alleviates depression,” McAdams says.

Along with the new fancy facials and lake programming, the resort has also added new classes and activities and upgraded amenities for its 25th anniversary. Befitting its location in the “live music capital of the world,” Austin-area musicians now entertain guests nightly around s’mores pits. There’s new artwork around the campus, too.

“My favorite part of celebrating our 25th anniversary this year has been to watch a very special piece of commissioned art be installed in the first few months of the year,” McAdams says. “A local Austin artist created a 64-foot long, 400-square foot abstract mural of stone, glass, and tile designed to honor our magnificent natural location on Lake Austin.

"Within the creation, I wanted to honor all of the amazing past and present people who helped get to where we are today. Their names are included in this mural, discreetly placed within this homage to nature. Because of these special people, Lake Austin Spa Resort has enjoyed many wonderful accolades through the years.”

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To mark its 25th anniversary, Lake Austin Spa Resort is offering 25 percent off stays of at least two nights or more, through January 31, 2023. Reservations must be booked by October 31. Some packages include generous spa credits, but sadly, the $1,050 Regal facial is not 25 percent off. Find more information at www.lakeaustin.com.

Red light mask, facial

Photo courtesy of Lake Austin Spa Resort

A red light mask is part of the $1,050 Regal by Valmont facial.

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Concert news

Jonas Brothers gobble up halftime gig at Cowboys' Thanksgiving Day game in Arlington

Alex Bentley
Oct 25, 2022 | 2:30 pm
Jonas Brothers
Photo by Peggy Sirota

Jonas Brothers will spend Thanksgiving Day at AT&T Stadium.

The pop group Jonas Brothers will return to Arlington to perform live during the halftime show of the Thanksgiving Day game between the Cowboys and the New York Giants at AT&T Stadium, the Cowboys announced October 25.

This will be Jonas Brothers' second time performing during the Thanksgiving Day halftime show, as they also did so in 2008.

The November 24 performance is a part of the kickoff for The Salvation Army's Red Kettle Campaign, which raises funds to provide Christmas gifts, food, shelter, and rent and utility assistance to millions of people struggling this holiday season and beyond. The campaign is now in its 132nd year.

The individual Jonas Brothers - Nick, Joe, and Kevin - teased the announcement on their socialmediaplatforms, which showed blue numbers on a white fabric background that when put together made the date of the game - 11/24/22.

“We couldn’t be more excited to return to AT&T Stadium and play The Salvation Army halftime show,” Jonas Brothers said in a statement. “We are honored that our performance will help raise awareness of the great need that exists and encourage everyone to donate to The Salvation Army to make a difference in their communities this holiday season and all year long.”

This is the first time Jonas Brothers have made an appearance in the Dallas-Fort Worth area since they played two shows at American Airlines Center in Dallas in late 2019 in support of their latest album, Happiness Begins.

In addition to Jonas Brothers, previous halftime performers for the Cowboys' Thanksgiving Day game have included Luke Combs, Meghan Trainor, Selena Gomez, Kelly Clarkson, Destiny’s Child, Clint Black, Reba McEntire, and many others.

The game starts at 3:30 pm and will be broadcast locally on KDFW/Fox 4.

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my wave

Rad new surfing lagoon paradise rides into Texas promising ocean-perfect waves and beachy fun

Steven Devadanam
Oct 25, 2022 | 12:24 pm
Rad new surfing lagoon paradise rides into Texas promising ocean-perfect waves and beachy fun
Rendering courtesy of Beach Street Development

HTX Surf promises a lagoon paradise for riders.

Thanks to its relative proximity to the coast, Houston has always enjoyed an underground surf culture (be it shortboarding, longboarding, or even tanker surfing). Now, those who walk the nose and shred can at a new, world-class surf destination coming to the city's Generation Park.

HTX Surf will ride into Generation Park in fall of 2024, per an announcement by creators Beach Street Development, the company that pushes the barefoot life with its man-made surfing lagoons.

Why the north Houston locale, versus closer to Galveston? Beach Street notes in press materials that the lagoon park is a mere 10 minutes from Bush Intercontinental Airport, making for easy access for visitors from all over.

Surfers and potential riders are sure to be stoked with the customizable waves that create an ocean-like ride every time. Wavegarden machines create up to 1,000 waves per hour in the 6-acre surf lagoon, where up to 70 riders per hour can ride.

Pros can hit one designated area, while newbies (and kooks — we kid!) can surf the beginner zone. Speaking of newbies and kooks: on-site classes will help fine tune those new to surfing.

HTX Surf Houston A lagoon vibe just 10 minutes from Bush Intercontinental. Rendering courtesy of Beach Street Development

HTX Surf Houston

Rendering courtesy of Beach Street Development

HTX Surf promises a lagoon paradise for riders.

As for the park, the destination will also sport a private members’ club, hot tubs, fire pits, swimming pool, beach areas, skateboard pump track, and an event lawn for bands and festivals, per a release. Food, drink, and a cafe concept will also overlook the surf area.

Construction on the new lagoon is slated to begin in early 2023. Those looking to get ahead can score limited exclusive membership opportunities online including: early access to the surf lagoon reservation platform, private member surfing sessions, access to the private clubhouse and more, access to free or discounted amenities and events (concerts and surf contests), and more.

surfer kids WavegardenRiders young and old can hit the waves.Photo courtesy of Wavegarden

“We’re thrilled to welcome this innovative, world-class surfing destination to Generation Park. Such a unique amenity is a great asset for Houston and will attract a wide range of personalities--from professional surfers, amateur boarders, families, and corporate groups among others,” said Ryan McCord, president of McCord Development and owner/developer of Generation Park. “The amenities and experiences at HTX Surf will rival a best day on the water, whether you're an expert or new to the sport.”

Consider this a chance for land-locked locals to catch a wave, and for kooks to learn some surf etiquette before hitting the ocean.

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