Craft Beer Love Fest

High-profile brewpub in downtown Denton covers all craft-beer bases

There'll be plenty of this at the new Audacity Brew House at Travelstead in Denton.

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Denton gets a new brewpub, courtesy of a powerhouse partnership. Audacity Brew House has teamed up with the folks behind LSA Burger Co. and Barley & Board to open a new spot called Audacity Brew House at Travelstead.

Dentonites know Travelstead as the hallowed downtown spot that's been the site of the annual musical Oaktopia Festival. Stretching a city block from East Oak to East Hickory, two blocks from the center square, it has both a historical structure and a treed outdoor setting, a combination rare in an urban area.

The facility will be a craft beer love fest, with brews created onsite and a restaurant with a hops-inspired menu. If that's not enough brew for you, beer will be available to consume onsite or to take home in growlers, including beers from Audacity, plus some created exclusively for at Audacity Brew House at Travelstead.

Other menu treats include house-made sodas and chef-driven, beer-inspired food.

Spokesman Narciso Tovar says that the location is meaningful because it is rich with history, dating back to the 1930s. It has been a car dealership, an engine shop, and an auto supply place, and it has a cool façade. "Also because of the fact that, most recently, it was the site of the Oaktopia festival, which has won awards," he says.

LSA Burger Co. founder John "Sparky" Pearson, who despite the nickname is an adult male, says in a release that he's "stoked" to add another venue to the Denton community.

Eric Pulido, the musician from Midlake who also co-owns Barley & Board, says that "the storied past is the heartbeat" of the Audacity Brew House at Travelstead. "We're working now to build the body around that," he says, which sounds a tiny bit Frankenstein-ian.

The brewpub will name its taproom the "Trap Room" in honor of Ulric Clyde Travelstead, who owned the business originally in the 1930s.

Scott Lindsey of Audacity Brew House says he's excited to be collaborating together with Travelstead.

"We've worked endlessly to put Denton on the map as a destination spot in the ever-growing craft beer scene, and this newest venture gives us an invaluable opportunity to begin a new chapter of inspired brews made specifically with the new brewpub in mind," he says.

openings craft-beer

Empanada News

New restaurant in Roanoke treats diners to tantalizing Dominican eats

FrituWhaaa

A ghost kitchen serving vividly flavored Dominican food has settled into a permanent location in Roanoke: Called FrituWhaaa, it specializes in Cuban sandwiches and empanadas and is now open at 206 N. Oak St. in a food hall called The 206.

FrituWhaaa is owned by couple James and Rosa Brunder, who wanted to bring Dominican food to the Fort Worth area. The name itself is a play on the dish fritura, which is a medley of fried meats (like salami and sausage), cheese, and plantains.

The couple moved from the Northeast to Justin in November 2023 to venture into the food industry. They started out by cooking and selling food from their house. By spring, they had moved on to preparing takeout meals from a catering kitchen in North Richland Hills.

“We went into a ghost kitchen in March, and doors just started opening for us,” Rosa says. “We found this place in Roanoke, and now we’re here.”

Their menu doesn’t slack on variety, with sandwiches, rice dishes, empanadas with various fillings, and handmade drinks. Signature dishes include:

Cuban sandwich, which they dub "the ultimate grilled sandwich experience," featuring layers of pork, ham, Swiss cheese, mustard, and pickles, nestled between slices of toasted bread
Empanadas, which can be ordered in a choice of fillings including beef, pizza, cheese, and chicken and cheese
Arroz con gandules, a rice dish with pigeon peas and pernil, which is pork shoulder.

There are many delectable dishes — such as the patacon, a fried plantain sandwich that replaces bread with thin slices of plantains that are smashed and deep-fried until they're crunchy and crisp. They offer three options: ground beef, chicken, or pork, topped with sliced tomato and slaw. They come in regular "burger" size or in minis, four to an order — an exotic and irresistible little slider.

The Chimi is the Dominican version of a burger, featuring a ground beef patty topped with thinly sliced onion, tomato, and shredded cabbage, drizzled With special sauce and served on a bun that's similar to French bread. And Mangu Con Los 3 Glopes — mashed plantains with fried salami, cheese, and eggs with sautéed onions — is a dish that could be eaten for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Desserts include cheesecake and mousse in flavors such as pumpkin, Oreo, and mango. Drinks have a Dominican flair, including hibiscus lemonade, made with brewed hibiscus and passion fruit juice.

Dominican food is far more commonplace in Pennsylvania, where the couple spent 18 years, Rosa says.

“That's what made us want to open a restaurant with Dominican food, because it’s very hard to find that here,” she says.

Beyond sharing a taste of the Caribbean with customers, FrituWhaaa is dedicated to making the dining experience more personal and share their passion for the cuisine.

“The one thing that we are really big on is building a rapport with customers," Rosa says. "We want them to feel what we feel when we’re cooking. We want to transport them to either a memory they have of their childhood. It’s not just food, it’s an experience, it’s memories that are coming back.”