Cafeteria News

Buyer comes to the rescue of Luby's cafeterias in Fort Worth and Texas

No meal is complete without pie.

Luby's/Facebook

A new deal will keep Fort Worth diners eating square fish and mac & cheese for the foreseeable future: Luby's, the Houston-based restaurant chain, has sold its cafeteria restaurant business to a new corporation founded by entrepreneur Calvin Gin.

The sale is the latest step in the process of liquidation and dissolution that the company's board of directors adopted last year. Valued at approximately $28.7 million, the deal includes 32 locations of Luby's in Texas and the Luby's brand, according to a release. Last week, the company sold the Fuddruckers brand to a franchisee for $18.5 million.

The new entity, called Luby's Restaurants Corporation, plans to offer positions to the roughly 1,000 people currently employed at those locations, which includes one restaurant in the Fort Worth area and one in Dallas (full list below).

"We are so pleased to be able to acquire the operation of these Luby's Cafeteria stores, one of the iconic brands in the Texas restaurant market," Gin said in a statement. "This transaction will allow us to continue serving the many loyal Luby's customers at these locations and to provide long-term employment opportunities for the many associates currently at these locations."

Critically, the transaction does not include any of the real estate Luby's currently owns. The company plans to sell its holdings for 25 locations; the new Luby's Restaurants Corporation would then negotiate leases with the property's new owners.

Calvin Gin is a member of the Gin family, best known for founding The Flying Food Group, a Chicago-based firm that's the third largest airline catering company in North America. He brings over two decades of experience to his role, including work at The Flying Food Group and as a co-founder and partner in businesses such as Helios Visions, WorkPlate, and Charming Studios.

"I could not be more pleased than to see Calvin Gin, along with many of the existing management team, able to carry on the fine tradition of Luby's brand of food and service in Texas that dates back to 1947," Luby's chairman of the board Gerald Bodzy added.

Here's the full list of stores to be included in the purchase agreement:

Fort Worth - Forest Hill
Dallas - South Hampton
DeSoto - North Beckley
Austin - East Anderson
Beaumont - IH 10 East
Brownsville - Sunrise Mall
Conroe - Longmire
Corpus Christi - Saratoga Blvd.
El Paso - Hawkins Blvd.
Harlingen - South 99 Sunshine Strip
Houston - East Freeway
Houston - 730 West FM 1960
Houston - Fuqua
Houston - South Mason, Katy
Houston - Meyer Park
Houston - 11250 Northwest Fwy
Houston - 19668 Northwest Fwy
Houston - Spring Cypress
Houston - Veterans Memorial
Houston - Westminster Plaza
Kingwood - Highway 59
Laredo - West Calton Road
McAllen - North 10th Street
Pharr
Port Arthur - Highway 7
San Antonio - Floyd Curl
San Antonio - Fredericksburg Rd.
San Antonio - Las Palmas
San Antonio - West Loop 1604 North
San Antonio - S.E. Military
Stafford - West Airport Blvd.
Webster - Gulf Fwy

As noted by the Fort Worth Star Telegram, no plans have been announced for three other Fort Worth locations at 1200 Bridgewood Dr., 3801 NE Loop 820, and 5901 S. Hulen St.

news-you-can-eat

Doughnut News

Luscious doughnut shop Duck Donuts makes Fort Worth debut

Photo courtesy of Visit Addison

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A decadent new doughnut shop is coming to Fort Worth: Duck Donuts, a North Carolina-based chain known for serving doughnuts made to order, will open a shop at 6387 Camp Bowie Blvd. #A within the Ridglea Plaza Shopping Center in Fort Worth.

According to a release, the shop will open on Saturday December 21 at 7 am.

Duck Donuts opened its first locations in 2007 in the beach resort towns of Duck and Kitty Hawk, North Carolina with the intention to create an oasis for vacationers. They're now headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and began franchising in 2013, with more than 150 locally owned and operated shops across 26 states and international locations. There was previously a DFW location in Addison on Belt Line Road that opened in 2020 but it did not survive the pandemic.

The Fort Worth shop is owned and operated by husband-and-wife Justin and Morgan Thomas.

“We are delighted to be opening in Fort Worth,” Justin says in a statement. “The community has been patiently waiting for us to open our doors, and now we cannot wait to sprinkle happiness to all with our warm, delicious and made-to-order doubhnuts.”

The 1,035-square-foot shop reflects the franchise’s reimagined design which gives a modern twist on their iconic beach theme and family-friendly atmosphere. Upon entering the store, customers are greeted by the aroma of warm, light vanilla cake doughnuts.

Customers can create their own combination by choosing from coatings, toppings, and drizzles, including traditional favorites such as chocolate icing with sprinkles and more adventurous creations such as maple icing with bacon.

Key to their appeal is the viewing area where children and adults alike can watch their doughnuts being made.

Many of their flavors have a beachy theme such as the Beach, a cake doughnut with vanilla icing dusted with cinnamon sugar; the Sunrise with lemon icing and raspberry drizzle; and the Beach Ball with vanilla icing, rainbow sprinkles, and chocolate drizzle.

They rotate in seasonal offerings such as the current lineup of mint-flavored flavors including chocolate icing with mint buttercream. The doughnuts themselves are limited to vanilla and chocolate cake; the flavors come primarily from icing.

In addition to doughnuts, the Fort Worth location will serve coffee, doughnut breakfast sandwiches, doughnut sundaes — in which a doughnut is topped with ice cream and syrup — plus frozen beverages and milkshakes.

doughnuts openings