News You Can Eat

Tacos and handrolls make this Fort Worth restaurant news extra enticing

There's a new sushi spot in town doing trendy hand rolls.

Courtesy of Kyodai

This roundup of Fort Worth dining covers it all, with tidbits spanning everything from indie locals to big chains, from a fine wine shop to a pizza at 7-Eleven, nothing misses our foodie microscope.

Here's what's happening in Fort Worth restaurant news:

The Holly is a new wine bar-retail wine store opening at 305 W Daggett Ave. that specializes in small-batch natural wines. As their website explains, natural wines are made using sustainable, organic, and biodynamic practices. The grapes are hand-harvested and aged using native yeasts and no additives other than minimal amounts of sulfur. They'll sell small-batch, organic wines plus natural sparkling wines and orange wine, a trendy hybrid made with white grapes but in the manner of a red wine. Owner Elizabeth Mears tells FWInc that they hope to be open by Thanksgiving. It's opening in a two-story building, along with Kendall Davis Clay, a ceramic studio and retail shop relocating from the Near Southside. UPDATE 11-18-2021: The Holly is now open.

JJ's Taco Shop just opened its second location in North Fort Worth at 5040 N. Tarrant Pkwy. #136, in the former Ginger Root Asian restaurant space, where it's serving tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas, burritos, tortas, breakfast tacos, empanadas, and chicken wings. It's a spinoff of a kiosk that opened inside the Northeast Mall in Hurst in 2017, but will be their first stand-alone restaurant and bar.

Kyodai Handroll & Sushi Bar has opened a location in Fort Worth at 2825 Heritage Trace Pkwy., where it's serving beautifully crafted sushi, sushi rolls, and handrolls, the casual sushi option made fresh upon order so that the seaweed still tears nicely when you bite. Kyodai started out with their first in Carrollton, then followed with Frisco when opened in June 2021. They offer frequent specials but also luxurious items such as their All-In-One, combining tuna, Wagyu, uni, and caviar, topped with real gold flakes. For their Fort Worth location, they just introduced a yakitori menu featuring skewers of grilled meats ranging from chicken meatball to tender Wagyu beef.

Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet opened a location in Grapevine in a former Fuddrucker's at 2001 N. SH 121. The chain serves Mediterranean and middle-Eastern foods such as falafel, tabouli, and hummus via a buffet that starts at $14. The chain was founded in Houston and has 14 locations across Texas including Houston, Austin, San Antonio, and DFW where it has six locations in Plano, Richardson, Irving, and Fort Worth.

Blaze Pizza is offering maple drizzle pizza, a limited-edition item available at all locations until January 4. Blaze is known for its savory artisanal pizzas and customizable made-to-order menu with dozens of toppings, including non-traditional options like feta, cauliflower crust, and vegan chorizo. Earlier in 2021, they debuted a Hot Maple Drizzle exclusively at locations in Canada, so they're into this maple thing.

Moxie's, the fun pub and sports bar from Canada with three DFW locations in Dallas, Plano, and Southlake, has a new Cold Brew Martini, a twist on its classic Espresso Martini. Not sure what that means exactly, and there are no details on their website, but it sounds coffee-ish.

La Madeleine is now shipping its beloved retail products – including jarred soups, salad dressings, spices, fruit spreads, and chocolate ganache – across the country. The product lineup is available at lamadeleine.com and features new offerings like Raspberry Chocolate Ganache, Spicy Tomato Kale Soup, and French Apple Chutney.

Dunkin' has two new hot chocolate bombs, available through the holidays: Hot Chocolate Bomb features a Belgian milk chocolate exterior. Mint Hot Chocolate Bomb features a mint-flavored Belgian milk chocolate exterior. Both contain mini marshmallows inside. Place in a mug, pour over six ounces of hot milk, and watch it transform into a hot chocolate holiday treat. Available in a 1.6-ounce individual size at a suggested retail price of $4 at Big Lots, H-E-B, Ross Dress For Less, and Christmas Tree Shops and That!, as well as online at Amazon and FrankfordCandy.com.

Dairy Queen has a new drink for the holidays: frozen hot chocolate, with vanilla soft-serve, cocoa fudge, and whipped cream.

Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar is bringing back its DIY Gingerbread House Kits with pre-cut edible gingerbread walls, roof pieces, icing, and candies for decorating, available through December 31 for $7 with proceeds from sales going to Habitat for Humanity.

7-Eleven has a new Big Bite pizza available at local 7-Eleven stores or through 7-Eleven Delivery via the 7NOW app. Each 14-inch Big Bite pizza pie is topped with sauce from vine-ripened tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and for meat lovers, pepperoni, on a fluffy crust. $6.

Golden Chick is keeping its new Boneless Wings stay on the menu through the end of 2021 as a direct result of incredible customer feedback and sales. They come in Classic Buffalo, Korean BBQ, and Garlic Parmesan and were scheduled to disappear on November 8. Boneless Wings are available in-store, drive-thru, and from third-party delivery services.

Fajita Pete's has added pork carnitas, braised for several hours in a traditional style, with orange juice, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and arbol peppers, served on tortillas with cheese, guacamole, grilled onions, jalapenos, chips and salsa, rice and beans.

Jackson's, the sweet potato chip line, is now available at Central Market and Sam's Club stores. Jackson's sources non-GMO heirloom sweet potatoes directly from farmers and cooks them low and slow in ancestral oils—like coconut and avocado— to create a superior version of a classic kettle chip. The expanded product line includes Sea Salt Sweet Potato Chips with Coconut Oil, Sea Salt Sweet Potato Chips with Avocado Oil, Spicy Tomatillo Sweet Potato Chips with Avocado Oil, and Carolina BBQ Sweet Potato Chips with Avocado Oil.

The Association of Avocado Exporting Producers and Packers of Mexico (APEAM) celebrates 10 years of activism to restore the natural forests of Michoacán and is cultivating 2.6 million pine trees in the avocado-growing region. The Mexican Hass Avocado Importers Association (MHAIA) has joined the fight for the monarch’s survival by forming an alliance with Forests for Monarchs (FFM), a nonprofit devoted to monarch conservation, taking a neighbor-like responsibility of helping the struggling species repopulate. MHAIA has been the foremost benefactor of Forests for Monarchs since 2017.

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Stephanie Allmon Merry contributed to this story.

wine openings news-you-can-eat

Tex-Mex News

Fort Worth restaurant Los Vaqueros spills dates on upcoming relocation

Courtesy rendering

Rendering of new dining room at Los Vaqueros.

There's an update on beloved Cisneros family Tex-Mex restaurant Los Vaqueros., which will be relocating to the historic Stockyards Exhibits Building at 2513 Rodeo Plaza in 2025.

According to a release, the big move for the restaurant will take place in the thick of the Christmas holiday:

The restaurant will remain open at its 2629 North Main St. location through December 22 at 3 pm. They've been in that space nearly 30 years.
The new location will open on December 26, just in time to ring in the New Year and welcome Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo visitors in January.

“This year has brought unexpected challenges, but also incredible opportunities,” says Cisneros Restaurants Inc. President Vicki Cisneros in a statement. “We are grateful to be able to celebrate one last Christmas season with our friends here before starting a new chapter two blocks down the road at Rodeo Plaza.”

Los Vaqueros Restaurant has brought Tex-Mex cuisine to the historic Stockyards neighborhood since 1982 and to Willow Park since 2008.

The original move was slated to take place in the summer, but they extended the timeline to ensure the space reflects the authentic essence of Los Vaqueros. That included collaborating with Bennett Partners Architecture and Design and IMGC, LLC, the family worked tirelessly to preserve the rich history of the Stockyards while incorporating modern restaurant amenities.

Cisneros says they wanted "to get it just right."

"This is likely the last restaurant my husband Johnny and I will personally oversee, so every detail mattered," she says. "From incorporating historic wood and barn doors from the original building to designing custom chairs, plates, and glassware, the space truly embodies the spirit of Los Vaqueros: it’s about cowboys, ranchers, and Tex-Mex cuisine.”

They also did not want to disrupt family transitions of dining at the restaurant during the Christmas holiday.

"We’re grateful to the building’s new owners for allowing us to stay through the season," Cisnerous says.

Fans can expect some fanfare between December 20–23, when they relocate the illuminated marquee sign to the new location in the 1910–12 Stockyards Exhibits Building — also a historic site, and home to the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame and the John Wayne: An American Experience Museum.

Amenities in the new location will include a banquet room that seats 100, with an adjacent patio that seats 20 and a Fiesta Room that seats 50.

The restaurant will be open until midnight on New Year’s Eve, and will see the launch of “Los Vaqueros After Dark” on the weekends, an extended service that features a menu of enchiladas, tacos, nachos, and specialty breakfast items until 12:30 am, and bar service until 1 am.

Parking is free Sunday-Thursday at the nearby Billy Bob's lot (131 Stockyards Blvd.), excluding special events. On weekends, parking fees apply, but free parking options are available around the perimeter of the Stockyards, as well as separately managed parking lots that offer different rates and occasional coupons.

tex-mex openings