New dishes and grand openings make this Fort Worth restaurant news tasty

You can still get these dumplings.

Hao & Dixya

This roundup of Fort Worth dining news has tasty tidbits about new dishes, new menus, and big-name chefs. There's also a sad closure, but with a silver lining.

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

The Pantry, the restaurant and market at 713 W. Magnolia Ave. which was a collaboration from chefs and teachers Hao Tran and Natasha Bruton has closed. They featured dumplings in rotating flavors such as curry potato, kimchi, brisket, shiitake, or pumpkin masala, as well as cookies, cakes, tarts, cobbler, and take-and-bake cinnamon rolls, and were only just featured in our monthly Where to Eat roundup in October. The dumplings can still be purchased via Hao & Dixya, the dumpling partnership between Hao Tran and Dixya Bhattarai, which does pop-ups at The Table, the Near Southside market and culinary studio which Tran co-owns. UPDATE 11-2-2022: Michael Salas, who identifies himself as a co-owner, says that "dumplings are still available at 713 Magnolia. Hao Tran quit. The restaurant is rebrending after Hao's exit. I ask thay you retract the article and state thay dumplings are available and the restaurant is still open." He does not say who will be making the dumplings.

Calisience, the food-truck-turned-restaurant known for its crispy birria tacos, celebrates its grand opening on November 1, with music and eats from 5-8 pm. One of Fort Worth's most hotly anticipated restaurants, this food truck launched in 2020 by owner Jacqueline Anaya now has a permanent space at 2707 Race St., previously occupied by Dino's Live. The menu features her signature tacos dorados, plus birria in quesadillas and in an open-faced sandwich called mollete; plus street tacos, Mexican rice, refried beans, pasta salad, and her popular strawberry horchata drink.

Mo' Bettahs opened its third DFW-area location in Mansfield, at 3020 E. Broad St., #116, near Vernon Newsome Stadium. this is the 37th location for the Utah-based chain which specializes in the Hawaiian plate lunch with choice of teriyaki chicken or steak, katsu chicken, or shrimp tempura served with macaroni salad and rice.

Jane Southlake has new seasonal drinks including Pumpkin Spice Latte, Peppermint Mocha Latte, spiked Amaretto Cappuccino, and spiked Apple Pie Chai with Old Forester Whiskey and Apple Pie flavored Bailey’s.

Firehouse Subs has a new Prime Rib Steak Sub, featuring prime rib cooked sous vide, topped with caramelized onions, provolone, lettuce, tomato, garlic aioli, and mustard on a toasted sub roll.

Salad and Go has three new dishes for fall. Roasted Autumn Salad with sweet potatoes, caramelized brussels sprouts, candied pecans, dried cranberries, and parmesan cheese, with protein choice of chicken or tofu or steak for an extra charge, and which can also be ordered as a wrap; Chicken Pot Pie Soup, and Pink Lemonade with cranberry juice and grapefruit.

Black Rock Coffee Bar has three new drinks for winter: Peppermint Bark White Mocha with peppermint bark sauce, white chocolate, and espresso; Caramel Nog Latte with eggnog, caramel, and espresso; and Christmas Cookie Cold Brew with chocolate macadamia nut and a sweet vanilla cold foam.

McDonald’s is bringing back its McRib sandwich for the fall, along with a line of McRib merchandise, available on GoldenArchesUnlimited.com. McRib is a boneless pork item with BBQ sauce, onions, and pickles, served on a sub-style bun. It was first introduced in 1980 and is featured on the menu sporadically.

Whataburger has added a new item: Whataburger Chili Cheese Fries, featuring fries layered with beef chili and shredded cheddar jack cheese, which they say is in answer to the call from fans of their new Chili Cheese Burger who were apparently requesting this addition, or so Whataburger says. They're available for a limited time, how long that is, Whataburger does not say.

Eight Elite Light Lager is now available at movie theaters for the first time, only at Cinemark Theatres. Founded by Troy Aikman, Eight is a lager brewed with organic grains.

Fort Worth chef Felipe Armenta (Cork & Pig Tavern, The Tavern Bar & Grill, Press Cafe, F1 Smokehouse, Pacific Table, Maria’s Mexican Kitchen, Towne Grill in Alliance Town Center) has, according to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, persuaded TV chef Graham Elliot (Top Chef, MasterChef, The Great American Recipe) to relocate to Fort Worth to work on a steakhouse called Duke. Elliot's rather grouchy representative says in an email, "Nothing has been confirmed at this time. Graham still resides in Hawaii." But Elliot posted a query asking whether Dallas or Fort Worth would be a better place to move, and a photo of himself in an aqua Western shirt and cowboy hat that said "YEEEEE HAW! #texas #DFW." At the very least, he seems ready to embrace some TX stereotypes. Armenta is meanwhile opening still another restaurant called Cafe Margot, in a former Cornery Bakery at 3150 S. Hulen St. in 2023.

Closure News

Tropic Lady restaurant-bar on Fort Worth's Race Street says aloha

Tropic Lady

The dip trio at Tropic Lady.

A chill restaurant and bar in Fort Worth's River East district has closed: Tropic Lady, which opened in the former Fuzzy's Taco space at 2719 Race St. in 2023, has closed.

The restaurant, which closed in mid-December, was a sibling to Bearded Lady, the popular gastropub in Near Southside; their last Facebook post was on December 10. Their phone number is not working, and their website is no longer active. Owner Shannon Osbakken was unavailable for comment, but a Bearded Lady employee confirmed the closure.

Tropic Lady was a tropical-themed gastropub opened by a trio of friends: Bearded Lady owner Shannon Osbakken, her business partner Sarah Allen, and general manager Amanda Yunger. It offered a similar menu as Bearded lady but with more tropical-inspired fare, including shrimp tacos, bacon-wrapped grilled pineapple bites, and guacamole dotted with mango.

For a gastropub, they did interesting food with dishes like watermelon salad with feta and cucumber; or their Dip Trio, with mango guacamole, tomatillo salsa, and queso blanco served with house-made tortilla chips. Definitely not run-of-the-mill. They also had great lunch specials like a smashburger with curly fries for $10.

Food did not seem to be the problem.

Decor featured artwork and murals created by local artists. A beautifully landscaped patio wrapped around the building’s facade. So the setting did not seem to be a factor.

It's tempting to point the finger at its location on Race Street, which has witnessed a round of closings in the past two years including buzzy birria taqueria Caliscience, which closed in February 2024; as well as The Post at River East, a restaurant and live music venue that shut down the same month.

In 2023, three other restaurants on Race Street closed: Tributary Cafe, the Bon Appetit-lauded La Onda, and vegan burger spot Zonk Burger. But separate reasons can also be found for each of those closures, whether that be inexperience or lease issues.

For years, the city and neighborhood advocates have been trying to turn Race Street into a trendy hotspot. As part of the city’s Urban Villages program, the city of Fort Worth invested $5.6 million in revitalizing the area, making improvements to traffic flow, sidewalks, landscaping, and outdoor lighting.

When Osbakken opened the bar, she said she loved the area, stating "it reminds me of Magnolia when were first were on it 10 years ago in our old location. It's a great community and the neighbors have been friendly and reaching out."

And there are still restaurants along the street, including a popular Mexican restaurant called Tesoro, the Dough’d Up doughnut shop, and Kingyo Sushi & Ramen House, as well as a coffee shop, Race Street Coffee.

The Bearded Lady continues to flourish. Osbakken originally opened the popular gastropub on Magnolia Avenue in 2013. Six years later, she moved it to the South Main, where it’s still going strong.

closings