This mid-December roundup of dining news around Fort Worth is surprisingly chock-a-block with hefty news bits including a number of openings and almost as many "coming soon"s. Mid-December is not a time one might ordinarily expect a restaurant to open, but here we are.

Here's the latest in Fort Worth restaurant news:

Pho Noodle is a recently opened restaurant in Arlington in the Ben Thanh Plaza at 2216 New York Ave. #205, from Alexis Vu and her family who relocated here from Toledo, where they were much loved. Their specialty is pho, and they have 10 varieties with brisket, meatballs, and ribeye. They also do unusual other soups including duck soup and wonton noodle soup. They also have noodles dishes, spicy Bun Bo Hue, five varieties of banh mi, chicken wings, summer rolls, smoothies, and milk teas. To get customers in the door, they've been offering a $10 menu with a dozen entrees including stir-fry dishes and grilled chicken with fried rice.

Ascension Coffee, the local coffeehouse chain, is opening a location in Southlake Town Square at 100 State St. in spring 2026. According to Southlake Style, it's opening "in the former Cornery Barkery space" — surely they mean Corner Bakery? Except that every website that has copied their story has also stated that they're opening in "the former Cornery Barkery space". Very confusing. The real shocker is the closure of Corner Bakery, which had been there for 26 years, since Southlake Town Square opened in 1999. According to a sign on their door, they closed because they "couldn’t reach an agreement on the lease" with landlord Kite Realty Group, which really means that Kite Realty raised the rent. Ascension has six locations including Dallas, Addison, Frisco, and Fort Worth.

Kung Fu Tea, an international chain specializing in bubble tea, has opened a location in Keller, at 900 S. Main St. #340 in a former kickboxing place. Their menu includes bubble tea, milk and fruit teas, matcha, cold brew coffee, and slushes. The chain has 38 locations in Texas with eight locations in the DFW area including two in Arlington and one at the Hulen Mall in Fort Worth.

Acquario Pizza, Pasta & Bar is a new Italian restaurant opening in early 2026, also in Keller, at 967 Keller Pkwy. in the former Maple Street location. It'll be an Italian trattoria doing wood-fired pizza and pasta made on-site, and it's from chef Fredi Plaku, who also owns the similarly-named Aquario Italian Seafood, the well-regarded upscale seafood restaurant in Keller.

Siete Social Sporting Cantina is a new sports bar in the West Seventh District which professes to have "the flavor and spirit of Latin culture"; its logo features a 7 for the t: "Sie7e". It recently opened at 3005 Bledsoe St. — a space that's been a bit of a revolving door, starting in 2017 with Coyote Ugly, then Your Mom's House which opened there in 2019. This reel shows its transformation. The bar says that it's "designed for people who love to eat, drink, celebrate, and connect," and really, isn't that everyone. "By day, it’s the perfect spot to enjoy great food, cold drinks, and live sports surrounded by a lively, social atmosphere. By night, it transforms into a high-energy cantina experience featuring DJs, themed nights, and a welcoming community vibe."

Soy Cowboy, the modern pan-Asian restaurant at Loews Arlington Hotel, has launched a new Dim Sum menu featuring sharable dishes like chicken dumplings, lobster wontons, Wagyu gyoza, crab tacos, Korean BBQ ribs, a variety of sushi rolls, plus sake flights and brunch cocktails available during daytime service.

The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill has a new limited-edition dish: Loaded Feta Fries, topped with choice of chicken or gyro meat, crumbled feta, and garlic sauce. Available through December 31. The chain has four locations in the DFW area — Lewisville, Fort Worth, The Colony, and McKinney — and is opening two more locations in early 2026 in Burleson and Coppell.

Mister O1 Pizza, the artisan pizza chain, has teamed up with Terry Blacks BBQ on the limited-edition Terry Black’s Brisket Pizza featuring Mister O1’s signature thin crust topped with brisket, tomato sauce, mozzarella, red onions, jalapeño, dill pickles, barbecue sauce, and cilantro — available at all Texas Mister O1 locations through February 28.

Sunny Street Café launched a new winter menu featuring shareable dishes and seasonal sweets: There are breakfast nachos (housemade tortilla chips with queso, egg, chorizo, & avocado); Queso Breakfast Burrito with cheesy eggs, bacon, potato, avocado, & queso; Turkey Melt with Monterey Jack, cheddar, tomato, & chipotle mayo on sourdough; Maple Pecan Muffin; Butter Pecan Pancakes with caramel sauce; and Salted Caramel Cold Brew with vanilla cold foam. DFW locations include Carrollton, Keller, Little Elm, Haltom City, North Richland Hills, and Weatherford.

Salad and Go has introduced its first sweet treat: a Chewy Marshmallow Bar. They've also added Cold Foam, which can be added to any drink. Plus two limited-edition beverages: Toasted Marshmallow Lemonade and Toasted Marshmallow Cold Brew. Last but not least, they've added pulled chicken which can be added to any salad or wrap.

DQ restaurants in Texas have new breaded chicken tenders, which can be ordered solo or in a new Chicken Tender Country Basket, with fries, Texas toast, and choice of creamy gravy or DQ Texas sauce.

Cheba Hut has a new limited-time cocktail called Sleigh’d and Confused featuring Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka, lemon juice, and Coconut Berry Red Bull, available through December 31 for $10, but $3 off all day on Fridays.

Eight Beer, the craft beer label founded by Troy Aikman, got a serious shout-out on Landman, the Taylor Sheridan-produced TV show that's been filming around the DFW area. Aikman shared the clip which shows series star Billy Bob Thornton ordering the beer "just out of respect" to Aikman for founding it.