A longtime Fort Worth restaurant recently changed hands: Star Cafe and Cocktails, which has been at 115 Exchange St. in the Stockyards in one form or another for nearly 90 years, has a new owner, menu, and new focus on cocktails.

The restaurant was taken over in December by Drew Boatman, a Fort Worth hospitality veteran whose other concepts include Rusty Nickel, Side Door Cocktails & Coffee, and Bodega Speakeasy.

"I thought it would be kind of cool to own part of the history here in the heart of the Fort Worth Stockyards," Boatman says. "Also part of the deal was the Basement Bar underneath it, which is one of one of my favorite bars. So when the opportunity arose to be able to operate both, I decided to take it."

With a street address of 105 Exchange St., The Basement Bar is a tiny underground hideaway that's been dubbed the "world's smallest honky tonk," almost a hidden find, with live music and dancing — irresistible for someone with Boatman's background in bars.

The Star Cafe opened nearly a century ago in the 1930s as Edna's Star Cafe, and has gone through a series of ownership and name changes including a stint as a Black-Eyed Pea In the 1970s. Boatman bought it from entrepreneur Chris Flores, who owned it for only two years, during which he tried to turn it into a steakhouse.

Boatman nudged it back to its origins, recruiting chef Victor Villarreal to fine-tune the menu to the essentials.

"What I really want to do is focus on the items that are selling well and that the customers were saying that they like, and ensure that we make the ingredients, the presentation, and everything about them as good as possible," he says.

There are still steaks served with choice of potato and a side salad; plus home-cooking dishes like chicken-fried steak, pork chop, and chopped sirloin.

Sandwiches include half-pound burgers including the signature Star Burger, topped with cheese, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, bacon, Texas chili, and jalapenos; plus chicken sandwiches, a hot dog, a BLT, and a grilled cheese.

They rotate in weekly specials such as schnitzel, AKA fried stuffed pork loin with Swiss cheese and ham, or a fried tomato sandwich with house-made pimento cheese, pickles, and spicy ranch served with a side of fries.

True to Boatman's roots, they've placed more emphasis on cocktails, even adding "cocktails" to the restaurant name, with au courant additions to the menu such as frozen watermelon margaritas made with Codigo 1530 tequila, or their introduction of new Shiner Craft Spirits. There are later hours on the weekends, with a late-night menu from 10 pm-2 am, and an early weekend brunch from 9 am-12 pm. It's the old Star Cafe but it's a new Star Cafe, too.