Welcome to SideDish’s weekly dispatch of need-to-know News Bites, from quiet closures to opening updates and everything in between, including coronavirus-related intel.
Sabaidee Lao & Thai Street Eats Softly Opens in Addison
A hometown favorite for a Lao-Thai, one-two punch, Sabaidee opened its fourth North Texas location this week. At 5365 Spring Valley Road, find familiar bites like nam khao (crispy rice salad) and sai oua (spicy pork sausage). And during its soft opening week, now through, March 13, get 15 percent off when you tag Sabaidee on social media.
Monarch Opens Today Inside the National in Downtown
Joining the restaurant ranks of Nine at the National and Catbird—two newcomers to the downtown luxury tower alongside the recently arrived hotel Thompson Dallas—is Monarch, the latest and perhaps most anticipated arrival of the bunch. Chef Danny Grant, who’s helped Chicago restaurants earn Michelin stars twice over, is opening his first of two Dallas restaurants. Monarch opens March 10 and Kessaku is slated to open at the end of March, according to the Dallas Morning News. Monarch, located on The National’s 49th floor with a 360-degree view of downtown Dallas, is a 280-seat modern Italian restaurant. A wood-fired oven seems to be the heart of the kitchen, from which flame-licked bone-in filet mignons and wagyu tomahawks will usher. See also: whole live Alaskan King crab and fire-roasted crab legs glazed with Calabrian chili pepper jus, for some pretty enticing “surf” to Monarch’s “turf.”
It’s Still Wear-Your-Mask O’Clock at Most Restaurants
Today marks the one-year anniversary of Dallas County confirming its first COVID-19 case. A week later, restaurants, bars, and other enclosed venues would have to close off their interiors to customers. Today is big for another reason: Texas’ statewide mask mandates are lifted and businesses can operate at full capacity. Most Dallas-area restaurants will keep their mask policies intact, with the exception of a few looser mask policies (and in some cases, very loose!) like continued mask-wearing for employees but no mask requirements for guests. Eater Dallas has done the legwork of posting a running list of restaurants with mask-on requirements. Facebook group Asian Grub DFW also has a Google sheet with restaurants, boba tea shops, and more that say mask-wearing for both staff and guests won’t change. Here at D, we’ve published an updated list of grocery store mask policies here.
Saint Ann Restaurant & Bar Reopens in the Harwood District Today
After a brief refresh of both the restaurant space as well as the menu, Saint Ann Restaurant & Bar returns to the Harwood District today, March 10. Helmed by executive chef Taylor Kearney, the New American menu uses Texas ingredients but is influenced by the Pacific Northwest’s culinary ethos—hyperlocally sourced food that reflects seasonality and a “mostly zero-waste” commitment to sustainable practices. As a Pacific Northwesterner, I’m intrigued by how that’ll shake out on the plate. Speaking of which, peep Dallas CultureMap’s post with more menu details.
