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.
Loro Dallas Is Allllllmost Here
The Austin smokehouse from chefs Tyson Cole of Uchi and Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue inches closer to opening in Old East Dallas off Haskell Avenue. So close that the restaurant is hosting a pop-up preview on Saturday, May 29 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Check out the restaurant from the parking lot whilst sipping gin and tonic slushees. There will also be bowls of bavette with coconut rice. Reserve your spot for the event; slots are limited.
Once a Whataburger, Now a Home to a Mexican Restaurant
Abby Restaurant is the eponymous restaurant of Abby Fraire, who has been serving her homey Mexican food to Dallas for more than 25 years. “We’re doing authentic Mexican food—no Tex-Mex here,” Fraire told Dallas CultureMap. Find Fraire’s cookery—enchiladas, an assortment of gorditas, tortas, and more—at 2955 Walnut Hill Lane, which was a Williams Chicken and before that a Whataburger. Those familiar with Abby Restaurant might remember its original location inside the Harry Hines Bazaar, which opened 16 years ago after Fraire graduated from her elote stand on Webb Chapel Road. Now you can eat her famous elotes inside the familiar A-frame.
Wolfgang Puck Returns to North Texas
It’s not a sky-grazing restaurant at the top of Reunion Tower like the one Wolfgang Puck closed a year ago this month, but the fine-dining chef has opened another eatery. This time, you can find it in Fort Worth at the Modern. Puck, who has restaurants all over the world, has had many a cafe inside a museum. This one, Cafe Modern, opened this week with lunch and brunch reports Dallas Morning News. Dinner service is forthcoming.
Flamin’ Hot Half-Truths
As my colleague Alex Macon succinctly broke down in this post, the origins of Frito-Lay’s Flamin’ Hot Cheetos are fraught. Richard Montañez has long claimed to be the creator of the bright-red Cheetos snack. His journey at Plano-based Frito-Lay is a commendable one, so much so that actress Eva Longoria is making her filmmaking debut with a biopic about Montañez. However film-worthy the story is, though, the truth of it is that a corporate Plano team is responsible for the spicy chips.
