2023 December Oak Cliff Advocate

OAK CLIFF D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 3 I A D V O C AT E M A G . C O M

dec 23 contents OAK CLIFF ADVOCATE VOL.17 NO.12

PROFILE 8 Saxaphonist Shelley Carrol DINING 10 Jonathon's Diner COVER 16 The Gift Guide FEATURES 4 23 things in 2023 6 Oak Cliff red carpet 14 Low-cost craft supplies 20 Holiday cocktail concoctions BACKSTORY 28 Longhorn Ballroom flashbacks

Spice up your holiday cocktails with our recipes on page 18. Photography by Lauren Allen.

D I ST R I B U T I O N / A D V E RT I S I N G 2 1 4 . 5 6 0 . 4 2 1 2 ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Frank McClendon 214.560.4215 / fmcclendon@advocatemag.com Michele Paulda 214.724.5633 / mpaulda@advocatemag.com Catherine Pate 214.560.4201 / cpate@advocatemag.com Linda Kenney lkenney@advocatemag.com Breyan Mitchell 214-517-6973 / bmitchell@advocatemag.com Classified Manager: Prio Berger 214.292.0493 / pberger@advocatemag.com Marketing Director: Sally Wamre 214.686.3593 / swamre@advocatemag.com Development Director: Alessandra Quintero 786.838.5891 / aquintero@advocatemag.com Digital Marketing & Analytics: Autumn Grisby agrisby@advocatemag.com E D I TO R I A L Publisher/Editor-in-Chief: Jehadu Abshiro jabshiro@advocatemag.com E D I TO R S : Alyssa High ahigh@advocatemag.com Emma Ruby eruby@advocatemag.com Kelsey Shoemaker kshoemaker@advocatemag.com Lillian Juarez ljuarez@advocatemag.com Editorial Assistant: Simon Pruitt spruitt@advocatemag.com Digital Editor: Christian Welch cwelch@advocatemag.com Senior Art Director: Jynnette Neal jneal@advocatemag.com Art Director/Photographer: Lauren Allen lallen@advocatemag.com Intern: Simaran Sira Contributors: Patti Vinson, Carol Toler, Sam Gillespie Contributing photographers: Kathy Tran, Emil Lippe, Hunter Lacey, Yuvie Styles, Shelby Tauber, Sylvia Elzafon, Lo Kuehmeier, Victoria Gomez, Julia Cartwright Chief Revenue Officer: Rick Wamre 214.560.4212 / rwamre@advocatemag.com Advocate (c) 2023 is published monthly in print and daily online by Advocate Media - Dallas Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation based in Dallas and first published in 1991. Contents of this print magazine may not be reproduced. Advertisers and advertising agencies assume liability for the content of all advertisements and sponsorships printed, and therefore assume responsibility for any and all claims against the Advocate. The Publisher reserves the right to accept or reject ay editorial, advertising or sponsorship material in print or online. Opinions set forth in Advocate publications are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the Publisher’s viewpoint. More than 180,000 people read Advocate publications in print each month; Advocate online publications receive more than 4 million pageviews monthly. Advertising rates and guidelines are available upon request. Advocate print and online publications are available free of charge throughout our neighborhoods, one print copy per reader. For information about supporting our non-profit mission of providing local news to neighborhood readers, please call 214-560-4212 or email rwamre@advocatemag.com.

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ABOUT THE COVER The Texas Theatre’s iconic sign stands over Jefferson Boulevard. Photography by Lauren Allen. FOLLOW US: Talk to us: editor@advocatemag.com Newsletter: advocatemag.com/newsletter DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

23 THINGS IN 2023 Compiled by SIMARAN SIRA

Adamson High School English teacher Israel Alfaro was hailed a hero after pulling a pilot out of a fiery gas balloon crash.

After eight years of advocacy and a $1 million restoration project, the Japanese Garden at Kidd Springs Park opened in June.

Oak Cliff barber-turned-comedian Ralph Barbosa was featured on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Lana Del Rey and country artist Nikki Lane shopped at Bishop Arts’ Rare Heart Vintage and Dolly Python.

The track field at John Kincade Stadium was named after Sha’Carri Richardson, a Carter High School alumna and the "fastest woman in the world."

2 9 6

Bird, Lime and Superpedestrian were permitted to bring back e-scooters and e-bikes.

Marco Antonio Gonzalez, who trafficked methamphetamine through his car dealership Hampton Motors, was sentenced to life in prison.

7 8 Pasos for Oak Cliff founders partnered with Netflix for a new rom-com.

A missing leopard, a dead vulture and two stolen tamarins brought chaos to the Dallas Zoo.

15 16

Dallas Mavericks' Kyrie Irving sported a South Oak Cliff 2022 state championship hat during a game against Integrity Foundation’s leadership the Memphis Grizzlies. academy gifted nearly 100 bikes to Faith Family Academy A cyber attack students who had perfect took Dallas attendance or whose parents city and police attended meet the teacher night. websites offline.

4 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

An Adamson senior was awarded a trip to NASA and a summer internship with a local tech company.

11 14 13

The newly revitalized Longhorn Ballroom reopened.

Restaurant Beatrice and Lucia made the James Beard finalist list.

Dallas banned short-term rentals in single-family neighborhoods.

Nine schools in District 7 welcomed new principals.

15 people were arrested by FBI and Dallas Police in Oak Cliff on drug and firearm charges.

A Bishop Arts law office suffered "major damage" after an unknown suspect started a fire.

20 Oak Cliff-based rapper and former tiger cub owner Trapboy Freddy, pleaded guilty to a weapons charge in federal court in May. He faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

The 175-yearold pecan tree that sits on a patch of land on North Beckley Avenue was declared historic.

A new West Dallas fire station replaced the 70-year-old facility.

Former South Oak Cliff High School girls basketball coach Gary Blair was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

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HOLLYWOOD IN OAK CLIFF: How the Texas Theatre came to host the star-studded world premiere of The Iron Claw Story by EMMA RUBY Photography by KELSEY SHOEMAKER Cast of A24’s The Iron Claw, as well as big names in wrestling and Dallas legend Kevin Von Erich, attended the movie’s world premiere at the Texas Theatre on Nov. 8.

Hollywood sweethearts Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White can officially cross “visiting Oak Cliff ” off their bucket lists after last month’s world premiere of The Iron Claw was held at the Texas Theatre. As word of the star-studded event spread, many neighbors were left asking: “They’re in Oak Cliff Oak Cliff?” So how exactly did the Texas Theatre come to be the venue that hosted Dallas’ first world premiere in seven years? (The last world premiere was 13 Hours in 2016, and was held at AT&T Stadium.) According to theater partners Ashton Campbell and Barak Epstein, the premiere was born out of a long-held relationship with A24, the movie’s production company, and A24’s desire to tell the Dallas story locally. “It’s a Dallas story, and I think that the distribution team at A24 wanted to leverage the community aspect of the film, and have a premiere in the place where it took place,” Campbell says. The Iron Claw centers around the Von Erichs, a family of professional wrestlers from Denton known for the many tragedies they faced. The Von Erichs made a name for themselves performing at the Dallas Sportatorium, only three miles

6 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

north of the Texas Theatre. Efron and White play Kevin and Kerry Von Erich, respectively. While the film was shot in Louisiana, A24 executives told Campbell and Epstein it was a “no-brainer” decision for the premiere to be held at the Texas Theatre. While the theater had never hosted a world premiere prior to Nov. 8, they had hosted regional premieres — many of which were for A24 movies — at the Oak Cliff Film Festival. “A24 apparently kind of had this idea all along, once they realized they were going to premiere it, that they were going to use our place,” Epstein says. “It was pretty flattering to us that they wanted to be there that much, because we had never done something like this before, nor has Dallas really. So it was a big deal.” A crew from Los Angeles was brought to Dallas to build a 40-foot-long red carpet platform, and the event was attended by over 800 people. In addition to stars like Efron and White, the movie premiere was attended by Kevin Von Erich himself whose recent return to Dallas marks his first time back in the city in nearly 20 years. Campbell described the experience of

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We are your Real Estate Matchmakers. seeing Jefferson Boulevard shut down for the premiere as “surreal.” “They were talking about doing a 25foot red carpet. And then Chris, the head of the company was like, ‘No, let’s go with the 40-foot red carpet.’ And my eyes just lit up,” Campbell says. “It just sounded so huge.” During the premiere, The Iron Claw was shown on the upstairs and downstairs screens simultaneously, and cast and crew made remarks to viewers from the front of the theaters before the movie. Writer and director Sean Durkin described it as “a dream” to show the movie in Dallas. The movie tells the story of a Dallas past, and the historical lore associated with the Texas Theatre added to the ambiance of the viewing, Epstein says. “I think that anybody who really knew any of the history of the Texas Theatre, when they walked in, they just they kind of felt like they were watching a period piece movie. And they’re not walking into a new multiplex cinema, a brand spankin’ new place,” Epstein says. “They walked in and felt the ambiance of an older building and an older place that has Texas stuff everywhere. I think that just really added to everybody’s experience.” The Iron Claw premieres worldwide and will be playing at the Texas Theatre starting Dec. 22. (Maybe your butt can sit in the same seat Zac Efron’s butt sat in.) As for future world premieres happening in our neighborhood, Campbell and Epstein say they’re “waiting for the phone calls.”

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p ro f i l e

Carrol regularly performs at Revelers Hall in Bishop Arts and The Balcony Club in East Dallas.

8 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

JULIA CARTWRIGHT

Story by SIMON PRUITT Photography by

Saxophonist Shelley Carrol can’t help but play

THE JAZZ MAN

helley Carrol was always going to be a musician. His mother was a celebrated educator with multiple degrees in music and the arts. His three older siblings performed together in a family singing group that he was too young to join. He grew up in Houston, singing in the city’s Boys Choir, church and school. During the holidays, he and his siblings would perform a talent show for each other in front of the Christmas tree. “There were musical instruments around my house all the time,” he says. “We all took piano lessons from Mrs. Smith, the same lady who taught my mother when she was a child.” Music is second to breathing in Carrol’s life. “I saw Grover Washington Jr. playing the saxophone on TV and immediately fell in love with it,” he says. “When I entered junior high, the band did not have any saxophones left so they gave me an oboe. I remember crying to my mother.” He finally got to pick up an a l t o s a xo p h o n e a n d f o l l o w Wa s h i n g t o n ’s l e a d i n h i g h s c h o o l . B y h i s s e n i o r ye a r, Carrol was winning national music awards. He started college at Texas Southern University before transferring to the University of North Texas In 1986, he was offered a seat in the highly prestigious Duke Ellington orchestra, where he entered as the youngest performer. Thirty-four years later, Carrol is one of the oldest in the orchestra. Between then and now, he moved to Dallas, and built an eclectic resume working with artists such as Kool & The Gang, Sheryl Crow and Pink Floyd. Carrol runs a nonprofit with his wife called

the Infinite Arts Movement, which brings all forms of art to underserved communities in North Texas. He’s still making an impact in his hometown of Houston. This year marked the sixth annual Houston Jazz Festival, an event that Carrol helped to organize. “To this day, I am both a student and a teacher,” he says. “Jazz musicians teach each other constantly. This unspoken understanding that the learning never stops is the beauty of the art form to me.” As a teacher, Carrol shares lessons on the craft at Booker T. Washington. “I have fallen in love with teaching young musicians this art form,” he says. As a student, he still finds time to fuel his musical spirit. You’ll often find him at Revelers Hall, riffing off his bandmates. “It can always be a new experience if you stay open to the music, listen and let it breathe,” Carrol says. “It has been quite a beautiful journey for me exploring creativity daily.” No matter the musical niche that Carrol inhabits on a given day, his collaborative spirit never ceases — “Andrew Griffith on the drums, Jonathan Fisher on the bass, Todd Parsnow on the guitar, Michael Palmer on the piano, Lyle West on the bass and the great Bobby Sparks on piano.” On a recent November evening, that band found themselves playing a set at Revelers Hall into the early hours of the morning. Many years removed from singing for his family in front of the Christmas tree and being enamored with Grover Washington Jr, Carrol’s dedication to the arts has remained the same. “My family upbringing definitely influenced my love and passion for music. I was nurtured by many great teachers and musicians,” he says. “Music is what I was meant to do. ”

It has been quite a beautiful journey for me exploring creativity daily.

DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

fo o d

Jon a t hon’s D i ne r The neighborhood breakfast place Story by EMMA RUBY | Photography by KATHY TRAN

The fowl burger (left) and seared tuna salad (right) are popular lunchtime options at Jonathon’s. While the fowl burger can be found on both Jonathon’s locations menus, the seared tuna salad is exclusive to the Forestwood location.

10 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

TA K E J E F F B R I D G E S ’ C H A R A C T E R F RO M T H E B I G L E B OWS K I A N D A D D A COU P L E I N C H ES, A W H I T E C H E F ’S COAT AND A SIZZLING GRILL FULL OF BREAKFAST STAPLES, AND YOU HAVE J O N AT H O N E R D E L JAC. For the last 12 years, Erdeljac has manned the grill at each of his namesake restaurants with a relaxed enthusiasm and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. In Oak Cliff, Jonathon’s Diner serves as the “neighborhood breakfast place,” known for comfort meals like patty melts and chicken and waffles, made by The Dude himself. Erdeljac’s wife, Christine, manages the restaurant and can occasionally be caught waiting tables during the lunch rush. Both Erdeljacs have a background in the Dallas culinary world. Jonathon served as the corporate chef at Bread Winners, and spent time at Brinker. Christine managed at Bread Winners and several of the Nordstrom restaurants.

While working in the corporate dining industry, Erdeljac ignored the “If I owned this place,” talk that permeated kitchens, instead focusing on acing every role he took on. “When I was a dishwasher, I like to believe that I washed those dishes like I owned those dishes,” he says. His first restaurant came to fruition in 2011. Jonathon’s Oak Cliff opened with a breakfast heavy menu in the formerly green house on Beckley that is now home to Restaurant Beatrice. Then he opened Kessler Park Eating House, which specialized in dinner plates, in 2015. “It was kind of a passion project for me, because it was a lot of my own personal kind of family recipes,” Jonathon says. “And it was a pretty decent success, but it was a lot of work.” He cooked breakfast in the mornings and dinner in the evenings, shifting just half a mile down Beckley each day to transition between restaurants. In the 10 years Jonathon’s Oak Cliff was open, “there

DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

When opening the Forestwood location, Christine Erdeljac, a Preston Hollow native, encouraged her husband Jonathon to expand the restaurant's salad menu.

12 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

was never a point” something wasn’t broken. At one point, construction forced the Erdeljacs to temporarily close down Jonathon’s Oak Cliff, so they moved the breakfast menu over to Kessler Park Eating House. “The first day we were busy all day, but it was Jonathon’s all day. It was just like nobody could care less (about the dinner menu) and so we kind of pivoted at that point. When we reopened the original store we decided to transition (Kessler Park Eating House) to Jonathon’s Diner,” he says. “For four years, we operated as Jonathon’s Diner and Jonathon’s Oak Cliff. And we had two restaurants, the same exact menu, same everything, literally half a mile apart.” Once you get out of the dinner game, it’s impossible to go back. As much as the Erdeljacs enjoyed sharing their family recipes at Kessler Park Eating House, the transition to all breakfast-focused businesses meant a healthier work-life balance. “Our life is 100 times better. Our mental health is better, our physical health is better, and our business is thriving even better,” Christine says. “We can actually go out to dinner and enjoy our normal life.” In 2021, Jonathon’s Oak Cliff closed, but the diner has remained a flourishing staple in our neighborhood’s brunch scene. The menu is not trying to reinvent the breakfast wheel. Plates of biscuits and gravy, eggs and bacon and berry-covered waffles are dependable offerings. There are entire days where Erdeljac cooks only chicken and waffles, the Oak Cliff favorite. While relentless waves of the same dish may put any other “food artist” in a rut, Erdeljac says the opening of a new Jonathon’s location, Jonathon’s Forestwood, has sparked his creativity. The new store required a complete gutting and renovation, something the owners are used to at this point. Three restaurants in, the Erdeljacs are the Chip and Joanna Gaines of the restaurant industry. Touches of Jonathon’s Oak Cliff can be found at the Forestwood store. The mirrors hanging from the wall near the back of the restaurant are the original Oak Cliff location’s bathroom mirrors. And, in addition to Forestwood customers ordering a wider variety of plates, the location’s menu offers salads and sandwiches that are not available in Oak Cliff. “I kept saying this is going to be different, people are going to eat differently in North Dallas, I just know it,” Christine says. “(In Forestwood) it’s been the chicken salad sandwich. Chicken and waffles rules Oak Cliff, I mean that is what we are known for down there.” For now, Jonathon is spending most days cooking in the Forestwood kitchen to give the store the same foundation his Oak Cliff location has. “We’re at the point (at the diner) where it’s like it’s the same people who come in for the same things all the time,” he says. “(At Forestwood) we’re not at that point yet where it’s like these four guys come in every Wednesday because they love the patty melt and all four are going to order the patty melt.” While the diner may be Jonathon’s middle child, the Erdeljacs are no less devoted to serving the neighborhood that got them started as restaurant owners. “It’s 36 hours a day, eight days a week. I mean, it’s as simple as that. It never stops, and even when you’re off there’s stuff to do,” he says. “We were getting our nails done yesterday and I remembered I needed to soak the beans. So we ended up back at work after we had our mani-pedis because I had to put the beans in the water so my 15 bean soup would be ready.” Jonathon’s Diner. 1619 N Beckley Ave. 214.782.9273. jonathonsoakcliff.com

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A life-size cardboard cutout of painter Bob Ross serves as the Pegasus Creative Reuse intern.

CRAFT FOR A CAUSE Pegasus Creative Reuse gives art supplies a second life Story by EMMA RUBY | Photography by LAUREN ALLEN

14 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

IT’S LIKE AN ANTIQUE STORE MET AN I SPY BOOK, AND THE TWO SETTLED DOWN IN MR. MAGORIUM’S WONDER EMPORIUM. The shelves of the Pegasus Creative Reuse are so stuffed with colorful goodies of every medium — paint, fabric, paper and more — that finding a specific item is a treasure hunt. “I think we’ve quickly outgrown the space. So it’s been a challenge to try to keep things in that happy medium between it being like a fun adventure and then also navigable,” co-founder Ernie Diaz Jr. says. “Dallas favorite art supply thrift store,” Pegasus opened in Tyler Station in August. The store sells art supplies donated by the community for less than half of what a product would cost at a big box store. Diaz and his partner, Dorothy Villarreal, share a passion for community and creativity. While they both work in tech, they also have artistic sides. In her free time, Villarreal enjoys quilting, embroidery, knitting and watercolor painting. Diaz has a penchant for collages and stationery. Villarreal became interested in creative reuse stores because of her inherited desire to reduce waste and encourage thriftiness. She was raised by her grandmother, who was raised during the Mexican Great Depression, so “it’s in (her) blood” to hold on to things “a little bit longer than (she) should.” When Villarreal moved to Dallas, she was stunned to discover that the closest creative reuse store was in Denton. “They are quite common along the east coast and west coast,” Villarreal says. “It was just kind of something always in the back of my mind that I thought we’d get to do when we retired.” But on a drive back to Dallas from Shreveport, Louisiana, the couple decided there was no reason to wait. For the three months following that “why not” conversation, Villarreal and Diaz nailed down a storefront in Tyler Station, came up with a name for the shop and started collecting donations from the community. “Every morning and evening we were going to do porch pickups. Like our cars were full, our house was full,” Diaz says. “It was just an overwhelming amount of support and donations.” The store has totaled over 500 pounds of donated craft supplies since opening. The “insane amount” is now being given a second life on the Pegasus shelves while also being diverted from landfills. Pricing at Pegasus is an imperfect science, but Villarreal has a “good sense” of what things usually cost at big box stores from her days as a “crafting aficionado.” And, she says it isn’t uncommon for items to be priced at even more of a discount in special circumstances. When one mother was buying paint brushes for a children’s painting party, for instance, she charged the brushes as a bundle instead of individually. Villarreal believes the price of craft supplies can be a barrier to entry, and that many people are hesitant to try new things, or invest in quality supplies, when they are accompanied by an overwhelming price tag. “The number one thing we hear at the counter is ‘That’s it?’” Diaz says. “Sometimes there’ll be people who are like, ‘You know you can charge me way more for this,’ or ‘This (supply) is super rare,’ but that’s not the point, it’s about getting these materials into people’s hands.” Pegasus Creative Reuse also offers craft classes each month. The classes average around $35 a person, and include all the supplies needed. In a time when many students no longer take home economics and art classes are not as emphasized as sports or STEM, the classes are an opportunity for anyone — but especially young people — to build their relationship with their inner creativity. “When times get scary as they are now, you look for places where you can find community and you look for places where you feel like you’re doing good,” Villarreal says. “And this one combines both of those.” DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

THE GIFT GUIDE A GUIDE TO GIVING THE GOOD STUFF

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Whether you’re celebrating Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or the winter solstice, the season of giving is approaching. In Oak Cliff, you can find just about everything on your list from locally-owned businesses. There’s something for everyone, whether its swag for the stylish family member, a new hobby for a friend or a special treat for your furry roommate. We’ve got suggestions to kickstart your holiday shopping goals.

Gre e n Pe t Da l l a s Green Pet Dallas carries artisanal collars handmade in Tulum that make your pup feel extra special and stylish for the season. Each sale supports livelihoods and a dog rescue foundation in Guadalajara. $24.95- $44.95

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Potter y for the Pe op le

Advo ca te M e di a

The Oak Cliff pottery place makes

The limited-edition ornaments were

original handmade creations. This

made with the ancient tradition of

particular vase is made of terracotta

reverse painting. It features orginal

clay. $225

art by local artists. $125

DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

THE COCKTAIL CORNER Tips and tricks for the budding home bartender

Story by EMMA RUBY | Photography by LAUREN ALLEN

It’s no secret that when the holidays hit, the drinks flow. Beverage Daily estimates that most Americans double their booze intake between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Your go-to concoctions get stale quickly, even if you aren’t drinking more than usual. Luckily, we pooled together some of the most mixology-minded individuals from throughout our neighborhood to give their tips and tricks of the trade, all to make you a better home bartender. Whether you’re visiting family or hosting friends, everyone needs a party trick. And nothing is more impressive than whipping up a delicious and unexpected drink.

20 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

A misletoe margarita, snow day mojito or ginger snap mocktail are seasonal sips sure to inspire a beginner home bartender. DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

THIS IS WHY WE CAN HAVE NICE THINGS It’s as easy as Amazon, says Iluggy Recinos. You’re likely familiar with Recinos’ work. The West Dallas resident and professional mixologist developed many of the iconic cocktails on the menus of Exxir restaurants and was one of the creative minds behind Tipsy Elf. And, he says when it comes to starting a collection of bartending tools, Amazon or budget stores like Marshalls and Ross, have everything anyone might need. While many cocktail equipment kits advertise having eight pieces, 14 pieces, or even 20 pieces, a beginner is fine starting with a shaker, a strainer and a measuring device. “With friends you don’t need to get crazy, just find something pleasing to your eye with those tools,” he says.

UNWRAP ME BY ILUGGY RECINOS

And, if you’re looking to really get on Recinos’ good side, you’ll invest in a simple citrus juicer. He is “insane” about promoting fresh citrus juice in cocktails because of the flavor qualities fresh juice brings to a drink when compared to artificial juices.

TIME TO PREPARE

INGREDIENTS

15 minutes for syurp 10 minutes for drink

• 2 oz Bourbon

With correct equipment in the beginning of the cocktail-making process, and fresh ingredients in the middle, Recinos recommends an aesthetic “wow” factor for drinks to round out the experience.

NOTES The apple spice tea will infuse a holiday twist to the syrup while still letting the sweetness of the honey

TOOLS & UTENSILS Shaker Jigger Strainer

“I love glitter in a cocktail. I just love things that are pretty and loud,” he says.

BEST SERVED IN

Amazon.

22 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

•.25 oz Honey Syrup •.5 oz Ginger Syrup

HONEY SYRUP DIRECTIONS • Steep two cups of apple spice tea •Once brewed, stir in one cup honey

shine.

One trend he’s seeing take over bars is edible glitter, which gives drinks a whimsical, potionlike shimmer.

As to where to locate edible glitter?

•.75 oz Lemon Juice

Low ball

DIRECTIONS •Build drink in shaker, shake & strain •Garnish with lemon wedge or peel

MEASURE UP When you make the perfect cocktail, chances are you’re going to be asked to make another. And another. And another. And, well, you get how that goes. But when dishing out batch after batch, keeping a drink consistent is key. “You can recreate a lot of recipes that you find online if you have the proper measuring

tools,” says Oddfellows bartender Madeline Russell. “It’s one of the most important things that I can think of to make delicious cocktails.” Enter, a jigger. The metallic measuring tool can be found in nearly every bar, and allows bartenders to pour accurate amounts of liquor or mixers time after time. While the

traditional jigger is one ounce, double-sided jiggers allow for one and two-ounce pours, and sometimes even denote the .5 and 1.5-ounce lines. “A mistake a lot of bartenders and at-home bartenders make is adding too much of an ingredient at the beginning of a recipe,” Russell says. “You can always add more.”

GINGER SNAP NOTES Ginger Ale is a classic tummy ache remedy, and Angostura Bitters elevate the drink.

INGREDIENTS •Ginger ale •Bitters of your choice DIRECTIONS

BEST SERVED IN

•Pour ginger ale in glass over ice.

Glass of your choice

•Start with two or three dashes, and add a

•Add in bitters to taste. dash at a time to avoid overpowering the drink.

SNOW DAY MOJITO TIME TO PREPARE

INGREDIENTS •3 mint leaves

•.75 oz lime juice

15 minutes

•2 oz coconut rum

•coconut milk

•.5 oz simple syrup

•club soda

TOOLS & UTENSILS

DIRECTIONS •Muddle mint leaves & simple syrup in shaker

Shaker Jigger Strainer Spoon Sifter

•Shake rum, lime juice & ice •Strain into glass & top with club soda •Drizzle coconut milk over top of drink using a spoon for a snow-topped appearance

BEST SERVED IN Highball glass or large wine glass with straw

•Garnish with a sprig of mint & dust with powdered sugar

DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

KISS KISS

Most people don’t realize that 99% of cocktails are riffs on a threeingredient base: simple syrup, citrus and a liquor of choice. That’s according to Another Round bartender Taylor Bulla, who believes that by adding one or two twists on the “cocktail holy trinity,” you can create something delicious and impressive. Simple syrup, for instance, can be made with a one-to-one ratio of water and sugar, and is an inexpensive ingredient to keep stocked in your bar. Infuse it with a flavor like strawberry or mint, and you’ve added a flavor layer to your drink with almost no effort.

THE MISTLETOE BY ANOTHER ROUND TIME TO PREPARE 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS • 1.5 oz tequila

NOTES

• .5 oz pomegranate liqueur

Red or green sugar can be used to add a festive twist to the glass.

• .5 oz cranberry juice

TOOLS & UTENSILS

• .5 oz agave

Shaker Jigger Strainer Rimming plate

• .5 oz lime juice

DIRECTIONS •Pour sugar onto a plate •Coat rim of glass in lime juice before dipping in sugar

BEST SERVED IN

•Add ice to glass

Margarita glass

•Measure tequila, liqueur, juices and agave into shaker •Shake drink and strain into glass.

Placing a silver spoon in the neck of a champagne bottle and storing in the fridge ensures the wine stays bubbly between drinks.

TOOLS & UTENSILS

INGREDIENTS •champagne •1 oz orange juice •.5 oz blue curacao

DIRECTIONS •Fill flute 2/3 of the way full with champagne

Stirring spoon Jigger

•Pour in orange juice and

BEST SERVED IN

•Lightly stir drink until

Flute

“Bitters and soda water is a super popular drink in Australia. It’s delicious, good for your tummy and a good mocktail,” Bulla says. “Using bitters and stuff like that is actual bartending. It really is that simple.” A cornerstone of a fancy cocktail is calling for egg white. It adds a richness and foam to the drink and is usually used in “sour” drinks. But, egg whites can be more work than they’re worth. “I love egg white cocktails, but I hate making them,” Bulla says.

MR. GRINCH NOTES

If adding an ingredient to the simple, citrus, liquor base, Angostura Bitters are a “great place to start.” The bitters can be found in any liquor store, Amazon and some grocery stores.

blue curacao curacao is incorporated to make green color.

Instead, a brand called the Fee Brothers makes an egg white substitute sold in a bitters-esque bottle, that delivers a similar foaminess without the eggshell. If you decide to go ahead and try your hand at an actual egg white, Bulla reminds that an egg white cocktail requires a dry shake to emulsify before ice is added.

Tis The Season

FOR GIVING

Donate $100 or more to support Advocate’s continued reporting relevant neighborhood news and RECEIVE a beautiful hand-painted ornament.

Emilio De Leon, Mike Casey, Stephanie Uryasz, Angel DeLeon, Robert Gossett, Fernando Morales

Donate at advocatemag.com Ornaments avaiable for $125 retail at shop.advocatemag.com Advocate is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit public media organization. Donations are gifts to the Advocate and tax deductible. Local pick up only.

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Care focused on you and your baby, including: • Family-centered maternity care • Breastfeeding and childbirth classes • Education on infant safe sleep • NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) • Updated postpartum rooms and suites • Uninterrupted quiet time for mothers and infants to rest and bond

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or call 469-457-3183 Texas law prohibits hospitals from practicing medicine. The physicians on the Methodist Health System medical staff are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of Methodist Dallas Medical Center, Methodist Health System, or any of its affiliated hospitals. Methodist Health System complies with applicable federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

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BACK STORY

By EMMA RUBY

Tales from the Longhorn Ballroom A l o o k a t t h e pa st a s Texa s ’ m ost h i sto r i c m u s i c ve n u e e m ba r ks o n a n ew f u t u re

he Longhorn Ballroom has been a lot of things to a lot of people. It has been a venue for Black artists to perform during the Jim Crow era. It has been host to counterculture movements before they found their footing. It has been a country bar, and a gathering place for members of the international community. It has been debated in city council meetings and is even tangentially connected to the JFK assassination. The reopening of the Longhorn Ballroom in March was hailed a victory by music lovers and preservationists alike. The first wave of shows put on at the refurbished venue stuck true to its country roots, but as more shows have been added to the calendar the genre- quirkiness the Longhorn is known for has creeped in. It might be said that the Longhorn Ballroom was, and is a lot of things because Dallas was, and is a lot of things. One is a mirror held up to the other. These are the tales from the Longhorn Ballroom.

A PLACE FOR CONNECTION

A marquee advertising the Sex Pistols and Merle Haggard has become an iconic symbol of the genre whiplash the Longhorn Ballroom was known for. Photography by Bob Gruen.

28 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

If you have a question about the Dallas music scene, Jeff Liles probably has the answer and a story or two to go along with it. Talent buyer for the ballroom in 1986 and 1987, Liles spent his fair share of time up close and personal

with the Longhorn Ballroom, and saw the way the venue brought unlikely characters together. “Part of the initial appeal of punk rock was that it was a confrontational counterculture,” Liles, who now serves as the artistic director of Kesser Presents, says. “Agents booked them at Longhorn because it was a culture clash. A British punk band playing a country western bar was news.” As a talent buyer, Liles booked the Butthole Surfers who opened for the Flaming Lips. Midway through the show, lead singer Gibby Haynes poured lighter fluid into a cymbal before setting it on fire and hitting it, throwing a fireball into the crowd. Talk about punk. But the most impactful show Liles recalls attending was that of Fela Kuti, a Nigerian bandleader and legend who is known as the King of Afrobeat. It was a coup for the Longhorn to book Kuti — he didn’t play many shows in America — and when Liles attended the show it opened his eyes to not only the Afrobeat genre, but to Dallas’s vibrant Nigerian community. “The Fela show made the connection with the American soul genre to the international Afrobeat community that Dallas didn’t know it had until that night,” Liles says. “It was an extraordinary spectacle.”

THE SHOW Rolling Stone photographer Annie Leibovitz stood in the corner of the Longhorn Ballroom one January night in 1978 wearing a long brown coat and gloves. The gloves were how Buddy Magazine editor Kirby Warnock knew the “standoffish” woman wasn’t from Texas. (“Here we just put our hands in our pockets,” he says.) Leibovitz was at the venue to photograph the Sex Pistols during the British punk band’s seven stop tour of America. Rolling Stone was never able to publish the iconic images of bassist Sid Vicious covered in his own blood, because Leibovitz’s camera was stolen before the end of the show. Buddy Magazine put out a reward for the return of the camera, but no one ever came forward, Warnock says. Luckily, his own camera made it through the show unscathed. “The thing that I remember the most and what I think people have trouble understanding is we thought they were terrible,” Warnock says of the show. “We were there having heard really good musicians in Dallas, and so when they came out they just were not very good. We just thought ‘What is the big deal about these assholes?’” Warnock said he wrote something to a similar effect in his magazine article about the show, having felt “tricked” by the hype surrounding the band. When Vicious dragged a broken bottle across his chest, drawing blood, Warnock thought “that guy is either really high or really disturbed.” The opening act of the show, The Nerve Breakers, were a Dallas punk-rock band who Warnock thought outperformed the headlining act. “Of course, (the Sex Pistols) only made one record and only did one tour,” Warnock says. “Looking back on it, it was kind of a rare deal and who knew all these years later we’d still be talking about them. But at the time we were just scratching our heads.”

(Above) A mural pays respects to former Longhorn proprietor Dewey Groom, who gave the venue it's name and was considered one of the more "capable" of the ballroom's owners. Photo courtesy of Longhorn Ballroom (Below) Bluesman Bobby Patterson started playing at the Ballroom while it was still under the ownership of Jack Ruby. Photo courtesy of Bobby Patterson DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

(Top) Nat King Cole's Longhorn performance is one of the most famously photographed, depicting seated Black patrons and standing white ones. Photography courtesy of the Longhorn Ballroom. (Bottom left) A local reporter and Annie Leibovitz prepare to cover the now notorious Sex Pistols show. ("Note the gloves," Warnock says.) Photography by Kirby Warnock. (Bottom right) After the Sex Pistols show, Sid Vicious mingled in the crowd where Warnock snapped a photo of his friend and then-girlfriend with the bassist. Photography by Kirby Warnock.

30 oakcliff.advocatemag.com DECEMBER 2023

Running the Longhorn Ballroom may not be what Jack Ruby (far right) is most famous for, but as proprietor of the venue he was known for spending money and locking in a performance by Nat King Cole. Photography courtesy of the Longhorn Ballroom.

THE LEGACY LIVES ON Longhorn Ballroom’s second owner, Jack Ruby, subverted the expectations of the Jim Crow era by booking talent like Ruth Brown and Nat King Cole. The latter was famously photographed during a 1954 show singing to an audience of seated Black patrons, with white viewers standing in the back of the room. It is a legacy that intrigued Curtis McCray, and part of what brought him to the Longhorn as the senior talent buyer and general manager. “It hosted major American talent in a time when it was difficult for that talent to tour,” McCray says. “It was a very niche circumstance.” While McCray says the venue emphasizes its rich history when talking with potential talent, he has found most artists are as intrigued by the ballroom’s history as he was. “There’s a sense of joining the ranks of the greats,” he says. “Kind of without fail,” artists have paid respects to the venue’s history since it reopened. Most acts will perform a song by one of the venue’s past legendary performers (sometimes in unexpected pairings, like the Mountain Goats covering a Sex Pistols song) or acknowledge the venue while

speaking to the crowd. “As a fan and as someone who has worked in the industry, the thing that appeals to me is that it is truly a unique place,” McCray says. “You come away from it like, ‘Oh, I’ve been somewhere.’”

BOBBY’S HOUSE The Longhorn Ballroom has always been the place Bobby Patterson can be Bobby Patterson. The Bluesman started performing as a child, and his shows at the Ballroom date back to before the floor was sunk in or the dressing rooms were moved inside. When he was starting out, Patterson played on Monday nights — the day of the week reserved for Black performers. “Tight friends,” with legends Bobby “Blue” Bland, Z.Z. Hill and Johnnie Taylor, Patterson spent countless nights squeezing into the shoebox sized dressing rooms in the venue parking lot to prepare to take the stage. “We’d freeze our asses off out there,” Patterson says. One year, Patterson and Bland headlined a show on Patterson’s birthday. To celebrate, he decided to seek out an unconventional stage entrance. “I decided I wanted to do something different to come onto the stage because

Bobby “Blue” Bland was a very demanding figure,” Patterson says. “So I told this guy that had some horses that I wanted to do something different… and I came on the stage in a chariot. We got it into the back and then put it up on stage. I was sitting in the seat playing the guitar for my entrance.” The crowd loved it. And, at the end of the show, Patterson was presented with a plaque from Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, thanking him for his contributions to music and to the city. It remains one of his proudest moments. On Christmas night, 1999, Patterson recorded a live album at the ballroom. He hoped to harness the excitement of the holidays into the record, and, like with his chariot entrance, it was unexpected. “I wanted to record Live From the Longhorn Ballroom because I always loved this place, and I wanted to do it live from here as opposed to any other place,” Patterson says. “And in the audience that night was Johnnie Taylor and Sang’n Clarence.” Most recently, Patterson performed during the Ballroom’s reopening soft launch. On one occasion, walking through the refurbished venue, an employee gestured and called it “Bobby’s House.” “I’ve really been there and done that,” he says. DECEMBER 2023 oakcliff.advocatemag.com

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