Coming Soon Here is this month’s crop of soon-to-open and recently opened eateries. BY ROBERT PHILPOT
June promises a lot of returns in the North Texas restaurant scene –– of local chefs, burger joints, seafood joints that have become burger joints, and more. We’ve also dug up news on some long-awaited restaurants that have opened in the past few weeks.
Bistro 1031
109 Front St, Aledo Chef Steve Mitchell has a long history in Fort Worth and North Texas, with stops at Lucile’s Stateside Bistro, Fuzzy’s, Yucatan Taco Stand, his own M Bistro, and more. He’s the owner and executive chef at this Aledo spot, which he’s been working on for a while. A menu posted on Facebook includes salads, sandwiches, and such dinner entrees as chicken-fried rib-eye, chicken chardonnay, and “angry lobster & pasta.” Beer, wine, and cocktails will be available. An early June opening is likely.
Dive Burger Bar
3520 Alta Mere Dr, 817-560-3483 When Dive Oyster Bar was open, one of its most critically lauded menu items was the burger. Then Dive closed back in November. The burgers are coming back, with an expanded menu that makes room for such items as a “taco burger” (served on a flour tortilla) as well as some more traditional offerings, including a Western version (with barbecue sauce), a California burger (topped with guacamole), and a mushroom burger.
Funky Picnic Brewery & Café
401 Bryan Av, Ste 107, 817-708-2739 South Main Village is already home to HopFusion Ale Works and The Collective Brewing Project. Funky Picnic Brewery & Café expects to join them with a June 26 opening, followed by a grand opening in July. Cofounders Samantha Glenn, Jerri Hanley, John Koch, and Collin Zreet all come from home-brewing backgrounds. The “Café” part of the name is key –– in addition to being a brewery, this will be a restaurant, with appetizers and “artisan” sandwiches and desserts, as well as some beer-infused items, such as beer-bacon jam. Josh Rangel, whose resume includes the aforementioned Dive Oyster Bar as well as Cru Food & Wine Bar, HG Sply Co., and more, will be chef/manager. As for the beers, head brewer Michael Harper, who has worked at numerous North Texas breweries, including Fort Worth’s Panther Island Brewing, said Funky Picnic
Derek Allan’s Texas BBQ is up and running, serving its signature wagyu brisket. will boast 15 taps, with all but three reserved for the brewery’s originals. Example: a saison-triple hybrid with prickly pear, agave nectar, and pink peppercorns. But if you just want a simple pilsner, you can order that, too. Wine, coffee, and kombucha will also be available.
Monkey King Noodle Co.
3000 Crockett St, 817-885-7331 The good news is that this Deep Ellum Chinese food favorite is adding a Fort Worth location, replacing the departed Rollin’ n Bowlin’ smoothie/ bowl bar at the Food Hall at Crockett Row. The bad news is that, because of space limitations, Monkey King won’t be doing the hand-pulled noodles that helped give [it] its name. The stall will put the emphasis on dumplings, which are also good, with some soups and sides as well.
The Original Chop House Burgers
2502 Little Rd, Arl, 817-253-8228 For a while there, local food writers didn’t have to emphasize that there’s a difference between Chop House Burger, the Dallas-based chain, and Chop House Burgers, Kenny Mills’ note-theplural indie in Arlington. When Mills was at the
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helm, the burger joint earned a spot on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. He was no longer associated with the place when it closed in July 2018, but he is bringing it back with a June 3 opening in a new location, adding Original to the name to help alleviate some confusion. Some Googling reveals that it will be in the former home of the underappreciated burger spot Herbie’s and, before that, a location of Jambo’s BBQ Shack.
Saigon Fusion Vietnamese Street Food
242 Rufe Snow Dr, Keller Expected to open in early June, Saigon Fusion’s full name is semi-self-explanatory, but some items on a preliminary menu look like they go a little beyond street food, with items like seafood crispy noodles and prawn with lotus seeds and fried rice. The restaurant looks relatively small, but its menu of soups, noodle[s], and rice dishes looks inventive and ambitious. It will anchor the north end of a strip shopping center near Keller Town Center that is already home to locations of Sunny Street Café, Nestle’s Toll House by Chip, Rush Bowls, and Frio’s Gourmet Pops –– all of which opened during the past several months.
June 2019
