Here's a look at new Dallas/Fort Worth eateries, drinking spots, hotels, conference areas, private rooms, and other spaces to open for events this summer. The new and renovated Dallas/Fort Worth venues are available for corporate parties, weddings, fund-raisers, outdoor functions, business dinners, teambuilding activities, conferences, meetings, and more.
The Dallas suburb of Lewisville saw the addition of Prohibition Chicken in April. The restaurant raises its own chickens, which are prepared in a variety of ways on the home-style menu. The 2,200-square-foot venue seats 130 in the main dining room and 20 at the U-shaped bar. An outdoor patio offers seating for an additional 50 guests. Attention-grabbing details like a biscuit bar, an open-air green space, and a hidden speakeasy make the space unique. The restaurant also is sound-wired for live music, a feature that planners can use for events.
Located in Dallas’s Deep Ellum neighborhood, IdleRye opened its doors in May. The modern American restaurant focuses on rich and shareable dishes like house-made pastas, crispy gulf shrimp, and a selection of cheeses and sausages. The decor features touches like Edison lighting fixtures and galvanized metals, and a flexible layout allows the restaurant to be configured on an event-by-event basis. The restaurant measures 3,400 square feet, with a 900-square-foot patio. Planners can reserve full buyouts for a maximum of 132 seated guests, or opt to hold smaller events outside or inside.
Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House opened its 13th location in May at Legacy West in Plano, a city that sits 20 miles northeast of downtown Dallas. The American steakhouse offers a menu with standout dishes like dry-aged steaks, wet-aged filets, foie gras, and broiled lobster tail; an extensive wine list features more than 1,000 labels. With seating for 446 guests, the 14,000-square-foot bi-level restaurant includes two bars, five dining areas, four private rooms, a 9,000-bottle wine wall, and an outdoor patio.
Water Grill opened an outpost in Uptown Dallas in January. As its name implies, the menu is seafood-centric, with dishes like jumbo stone crab claws, Atlantic cod tacos, tuna poke, and PEI mussels. Striking interior elements include an exhibition kitchen, seawater tanks with live shellfish, and reclaimed locally sourced wood. The main restaurant spans 7,500 square feet, with space for as many as 228 seated guests. A private dining room in the working wine cellar seats 16, and a 2,000-square-foot outdoor patio accommodates as many as 125 guests for cocktail parties or 50 for seated events.
Deep Ellum’s BrainDead Brewing added 1,200 square feet to its brewery in April. The new space is available for mixed receptions for 40 guests or seated meals for as many as 15. For reception-style events, the 5,283-square-foot main pub accommodates 175 guests, the patio has room for 225, and the cellar fits 45. To accompany the house-brewed beer, a seasonal food menu focuses on smoked and cured meats as well as vegetarian fare. The space is set up for live music inside and outside.
CiboDivino Marketplace in Oak Cliff completed a renovation in May, adding an al fresco Italian garden to the Italian farmhouse-inspired space. The outdoor area now features updated decor like curtains, twinkling lights, bushes, and planted herbs lining the perimeter of the space. Planners can utilize the new space for groups of as many as 55 seated or 85 cocktail style. Inside, patrons can roam between the on-site pizzeria, craft beer bar, café, and other culinary offerings. For buyouts, the 4,400-square-foot CiboDivino accommodates as many as 130 seated or 170 cocktail style.
Farm-to-table eatery Green House Market in Uptown Dallas renovated in April. New, modern design elements include a curated contemporary art program, custom-painted lighting, and a site-specific floor mural. The entire venue measures 5,000 square feet, including a 1,000-square-foot bar area that lends itself to cocktail receptions for as many as 70 people. In total, the restaurant seats 150. The menu uses locally sourced ingredients in healthy fare like brown rice stir-fry and grilled gulf shrimp.
In April, Nazca Kitchen opened a second Dallas-area location, this time in West Village. Rooted in South American culture and cuisine, the restaurant aims to bring people together to celebrate through food. The menu includes dishes such as Argentine-style steak sandwiches, Chilean-spiced shrimp, and rum-bread pudding. The 4,000-square-foot venue seats 90 downstairs and includes a 650-square-foot mezzanine that seats as many as 40 guests or accommodates as many as 60 reception style. An 850-square-foot patio also seats 36. Colorful accents and ample natural light complement the industrial design.
In January, Deep Ellum welcomed Hide, an upscale yet relaxed cocktail bar. In addition to a menu of elevated bar food like steak frites and sourdough toasts, the venue offers a unique beverage program: custom drinks can be invented for specific groups and even garnished with corporate logos. The 2,375-square-foot space can accommodate 125 guests reception style. An 800-square-foot patio can seat an additional 40 or hold 80 for receptions. The space is equipped with surround sound and two 108-inch high-definition TV screens.
Chicken Moto, a full-service Korean-inspired fried chicken restaurant, opened in February in Richardson. The straightforward menu includes chicken with glaze options like soy ginger or sweet and spicy chili, corn on the cob with Korean spicy mayo, and curry fries. The bar and eatery, which spans 3,500 square feet, seats 100 people. Housed in a former auto repair shop, the decor pays homage to motorcycle culture.
