Restaurant news for December
Now at bat: City Works
The next restaurant to open at The Shops at Clearfork will no doubt score points with sports-bar fans. City Works Eatery and Pour House, a growing chain specializing in chef-inspired American cuisine and craft beer, will open Dec. 9 in an end-cap spot across from Malai Kitchen. The restaurant’s pride and joy is an extensive beer list made up of nearly 100 drafts. A cool option for the curious or indecisive: You can build your own flights. Nearly half of the beers will be sourced from North Texas breweries, including Fort Worth’s Wild Acre Brewing Co., HopFusion Ale Works, Fort Worth’s Martin House Brewing and Rahr & Sons Brewing Co. and others.
Food will be of the American-with-a-twist variety. Overseen by executive chef Andrew Ehrmantraut (a grad of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Dallas who most recently worked at Bread Winners), the lunch-dinner menu includes items such as duck confit nachos, filet mignon sliders, buttermilk-breaded fried chicken and steak-infused chili. During Sunday brunch, you can try your luck with the Churchill, a 20-ounce Bloody Mary topped with a skewer of grilled shrimp and cubed pepper jack cheese. It comes with a stir-stick made out of — we kid you not — a Slim Jim.
Fort Worth marks the second North Texas stop for City Works; a branch opened in August in Frisco. It’s not a small, intimate place — the restaurant’s 9,000 square feet encompasses a dining room, separate bar and patio area. Sprinkled throughout will be 18 65-inch flat screens.
City Works will hold a soft opening charity event Dec. 8. Cost is $40 per person. Proceeds will go to Cook Children’s Medical Center. 5288 Monahans Ave., Fort Worth. 682-207-1500, cityworksrestaurant.com
A major “scoop”
Three new spots to satisfy your cold-treat cravings:
New in the West Seventh area, the family-owned Chills 360 introduces Fort Worth to the rolled — or Thai-style — ice cream trend. Ice cream mix is poured over an icy cold disc until it freezes, then it gets rolled into cool-looking pinwheels that are then laced with various toppings such as Nutter Butter cookies and red velvet cake. Ice cream comes in cups, cones and — you’re going to need a few napkins for this — taco shells. There’s a bit of showmanship involved, as workers create cute designs with toppings and drizzles. There are also locations in Deep Ellum and Rockwall, with more to come. 1005 Foch St., Fort Worth. 800-771-1617, www.chills360.com
Scheduled to open Dec. 18 at The Shops at Clearfork, Amorino is a gourmet gelato shop with a health-conscious vibe, offering two dozen flavors of gluten-free gelato and fat-free sorbet, all made with 100 percent natural ingredients. The company was founded in France in 2002 and is now more than 150 locations strong. Only 10 locations are in the U.S. and the only other store in Texas exists in Houston. Sorbet and gelato flavors include both typical and unusual, such as salted caramel, passionfruit and Sicilian citrus. Customers can have orders topped with custom-made gelato flowers, made petal by petal in as many flavors as desired. The shop will also serve coffee, waffles, crepes, pastries and nearly a dozen flavors of hot chocolate. 5274 Monahans Ave., Fort Worth, www.amorino.com
A second location of north Fort Worth’s seriously popular Lumi Snow Company will open this month in North Richland Hills. In addition to the pillowy and extravagantly flavored shaved snow the mom-and-pop spot is known for, the new location will serve a bonus goodie: edible cookie dough. 8245 Precinct Line Road, North Richland Hillswww.lumisnow.com
Return flight
Clay Pigeon Food & Drink has introduced a new winter menu and a new chef to execute it. Former Reata chef Andrew Dilda returns to Fort Worth as the executive chef of Marcus Paslay’s fine-dining spot on White Settlement Road. The restaurant’s just-released winter menu includes small plates like PEI Mussels and lobster rolls; entrees such as braised lamb shank and a trio of prime Angus steaks; and the popular CP Burger, now available daily. Dilda returns to Fort Worth after stints in Dallas as the executive chef at Barter and Independent Bar & Kitchen. In addition to being executive chef at Reata, he was also chef de cuisine at Tim Love’s Woodshed Smokehouse. 2731 White Settlement Road, Fort Worth. 817-882-8065, claypigeonfd.com
Americado reborn
“Is Americado open or closed?” you may ask. At the time of this typing, the South Side Mexican restaurant is indeed open. But the sleek spot on Berry Street did, in fact, close for a few days, then reopen with a slimmed-down menu. “We’re focusing on what we do best,” says co-owner Tyler Casey. That means tacos, primarily, of which there are several new varieties. These include the John Wayne, with brisket, onions, mushrooms, guacamole and queso fresco; the El Cri Cri, made with ribeye and cheddar mashed potatoes; and the Frida, stuffed with chicken tenders, buttermilk ranch and slaw. Although the restaurant has discontinued lunch service, weekend brunch remains, starting at 11 a.m. both days, with dishes such as churro French toast, breakfast tacos and huevos divorciados. 2000 W. Berry St., Fort Worth. 817-759-9107, www.americadofw.com
Get your Southern food Fixe
Southern food is a staple of many Tarrant restaurants, but only a few take an upscale approach to it — among them Reata, Buttons and Chef’s Point. Entering the high-end Southern food fray soon will be Fixe, a chef-driven restaurant from Austin.
As the former executive chef at Eddie V’s in the Museum District, Fixe co-owner and chef James Robert has spent plenty of time in Fort Worth. The city’s growing restaurant scene and warm hospitality, he says, make it a perfect fit for the restaurant’s second location.
“There are a lot of similarities between Austin and Fort Worth,” he says. “Fort Worth has a small-town feel with great culture and people, just like Austin.”
Recently named one of OpenTable’s Top 100 restaurants in the U.S., the original location opened in downtown Austin in 2014. With its rustic atmosphere and cutting-edge takes on classic cuisine, Fixe was an immediate hit.
Occupying a 6,100-square-foot space at The Shops at Clearfork, the Fort Worth store will mimic the original, with an open kitchen, antique decor and Southern hospitality-style service. The restaurant will be open initially for happy hour and dinner, then eventually lunch and brunch. .
Dishes will include a beef tartare with crispy oysters, pickled gooseberries, cornmeal pancakes and celery root remoulade; lobster and crawfish pot pie; deviled eggs with smoked trout roe, fermented cabbage and grated ham; and fried chicken served with spicy honey. The must-order dish, Robert says, is a serving of freshly made flaky and buttery biscuits.
“Every single order is cooked to order,” Robert says. “They come straight out of the oven, steam billowing out.” The restaurant will be outfitted with a patio, wine room, bar area and two private dining spaces. It is scheduled to open late January/early February. 5188 Monahans Ave., Fort Worth. fixesouthernhouse.com
Juicy news
After you soldier through one gluttonous holiday feast after another, you’ll definitely need to juice up. You can do just that at the recently opened Clean Juice Bar, another new addition to The Shops at Clearfork. Juices and protein smoothies come in more than a dozen varieties, each made with all-natural, organic ingredients.
Juice flavors include “The Hardcore One,” made with celery, cucumbers, kale, lemons and spinach, and “The Energy One,” a concoction of apples, beets, carrots, celery, ginger and orange. Smoothies are made with ingredients such as almond milk, mangoes, whey protein, cold-brewed coffee and coconut water. A small menu of eats includes acai bowls and avocado toast.
Founded by health nuts Kat and Landon Eckles, the chain began in 2015 in North Carolina and has been growing steadily ever since. There are now locations in Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina, with more planned for California and Colorado. This is the first Texas location. 5233 Marathon Ave., Fort Worth. 682-312-5553, www.cleanjuicebar.com.
Pho all you soup lovers
Just in time for soup season, a new location of House of Pho is now open on Hulen Street. House of Pho’s first location opened two years ago in Burleson and remains incredibly popular, paving the way for co-owners Kenny Nguyen and John Vu to expand with this second venture. Like the original store, the Hulen location touts a dozen varieties of the popular Vietnamese noodle soup, with ingredients ranging from meatballs and steak to the less common tendon. There are also vermicelli bowls, a handful of Thai staples, stir-fry dishes and smoothies with imaginative combinations such as avocado-coconut. A handful of new dishes are exclusive to the Hulen store, including drunken noodles and California spring rolls. 4833 S. Hulen St., Fort Worth, 817-489-5001, House of Pho Hulen on Facebook
Notebook
After winning fans and accolades for its popular supper club events, Magdalena’s Catering & Events is now taking on brunch. Once a month, or thereabouts, chef Juan Rodriguez will create a three- to four-course meal for a limited number of diners at Magdalena’s homebase at 502 Grand Ave. The first event, held last month, featured quail egg sopes; a frittata with chorizo, bell peppers and lemon garlic aioli; and a Mexican chocolate tart. Cost is $40 per person. Sign up online for notifications about future events. 502 Grand Ave., Fort Worth. 817-740-8085, www.magdalenastx.com
Downtown fine dining spot Grace recently introduced a new vegetarian tasting menu. Selections on the eight-course menu will rotate on-and-off per season or at the whim of chef Blaine Staniford. Currently the menu includes avocado toast with housemade sauerkraut, mushroom dashi broth with kombu and black garlic, chickpea panissa and smoked potato tortellini, among other selections. Cost is $69 for food only; an additional $60 will get you wine pairings with each course. 777 Main St., Fort Worth. 817-877-3388, gracefortworth.com
Piattello Italian Kitchen has introduced a new express lunch for $20. Choose a salad or soup and pasta or sandwich, plus a pastry to-go. Considering that most of Piattello’s entrees hover in the double-digit range, this is a very good deal. 5924 Convair Drive, Fort Worth. 817-349-0484, piattelloitaliankitchen.com
Fort Worth native and food news reporter Malcolm Mayhew has been writing about his city for 25 years.
This story was originally published December 7, 2017 at 10:49 AM with the headline "Restaurant news for December."