Here’s the new brunch in town: chicken-and-waffles and more from chef Keith Hicks
Fort Worth needed a new brunch hangout.
So we’re getting at least seven.
The Lot 12 TCU sports grill and Poop Deck Bar & Grill opened first, followed last week by The Rim Scratch Craft Eats and the new brunch menu at Fireside Pies.
This week, Maria’s Mexican Kitchen and Roy Pope Grocery are open, to be followed later this month by the return of Cafe Modern.
The Rim, 5912 Convair Drive, might be the sleeper on the list.
Chef Keith Hicks’ brunch menu was considered one of the two or three best in town when he was at now-gone Ovation and Buttons.
“I’m back home,” Hicks said last week as crowds gradually filled the tree-lined patio at the Grove at Waterside.
He’s best known for the original local chicken-and-waffles, served at the Rim ($18) with a breast as big as the waffle and a side of collard greens.
He describes his menu as “not soul food, but food with soul.” (He plans to add more lighter items.)
Hicks and Rim owner Brent Johnson (Rio Mambo) launched the first Rim in Burleson with mixed results.
It originally came off as a sports grill, but diners have grown fond of the lunch and dinner pot roast, shrimp po-boys and “Fred Flintstone” 2-pound braised beef rib.
The new Rim takes an anchor space in Waterside, replacing Taco Diner with a much more fun atmosphere and a wide-ranging menu for couples going out or for families while children play in the Grove.
At brunch, the stuffed French toast ($10) is loaded with cream cheese and a berry coulis. Match it with eggs, sausage links and a giant biscuit with beef gravy (platter, $12).
There’s also a bacon-and-eggs breakfast ($12) with a waffle or French toast and a choice of omelets ($10-$120.
Choose from either avocado toast ($9) or “drunken” wild mushroom toast ($10).
“People come for catfish,” Hicks said. “Nowhere else in this neighborhood has such a wide variety. The people who come in here want a little bit of everything.”
The Rim is open for lunch or brunch and dinner daily.
It’s in Waterside, in southwest Fort Worth off Bryant Irvin Road about a mile from the Shops at Clearfork; 817-663-2950, facebook.com/therimwaterside.
More new openings
▪ Maria’s Mexican Kitchen, covered in a past Eats Beat, was scheduled to open Monday at 1712 S. University Drive; 817-916-0550, facebook.com/mariasmexicantx.
▪ Roy Pope Grocery, which includes a hot food counter, sandwiches, grab-and-go dinners and morning coffee, pastries and breakfast tacos, was scheduled to re-open Tuesday at 2300 Merrick St., facebook.com/roypopegrocery.
▪ Also scheduled to open this week: The Original del Norte, a north side location of the 91-year-old west side restaurant, at 1400 N. Main St.; originalmexcafe.com/del-norte-menu.
This story was originally published May 10, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
