Burgers and ice cream with Asian twists are on their way to Keller
Nothing is more American than a burger and a cool serving of ice cream. But, two restaurants headed to Keller have reinvented those culinary favorites with an Asian flare.
LA Burger puts a Korean twist on a classic burger, while Sno DASH hopes to scoop up a loyal following with its Thai-influenced ice cream.
Jon Lee and his brother Ben are bringing their Irving-based LA Burger fast-casual restaurant to 1540 Keller Pkwy., the former home of Tacos y Mas. It is next to the Snooty Pig Cafe.
Sno DASH creator Lan Nguyen will open her fifth shop and first Texas location in Keller, at 801 S. Main, next to the No Frills Grill.
Mom’s recipes give burgers a twist
The brothers moved to Texas from Los Angeles after serving in the U.S. Air Force and started the LA Burger concept in Irving in 2011. Their other locations are in West Plano, Carrollton and Richardson.
“Our first four locations were in the Dallas region and after pulling several surveys, we found many our fans were from the Fort Worth Area (Keller, Arlington, North Richland Hills),” Lee said. “We felt that now is the time to move towards the Westside.”
The Keller location will be the first in Tarrant County and Lee said they are doing their best to open in mid January.
Lee said LA Burger is “not your average burger joint.”
“We wanted to integrate background (they are L.A. natives) and a piece of our culture into the business because that’s a big part of who we are; hence, we have L.A. Burger which offers the best from the west, while highlight the Asian flare,” Lee said.
They trusted their palettes and used their mother’s Korean recipes to create their burgers.
By thinking outside the box, LA Burger brings “unique flavors such as kimchi, wasabi, teriyaki, sriracha to name a few and marry them with the classic burger,” Lee said.
One of the signature burgers is the K TOWN, with kimchi, jalapeños, American cheese and an egg.
Each restaurant has a “unique burger that reflects the community where it is located,” Lee said.
He said he is still trying to decide on a burger unique to Keller to add to its menu.
Rolled ice cream means limitless flavors
Nguyen, a young mother from Dothan, Alabama, opened her first Sno DASH location there in June.
“I’m a single mom in my early 30s and started Sno DASH in order to spend more time with my 2-year-old son, whose name is Danial Dash Nguyen,” she said. “I thought he’d enjoy being at an ice cream shop.”
“I came up with the idea to open Sno DASH after seeing it for the first time a few years back in New York,” she said.
The Keller location will be her first in Texas. The location is not a franchise, she said, and will be owned and operated by her childhood friend, Vy Keang and her husband, Jason.
“This concept originated in Thailand so I thought it would be something fun and interesting to bring to Alabama since I was looking to go into business for myself,” Nguyen said.
Sno Dash’s product is all hand-rolled, custom-made ice cream.
“We make it right in front of them to watch after the customer customizes their order,” Nguyen said.
The Keller store is in the finishing stages of buildout and already has signage. Nguyen said no opening date has been set yet.
Staff writer Alice Murray contributed to this report.
This story was originally published December 29, 2017 at 12:49 PM with the headline "Burgers and ice cream with Asian twists are on their way to Keller."