Upscale Mexican restaurant Don Artemio - a 2023 James Beard finalist, I’d like to remind you - is celebrating the life and mystique of Mexican cantinas this month with an event dubbed Festival de Cantina. Running now through November 22, the celebration pays homage to Mexican cantinas of the 1800s and those who populated them. To mark the occasion, restaurant chef Sergio Remolina has developed a special food menu, with dishes such as a fideo taco with avocado puree and goat cheese mousse; a shrimp cocktail spiked with octopus; and, for dessert, a buñuelo with mezcal syrup and sesame ice cream. Likewise, mixologist Pamela Moncrief has created several cocktails, along with a mezcal tasting board that comes with housemade potato chips and salsa. 3268 West Seventh St. donartemio.us
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A new doughnut shop has opened on the east side, in the cool, old bungalow recently vacated by La Onda. This isn’t your ordinary doughnut shop. Dough’d Up owner Madyson Foy makes her doughnuts with your health and waistlines in mind. The flavors SOUND like they’d be packed with sugar: cookie butter cheesecake, peanut butter white chocolate, cookies and cream. But she and partner Payden McVea use sugar free ingredients, oat milk, and gluten-free oats, in an effort to be more health aware. The couple also make their own cookie dough, in flavors such as Brownie Batter and Cake Pop, utilizing similar health-conscious ingredients. Dough’d Up started out as a mail-order and delivery business; their brick-and-mortar opened in October. 2905 Race St., doughdup.com
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A big name in barbecue is coming to Fort Worth. Terry Black’s Barbecue is opening a location at 2926 West Seventh St. It’ll be built from the ground up (the Wendy’s that occupies that space has already been bulldozed) to the tune of $6 million, according to the Star-Telegram. It’ll mirror the Deep Ellum location – massive in size, 6,400 square feet says the Star-T, and open for lunch and dinner. Terry Black’s comes from the same family that opened Black’s Barbecue in Lockhart nearly 100 years ago, and even though Terry broke away from the family, his restaurants (there are also stores in Austin and Lockhart) offer the same high-quality, Central Texas-style ‘cue for which Black’s is known. The Fort Worth store is slated to open by next fall. terryblacksbbq.com
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Asian dumplings are the star of Teddy Wong’s Dumplings & Wine, a classy new restaurant on the Near Southside. A project between Dallas-based dumpling chef Patrick Ru and local hospitality entrepreneur Jeffrey Yarbrough, Teddy Wongs takes over the old Le’s Wok spot on West Rosedale. The space has been given a beautiful makeover: Dining room tables are set with sparkling stemware and black tablecloths, and a new wine bar has been built, offering more than 80 wines and a half-dozen sakes. The food menu offers a variety of dumplings, including crab and pork soup dumplings, hot oil wantons, chicken and celery dumplings and shrimp har gow. Other dishes include an excellent spicy cucumber salad, scallion pancakes, and several Chinese classics, from orange chicken to kung pao chicken. Peking duck is also available, in limited supply. Teddy Wong’s is also home to a small market, called Bushi Bushi, that sells frozen dumplings to go, along with beer and wine. 812 West Rosedale St., teddywongs.com
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Plank Seafood Provisions, a raw oyster bar and wood-fire seafood grill, has opened in The Shops at Clearfork. A chain based out of Nebraska, Plank comes from the same restaurant group behind Blue Sushi, so take that for what it’s worth. The menu includes raw and chilled oysters, beignet-style hushpuppies, clam chowder, a seafood tower, and entrees of salmon, scallops, ahi tuna, flounder, and redfish. 5289 Marathon Ave., plankseafood.com