In downtown Carrollton, a pizza shop, a brewery and an ice cream shop have joined forces to survive the pandemic. Starting this weekend, neighboring businesses Cane Rosso, 3 Nations Brewing and Cow Tipping Creamery are sharing a patio known as “Carrollton Corner o’ Fun.”
Jay Jerrier, who will soon open his eighth Cane Rosso restaurant in Arlington and also owns Cow Tipping Creamery, says this plan was in the works months before the pandemic. But this week, he had all hands on deck to get this huge patio in Carrollton ready for the weekend.
“We knew we wanted to find a way to better use that corner in Carrollton,” Jerrier says. “But when 3 Nations finally opened, it became a huge draw in this part of town. And with the coronavirus, outdoor seating is at a premium right now. Hopefully this will help us with food sales and help them with beer sales.”
Getting the huge open patio on the south side of the ice cream store open with a quick and easy menu is Phase One. Expect personal pizzas of Cane Rosso favorites like Honey Bastard and Jabroni, as well as salads and soft serve. The patio is also BYOB, but there will, of course, be plenty of fresh brew from 3 Nations, which will use touchless QR code menus.
But Jerrier has more plans in mind for this patio.
“We want to do ghost kitchens and pop-up kitchens,” he says. This will mean limited runs of burgers, chicken tenders and stromboli from accomplished chefs. Jerrier also hopes to eventually solve his “hoagie roll dilemma” and have a pop-up Philadelphia style sandwich shop.
“Nobody will bake the bread I want here in Dallas,” he explains. “They just try to sell me the bread they have. It needs to be steam injected and cooked on a deck with lots of sesame seeds.”
Jerrier says his urban restaurants have been doing pretty well during the pandemic, but his suburban locations have struggled.
“It changes every day,” he says. “But there are lots of families around our suburban locations and they are quadruple cautious about everything. Closer to the urban core, people maybe without families were a little more willing to go out.”
He says you can expect employees with masks and gloves, as well as “sanitation ninjas” at the corner in Carrollton this weekend. “It’s for sure cleaner than my house,” Jerrier says. “Every time someone touches a door handle or leaves a table, we swoop in and start wiping it down.”
Carrollton Corner o’ Fun, at 1301 S. Broadway Street, Carrollton, operates Friday through Sunday, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. canerosso.com/carrollton.
