Dallas’ most heartbreaking restaurant closures of 2021

We got the bad news a year into the coronavirus pandemic: 2,500 restaurants in North Texas closed because of economic challenges. That was 18% of the restaurants in our region. Although the numbers were devastating, they were better than the projection, which was that 30% of restaurants in Texas would fail.

Some nine months after that anniversary, some restaurant operators in Dallas-Fort Worth report that they’ve bounced back. But others didn’t. The proprietor of Trinity Hall, an Irish pub, hoped for Restaurant Revitalization Fund money that didn’t come. The owner of Luna’s Tortillas says he’d rather focus on his nearly 100-year-old tortilla-making business than run a restaurant that struggled to find enough customers in uncertain times.

Still others were plagued by problems that had nothing to do with the spread of a virus. In Oak Cliff, two bars will be bulldozed to make room for an apartment complex. On the outskirts of Deep Ellum, the owner of the 66-year-old Mac’s Bar-B-Que decided 2021 was the year to finally retire.

Let’s take a moment of silence for all the restaurants in Dallas-Fort Worth that closed in 2021.

Restaurant closures listed in chronological order.

Carlo’s Bakery in Dallas: The shop made famous by Cake Boss celebrity bakery Buddy Valastro closed in Dallas in late 2020, and we were all so wrapped up in other things that it didn’t go reported until early 2021. It was an anticlimactic end for a brand that once enticed Texans to stand in line for 18 hours.

Luby’s in North Texas: Since news landed in February 2021 that “liquidation is imminent” for Luby’s, most of the cafeterias in Dallas-Fort Worth are gone by now. A few still remain in Dallas, DeSoto, Fort Worth and Plano. The only remaining Fuddruckers restaurant in D-FW — in Rockwall — closed this year, too.

The Ginger Man in Uptown Dallas: A bulldozer made swift work of the Ginger Man, the pub that had more beers on tap than we’d ever seen, crammed onto the wall behind the bar. It opened in the early ‘90s. The property will be built upon someday, as part of the Quandrangle redo across the street.

Zoës Kitchens in North Texas: The operators of the Mediterranean-inflected Cava brand purchased Plano-based Zoës in 2018 and are swiftly replacing many of the existing restaurants in 2021. Many of the existing Zoës Kitchens in North Texas will become a restaurant named Cava — if they haven’t already.

Kozy Kitchen in Dallas: Regulars loved Kozy Kitchen for its gluten-free and other health-forward options, available for 16 years on McKinney Avenue. But the past few years have been tumultuous after it moved to Lakewood, then uprooted to Uptown. The restaurant closed after Mother’s Day 2021.

Royal Blue Grocery in Dallas: The market in Highland Park Village closed for good and will be replaced with a brunch spot from New York City named Sadelle’s. The other Royal Blues, in downtown Dallas and in Oak Cliff, took on the name Berkley’s Market.

Wild About Harry’s in Dallas: The custard shop that attracted Troy Aikman, Ross Perot, Tom Landry and T. Boone Pickens closed after 25 years in business on July 4, 2021. Namesake Harry Mead Coley Jr. died in 2014, and the family continued selling custard and hot dogs in his honor, though they were forced to move the business twice in three years. “There is nowhere to go,” said Sydney Coley-Berglund, daughter of the late founder, in summer 2021.

Mac’s Bar-B-Que in Dallas: Pour one out for Mac’s, the 66-year-old restaurant on the fringes of Deep Ellum that smoked meat before smoked meat was cool. The McDonald family had operated the restaurant at three Dallas addresses for owner Billy McDonald’s entire life.

Oak in the Dallas Design District: For a time, Oak was one of the best restaurants in the city. It was a revolving door for talented chefs and an alluring incubator for fine dining. But the neighborhood changed in the decade it was open, and Oak hadn’t grown with it, says owner Richard Ellman. It’s now Wits, a steakhouse with sushi.

Revolver Taco Lounge in Fort Worth: After two months open in Fort Worth’s Sundance Square, Revolver Taco Lounge closed. How could this happen — especially since Cowtown was Revolver’s original home? The owner says he’s now focused on Dallas.

Legends Diner in Denton: Those outside of the Denton area might not have even heard of Legends Diner until it made national news. Its owners threatened to charge customers a $50 fee if they complained about wearing masks. Then, just five months later, the owners announced Legends’ closure, saying they didn’t want to suffer through another season of the coronavirus pandemic. The news of this tiny diner’s rise to fame was one of The Dallas Morning News’ most popular food-news stories of the year.

Trinity Hall in Dallas: After nearly 20 years of serving whiskey, beer and Irish food, Trinity Hall pub closed in Dallas’ Mockingbird Station. Proprietor Marius Hall counts it as 19 years, because the pub was closed for nearly an entire calendar year — and for two St. Patrick’s Days — during the pandemic. His goodbye story is a heartbreaker.

Sweet Daze in Richardson: One of D-FW’s most inventive dessert shops, Sweet Daze, closed in September 2021. Owner Holly Nguyen started the business when she was just 24 years old. “As a young, minority woman, no one would let me have a lease, with no experience,” she told The News. Her business soared in Richardson for four years, but those years of making intricate cakes, doughnuts and ice creams were challenging with a small staff, Nguyen says.

Cosmic Cafe in Dallas: After 26 years of serving vegetarian food on Oak Lawn Avenue in Dallas, the owners of Cosmic Cafe quit the restaurant business. The building is now a meditation room.

Luna’s Tortillas y Hacienda in Dallas: On Halloween, Fernando Luna closed his family restaurant near the Medical District in Dallas, saying that the coronavirus pandemic really hurt his business. But, some good news: They’re still running their decades-old tortilla factory. “There’s no way I’m going to let this die out two years from hitting 100 years,” Luna tells The News.

Bavarian Grill in Plano: Hear this: Beloved German restaurant Bavarian Grill in Plano is not closing permanently. It’s just closing and moving a half-mile away.

Metropolitan Cafe in downtown Dallas: This welcoming cafe was popular among lawyers, law students and downtown Dallas commuters. Michael Vouras and his family ran it for 20 years. “I don’t feel like I’m losing customers. I feel like I’m losing about a thousand good friends,” he said.

The Local Oak and Ten Bells Tavern, both in Oak Cliff: The operators of these bars didn’t have a choice: A developer is razing their properties and building a $43 million apartment complex. Ten Bells will relocate. The Local Oak will not.

Taco Diner in Dallas’ West Village: Taco Diner closed in September 2021, about six months before sibling restaurant Mi Cocina is expected to close. Other Taco Diners closed in D-FW as well this year, including Irving and Fort Worth. But don’t cry into your margarita just yet: Some of Taco Diner’s favorites are sold at La Parada, the grab-and-go section on the back of the new Mi Cocina restaurant at Klyde Warren Park.

Update on Jan. 5, 2022: Mi Cocina in West Village was expected to close at the end of 2021, but a spokeswoman says it will remain open until February 2022. After that, it’ll move and reopen a few blocks south on McKinney Avenue, still in Uptown Dallas.

Fred’s Texas Cafe in Fort Worth: The original Fred’s — the one with those iconic yellow bar stools and the glittery, gold booths — is closing after 43 years. Get there by New Year’s Eve to toast with a burger and a beer.

And a fleet of Deep Ellum bars: Hide closed in 2021 and is relocating to Dallas’ Greenville Avenue. The bar we called an “old soul” in Deep Ellum, Anvil Pub, closed on Halloween. And then BrainDead Brewing served its last beers in late November 2021.

• Other notable closures in 2021: TNT/Tacos and Tequila closed in the Quadrangle; Dream Cafe left the Quadrangle after 33 years (though it relocated nearby, on McKinney Avenue); Cafe Gecko closed in Addison after 30 years (but will relocate to downtown Plano soon); and Jonathon’s Oak Cliff called it quits in the Bishop Arts District (but has plans to reopen in the old Kel’s diner in North Dallas). Plus: Lada in Richardson closed; so did Nick & Sam’s Grille Park Cities; Snowbaby and Lakewood Smokehouse, both in Lakewood; Burguesa Burger in Oak Cliff; Berry Street Ice House in Fort Worth; and Jasper’s and Del Frisco’s Grille in Uptown Dallas.
• Temporary closures: Heim Barbecue in Dallas (near Love Field Airport) remains closed after a fire; and Gigi’s Cupcakes on Lovers Lane in Dallas is not open after a car drove into the bakery.

For more food news, follow Sarah Blaskovich on Twitter at @sblaskovich.