New Southlake restaurant plans approved

"There are still going to be times of year that patio on the west elevation will be less in demand," Bliss said.

Another patio will be on the second floor. Bliss will return to the council later with more specific plans for the patios.

Joining inside and out

He said the first-floor patio will be placed close to the sidewalk intentionally, "to activate that sidewalk, have the people at the restaurant be part of that sidewalk."

David Schwarz of David Schwarz Architects — who designed much of Southlake Town Square, Bass Hall in Fort Worth and the Ballpark in Arlington — is the architect on the restaurant project.

Bill Martens of Del Frisco's said the new Grille will be a "home base" and a training restaurant for the company, which also owns Double Eagle Steak Houses and Sullivan's Steakhouses.

He described the grille concept as upscale casual compared to the others, which are fine dining restaurants. One focus will be on wine — some of the grilles have as many as 2,500 bottles in storage, Martens said.

Menu items include everything from pimento cheese fritters to filet mignon.

The Southlake restaurant, due to open by the holiday season this year, will be the seventh grille for Del Frisco's, which has a total of 35 restaurants in 19 states, Martens said.

Construction is likely to start in May, Bliss said.

He noted that his former business partner, Brian Stebbins — who created Town Square — saw beyond the first stages of the development from the beginning.

"The beauty of the plan Brian came up with is its ability to evolve over time," Bliss told the council.

Stebbins died last year, leaving his vision as a legacy.