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Looking for something new to try in the Dallas-Fort Worth area? Community Impact highlights new or upcoming businesses weekly, along with other restaurant spotlights.
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1. Utsav Indian Cuisine & Bar opens new Frisco restaurant
Utsav Indian Cuisine & Bar has opened a new restaurant in Frisco.
The restaurant opened its doors Aug. 14 and offers south and north Indian cuisine, featuring kebabs, fried rice and noodle dishes, biryani dishes, vegetarian and non-vegetarian curry dishes, soups and mandis. The restaurant also features a full-service bar and lounge, serving specialty cocktails and beers.
The Frisco location marks Utsav Indian Cuisine & Bar’s second operating restaurant in North Texas, with a Coppell location open since May.
2. Gourmet grilled cheese now available at Plano’s Legacy Hall
The Cheese Lab had its soft opening in late June at Legacy Hall in Plano.
The Cheese Lab offers a variety of sandwich melts, biscuits, bagels and burritos. The restaurant takes familiar classics and blends it with inventive recipes, according to its website.
Some of its sandwiches include the American Classic Melty, made with sharp cheddar, Monterrey Jack and provolone cheese on sourdough bread, and the Nashville Smokehouse Melty, which comes with slow-smoked brisket in barbecue sauce.
The Cheese Lab opened its first location in downtown Nashville in April 2024, according to a news release. Its Legacy Hall location in Plano is its second location and its first Texas location.
Coming soon
3. Cookie Society to offer gourmet cookies, desserts in Richardson
Dessert shop Cookie Society is coming soon to Richardson, owner Jeff Allen confirmed in an email.
Allen said the new location will “offer the full Cookie Society experience,” including the shop’s freshly-baked classic cookies, monthly rotating flavors and other dessert favorites like brownies and oatmeal cream pies.
“We’re especially excited about this location because it gives us an opportunity to serve the Richardson community, UTD students and staff and the surrounding neighborhoods,” Allen said. “Cookie Society is a family business here in North Texas, so continuing to grow throughout DFW is always special for us.”
Cookie Society currently operates locations in Prosper, Frisco, Southlake, Addison and Mansfield, and Allen said the Richardson location aims to open later this year.
4. Panda Express to offer orange chicken, more in Denton
Denton could be getting a new Panda Express.
A new Panda Express location could be constructed on Randall Street, according to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
The construction is estimated to be about $2 million and is projected to start in June next year and be completed in 2028. The location will be 2,700 square feet and feature a drive through service, according to project details.
Panda Express, a fast casual Chinese restaurant, offers orange chicken, broccoli beef, honey walnut shrimp and more.
5. Burger King's Sizzle coming to Grapevine early next year
Burger King’s new Sizzle location in Grapevine is planned for an early 2027 opening after gaining council approval last year.
The new Sizzle locations feature an upgraded interior and exterior, including expanded drive-thru lanes, digital ordering kiosks and clearly defined mobile order pickup locations. The menu will be similar to existing Burger King locations, according to previous reporting.
“This is all part of our larger Reclaim the Flame plan and goal to have most Burger King restaurants across the U.S. with a modern image by 2028,” spokesperson Trae Martino said in an email.
Besides goals to better accommodate modern consumers, the new location will also feature “bold, modern” aesthetic changes like wood and bright colors as well as “the King Booth and Home of the Whopper wall,” Martino said.
While an exact opening still remains dependent on construction, the early 2027 goal is still the current plan.
6. Celina Star Cafe owner to open brunch restaurant on Preston Road
Toni Mehmedi, the owner of Celina Star Cafe, is planning a new restaurant called Brunch Factory, he said.
The restaurant will be located off Preston Road in the Celina West shopping development and is targeting an early 2027 opening date, he said.
Brunch Factory will offer an “upscale” breakfast and lunch experience, Mehmedi said.
Although the exact concept for the restaurant is still in the works, diners can expect elevated versions of traditional brunch food, he said.
