Dallas’ 5 Best New Bar Openings — From Creative Cocktails to Mexican Wine and Great Bites

Earlier this year, Saint Valentine‘s Gabe Sanchez and Ryan Payne reopened the acclaimed Black Swan Saloon — which closed in Deep Ellum in 2020 — in East Dallas. In the former Fiction Coffee space, Sanchez and Payne (along with Brian Rutt and Pasha Heidari) have brought the iconic bar back to life.

The cocktail menu is divided into three sections: House, Black Swan Classics, and Boiler Makers. House cocktails feature everything from a Three Eyed Swan cold brew-based drink to the Vampire of Barcelona with Wild Turkey rye. The Classics include more fruit-infused cocktails like the Pineapple Get Down and Peach Old Fashioned.

Co-founders of Vinito, the first Mexican Wine shop in Bishop Arts, Arturo Flores and Eduardo Mendoza have just debuted a new wine bar and cocktail lounge. The menu offers various glasses and bottles of Mexican wines, as well as a cocktail menu featuring seven different drinks.

Guests will currently find a horchata martini, Paloma Negra, and carajillo de olla on the cocktail list. Valle also offers a Santitos Michelada with your choice of beer.

This new Fair Park bar comes from Ryan Victor and Lauren Walhstrom. It opened in the former Pizza Lounge space in Exposition Park. Both owners formerly worked at nearby Las Almas Rotas — one of Dallas’ best mezcal bars. The new spot features a cocktail program, beer, wine, and food from chef Josh Harmon (Victory Social).

Current house cocktails range from the She So Miso — a Suntory Whisky Toki-based drink with shishito miso honey, lemon, and Topo Chico — to a cacio e pepe martini. This spot also offers great food including sliders, fish sticks, deviled eggs, and sandwiches.

Just opened in Uptown, Thomas Avenue Beverage Company was revived by Eddie “Lucky” Campbell (known for The Standard Pour and Parliament). Originally opened in 1995, Thomas Avenue Beverage Company was a Dallas staple until it closed in 2013. The century-old building has been revamped to house the new upscale neighborhood bar of the same name. Led by Chef Nathan Edwards, the food menu features flatbreads, a petite filet, shrimp pasta, blue cheese chips, and more.

The cocktail menu features a black cherry sangria, a twist on Mi Cocina’s iconic Mambo Taxi called the Meringue Rideshare, a smoked buttered apple Old Fashioned, and more creative drinks.

This Irish pub has been a staple on Dallas’ Henderson Avenue since 1998. Now, you can visit its brand-new second location in Oak Cliff. The exterior of the new spot was made to look similar to the original, and the menu features all of the favorites like the Irish Old Fashioned, espresso martini, and extensive beer list.

A food menu including The Old Monk’s signature fish and chips, German plate, Monk burger, and more is also available.