Tusk & Trotter American Brasserie, 110 S.E. A St., Bentonville, announced Friday that it is opening a second central Arkansas location in "spring 2020," in the still-under-construction First Orion building, 500 block of Main Street, in North Little Rock's downtown Argenta District and part of the Argenta Plaza development. We're still chasing down the details, but Rob Nelson, owner and executive chef, plans to offer the same kind of "high South" cuisine, sourced from area farmers and ranchers, as his Bentonville operation. (Check the menu out at tuskandtrotter.com.) Nelson is now also executive chef of Butcher & Pint and co-owner of Trash Creamery, which opened in July, both in Bentonville. And he is the 2019 president of the Arkansas Hospitality Association.
Stone's Throw Stifft Station, 3015 W. Markham St., Little Rock, will pair local musicians, mostly acoustic, and food trucks for the weekly Saturday-night "Riffs at Stifft." Dinner service starts at 5 p.m. Singer Stephanie Smittle and guitarist Dennis Ouellette perform this week, with the Crepe Coop food truck setting up for dinner. The rest of the September lineup: Sept. 14 (performer first, food truck after) — Jeff Coleman, soul food eatery PopPop YumYam Grill & Smoke; Sept. 21 — Brian Nahlen, Luncheria Mexicana Alicia; Sept. 28 — Casey Sparks, Juicy J Chicken N Fish. The Brewery Comedy Tour will pre-empt the music shows Oct. 26 and Dec. 21. Taproom hours are 4-10 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, noon-10 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday. Call (501) 379-8663 or visit stonesthrowbeer.com or Facebook.com/StonesThrowBrewing.
The Bernice Garden, 1401 Main St., Little Rock, is hosting food trucks, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting Sept. 10 through Nov. 26, for Lunch on the Garden. El Sur Street Food Co. is one of the co-sponsors, so you can probably expect that food truck to be present. (Follow El Sur's whereabouts at its Facebook page, facebook.com/elsurstreetfoodco.)
Neveria Chavelo's, a Mexican ice cream-and-dessert shop, may have opened, or may be on the cusp of opening, at 1208 John Harden Drive, Jacksonville. A Facebook page provides, along with some posts in Spanish, some fascinating photos of frozen desserts, ice cream concoctions and even fruit and vegetable items (made with cucumbers and watermelon). Hours, according to the page, are 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m. daily; we were unable to make contact via the phone number, (501) 708-7882, that the page provided.
Conway is about to get a new Vietnamese restaurant — Pho Huyen, opening sometime in mid-September in the former Ceci's Chicken & Waffles space, 1600 Dave Ward Drive, Conway. The menu will focus on pho, but with a wider Vietnamese menu that includes fried and steamed rice and noodle plates, egg noodle soup and spicy beef soups, vegetarian dishes and egg and spring rolls. Tentative hours: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. Family member Sophia Huynh is taking wait staff applications — call (501) 551-3266; a phone number for the restaurant is pending.
Michael Mabry, chief development officer of the Dallas-based Fuzzy's Taco Shop franchise-chain operation, says there are plans to open six locations in "the Little Rock market," centering, because the chain has an affinity for colleges and universities, on the University of Arkansas. "We've had an Arkansas presence for the last handful of years," Mabry says, "and it's time now for a bigger push." The chain has Arkansas outlets in Rogers and Texarkana; a franchise outlet in Jacksonville recently closed. ("We've had a handful of attritions, as with any brand or business," Mabry concedes, "It's not something we dwell on.") The fast-casual Mexican menu focuses on Baja-style tacos, but also includes all-day breakfast, enchiladas, burritos and queso, plus margaritas and beer. They're in the process of lining up franchisees and scouting locations, so Mabry doeasn't have a firm timeline; operating hours will depend on the market, he says, but you can expect a Fuzzy's to be open from about 7 a.m. to midnight or 2 a.m.
The Jimmy's Serious Sandwiches River Market outlet, in the Bookstore at Library Square (formerly the Cox Creative Center), 120 River Market Ave., Little Rock, has commenced delivery, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays, to downtown office buildings. There's a limited range, a $20 minimum and a $5 delivery fee. Check out/print out the menu at jimmysserioussandwiches.com, and call in your order to (501) 320-5775, paying for it with a debit or credit card.
The Arkansas State Archives and the state Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism are putting on the sixth annual Arkansas Foodways Symposium, titled "Opa! A History of Greek Foodways," 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sept. 14 at the Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute, University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College, 13000 Interstate 30, Little Rock. The symposium, focusing on Greek food and food culture, includes lunch prepared and served by institute students and staff. Admission is free, but you must reserve limited seating by Tuesday; call (501) 682-6900 or visit tinyurl.com/y62bnzva.
Has a restaurant opened — or closed — near you in the last week or so? Does your favorite eatery have a new menu? Is there a new chef in charge? Drop us a line. Call (501) 399-3667 or send a note to Restaurants, Weekend Section, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203. Send email to:
eharrison@arkansasonline.com
Weekend on 09/05/2019