Quesadillas at The Royal Pour: Mark Davis
Some of the changes at the restaurant near the Peavy-Garland Road intersection haven’t been so great. For example, it seems as if every time we blink the place has a new name. Weylan McAmally, a pharmacist from Red Oak, who opened the location in December 2012, originally founded it as White Rock Abbey. When James Orr bought the restaurant in August of 2013, he changed the name to The Local Pour White Rock. Then, he learned a bar in Houston had copyrighted the name “Local Pour,” so after a chat with an intellectual property lawyer, Orr decided to change the name of the restaurant again, this time to The Royal Pour White Rock, and (cross our fingers) let’s hope it sticks. But despite the confusion, some of the changes have been good. Excellent, actually. Take, for instance, the pork chop nuggets created by chef Brent Ercanbrack and served with his grandmother’s “secret recipe” cream gravy — really good. After taking over the location, Orr and Ercanbrack completely reworked the menu. Ercanbrack, who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Dallas, is turning out creations such as the PB&J Burger, made with red curry peanut butter and bacon-cranberry marmalade, and the Angry Bird Burrito, made with spicy marinated chicken breast, seasoned lettuce, avocado, bacon, jalapeno, cheese and sriracha sour cream, all wrapped in a grilled flour tortilla. Cutesy names aside, these plates are still just quality, old-fashioned bar food meant to be consumed by the “everyman” crowd, as Orr puts it. “We’re a bar,” he says. “We think of ourselves more as a bar than a restaurant. This is bar food.” But that doesn’t mean it can’t be good, right? “The whole world is turning into foodies,” Orr explains. “People used to want to eat what they knew. Now people come in and want to try new foods. They want to know what’s unique to your restaurant.”
The Royal Pour
9099 Garland
214.321.1065
Ambiance:
Bar, casual
Price range:
$4-$8.50
Hours:
Mon-Thu: 11 a.m.-midnight
Fri-Sat: 11 a.m.-2 a.m.
Sun: noon-midnight
3 more spots for neighborhood bar food
1 Cock & Bull Neighborhood Pub
There’s nothing fancy about the space. It’s dimly lit and pretty cramped, but in a pleasantly surprising twist, its recently revamped menu will make you rethink the way you see “bar food.”
6330 Gaston
214.841.9111
Aside from the beer selection, the menu helps make this Irish-owned pub a neighborhood favorite, with the fish ‘n chips being one of its most raved-about items.
2847 Henderson
214.821.1880
3 The Gin Mill
You know a place that serves Sunday brunch isn’t joking around food-wise. The Gin Mill Urban Pub offers a casual, kickback atmosphere with a seriously considered menu that varies from a Mediterranean plate to Chinese steamed buns to a rib-eye steak.
1921 Henderson
214.824.3343
