In August, Fresh Berry Frozen Yogurt Café opened in the new Park Lane development that houses Nordstrom Rack and Dick’s Sporting Goods. Stop in for a spell and sample a frozen treat. Say hi and congratulations to shop owners and newlyweds Anthony and Courtenay de Manincor. They plan to open a store up north later this year. Fresh Berry is a franchise based in Tulsa, Okla.
Several local businesses were deemed award-worthy recently. U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling, a neighborhood resident, presented four local businesses with awards at a recent Greater East Dallas Chamber of Commerce luncheon. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award went to Darlene Doxey Ellison, an executive with Professional Bank Lakewood and owner of High Touch Alliances. The Chairman’s Award was presented to DART and longtime chamber volunteer Michael Miles, and also to Sedona Oil and Gas. The Hensarling Award for Business of the Year was presented to Doctors Hospital at White Rock Lake, celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The Lakehill Preparatory School (7401 Ferguson Road) received a Best of Local Business Award from the U.S. Commerce Association in the Private Elementary and Secondary Schools category. The award is given to those the USCA believes achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category as well as enhances the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.
Ever heard of Blythe Beck? She’s one of East Dallas’ finest, and she’s star of “The Naughty Chef”, a show on Oxygen! Network. Beck, a 29-year-old Texas native, is the executive chef of Central 214 at Hotel Palomar. The Naughty Chef follows Beck and her colorful crew at Central 214 inside and outside the kitchen as they interact with Dallas elite and local university students. Central 214 boasts a full menu of American regional cooking that changes with the seasons and fresh food and produce availability.
In more reality TV news, Gina Cotroneo, who was highlighted by Advocate in June ’08, recently appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank — a show featuring entrepreneurs pitching their biz ideas to five wealthy venture capitalists in hopes of obtaining funding. After struggling through a tough life experience, Cotroneo founded a unique line of happiness-infused gifts under the brand, “Soul’s Calling” (soulscalling.com). Sadly, she didn’t get the funding she was looking for on the show. Good news is, you can help fund her biz by picking up some of her fab stuff at Lakewood shop Talulah Belle.
Café San Miguel (pomerita.com), on North Henderson, is adding a patio. Why is this important, you ask? Because the term “patio-weather” was introduced into the lexicon of neighborhood residents some time ago, and patio-weather season is almost upon us. The patio is being designed by Dallas firm Coeval Studio, which is located on McKinney Avenue.
A Middle Eastern restaurant and hookah lounge, Kush, is opening at 2100 Greenville. Kush’s co-owners, who also own clubs Purgatory and Sting, want to give late-night partiers a place to unwind and get a good meal, so they’ll serve food until 4 a.m. “There are only so many options for late-night dining,” says co-owner Ata Adriss. If you’re keeping track, the space at Greenville and Prospect has been a revolving door of restaurant and bar concepts; it was formerly a Tex-Mex restaurant called 214, a sports bar called the Side Bar, the tropics-themed Coconuts Bar and Grill, and something called the Brown Bar.
Some neighbors looking to make a difference, and hopefully some money, have started up Green Machine Cleaning. The co-owners, Ange Fitzgerald and Terisa Bradley, an out-of-work art director/designer and an out-of-work professional photographer respectively, are riding the big green wave, which includes green cleaning. Green cleaning is the practice of cleaning with environmentally safe ingredients designed to preserve human and pet health and environmental quality, and it has been gaining popularity along with the rest of the “going green movement”. Visit greenmachineclean.com or call 214.535.8466 for information and/or a free estimate.
After working for multiple architecture and design firms, Gracie Andraos, a certified interior designer, decided to open her own interior design studio, Ciela Design. A recent transplant from Virginia, the Lakewood Heights resident offers residential and commercial design services, in addition to “virtual decor,” which can be faster and more economical than traditional design services. As hip as I like to believe I am, I admit I had to look up virtual décor (pretty self-explanatory) — online interior decorating, using a computer, a few photographs, your goals and some imagination, the designer submits product/organization recommendations. View Andraos’ designs at cieladesign.com or call 832.428.3857.
Speaking of interior design, Insignia Surfaces is known for creating custom countertops from natural stone that is crushed and reformed into a seamless slab. The company works on residential and commercial projects and offers a natural, textured alternative to granite, marble, or concrete. Countertops are called “Shirestone”, are handcrafted on site and generally completed over a 3-5 day period. One of the co-owners, Zach Kent, is a Lakewood resident. Visit insigniasurfaces.com to check out their work, or call Kent at 214.717.2246.
