Legacy Hall

Update: Legacy Hall has announced an opening date of Dec. 6.

With interiors nearing completion and no sight or sound of heavy machinery lingering anymore, it’s time to get excited – Legacy Hall is almost ready to open its doors for business. The food hall stands proud at 55,000 square feet and three stories tall in West Plano’s Legacy West development, with a modern architectural style somewhere between an airplane hangar and a European market.

Legacy Hall has been in the works for a few years, and if patience is a virtue, then all of Plano must be pretty virtuous by now. The undertaking to organize and construct such a monument to food, drink and entertainment has set an opening for mid-November, with the exact date to follow.

Legacy Hall is nearing completion, with a Nov. 8 opening date // photos Jennifer Shertzer

Run by Food Hall Co. which was started by Randy DeWitt and Jack Gibbons of Front Burner Restaurants, Legacy Hall is all set to be a modern spin on a European trend. While it may be easy to dismiss the collection of eateries as just another food court, DeWitt and others emphasize its difference. Food Hall Inc. claims Legacy Hall is the “chance to immerse oneself in the sights, smells, sounds and tastes of a region.” Guests may sample, taste and experience more than 20 different gastronomical choices. Food Hall Co. tries to ensure no two restaurants serve the exact same cuisine for maximum variety.

As guests enter the first floor of the glass-and-concrete food mecca, they will be greeted with most of the food stalls. Breakfasts include crepes and Belgian waffles, lunches have naans and tacos, dinners consist of John Tesar’s Knife Burger as well as BBQ and homestyle southern cooking. Desserts clean up with pastries from Haute Sweets and Everett & Elaine, as well as organic popsicles from Berrynaked. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

As Pat Garza, Vice President of Legacy Hall, explained, the hall offers basic cuisines that diners feel comfortable eating – pizza, burgers, tacos – and then more adventurous cuisines to introduce to guests – shawarma, yakitori and bao.

Plano’s own Sea Breeze nabbed a primo spot at the top of the stairs on the second floor

Directly outside of the main building is the Box Garden, a beer garden and event space expected to open in spring 2018. With capacity for more than 1,500 people in standing room, it operates in the same way as an open-air dining and drinking patio, complete with bench style seating, colorful umbrellas and recycled shipping containers to divide up the space. In the evening, the 30-foot stage and LED screen will play live music and various acts visible from all three floors. The patio area is available for rent, so expect to see movie showings, yoga classes and national bands pop up occasionally.

All three floors of Legacy Hall have a view of The Box Garden, set to open in early spring

Legacy Hall features six bars throughout the three floors, each simply named for its focus. The primary watering hole, Bar Main, is on the first floor, and the bar overlooking the Box Garden is named Good View. With options from classic cocktails to beers and tiki bowls, there is a libation for everyone.

Bar Main is on the first floor; the row of food stalls are visible to the far left
The third floor bar has a sign aimed directly at lower level patio guests

The third and top floor of Legacy Hall is reserved for Plano’s shining Unlawful Assembly Brewing Co. Not only will the working brewery offer a seasonally rotating drink selection, guests will be able to tour the entire brewing process and sample flights in the taproom. This isn’t Plano’s first working brewery – Gordon Biersch has that distinction – but it does have Plano’s first and only brewery slide. For those too cool (or too tipsy) to properly use the stairs back down to the second floor, guests can slide down kindergarten-style. And don’t worry about spilling beer on the way down; a dumbwaiter will carry it down for you.

Unlawful Assembly Brewing Co. is Plano’s second working brewery
Wanna take a ride on a groovy beer slide?

Most of the stalls will only take “Hall Passes,” which are payment cards guests load money onto, much like ones at arcades and carnivals. These cards can be spent at touchscreens around the building, keeping lines moving quickly.

The best aspect of Legacy Hall is its flexibility to change. “The consumer will vote which stalls get the most buzz. If they’re not happy and profitable, they can leave,” states DeWitt. Legacy Hall is offering deposit-based slots, meaning that restaurateurs who may be hesitant to open a full-fledged brick-and-mortar location may feel more comfortable trying their concept at Legacy Hall first as a trial run of sorts. Expect to see tenants at Legacy Hall change as the seasons come and go, with new and exciting concepts keeping the customers coming.


Legacy Hall’s previously scheduled Fall for the Hall block party has been postponed. We will add the new dates when announced.

All 22 Food Stalls at Legacy Hall:

Berrynaked frozen pops // photo Jennifer Shertzer

Berrynaked

With two locations in DFW, this will be Heather and Gavin Kim’s third spot serving frozen, organic pops that “I would feel good about feeding my own kids,” says Heather Kim.


Blist’r Naan Wraps

Blist’r Naan Wraps

Chef Gilbert Garza from the high-end Preston Hollow restaurant Suze, Mark Brezinkski from Pei Wei management, and Pardeep Sharma from India Palace combine 30+ years of restaurant experience into an Indian powerhouse serving naan wraps stuffed with spicy chicken, paneer, and short rib, topped with cultural sauces.


Bravazo Rotisserie // courtesy Legacy Hall

Bravazo Rotisserie

Chef Enrique Urrutia will serve juicy roasted chicken, hearty sandwiches and salads with a Latin / Peruvian flair, as well as empanadas with chimichurri, yuca fries, roasted potatoes and “the best” mac n’ cheese ever.


Carlton Provisions prime brisket // courtesy Legacy Hall

Carlton Provisions

Larry Lavine of Chili’s and Jordan Swim of Vestals Catering paired up to start this full-fledged BBQ joint serving all of the great Texas BBQ classics: brisket, pulled pork, and house made sausage with all the fixin’s.


Degenhardt’s Brat Haus // courtesy Legacy Hall

Degenhardt’s Brat Haus

Currently popping up at festivals and markets, Joshua and Kristin Degenhardt will settle into Legacy Hall with a variety of homemade sausages paired simply with mustards, pretzels and fries.


Detour wine and charcuterie // photo Jennifer Shertzer

Détour

Front Burner’s serving its own curated collection of fine wines, cured meats, panini and cheeses to satisfy discernable tastes.


Enter the Bao’s K-Pop with braised beef kalbi and smoked gojuchang sauce // courtesy Legacy Hall

Enter the Bao

Chef Roger Wang will set down roots in Legacy Hall with a snacky, versatile menu of various steamed buns (bao) that carry Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese and Japanese flavors.


Everett and Elaine’s Strawberry Cake // courtesy Legacy Hall

Everett and Elaine

Kevin Lampman and Yang Wu, already regulars on the Dallas Farmers Market scene, will offer their freshly baked seasonal pies, brownies, cookies and cakes.


FAQs Quesadilla topped with Jicama Slaw and Sour Cream // courtesy Legacy Hall

FAQs

FAQs, aka Flautas and Quesadillas, is a fusion of gourmet Poblano cuisine with the zest of a Tejano palate. Chef Alfredo Balvanera will serve flautas, quesadillas and burritos, as well as guacamole, street style corn and Mexico City queso fundido.


Forno Nero’s Margherita Pizza // courtesy Legacy Hall

Forno Nero

A spinoff of Cavalli’s Pizza, Forno Nero (or “black oven” in Italian) will be serving up traditional, Italian style pies ranging from spicy diavola to Margherita, baked at 900 degrees.


FreshFin Poke Co’s Ahi Ahi Poke Bowl // courtesy Legacy Hall

Freshfin Poke Co.

Expanding from Lower Greenville, chef Joon Choe’s Asian inspired poke bowls consist of fresh fish, rice and veggies, which can also be turned into a sushirito, or burrito made of sushi ingredients.

Glazed Donut Works’ Grilled Cheese Donut with Bacon // courtesy Legacy Hall

Glazed Donut Works

Darren Cameron’s Glazed Donut Works from Deep Ellum seeks to turn donuts into an all day meal, with sweet and savory choices including grilled cheese donuts.


Haute Sweets Patisserie’s assorted French macarons // courtesy Legacy Hall

Haute Sweets Patisserie

Macaron masters Gianni Santin and Tida Pichakron will treat us to classic French macarons in seasonal flavors, along with macaron ice cream sandwiches.


John Tesar and Knife’s Pimiento Burger // photo Jennifer Shertzer (at left) and Kevin Marple (at right)

Knife Burger

John Tesar, former Top Chef contestant and undoubtedly Dallas’ most vocal chef, is bringing the essence of his upscale restaurant Knife to this location, focusing on the perfect burger alongside crispy fries and milkshakes.


Press Waffle Co.’s The Kiddo // courtesy Legacy Hall

Press Waffle Co.

Brothers Bryan and Caleb Lewis, best known for their food truck that roams Dallas peddling decadent Belgian waffle treats, are settling into a more solid location at Legacy Hall to corner the sweets-for-breakfast market.


Red Stix Chicken Thigh Banh Mi (at left) and Chef Uno Immangivong // courtesy Legacy Hall

Red Stix

Asian fusion style chef Uno Immangivong will serve banh mi sandwiches –Vietnamese style, French bread sandwiches stuffed with charred meat and a veggie slaw – as well as vermicelli bowls of grilled meat, veggies, and crushed peanuts.


Chef Tiffany Derry (at left) and Roots Chicken Shak’s fried chicken (at right) // courtesy TD Concepts

Roots Chicken Shak

Top Chef contestant and Dallas restaurateur Tiffany Derry serves up her honest-to-goodness soul food, specializing in crispy fried chicken, duck fat fries and Southern sides like mustard greens.


Sea Breeze Lobsta & Chowda House’s Hot Connecticut Lobsta Roll // courtesy Sea Breeze

Sea Breeze Lobsta and Chowda House

A family run operation, Rick and Ryan Oruch bring Old Bay flavors across town from their Plano favorite, Sea Breeze Fish Market a& Grill, serving up lobster rolls, oysters, clam chowder and cioppino.


Shawarma Bar’s Steak Shawarma over hummus // courtesy Legacy Hall

Shawarma Bar

Kuwait native Yaser Khalaf, of DFW’s Baboush and Medina, will transport authentic Middle Eastern spice and flavor to Legacy Hall with his selection of shawarma meats in pita bread, served with hummus, baba ghanoush and veggies.


Tacos Patron’s marinated grilled chicken, topped with fresh cilantro and minced onion in a handmade corn tortilla // courtesy Legacy Hall

Tacos Patron

Claiming “Texans have no patience for half-ass tacos,” chef Javier Madero is leaving behind the Tex-Mex and keeping only the Mex, serving up authentic, Mexico City style street tacos with carne asada, pastor, chicken and baby cactus, as well as chips and guacamole, aguas frescas and Mexican sodas.


The Juice Bar at Legacy Hall

The Juice Bar

A DFW staple for healthy lifestyles, guests can choose from cleansing juices, healthy snacks and seasonal, acai berry bowls.


A savory crepe from Whisk & Eggs // photo Delia Ramsey

Whisk & Eggs

Direct from Paris to Plano, Julien Eelsen is dead set on getting authentic French style crepes into the eager mouths of guests. Choose from sweet and savory options already made popular at his Dallas eatery, Whisk Crepes Café.

Legacy Hall > [codepeople-post-map]
Written By
More from Daniel Rockey
The Keeper
With Mexican Sugar, Whiskey Cake, Sixty Vines and other lauded eateries under...
Read More
Join the Conversation

6 Comments

  1. says: Scott Drescher

    How stupid to require a money-loaded card. What happens to money you don’t spend? What if you finish ordering and are a little short? I’ll go somewhere else, thanks.

Leave a comment
Leave a comment