Tacos, Barbecue And More: What's Trending In The Dallas Food Scene

DALLAS (HOODLINE) - Wondering where the insiders of Dallas are eating and drinking? It's easy to spy lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.

We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to uncover which restaurants have been on the tips of diners' tongues this month.

To find out who made the list, we first looked at Dallas businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers, compared to past performance. Then, we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.

Read on to see which outposts are riding a trend this autumn.

Rodeo Goat

This traditional American gastropub, which is known for burgers and libations, is trending in comparison to other businesses categorized as "American (Traditional)" on Yelp.

Citywide, traditional American spots saw a median 2% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Rodeo Goat saw a 28% increase, maintaining a strong four-star rating throughout.

It's not the only trending outlier in the traditional American category: Whistle Britches has seen a 4.4% increase in reviews, and Picasso's and 3 Eleven Kitchen & Cocktails have seen 1.4 and 7.4% increases, respectively.

Located at 9610 Wharf Road, Rodeo Goat has an extensive selection of hamburgers on its menu, along with alternate burger patty options such as chicken, turkey, salmon and vegan substitutions.

Rodeo Goat is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and 11 a.m.–midnight on Friday-Sunday.

Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues

Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Eagle Ford's Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues, the well-established bar and Southern joint, which specializes in barbecue and smoked meats, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.

While businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp saw a median 1.7% increase in new reviews over the past month, Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues bagged a 3.1% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a mixed 3.5-star rating. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues saw visits triple in the past month.

There's more that's trending on Dallas' bar scene: Monica's Mex-Tex Cantina has seen a 21.7% increase in reviews, and Sushi de Handroll and Doc B's Restaurant + Bar have seen 11.1 and 8.1% increases, respectively.

Open at 3015 Gulden Lane, Suite 105, Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues features a menu brimming with classic barbecue items, including St. Louis-style pork ribs, jalapeño or hickory sausage, turkey breast, brisket, pulled pork, loaded baked potatoes and fried okra.

Babb Brothers BBQ and Blues is open from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and from 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. According to SafeGraph, foot traffic is heaviest at noon, 7 p.m. and 8 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays, with a slowdown on Mondays.

Taco Stop

The Design District's Taco Stop is also making waves. Open since 2012 at 1900 Irving Blvd., the popular Mexican cafe has seen a 2.5% increase in new reviews over the last month — matching that of all businesses tagged "Mexican" on Yelp — but visits to Taco Stop increased by more than 50% over the same time frame, according to SafeGraph's foot traffic data.

There's more than one hot spot trending in Dallas' Mexican category: Taco Cabana has seen a 4% increase in reviews.

Taco Stop specializes in traditional Mexican cuisine, and in particular, tacos. Taco options range from carnitas and barbacoa to prime rib and chorizo. Over the past month, it's maintained a convincing four-star rating among Yelpers.

Taco Stop is open from 7 a.m.–3 p.m. on Monday-Saturday. (It's closed on Sunday.) According to SafeGraph, it usually gets busy at 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m., and on Tuesdays and Saturdays. If you're planning your visit, you may want to stop by while it's a bit slower on Mondays.

The Henry

Victory Park's The Henry is the city's buzziest breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner outlet by the numbers.

The popular New American breakfast and brunch restaurant, which can be found at 2301 N. Akard St., increased its new review count by 11.7% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2% for the Yelp category "Breakfast & Brunch."

The Henry offers a diverse assortment of plates for any meal. Popular dishes to try include the Korean prime skirt steak, short rib potstickers, seared ahi tuna, chicken fried chicken and smashed avocado toast.

The Henry is open from 7 a.m.–midnight on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and from 7 a.m.–1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.