Mar
New Restaurant from Del Frisco’s founder Dale Wamstad To Debut Next Month
Veteran restaurateur Dale Wamstadt plans to open Four Sisters Cafe on April 18. It’s his first big new restaurant in years. And it’s not a steakhouse.
Wamstad, who founded the Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse concept in New Orleans in the late 80s then teamed with Dee Lincoln to expand the concept in Dallas, says the new restaurant will be a mix of “true American” cuisines, which I’m not even going to pretend to understand. (Honestly, I don’t think Wamstad does, either; the menu is “under development” and he was mum on offering examples of menu items.)
In addition to Del Frisco’s, Wamstad also helped develop the Silver Fox and Cool River restaurant concepts. He is no longer an investor or partner in either, though a nearby Silver Fox sits on Wamstad’s land.
Veteran restaurateurs Robert Brown (most recently of Hibiscus) and James Rose (most recently of Brownstone) are leading the management team. Like Wamstadt, they are unusually guarded about the menu, allowing only that there will probably be a steak or two, some seafood, salads, a few sandwiches– all designed around the theme of “indigenous” American foods and flavors. (Nope, I don’t know what that means either.) Four Sisters will be open for dinner only, seven days a week, with a targeted per-person check average of $45. Sunday brunch is in the works, too. The restaurant will seat 325 people.
Though the finish-out is just starting, the place looks pretty cool: lots of natural light, a big patio and balcony, private dining rooms, black granite floors, iron work painted aqua green and butter cream, semi-open kitchen, lots of wine storage. There’s a big bar, too. Check out the balloon light fixtures.
cocktail bar area, under construction
cocktail bar area, under construction
secret spy cam photo of artist's rendering
cool light fixtures
Four Sisters takes its name from a diptych of paintings Wamstad purchased from a Santa Fe artist. The two panels will hang front-and-center, over the fireplace. They feature four tawdry women and a man in drag. Wamstadt says the guy in drag is him–”See, he has the same tatoo on his leg as I do,” he tells me. And the four women? They supposedly represent four women who are (or have been) influential in the restaurant criticism scene in Dallas. Can you guess which four?
Dale Wamstad
Robert Brown, with the Four Sisters (the fourth sister is lying spread-eagle at the base of the panel on the right)
Four Sisters Cafe is under construction at the southwest corner of Jupiter Road and George Bush Tollway in Plano.
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32 Comments
Thaddeus Maximus is Dale…ha ha…his favorite saying is “great to be alive”. He says it anytime anyone asks him how he’s doing. He does suck the life out of his employees and degrades them beyond repair. When bloggers complain about the staff and the kitchen / chef they don’t understand Dale has the first and last word on everything that comes to them. Whether it be service or food, he is in charge. He is inconsistent and impossible to compromise with. He changes things everyday. When you go to McDonald’s, you at least know what you’re getting because they have a plan. Texas (restaurant) has no plan. He is all over the place with recipes and menu. Texas will do okay because the neighborhood needs a nicer place to entertain and it is convenient.
Hey Thaddeusmaximus
You sure come off like a classic dumbxxxx when you try to correct other’s misspellings with your own misspellings. It’s spelled DISAPPOINTING–one “S” only. And it’s spelled SKIMPY, not SKIMMPY. And lastly, it’s spelled ILLUSTRATOR, not ILLASTRATOR. Perhaps your own $10 an hour job didn’t quite cover your clear lack of education. Aren’t you glad you have the luxury of anonymity? Go back to school and leave the criticisms for those worthy of being critics.
My husband and I ate at Cha Cha and TEXAS a few weeks ago and honestly, I just don’t get Dale Wamstad. He’s been around for ages and you’d think by now he’d know what he’s doing but I think he’s off his nut. Cha-Cha is very one dimentional, the decor is too open and cold. Found out his Dog is named Cha Cha and the Rough Tex Mex Tag line must be what his dog calls it RUFF Tex Mex. It tasted like dog food to us so there you go!!
4 Sisters now TEXAS was another disapppointing experience. Went there for ribs and they were out of ribs @ 7:30. My husband ordered a Coors Light – sold last coors light right before we ordered. Service was horrible, the food we ordered wasn’t too bad but high priced. Dale walks around like the cryptkeeper instead of keeping an eye on his staff and kitchen crew! WON’T BE BACK! Too many other restaurants to eat at that are better than this place. Love Desperados for Mexican food!
Mr.crowly must be Dale!
@Lena Rumore
Didn’t you get plenty of shut-the-fuck-up money, baby? So SHUT the fuck up, you murderous piece of SHIT bitch!
He is a miserable and pathetic excuse for a human being!!! Shame on anyone who praises this abusive jerk!!!!
I agree with you. I have seen the baby in him go off. He did burn me out. I think I work 3000 hours in 6 months. He will sell it, that’s what he does. :)
ThaddeusMaximus – What the hell are you talking about! Dale stole Del Frisco from the original investors in NO. Well that let him take the name after he stole their money and locked them out of their own restaurant. I would do the same to see him go. Dale – cut throat? Absolutely!!! Genius restaurant operator? No f-ing way!!! Maybe he will sell 4 sisters? Maybe he will suck it dry before he dies and leave the burden to his second family. Moral to Dale’s story. Suck the marrow of life from anyway who is stupid enough to get close.
Hey ThaddeusMaximus
Possibly you could overlook Toms misspelling and typos, but I think your arrogance got in the way. Pure arrogance. Oops, misspelled again. Think I should join Tom at his $10/hour job?
Het Tom! Go to a dollar menu. That’s all you can afford. Your spelling and grammar tells of a 10 dollar an hour job. Restaurant not resturante. Their not there. Skimmpy not skimmoy.ever not hever. have dinner rolls not had dinner rolls. dissappointing not dissapointing.
Lousy resturante. I order the tramp salad which was a variation of a cob salad. I order it with chicken for an additional $3.95 or so. Well, I had to search for the chicken, very skimmoy. It didn’t come with the egg, avocado or onions but did have pieces of beef in it?! Anyway, they didn’t have there act together. When they arrived with the food, the waiter wasn’t sure which salad was mine and which one was for my friend. For close to $15, it was the worst, very bare bones salad I hever had.
Way overpriced, no value. They didn’t even had dinner rolls or soup?! Go figure. Very, very dissapointing!
I see a whole lotta’ hating. I worked for Dale & I respect the man. It’s easy to cookie cut a Black Eyed Pea, but it takes an Artist to create Del Frisco’s. He who wants to cast the first stone, equal Del Frisco. Dale is an Artist Restauranteur, not an illastrator of a ‘Dressed up Pig’ fast food joint.
“Great to be Alive”
Hail Caesar!
Hmmm. Definitely hear it’s off to a rocky start. Anybody else had an experience — good or bad — they want to share?
Just got back from eating at the new Richardson location tonight. My husband and I won’t be back. The food was not terrible but not good enough for what it cost. Service was good. The drinks were very high. Their idea of mixed vegetables was a two inch piece of something green…and a bunch of chunky cut onions. The menu was very limited too. No, we won’t be going there again. I’m not sure how they are going to stay in business with the hours they have set…..
That is not an artist’s rendering!! That is a photograph from the hotel in Ireland that he and his wife stayed, that they modeled (copied) the light style from!!!!!
HaHa.He is still doing it the way he has done forever. You can’t teach an Old Dog new tricks. He is a Dirty Dog! Full of promises and ‘this thing will go public’ Bullshit. He is the guy in Goodfellas. They steal a bunch of money and he rather kill you than share.
Dale is a horrible individual. Where his highest value is his own self-loathing. He can sit in a quails nest and rub plum sauce all over himself for all I care. Some may admire his cut throat style, as he bleeds out the people that help him and then leaves them in his wake. I am one of his latest victims. I am a hard working Kitchen Manager, who gave everything to help Four Sisters Cafe when they needed it most. My thanks was a termination and 1 weeks pay. I did not even get to witness the grand-opening that I helped to make possible. A bit of advice, Stay away from this and everyone of Mr Womstad projects. Do not Take a job from him. And unless you like loosing your money do not invest in his restaurants. Just ask his previous investors what they got out of it!
His dog is named Cha-Cha. He worships that dog! Only living thing he has never yelled at.
Dale is a smart man. He has never sold ALL of any restaurant.
Dale is the owner of Four Sisters and Robert is CEO.
JD, I think you are right: Dale is the developer of the shopping center that houses Pure New Orleans Poboys but I don’t know if he has any ownership interest in that restaurant.
Thanks — I’ve updated the post to reflect that Four Sisters is in Richardson, not Plano. James Rose is no longer working on the project, which Brown says is expected to open in mid to late June.
Four Sisters Cafe is located at 3609 Shire Blvd., Richardson, Tx. 75082 its not in Plano. The paiting of the Four Sisters (and of Dale in drag) is beautiful! I saw it when the cafe was being built. Dale is a brilliant man! I have yet to meet Robert Brown tomorrow. Update to follow,
Here it is May 15 and the place is still not open. Well, stuff happens. I’m not a hater, just eager.
Anyway, as much as I like to see something new and different in my neighborhood (I live about half a mile from The Shire) I am a bit nervous about an average tab of $45 in the current economy. As it is, we drive to Dunston’s in Park Cities to have a steak ($14 mesquite grilled filet, with two sides, one of which can be the old school salad bar…) and have yet to darken the door of Silver Fox due to the price. So I cant see how your going to get me into The Four Sisters if we are going to drop $90 and we didn’t have a steak. And I dont see you getting those thousand dollar millionaires to drive “way over here” to dine at the Four Sisters. But then I’m not in the business, so what do I know. I sincerely hope it is a raving success, as that will draw more good stupp to my area.
As for not opening anything “in years” – I thought several of the other restaurants in the development were somehow related to Dale? Pure New Orleans Poboys and Seafood, which was Rose Tattoo, which was Parlour Wine Bar. And what about Ye shire Tavern?
Love the art and can’t wait to try Four Sisters. Met Robert Brown recently and was very impressed. It seems Dale has done it again. Looking forward to the 18th!!!
Dale’s new Four Sisters Cafe is in Richardson, not Plano!
What do the flags mean on the four sisters restaurant? One is the colonial flag but the other????
Wow! I’d bet the critics are NN, HR, TG and LB. right?
Well spoken Mrs. Irene Brown, I second that motion! Wamstad, restaurant, and management team is a great addition to the Dallas area.
Wamstad is definitely brilliant operator – he added Robert Brown to his management team. Of course I may be a little bias.
Wamstad is a brilliant operator. Trust me. He knows what he’s doing. As for the critics in the painting, I’m betting Dottie Griffith is one of them.
Wamstad is a brilliant operator. Trust me. He knows what he’s doing. As for the critics in the painting, I’m betting Dottie Griffith is obe of them.