by Jennifer Thomas photos by Joy Zhang
HG Sply Co., located at 2008 Greenville Ave in Dallas, will open to the public on Tuesday, May 21st. HG Sply Co, created by Elias Pope and his partners Gus Antos, Mark Zahem, Neville Govender, is a neighborhood grill and bar that was influenced by the “back to basics” philosophy of the Paleo diet. “It’s simple,” explains owner Elias Pope, “80% fresh, flavorful food that fuels your day and 20% indulgent ‘cheat day’ food for days that you want to splurge.”
All menu items are natural and/or organic and local when possible, but always from small producing American ranchers. The chicken is from Windy Meadows (Campbell, Texas), the eggs are from Vital Farms (Austin, Texas); several of the meats are from Local Yocal (McKinney, Texas) or Broken Arrow Ranch (Ingram, Texas) with vegetables and fruits coming from a number of local farmers including Amelia Farms (Bells, Texas) and more. A specially made 8-seed bread will be delivered fresh daily from Esmeralda’s Bakery in North Dallas.
duck
The beverage program has the exact same philosophy as the food program. No added sugars or mixes and everything is made fresh daily. Eight specialty cocktails pay homage to the classic style of bartending with fresh ingredients and top quality liquor. The beer program is designed for all beer lovers offering selections from a few simple domestics to a vast array of small batch craft beers. Draft beers include local brands like Peticolas Brewing Co., Lakewood Brewing Co. and Revolver Brewing from Dallas, Texas and 512 Brewery and Live Oak Brewing Co. from Austin, Texas. The wine list is a compilation of eclectic finds from mostly small producers in America.
The design of the restaurant matches the philosophy of HG Sply Co., in that the space was restored to its original elements. The sheetrock and tile were stripped away to expose the natural beauty of the original building. All design elements were commissioned by local craftsmen including the tabletops made of reclaimed freight train wood, metal table bases and bar surround and custom made industrial light fixtures made with black steel.
hummus
lamb shank
Elias Pope and his partners interviewed an extensive line-up of potential executive chefs for the restaurant and finally found Paul Niekrasz, a Dallas implant who most recently held the position of executive chef for One North Kitchen & Bar in Chicago. Pope explains, “We knew immediately that Paul was our guy. His tasting blew us away and since then he has spent months in the kitchen perfecting his recipes for HG.”
tuna poke salad
Pope, who grew up on a ranch in Greenville, Texas says, “ We are not trying to do anything new. I tell everyone the same story – when my great grandfather walked out back to the chicken coop, grabbed eggs and cooked it up, he didn’t call it organic… he called it breakfast. We are about getting back to the basics of cooking with great ingredients from American ranchers and farmers who are passionate about their craft.”
HG Sply Co. will open for dinner only at first, adding lunch the first week of June.
