The stretch of North Texas running east from US-75 through Richardson and into Garland is one of the most genuinely diverse dining corridors in the country. This is not a marketing phrase. Richardson has one of the highest concentrations of Middle Eastern, Persian, and Central Asian restaurants outside of a major metro hub, a thriving Chinese-American commercial district that anchors its own miniature Chinatown, and an Ethiopian restaurant that opened last year because the owner wanted to share something from home.
Garland, just east, has the 14th-largest Vietnamese population in the United States and a North Jupiter Road corridor that runs Vietnamese pho houses, Korean BBQ joints, Chinese dim sum parlors, and Filipino kitchens for blocks. Between the two cities, you can eat your way around the world without leaving the Dallas suburbs.
This guide covers both cities, in no particular order of importance, because there isn’t one.
RICHARDSON
Jeng Chi
400 N. Greenville Avenue, Suite 11
The crowned jewel of Richardson’s Little Chinatown is Jeng Chi, which master chef Yuan Teng opened in 1990 and which his son Francisco and daughter-in-law Janelle now operate out of a glorious 8,000-square-foot space a few doors down from the original location. The menu runs more than 250 items across Sichuan dishes, dim sum, and the soup dumplings — xiaolongbao, which Jeng Chi calls “juicy dumplings” — that have earned this restaurant a reputation that reaches well beyond Richardson. The lobster dumplings are something else entirely. The bakery in the back produces pastries and buns that make every meal end at least one course longer than you planned. This is the restaurant that built the Little Chinatown neighborhood’s reputation and continues to anchor it. We wrote about it here. Open daily 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Kirin Court Chinese Restaurant
221 W. Polk Street, Suite 210
Kirin Court has been the anchor dim sum destination in Richardson for more than 35 years and shows no signs of slowing down. This is old-school Cantonese dim sum — servers pushing carts through a large dining room of banquet tables and Lazy Susans, delivering baskets of steaming dumplings, pastries, and rolls to whoever flags them down. Forty-five varieties on the menu and a rotating daily selection that rewards regulars who show up on weekend mornings before the room fills. The shrimp and leek dumplings and the bell peppers stuffed with shrimp paste are the items that frequent visitors cite first. The BBQ pork baked buns and flaky pastries are the reason to pace yourself. The deep-fried duck coated with mashed taro is the showpiece order. The beef chow fun in XO sauce and the mango pudding are the closing moves. Get there early on weekends. Open Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Phone: (214) 575-8888.
First Chinese BBQ
111 S. Greenville Avenue
For nearly 40 years, First Chinese BBQ has been roasting its BBQ pork and roast duck in walk-in ovens continuously throughout the day — not in batches, not on a schedule, but continuously, so that whatever you order comes off a bird or a rack that was just pulled from the oven within the last hour. This is the Hong Kong Cantonese tradition of siu mei — roasted meats hung in the window, carved to order — and it is the standard by which Cantonese BBQ is judged everywhere from Vancouver to Singapore. The crispy roast pork belly with its lacquered crackling skin is the single best reason to come. The roast duck is the second. The fresh shrimp wontons — a point of pride for the kitchen for decades — are the reason to stay for a bowl of soup. The pan-fried noodles with shrimp finish the meal the way a Hong Kong lunch counter is supposed to. No frills, no pretense, generations of regulars who know what they’re getting. Open Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Phone: (972) 680-8216.
King’s Noodles
201 S. Greenville Avenue, Suite 103
King’s Noodles is the small, cash-only Taiwanese counter in Little Chinatown that regulars protect like a secret even though the secret has long been out. The beef stew noodle soup — braised beef shank, intensely flavored broth built on hours of reduction, iron-cooked noodles with the exact right chew — is the dish that most people order their first time and every time after that. The homemade dumplings with their thin, hand-rolled wrappers are the appetizer worth ordering first. The pork chop rice-noodle and the fresh shrimp wonton soup are the other regular orders. The za jiang mian — noodles with ground pork sauce in the northern Chinese tradition — is the off-the-beaten-path order that rewards the curious. This is the kind of small, specific, family-operated kitchen that most neighborhoods don’t have anymore. Bring cash. Open Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30 to 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Phone: (972) 437-0881.
Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries
318 E. Main Street
Three brothers started Afrah as a pastry shop in 2002 and turned it into one of the most popular Lebanese restaurants in North Texas. Guy Fieri came through for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and the place didn’t need the attention — it was already packed. The lunch buffet is the entry point: laden with grilled meats, kabobs, slow-cooked lamb, shawarma, fresh hummus, baba ghanoush, and an array of vegetable preparations that reflect the Lebanese table at its most generous. The chicken shawarma marinated in Mediterranean spices and slow-roasted on the rotisserie is the dish that keeps the regulars coming back. The kibbeh — bulgur wheat shells stuffed with spiced ground beef, onions, and pine nuts — is the perfect appetizer. The manakeesh flatbread with za’atar is the kind of thing you order as a side and finish before anything else arrives. The house-made baklava from the pastry counter at the front is the non-negotiable closing move. The room is generous, the light is good, and the enclosed patio handles a crowd without strain. Open Monday through Thursday 10 a.m. to midnight, Friday 10 a.m. to 1 a.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to midnight. We reviewed it here. Phone: (972) 234-9898.
Gilgamesh Restaurant and Bakery
300 Terrace Drive, Suite 301
Gilgamesh is named for the ancient Sumerian king and the epic poem that bears his name — the oldest work of literature in recorded history, predating Homer by at least 1,500 years and emerging from the same Mesopotamian civilization whose food traditions inform this kitchen. The restaurant is Iraqi-Mediterranean, built around the charcoal grill. Iraqi kebab — ground lamb and beef mixed with onion and spices, shaped around skewers, cooked over real coals — is the signature. The family BBQ platter with lamb ribs, mixed grilled meats, and rice is the order for a table. Hummus, baba ghanoush, and tabbouleh to start. The grilled fish preparation reflects a cooking tradition that goes back to the Tigris and Euphrates. The adjacent bakery produces fresh baklava and other Iraqi pastries that are the proper way to end the meal. Portions are generous. The atmosphere is warm and family-oriented. Open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: (469) 206-7138.
Kasra Persian Restaurant
525 W. Arapaho Road, Suite 21
Persian cuisine is one of the great underappreciated food traditions in the world — older than French cooking, more complex than most American diners realize, built on a flavor philosophy that balances sweet, sour, and savory in ways that don’t map onto Western culinary frameworks. Kasra is Richardson’s best expression of it. The room is beautiful — traditional Persian decor, warm tones, large enough for celebrations and intimate enough for a quiet dinner. The buffet, available on certain days, gives newcomers the best introduction: tender kabobs, fragrant saffron rice, fesenjoon — a rich, dark stew of chicken braised in pomegranate molasses and ground walnuts that is one of the most distinctive dishes in all of Persian cooking — baghali polo (rice with fava beans and dill) with lamb shank, ghormeh sabzi (herb and kidney bean stew), and bread from the oven. The freshness and portion sizes are consistently praised. Open Monday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Phone: (972) 235-4007.
Zion Ethiopian Restaurant
401 N. Central Expressway, Suite 300
The owner opened Zion Ethiopian in January 2025 because of, as she put it on Nextdoor, “the deep connection I feel to my heritage and the desire to share the rich, soulful flavors of Ethiopia with the world.” That is a direct quote and it shows in the food. Ethiopian cooking is built around injera — a spongy, fermented flatbread made from teff flour that functions simultaneously as the plate, the utensil, and a dish in its own right. Everything else arrives on top of it or alongside it. Ye goden tibs — sautéed beef with onions, jalapeño, rosemary, and butter — is the signature. Zion tibs, the house preparation, runs a similar profile. The veggie combo is the way to taste the range: lentils prepared two ways, collard greens, cabbage, and chickpea stew, each seasoned with berbere or mitmita, each a distinct dish that happens to share the same injera platter. The fried tilapia is the fish option. It is a small, sincere operation and the food reflects it. Open daily 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Phone: (469) 688-3344.
Partenope Ristorante
110 S. Greenville Avenue
Partenope is named for the ancient Greek settlement that became the city of Naples — the city that invented pizza in its modern form and considers the subject a matter of civic identity. The pizza here is Neapolitan: wood-fired, thin in the center, charred at the crust, made with imported Italian ingredients and the kind of restraint that Neapolitan pizza demands. The Napoli Centrale with mozzarella, ricotta, sausage, Bolognese sauce, and Prosciutto di Parma is the house signature. The Cacio e Pepe alla Crema di Tartufo — spaghetti, cracked pepper, pecorino, and truffle cream — is the pasta that makes the table stop talking. The Ragu Napoletano with imported paccheri pasta and a slow-cooked tomato ragu with pork and beef, finished with whipped ricotta, is the Sunday-dinner preparation that the kitchen does as well as anywhere in Dallas. The wine list is Italian and well-considered. The room is quiet enough for conversation, which in Richardson is not something to take for granted. Open daily 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: (214) 604-4857.
Asian Mint
300 W. Campbell Road
Chef Nikky Phinyawatana opened the first Asian Mint on Forest Lane in 2004 and the Richardson location is one of five she now operates across the Metroplex. New Bangkok cuisine — Thai cooking with an eye toward freshness, lighter preparations, and house-made sauces that reflect Phinyawatana’s dual heritage and two decades of refinement. The pad kee mow (drunken noodles) and the pad Thai are the standards that regulars will drive across Dallas for. The curries are built from scratch. The lemongrass soup and the mango sticky rice are the dishes that make first-timers regulars. We went deep on the full operation here. Open Tuesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner. Phone: (469) 677-0767.
Deli News
17062 Preston Road, Suite 100
Technically Dallas, practically Richardson, and the best New York-style deli in this entire corridor. Since 1979, Deli News has been the place you go when you need a proper pastrami on rye, a matzo ball soup that actually tastes like someone’s grandmother made it, a Reuben with enough corned beef to qualify as a structural element, or a lox and bagel that doesn’t apologize for itself. The egg salad, the chopped liver, the half-sour pickles on the table, the cream cheese selection behind the glass — this is the complete picture, maintained for nearly fifty years by a family that understands what the thing is supposed to be. Breakfast and lunch only. Open Monday 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Phone: (972) 733-3354.
Sueño CoctelerÃa Mexicana suenotx.com 800 W. Arapaho Road, Richardson, TX 75080 Phone: (469) 372-6739 Mon–Thu 5–9pm, Fri 5–10pm, Sat 11am–10pm, Sun 11am–9pm Modern Mexican cuisine and cocktails. Second location at Snider Plaza.
Ten50 BBQ ten50bbq.com 1050 N. Central Expressway, Richardson, TX 75080 Phone: (972) 234-1050 Sun–Thu 10:50am–9pm, Fri–Sat 10:50am–10pm Central Texas BBQ — salt, pepper, smoke, and time. 12+ hours on the pitmasters. Brisket, ribs, pulled pork. Also a Dallas location.
Dos Arroyos Comida Casera dosarroyoscomidacasera.com 2701 Custer Pkwy, Suite 807, Richardson, TX 75080 Phone: (972) 231-8667 Mon–Thu 11am–9pm, Fri–Sat 11am–10pm, Sun 11am–
GARLAND
Garland has the 14th-largest Vietnamese population in the United States. It also has 23 Chinese restaurants, a Philippine corridor on Kingsley Road, Korean BBQ operations that open late, and a downtown square with its own dining culture separate from everything else. The North Jupiter Road corridor is the place to start for anyone who wants to eat seriously and spend modestly.
Garden Restaurant
3555 W. Walnut Street, Suite E
Garden is the Cantonese dim sum and seafood restaurant in Garland that draws weekend crowds from across the Metroplex — people who know what they’re looking for and make the drive specifically for this kitchen. The dim sum service runs daily, with Saturday and Sunday mornings being the main event: carts moving through a large dining room, the energy of a Hong Kong tea house in a Garland strip center. The Peking duck is the other reason to come — the kitchen uses the entire bird, serving the carved meat with flour pancakes and hoisin first, then stir-frying the carcass with mustard greens for a second course, and turning what remains into soup. Few operations in DFW honor the whole duck the way Garden does. Durian puffs for the adventurous, chicken feet in black bean sauce for the faithful, and a seafood menu running live tank preparations. Arrive early on weekends. Open daily 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: (972) 487-8289.
Hue is the ancient imperial capital of Vietnam — the city between Hanoi and Saigon that produced its own regional cuisine, distinct from both north and south, built around rice-based preparations, delicate broths, and the kind of subtle complexity that reflects a court cooking tradition. Góc Huế — Corner of Hue — is named for it, and the food reflects a kitchen that takes its regional identity seriously. The bún bò Huế — the spicier, lemongrass-forward cousin of pho that comes from the Hue region — is the dish that defines the menu and draws diners who know what they’re looking for. The broth is built from beef bones and pork trotters with lemongrass, shrimp paste, and dried chilies; it is richer and more pungent than pho and does not ask for your approval. The bánh bèo chén — steamed rice cakes served in small saucers with dried shrimp and scallion oil — is the appetizer that reflects central Vietnam’s particular genius for rice-based dishes. The bánh khoái — a crispy crepe filled with shrimp, served with a peanut sauce — is the preparation that most diners discover and immediately regret not ordering a second of. The room is cozy and warm. Closed Thursday. Open Monday through Wednesday 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday through Sunday 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Phone: (972) 496-2525.
Lito’s Kitchen
2714 W. Kingsley Road, Suite A1
Filipino food is having a national moment that has been coming for decades — one of the great underrepresented cuisines in America, built on the same Spanish, Chinese, and Malay influences that shaped the Philippines itself, and finally receiving the attention it deserves. Lito’s Kitchen is a family operation on Kingsley Road, counter service, daily preparations visible in the trays behind the glass, the kind of place where the menu depends on what the family made that morning. Adobo — pork or chicken braised in vinegar, garlic, bay leaf, and soy, the preparation that most Filipinos would name as the definitive dish of their cuisine — is the foundation. Pancit — the stir-fried rice noodles that trace back to Chinese influence on Philippine cooking — and lumpia — the Filipino spring roll, fried to a crunch, with a dipping sauce on the side — are the dishes that turn first-time visitors into regulars. The pork barbecue skewers, sweet and charred from the grill, are the thing to get on the way out. Dessert is halo-halo — the Filipino shaved ice sundae with sweetened beans, coconut jelly, ube ice cream, and leche flan — which is best described as a celebration that happens to be cold. A favorite among local Filipino families for years.
THE NORTH JUPITER ROAD CORRIDOR
North Jupiter Road between Walnut Street and Miller Road is Garland’s Asian culinary corridor — one of the most concentrated stretches of international cooking in the Dallas area. This is not one restaurant but an entire neighborhood of them, and the experience of driving it is the experience of a city that has absorbed a remarkable diversity of immigrant communities and let them cook what they know.
The Vietnamese pho houses on this stretch tend toward the regional — not the standardized pho of suburban strip malls but the specific preparations of families from Saigon, Hue, and the Mekong Delta. The Korean operations run late and serve the kind of banchan — the small shared plates that come before and alongside the main event — that make a Korean meal an experience rather than just a meal. The Chinese dim sum operations run on weekend mornings and fill their carts with preparations that change week to week. The Filipino bakeries produce ensaymada, pan de sal, and bibingka alongside espresso drinks and halo-halo that bear no resemblance to what you’d find at a chain.
The best approach is to walk the corridor — or drive it slowly — and let what you find in the windows make the decision. The quality standard on this stretch is set by immigrant families cooking for their own communities, which is the highest standard there is.
ALSO IN GARLAND
Downtown Garland’s square has been quietly building a dining scene around the restored historic district — gastropubs in renovated brick buildings, coffee shops, a farmers market on weekend mornings, and a walkability that surprises people who haven’t been recently. The Pho Real Trail — the city’s official designation of nearly 20 family-owned Vietnamese restaurants — is a good framework for exploring the Vietnamese side of the city more systematically, with a full restaurant list at visitgarlandtx.com.
