While it doesn’t fit the Triple D mold, Rye will be featured on an episode showcasing its original menu.
By Melanie Hernandez DALLAS OBSERVER
March 7, 2025
Tanner Agar and Taylor Rause are the co-owners of Rye Dallas.
Rye, the highly praised seasonal and small-plates restaurant and cocktail bar will be featured on an episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives titled “Sauerkraut, Shoyu and Shank” alongside host Guy Fieri, set to air March 7.
Rye, located along pedestrian-friendly Lower Greenville, will host a watch party for the episode on March 12. The collaboration emerged after Tanner Agar, creative director and co-owner, received a call in October 2024 saying the Food Network wanted them to be on the show.
“I thought it was just somebody messing with us, or, you know, some kind of scam call, because I didn’t really expect them to know who we were or be excited to feature us, but obviously we were super excited,” Agar said.
Agar and Taylor Rause, the executive chef and co-owner, grew up watching the Food Network: regulars on the network like Alton Brown, Bobby Flay and Fieri were influential figures.
The pork belly lollipops have been on the menu since Rye first opened.
The globally inspired, locally sourced restaurant will feature its duroc pork belly lollipops, which have been a menu item since the first location in McKinney. The meat is braised with charred oranges, bourbon and orange juice and then cut into little discs to resemble lollipops. Finally the meat is seared with a sugar rub for crispiness. The plate takes two to three days to prepare, and its has continuously sold out.
The second, more eccentric plate is the sauerkraut chocolate cake, which is the first chocolate cake to be featured in all of Triple D’s 18-year, 51-season run. For those who are apprehensive, the sauerkraut functions similarly to shredded carrot or coconut, providing moisture. Acid is added to balance out the rich, sweet flavors of the dark chocolate, cherry and Swiss meringue. Both plates were selected by Fieri.
“They said, ‘Hey, pick five or six things that you think are really different and unique, and then we’ll pick,’ and it’s funny they said no desserts, one of the rules was no desserts,” Agar says. “We said, ‘Hey, we gave you the five we’re gonna give you [and] one bonus one because we think this would be really good,’ and even the person was like, ‘Guy hates dessert, Guy’s never done chocolate cake he’s not going to want to do this. I’ll write it down, maybe.’ Then she called back and said, ‘Chocolate cake is in!’’’
The sauerkraut chocolate cake is the first chocolate cake to be featured by Guy Fieri
Samantha MarieThey were unaware of how logistically demanding the process leading up to filming was. Several phone calls and multi-hour-long promos detailed the exact recipe and the pan used for it.
Their fast-paced experience while filming was made better because of Fieri’s curious attitude toward their cooking process, mixed with the off-camera praise.
“Really great experience to have under our belt and just really fun,” Rause says. “I’ve been a Guy Fieri fan for a long time, and he was exactly what you expect, nice guy. Overall, it was jam-packed with crazy. It was go, go, go, go, go, the second they showed up and especially the second he walked in the building, they don’t have seconds to waste.”
The feature is another star on Rye’s belt since bar manager Julian Staffer received an Exceptional Cocktail Award from the Michelin Guide. Rye also made the 2024 Michelin Guide recommended list, boosting its popularity.
“It’s not that this award changed who we are, it’s that we feel very strongly about who we are and the uniqueness and the quality,” Agar says. “I think it means even more to have won this first year because they were doing it before we knew anybody was watching. You know, we didn’t say, ‘Oh, now that there’s the standard, let’s go try to win it,’ we said, ‘Let’s do something excellent for the sake of personal satisfaction,’ and then receiving the award is, of course, incredibly validating, and we’re really honored to have gotten it.”
Triple D is not the only thing they are working on. Rye is planning to add a five-course tasting menu available Tuesday through Thursday for those who might not have time to try their 11-course tasting menu but still want to experience what their menu offers.
They are also gearing up to open a new French, Italian and Spanish-inspired bar and bistro named Flamant (French for Flamingo). They want to make this concept a bit more affordable with more approachable food while maintaining the quality. Secretly, they have been using their food and drink specials as a way to get guests to taste test the new menu; so if you’ve been by, you may have already gotten a taste of Flamant.
Tune into the new episode and Rye’s social media to see what they do next.