Grand openings for an upscale mix of Asian-influenced experiential dining and shopping opportunities will dominate the fourth quarter at NewQuest Properties' Frisco Ranch in Far North Dallas.
Doors will open this month for 85° C Bakery & Café, Daiso Japan, Kung Fu Tea and T-Swirl Crepe. Education One follows suit in early November, with first quarter 2019 bringing ribbon-cuttings for 99 Ranch Market and Gen Korean BBQ. Openings also are on the horizon for Marufuka Ramen and Cute Crush. Last month, Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, Rice Chicken and Ace Periodontics & Implant Dentistry held soft openings. Meanwhile, NewQuest is finalizing leases with SomiSomi Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, 7 Leaves and Sul & Beans, a popular Korean shaved ice dessert.
"People are curious about Frisco Ranch, which is a dining and shopping destination artfully blending mainstream experiences with the Asian culture in a welcoming environment for all ethnicities," says Heather Nguyen, development partner for Houston-based NewQuest.
Leasing to date for the 99,747-sf Frisco Ranch has been so successful that the developer's team, which includes associate John Nguyen, is preleasing a 16,000-sf second phase. The 91%-leased Frisco Ranch is situated on nine acres at the northwest corner of Preston Road and Warren Parkway in the heart of Frisco's North Platinum Corridor, just 1.5 miles southeast of the Dallas Cowboys' world headquarters and training facility and the $1.5-billion Star entertainment district.
In less than five years, Frisco and the neighboring city of Plano have emerged as a world-class employment center for Fortune 50, 100 and 500 companies, including the billion-dollar headquarters of Toyota Motors North America Inc. An estimated half-million people are or will be working within the 10-mile trade area of Frisco Ranch. In Far North Dallas, 20% of the population is Asian.
"Frisco Ranch has brand names that are familiar to corporations with ties in California and Asia," Nguyen points out. "Many of our tenants wanted to be open for the holiday season – and they will be."
The 85° C Bakery & Café's ribbon-cutting is 9 a.m. Friday. T Swirl Crepe's soft opening is Wednesday and Kung Fu Tea also will open its doors this week. Daiso will come on line during the third week of October, getting its innovative and unique household products into the Far North Dallas marketplace just as the holiday shopping season kicks into gear.
Anchor 99 Ranch Market is on track to open its 44,810-sf store in mid-January. The new store for the California-based Taiwanese American supermarket chain will boast a six-tenant food court, including Beard Papa's, a Japanese sweet shop that's selected Frisco Ranch for its second location in Texas. Billed as having the world's best cream puffs, Beard Papa is owned by California-headquartered Muginoho International Inc., which operates more than 400 stores worldwide.
"Texas is a great market for its ease of entry, good workforce and diversity," says Nguyen, the creator of a niche development strategy that she first introduced at NewQuest's Carrollton Town Center in North Dallas.
