Why turkeys are more expensive, and where to find Thanksgiving dinner in Fort Worth

Bud Kennedy

This Thanksgiving, we’re just grateful we can afford dinner.

The Great Turkey Panic has begun, and the price of Thanksgiving foods is up as much as 20 percent. That’s due partly to short supplies and partly to the labor shortage at farms and production facilities.

A restaurant turkey buffet can cost as much as $130 at LAW at the Four Seasons Resort in Irving — the last before the hotel changes to a Ritz-Carlton — or as little as $13.99 at the last local Luby’s cafeteria, in Forest Hill.

Some supermarkets, including H-E-B, are already sold out of turkey packages. However, orders are still open at corporate cousin Central Market.

At least three restaurants — Fitzgerald, Magdalena’s takeout and Wicked Butcher — are dropping sliced turkey breast from their menus, substituting a turkey or chicken-duck roulade. Expect to see other menus pushing steaks, ham or duck.

Central Market has a Thanksgiving menu that includes a beef tenderloin meal for those not wanting a traditional turkey,.
Central Market has a Thanksgiving menu that includes a beef tenderloin meal for those not wanting a traditional turkey,.

Plan now, or you risk settling for a turkey burger in a sports bar during the Cowboys game.

Here’s a first look at Thanksgiving offers, with updates coming all month at star-telegram.com/eatsbeat:

Dinner and more

▪ Blue Mesa Grill, 612 Carroll St., will open at 9 a.m. and offer a $30 lunch buffet until 4 p.m. with turkey, stuffing and pies, plus salmon, a taco bar, omelets and waffles. Blue Mesa also will offer a $175 advance-order takeout family pack with turkey, stuffing, enchiladas and a pie; 817-332-6372, bluemesagrill.com.

Turkey, enchiladas, sides and pie will be on the Thanksgiving Day buffet at Blue Mesa Grill.
Turkey, enchiladas, sides and pie will be on the Thanksgiving Day buffet at Blue Mesa Grill.

▪ Chef Point Cafe, 5901 Watauga Road, Watauga, and 5220 Texas 121, Colleyville, will open at 10 a.m. and offer a $27 turkey lunch, a $42 duck platter and other entrees. Chef Point also will offer advance-order a la carte items; 817-656-0080 or 817-482-5030, chefpointcafe.org.

▪ CRÚ Food & Wine Bar, 5188 Marathon Ave., will offer a $52 turkey-and-dressing, short-rib or trout platter at lunch or dinner. Both include pumpkin cheesecake; 817-737-9463; cruwinebar.com.

▪ Fitzgerald, 6115 Camp Bowie Blvd., will open for lunch and dinner and serve a Cajun stuffed duck-chicken roulade, along with its regular seafood menu and hummingbird cake; 817-349-9245, eatatfitz.com.

▪ Golden Corral buffet locations at 3517 Alta Mere Drive, Fort Worth; 7660 Boulevard 26, North Richland Hills; 465 Interstate 20 East, Arlington; and 2820 Interstate 20 West, Grand Prairie, will serve turkey, ham and roast beef; goldencorral.com.

Turkey and dressing with a light giblet gravy, yams and green beans at Luby’s.
Turkey and dressing with a light giblet gravy, yams and green beans at Luby’s.

▪ Heaven’s Gate Restaurant, a family buffet restaurant at 3820 N. Main St., will open at 10 a.m. and offer a $19.99 serve-yourself lunch with turkey, brisket, steak and fajitas; 817-624-1262, heavensgaterestaurant.com.

▪ Jake & Dorothy’s Cafe, 406 E. Washington St., Stephenville, will serve lunch beginning at 11 a.m.; 254-965-5211. (Other country cafes such as the Koffee Kup Family Restaurant in Hico and Ranchman’s Cafe in Ponder are not open this holiday.)

▪ Lockhart Smokehouse in Texas Live!, 1650 E. Randol Mill Road, will open for lunch and dinner and serve its regular barbecue menu, including smoked turkey, brisket, Kreuz Market sausage and sides; 817-769-1747, texas-live.com.

▪ Luby’s, 3312 SE Loop 820, Forest Hill, will offer a $13.99 turkey-and-dressing platter that includes dessert. Luby’s also will offer advance-order $129-$179 family to-go packs; 817-293-0060, lubys.com.

B&B Butchers & Restaurant will be open on Thanksgiving and offering a prix-fixe menu, as well as the entire dinner menu. The prix-fixe menu, which is $90 for adults and $35 for kids.
B&B Butchers & Restaurant will be open on Thanksgiving and offering a prix-fixe menu, as well as the entire dinner menu. The prix-fixe menu, which is $90 for adults and $35 for kids.
B&B Butchers & Restaurant is offering a take-out menu for Thanksgiving that includes pre-cooked entrees numerous sides to choose choose from.
B&B Butchers & Restaurant is offering a take-out menu for Thanksgiving that includes pre-cooked entrees numerous sides to choose choose from.

▪ Lucile’s Stateside Bistro, 4700 Camp Bowie Blvd., will serve a turkey-and-dressing dinner along with salmon, prime rib or lobster; 817-738-4761, lucilesstatesidebistro.com.

▪ Ol’ South Pancake House, 1509 S. University Drive or 225 E. Renfro St., Burleson, will open all day and serve a $16.99 turkey-and-dressing dinner (over age 55, it’s $14.99) from lunch through dinner. There’s also an advance-order take-out family-pack dinner for $69.99; 817-336-0311 or 817-989-9090, olsouthpancakehouse.com.

▪ Taste Community Restaurant, 1200 S. Main St., will open at 10 a.m. and serve a turkey-and-dressing charity brunch. Pay what you can to help feed others, and please make reservations to ensure there’s enough food for everyone; 817-759-9045, tasteproject.org.

The hotels

▪ 97 West in the Hotel Drover, 200 Mule Alley Drive, will offer a $68 three-course lunch; 682-255-6497, hoteldrover.com.

▪ Bacchus Kitchen + Bar in Hotel Vin, 215 E. Dallas Road, Grapevine, has a $95 lunch buffet in the Bordeaux Ballroom with turkey and prime rib, chilled seafood, crepes, sides and pies. Bacchus Kitchen also will offer a turkey dinner in the restaurant or to-go; 817-251-3040, bacchustx.com.

▪ Cast Iron in the Omni Fort Worth, 1300 Houston St., Fort Worth, serves a $74 hotel ballroom buffet with turkey, lunch and brunch items and several desserts; 817-350-4106, omnifortworthhotel.com.

▪ Copeland’s of New Orleans in the Hilton Southlake, 1400 Plaza Place, will offer a $22 platter with Cajun fried turkey, cornbread dressing and sides. Copeland’s also will offer $139 advance-order family packs with turkey and sides; 817-305-2199, facebook.com/southlakecopelands.

▪ Cut & Bourbon in Live! by Loews, 1600 E. Randol Mill Road, Arlington, will offer a $95 turkey, salmon or steak platter with chilled seafood and sides; 682-277-4950, cutandbourbon.com.

Cut & Bourbon’s sprawling, heated patio in Arlington has plenty of room for Thanksgiving dinner or weekend gatherings.
Cut & Bourbon’s sprawling, heated patio in Arlington has plenty of room for Thanksgiving dinner or weekend gatherings.

▪ Il Modo in the Kimpton Harper, 714 Main St., will offer a turkey-and-Italian-sausage-stuffing lunch and dinner with spaghetti pomodoro and pumpkin pie; 817-332-7200, theharperfortworth.com.

▪ Jellico’s at the Westin Southlake, 1200 Texas 114 East, Southlake, has not published a menu; 817-873-1900, marriott.com.

▪ LAW in the Four Seasons Resort, 4150 N. MacArthur Blvd., Irving, will offer a $130 brunch featuring turkey, lamb, scallops or short rib Wellington; 972-717-2420, lawrestaurant.com.

The Four Seasons Resort brunch is served in the hotel’s LAW Restaurant.
The Four Seasons Resort brunch is served in the hotel’s LAW Restaurant.

▪ Riverwalk Cantina and Zeppole in the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, 1501 Gaylord Trail, Grapevine, serve buffets but are mostly sold out for Thanksgiving. They’re still available for Christmas Day; 817-778-1000, gaylordtexan.com.

▪ Ruth’s Chris Steak House in the Hilton Fort Worth, 813 Main St., is open but has not published a menu; 817-348-0080, ruthschris.com

▪ Sky Creek Kitchen + Bar in the Delta hotel, 251 Texas 114 East, Southlake, has not published a menu; 682-477-4606, skycreekkitchen.com.

▪ Wicked Butcher in the Sinclair Hotel, 512 Main St., will serve an a la carte menu that includes turkey roulade, lamb, prime rib and other entrees with cornbread stuffing, sides and apple pie; 682-231-8214, wickedbutcher.com.

The prime steak/seafood houses

▪ B&B Butchers & Restaurant, 5212 Marathon Ave., will offer a $90 lunch with turkey or prime rib, sides and dessert. The adjacent Butcher Shop has a $65-per-person advance-order takeout turkey plate with dessert (minimum order of two); 817-737-5212, bbbutchers.com.

▪ Capital Grille, 800 Main St., will offer a $47 lunch featuring turkey, sides and pumpkin cheesecake. It also will have a $135 advance-order takeout family pack of side dishes only (no turkey); 817-348-9200, thecapitalgrille.com.

▪ Del Frisco’s Double Eagle, 812 Main St., and Del Frisco’s Grille, 154 E. Third St., Fort Worth, and 1200 E. Southlake Blvd., Southlake, will be open but have not published menus; 817-877-3999, 817-887-9900, 817-410-3777; delfriscos.com and delfriscosgrille.com.

▪ Eddie V’s Prime Seafood, 3100 W. Seventh St., Fort Worth, will serve a $47 turkey dinner with brioche-sage stuffing and a $12 pumpkin pie tartlet; 817-336-8000, eddiev.com.

▪ Lonesome Dove Western Bistro, 2406 N. Main St., is serving a $45 Cornish game hen dinner along with its regular menu; 817-740-8810, lonesomedovefortworth.com. Also, Lonesome Dove’s cousin Woodshed Smokehouse is selling a $175 advance-takeout family dinner that includes a donation of a dinner for six to Tarrant Area Food Bank; 817-877-4545, woodshedsmokehouse.com.

The turkey and ham Thanksgiving plate for Fort Worth police officers at Mercury Chophouse.
The turkey and ham Thanksgiving plate for Fort Worth police officers at Mercury Chophouse.

▪ Mercury Chophouse, 525 Taylor St., will open from 11 a.m. until midnight and serve a $49 turkey and ham platter all day with stuffing, sides and dessert, plus its regular menu and desserts; 817-336-4129, mercuryfw.com.

▪ Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille, 2400 Texas 114 West, Grapevine, will offer a $49 turkey-and-dressing lunch with pumpkin cheesecake through 9 p.m. in the dining room or as an advance-order takeout; 682-477-2261, perryssteakhouse.com.

▪ Silver Fox Steakhouse, 1651 S. University Drive, will offer a $39 turkey-and-dressing lunch in the dining room or at curbside. Add pecan or pumpkin pie. Silver Fox also will offer a $160 advance-order family to-go pack; 817-332-9060, silverfoxcafe.com.

▪ Truluck’s, 1420 Plaza Place, Southlake, will offer a $59 turkey-and-stuffing lunch and dinner with pecan or pumpkin pie; 817-912-0500, trulucks.com.

Early or late

▪ Once again, Toro Toro in the Worthington Renaissance hotel, 222 Main St., serves a nighttime-only a la carte turkey dinner with chorizo stuffing. Other items include an Axiote salmon platter and pumpkin pie. At lunch, Toro Toro serves the regular menu. Valet parking is free; 817-210-2222, torotorofortworth.com.

▪ Mercury Chophouse in Fort Worth (see above) is serving its Thanksgiving dinner until midnight.

▪ The Zodiac at Neiman Marcus in downtown Dallas, 1618 Main St., serves its annual $50 holiday buffet at 11 a.m. every day from Thanksgiving Eve through New Year’s Eve, except Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day when the store is closed. The menu includes store traditions such as prime rib, Stanley Marcus’ pot roast and Mandarin orange souffle; definitely make reservations at 214-573-5800, neimanmarcus.com.

Hickory-smoked turkey is shipped anywhere from Angelo’s Barbecue.
Hickory-smoked turkey is shipped anywhere from Angelo’s Barbecue.

Take-out turkeys

With the short supply, many stores are sold out of advance-order turkey dinners. For example, H-E-B supermarkets are sold out.

A few that may still have turkeys available:

▪ Angelo’s Barbecue, 2533 White Settlement Road, is selling $69.95 whole smoked turkeys and hams; 817-332-0357, angelosbbq.com.

▪ Central Market, 4651 West Freeway or 1425 E. Southlake Blvd., is serving hot smoked turkey lunches to go Thanksgiving week, but not that day, so go in advance. CM is also offering $119-$339 advance-order takeout family packs with turkey, ham, tenderloin or vegetarian lasagna ($32), plus a choice of 11 pies.

Central Market is one of few places to buy the legacy holiday meal for Texans, Greenberg Hickory Smoked Turkeys from Tyler; 817-989-4700 or 817-310-5600, centralmarket.com.

B&B Butchers & Restaurant is offering a take-out menu for Thanksgiving that includes a brined turkey ready to cook.
B&B Butchers & Restaurant is offering a take-out menu for Thanksgiving that includes a brined turkey ready to cook.

▪ Eatzi’s, 1540 S.. University Drive or 1200 Texas 114 West, Grapevine, is taking advance orders for dinners featuring turkey breast or chipotle-bacon turkey legs, ham or rib roast; 817-945-9095 or 817-527-4007, eatzis.com.

▪ Heim Barbecue, 1109 W. Magnolia Ave. or 5333 White Settlement Road, is selling $115 smoked turkeys and $225-$350 dinner packages; 817-882-6970 or 682-707-5772, heimbbq.com.

▪ Hurtado Barbecue, 1116 Eighth Ave., Fort Worth, or 205 E. Front St., Arlington, is selling $110 turkeys and sides such as elote, beans, cheddar grits and mac-and-cheese; 682-499-5913 or 682-323-5141, hurtadobbq.com.

Brandon Hurtado pulls a turkey out of the smoker Monday, Oct. 31, 2022, at Hurtado Barbecue in Fort Worth.
Brandon Hurtado pulls a turkey out of the smoker Monday, Oct. 31, 2022, at Hurtado Barbecue in Fort Worth.

▪ Magdalena’s, 502 Grand Ave., is offering, by appointment, a $160 dinner featuring turkey roulade with chestnut stuffing and poblano crema, esquites, chipotle yams, green beans, squash-chorizo soup and apple-pecan-mole sauce pie; 817-740-8085, magdalenastx.com.

▪ Roy Pope Grocery, 2300 Merrick St., has a smoked turkey dinner with cornbread stuffing and sides; 817-732-2863, roypopegrocery.com.

▪ Whole Foods Market, 3720 Vision Drive in Fort Worth, 4801 Colleyville Blvd. or 801 E. Lamar Blvd. in Arlington, is selling $109-$569 advance-order takeout family packs; wholefoodsmarket.com.

The non-turkey

▪ Spiral Diner & Bakery, 1314 W. Magnolia Ave,., is taking orders for vegan holiday dinner packages or as single take-out dinners so vegans can “BYOP” — bring your own plate — to family gatherings; 817-332-8834. spiraldiner.com

Desserts and sides

▪ Besides many bakeries selling pies to go, Malai Kitchen, 5289 Monahans Ave. or 1161 E. Southlake Blvd., Southlake, is selling $40 toasted-coconut pies by advance order; 682-707-3959 or 817-251-9141. malaikitchen.com

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