Manny Rodriguez Duro Hospitality opens a new steakhouse in Fort Worth, and two of the company’s owners explain what they’re doing Duro Hospitality, which is behind the Michelin-recommended Dallas restaurants Mister Charles and El Carlos Elegante, as well as Sister and the Charles, will officially open the Chumley House in Fort Worth on Monday, November 25. We spoke with Duro partners Chas Martin and Benji Homsey to get the inside track on why this restaurant at this time — and what’s up next for one of the Metroplex’s hottest hospitality groups. Eater Dallas: Tell me about the thinking behind paying tribute to London with a restaurant in Fort Worth? Homsey: Our first thought was, do we bring an existing concept to Fort Worth? We talked about Sister, which we intend to scale at some point. It was important to do something new for Fort Worth. As we looked at what was missing and what people are attracted to there, it evolved into this European steakhouse with some London flare. We take research and development trips three and four times a year to get inspired about what we’re doing currently and to look for ideas for future restaurants. We got turned on by everything we saw on a trip to London, but it wasn’t at all specific to thinking about a restaurant for Fort Worth; it just evolved that way. As we thought about interior design and creating a warm environment, it all seemed to line up and make sense. Manny Rodriguez Manny Rodriguez Manny Rodriguez I get that. It made me laugh when I saw what you were doing, because Fort Worth and London aesthetically are so far apart but its very Duro to make something that is yours and not necessarily something informed by the Cowtown vibe. Martin: If you think about it, what is London? It’s Arab, Indian, a melting pot of African cultures, and it’s bangers and mash and beef Wellington. It’s a melting pot of cultures. Homsey: There are some Indian-inspired dishes, and loosely Mediterranean-inspired dishes. There are some French and Italian influences. Just as London has become a melting pot, that allowed us to widen our creative range from a culinary perspective. Martin: Everyone layers on this Western vibe in Fort Worth and, by the way, I love it. It’s not what they need more of right now. Do we have some ideas for a Western-influenced steakhouse? Yeah, we do. If the opportunity comes up, great. We’ll put it into play. People who are dining out in Fort Worth are two types. Old Fort Worth which is ridiculously wealthy, and they’re coming to Dallas for dinner. If Dallas is too far, they’re going to the airport and flying to London, L.A., Palm Springs — and they’re doing that as much, and in my opinion more, than the guys I know in Dallas. West of Fort Worth is Plano-ish, with Aledo and Benbrook. It’s affluent, they want more to do, and its different but its the future of the Metroplex. Everything you just said helps me understand what the menu is. Martin: We’ve been thinking of this clubby version of Mister Charles that’s a little darker and warmer for awhile. This put a big bow on it. We’re going to do something that has a nod to Ralph Lauren in a lot of ways. If you’re looking for a salad and a steak, we’ve got you. If you want to go off the beaten path and get something you won’t find in a you everyday steakhouse, we’ve got you too. This restaurant doesn’t have the name Charles involved. Why? Martin: I don’t know. We may do more Charles, we may not. Each has similar DNA, but we’ve worked hard to make sure they all have their own identity. The name comes from Chumley, who was my dog. He was a fixture in our office on and off, and he passed in April. He was a big Bouvier [des Flandres] who was a chill, regal animal. As we came up with the concept, I don’t think it’s simple but it is understandable — and he was understandable. Manny Rodriguez What about the return of beef Wellington on this menu? Martin: It’s so much fun and we thought it fit. It’s pretty balanced if you think about it — it’s got protein, carbohydrates. [laughs] What are your favorite dishes on the menu so far? Homsey: I keep going back to the butter chicken pie. Meat pies are pretty popular in the UK. We also have a meat pie on the Charles menu that rotates, and as we were developing this we thought it would be cool to have a pie that didn’t change and had unexpected flavors that are similar to chicken tikka masala in a crusty, flaky pot pie. Martin: I love the entire menu, but the saag paneer I’ve had ten of out the last 13 nights. All the steaks are dynamite. You get some scones that have garam masala when you sit down — the scones are bangin’! Finally, what’s next? Martin: We’ve shelved everything that we have to focus on Fort Worth. We’ve had that Homewood space since... Homsey: Technically, almost a year. Martin: Our original plan was to rush and get something open there, then do Fort Worth. That felt really stupid. We did not get into this business to open restaurants. What we’ve done over the last year is spend a lot of money [laughs] mothballing Homewood and setting it aside to get the team right in Fort Worth, and work on our existing restaurants to make sure things were right. Listen, I like reading about the new restaurants too — I even go to some of them. The last thing we wanted to do was grow too quickly and allow the company to change in any way. The Chumley House is open now at 3230 Camp Bowie Blvd., Suite 150 in Fort Worth. Reservations are available online. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.