Fort Worth dumpling maven Hao Tran is about to trade in her tiny Near Southside market for a full-blown restaurant. Construction is set to start this January on Duong DeVille, a new Vietnamese spot that will dramatically scale up her operation with roughly 124 seats inside, about 34 more on a courtyard patio, a full bar and even a TV. Tran expects to hire around 15 to 25 staffers and is eyeing a buildout of about five months, with a late spring opening on the calendar. She says she may keep Hao’s Grocery & Café running for cooking classes and private dinners, using the smaller shop to complement the bigger new venture.
Groundbreaking set for January, five-month buildout
Tran and her landlord say construction crews are scheduled to roll in this January, kicking off a build they estimate will take about five months. If that timeline holds, Duong DeVille should be ready to open in late spring. Those details, including the construction schedule, were laid out in reporting by the Fort Worth Report.
From a tiny market to a neighborhood anchor
For now, Tran will keep operating Hao’s Grocery & Café at 120 St. Louis Avenue while she decides how the smaller space should evolve, whether that is leaning harder into classes, private dinners or catering. Her website lists current hours and upcoming cooking classes. The new restaurant will sit in Entrepreneur Park on the west side near Loop 820 and Jim Wright Freeway, part of a redevelopment that local coverage says is drawing both retailers and restaurant tenants to that corridor, according to The Dallas Morning News and business listings at Hao's Grocery & Café.
What the new space will include
At roughly 3,601 square feet, Duong DeVille is a major upgrade from Tran’s current digs. Plans call for a private dining room, a dedicated dumpling-making shop and a full menu that pulls from southern and western Vietnamese cooking traditions. Tran has tapped Thai “Luu” Vo as chef de cuisine. The layout is designed for about 124 indoor seats plus a 34-seat patio, along with a bar and a television, Tran and her landlord told the Fort Worth Report.
Hiring and neighborhood reach
Tran estimates Duong DeVille will employ roughly 15 to 25 people, and she says the additional space will give her room to expand the private dinners and cooking classes that helped build her following. The opening also ties into a broader wave of investment on the west side, from new grocery projects to mixed-use rehabs, that local previews say should support more full-service restaurants, as noted by Fort Worth Magazine.
