If you're a tea drinker, you'll be excited to know a new iced tea franchise opened this month in El Paso. A new Korean hot dog place has expanded to Downtown El Paso.
Another popular and locally owned barbecue place, Desert Oak, is making some moves to the Northeast. And a new restaurant and bar, Soggy Peso, that is dog-friendly, has opened on the East Side and is already attracting customers.
Here is a roundup of new businesses opening this month.
HTeaO brings new iced tea franchise to El Paso
One of the country's leading iced tea franchises, HTeaO had its grand opening recently at 12655 Rojas Drive, near Eastlake Boulevard.
It is the first HTeaO in El Paso and is owned by franchisees Carlos Ramirez, Daniel Mendoza, David Collier, Jorge Limon, and Martin Valenzuela.
"We're thrilled to bring HTeaO to El Paso, marking a significant milestone in our journey as franchisees. With our convenient drive-thru and in-store options, we're excited to cater to the diverse tastes of our guests, providing an accessible and exceptional tea experience for all," the owners said in a press release.
The business offers 26 ultra-premium teas in a variety of flavors that are made using a proprietary water filtration system. Customers can sample the teas in small cups before filling plastic cups with their choice of tea.
Some of the interesting flavors include wild raspberry, coconut and mango. There are both unsweetened and sweetened options. There is also a display unit with fresh fruit, such as strawberries and blueberries, available for purchase in tiny plastic cups for 75 cents which can be added to your tea.
At the register, people can also order water and coffee products. Aside from tea, the store sells merchandise and various snacks and also has a drive-thru.
Desert Oak Barbecue adds food truck in Northeast
Desert Oak Barbecue is bringing back its food truck and taking it to NEEP Collective at 8144 Dyer St. in Northeast El Paso. Desert Oak Barbecue, rated as one of the best by Texas Monthly, went from a food truck to a brick and mortar and now has two restaurants, one at Cowtown Boots, 11451 Gateway West Blvd., and the other on the far East Side, at 3589 Rich Beem, Suite 101. They also have a concession stand at the El Paso Chihuahuas baseball games.
More: Looking for a place to eat? Check out these 5 restaurants expanding in El Paso
The celebrated food truck will serve its signature BBQ from Wednesday to Sunday, including a special brunch on weekends until 2 p.m.
"We’re delighted to have Desert Oak Barbecue join us,” said owner Jo Luna in a press release. “Their passion for barbecue will surely make them a favorite at the Collective. Along with Social Ice and our other food trucks, we’re proud to offer a rich dining experience to the El Paso community."
NEEP is a food truck park that opened in August and features a diverse lineup of food trucks and vendors including Los Traviesos, Moncheese, Las Comadres, Nura's Halal, and Camarón El G. Fe. Social Ice is also new to the site and will be serving its popular desserts.
Soggy Peso Beer Garden now open on East Side
The restaurant bar at 11355 Pellicano Drive opened in March and seems to be a great place to get a beer after work or eat on the weekends. The restaurant is open to families during the day but geared toward the 21 and over crowd after 9 p.m.
Interestingly, the first thing you see is a strict dress code sign - no cut-offs, jerseys (only on game days), no baggy or gym clothes or durags.
Once you check out your outfit, you can make your way inside to an open area with tables set around a square bar and TVs overhead. There is also a dog-friendly outdoor patio in the back.
The menu has a variety of smokehouse meats including burgers, brisket, St. Louis style ribs, carnitas and pulled pork. It also has an extensive beer selection, including ales, lagers, stouts, IPAs and local draft beers.
We tried a couple of items - the Smokehouse Burger, $15, and the nachos, $12, and you can add a protein. The dishes were definitely big portions; the nachos themselves were enough for two.
The burger was juicy and flavorful, stacked high with brisket, bacon, gouda cheese, a crispy onion ring and some whiskey barbecue sauce. An Ace Pineapple Cider goes great with a Smokehouse Burger.
The nachos were house-made tortilla chips and layers of pinto beans, cheese sauce, pico de gallo, sour cream and guacamole. We appreciated that the chips held their own and didn't get soggy. The $5 additional brisket could have been a bit more.
The Street Corn ($8) was a tasty surprise, being a whole corn on the cob (and not in a cup) with cotija cheese, mayo, powdered Hot Cheeto over a layer of melted nacho cheddar, and cilantro and lime wedge.
More: Cheba Hut opens second El Paso location on eve of 4/20
Sol-K Dogs opens in Downtown El Paso
Sol K-dogs, a restaurant focusing on Korean food including kimbap, has opened a new location in Downtown El Paso. The new restaurant, at 800 S. El Paso St. is run through a window pick up service; so there are no indoor seats.
The menu includes original k-dogs, potato k-dogs, spicy k-dogs, and milk boba teas, and tropical home drinks both with a variety of flavors.
María Cortés González may be reached at 915-546-6150; mcortes@elpasotimes.com, @EPTMaria on Twitter; eptmariacg on TikTok
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Welcome HTeaO, new Desert Oak BBQ location and Soggy Peso in El Paso
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