Dallas’ First Hooters Restaurant Reopens After a Year
Dallas’ first Hooters restaurant reopens Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, after a fire left the once-controversial restaurant closed for a year.
At a ribbon cutting, Hooters will honor firefighter Ryan Caitlin, who was injured in a July 15, 2024, blaze that took more than two hours to extinguish.
Dallas Fire-Rescue confirmed to The Dallas Morning News that a cigarette butt outside the restaurant caused a fire in the wall. The fire was ruled accidental.
The restaurant in the West End had been open for 35 years.
Restaurant News and Updates
Restaurant News
Related: Will Dallas Hooters restaurants close amid bankruptcy?
The Road to Reopening
While the restaurant was shuttered, Hooters for America filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Texas court in April 2025, leaving many to wonder whether the West End original would reopen at all.
Hooters of America CEO Sal Melilli said in April 2025 that the restaurants “are here to stay,” though CNN reported the closures of “about 30″ Hooters restaurants two months later in June. Two of those shuttered Hooters were in North Texas: in Arlington and in Fort Worth.
About 10 other Hooters restaurants are open in Dallas-Fort Worth today.
A Piece of History Reopens
The West End location was one of the earlier Hooters locations, opening in 1989 after the company was established in Clearwater, Fla., in 1983.
Hooters’ vice president of operations Tim Baum said the return of Dallas’ oldest Hooters is “a celebration of resilience, heritage, and the incredible community that has supported us for over three decades.”
The Classic Hooters Experience
The restaurant is considered an “original” Hooters. Its servers will wear the “classic Hooters Girl uniforms,” the company reported: tan tights, orange shorts and a white Hooters tank. The menu includes the original wing sauce recipe and a “simpler” menu focusing on wings and fried appetizers.
Managers hired 100 people to work in the reopened Dallas restaurant.
Hooters is at 2201 N. Lamar St., Dallas. More than a dozen Hooters restaurants remain open in other parts of Dallas-Fort Worth.
Conclusion
The reopening of the first Hooters restaurant in Dallas is a significant event for the community, marking the return of a beloved establishment after a year of closure. Despite the challenges faced by the company, including bankruptcy and closures, the West End location is back in business, offering its classic menu and atmosphere to customers.
FAQs
Q: When did the Dallas Hooters restaurant reopen?
A: The Dallas Hooters restaurant reopened on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025.
Q: What caused the fire that closed the restaurant?
A: The fire was caused by a cigarette butt outside the restaurant, which ignited a fire in the wall. The fire was ruled accidental.
Q: How many Hooters restaurants are still open in Dallas-Fort Worth?
A: About 10 other Hooters restaurants are open in Dallas-Fort Worth today, in addition to the reopened West End location.
Q: What is the address of the reopened Hooters restaurant?
A: The reopened Hooters restaurant is located at 2201 N. Lamar St., Dallas.
