CheapSteaks in Deep Ellum Closes, Set to Reopen as Dusty's

Cheapsteaks in Deep Ellum closed on Sunday. Dallas restaurant and bar veteran Jeff Beihler is relaunching the concept and will soon reopen it as Dusty's.

Beihler, Ed Laster and John Jay Myers opened CheapSteaks back in 2021 as a restaurant and bar with affordable — you guessed it — steaks. At the time, we said the restaurant, which was on our top 100, offered up "honest food at a fair price" while retaining much of the charm and grit inherent of Deep Ellum.

Over the years, it's become a popular music and dance venue late at night; it has adapted to the neighborhood, perhaps.

Beihler is working on buying the space from his two partners and rebranding it as Dusty's, with a greater emphasis on DJs and less on food.

"I'm going to do a hot dog and a burger place, I think," Beihler says. "The same burger that was on the menu [at CheapSteaks] and a hot dog and that's it."

As for the name, Beihler says that before they put astroturf in the back patio space, bands would complain to booking agents about how dusty it was out there. So it became kind of an inside joke to call CheapSteak's Dusty's instead.

"So we went with it," Beihler says.

Street construction has hurt restaurants and bars on Commerce Street in Deep Ellum over the past year, so it's good to see someone committed to the neighborhood despite its fluctuations.

"From my perspective, business is as usual," Beihler says. "The cops aren't doing any favors making it look confrontational on busy nights. But Dusty's/Cheapsteaks is far enough removed from the epicenter that it's not really an issue there. I mean, Deep Ellum is my home. It's always has been and it always will be."

Beilher hopes Dusty's will open in a month. We'll keep you posted.