In 2024, Lower Greenville’s Rye made history when former bar manager Julian Shaffer earned the Exceptional Cocktails Award from the inaugural Michelin Guide Texas edition. Just a little over a year later, co-owners Tanner Agar and Taylor Rause announced the restaurant’s closure on March 7.
Less than a week later, the space entered its next chapter. On March 13, avant-garde cocktail bar Apothecary—Rye’s next-door sister concept—reopened, unveiling an extended footprint and split, two-room experience in the former Rye space.
“For years, Apothecary has lived in two worlds,” Agar, Apothecary’s CEO and creative director, said in a release. “One side is the one people talk about—the creative cocktails that push boundaries and make you wonder how the hell we pulled them off. However, if you’ve ever sat at the bar, you know there’s always been another side too: great spirits, great technique, and bartenders who love helping you discover your next favorite drink. Both sides have always been part of Apothecary, but now they each have the room they deserve.”
Apothecary’s new dual identity splits into two concepts: Archive and Alchemy, with Archive taking over the former Rye space.
Rye has long been something of a phoenix in the Dallas dining scene. The restaurant, known for its cutting edge creativity, began in McKinney before a fire destroyed the original location. A second outpost in Lower Greenville carried the concept forward, garnering national attention from Food Network and the Michelin Guide. Its latest rise from the ashes lives on as Archive.
Archive is familiar, yet refreshed. Chandeliers twinkle over vintage armchairs, oil lamps flicker on each table, and emerald drapery lines the walls. A mirrored back wall remains, along with the floors that once served as a bowling lane, as nods to the restaurant’s past. “I’m gonna shift this space, but I’m not gonna rip down something I already like,” Agar says.
While both rooms share a food menu, the experience begins in Archive. Rye devotees will still find staples like the Icelandic hot dog and the “Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives”-featured sauerkraut cake. “As Rye did more and more of the tasting menus, we got to less and less of that ‘just come and hang out [crowd],” Agar says.
The reworked menu embraces approachability. A Caesar salad arrives layered with candied bacon, smoked butter croutons, and shaved cured egg yolk. The APO Burger stacks Texas Wagyu with bruleed fontina, Spanish tomato spread, garlic whip, and chives. “We’ve not traditionally, ever done a burger or a Caesar salad,” Agar adds. “We’re going to start to add some of those things in and make sure we can do a really killer version.”
For the first time, the kitchen introduces a chicken entree. The sun-dried tomato chicken coats the protein with spiced flour, finished with charred sun-dried tomato cream, Parmesan, basil, and microgreens. Tender beef cheek tacos drizzled with a mezcal-tallow emulsion melt in your mouth, but one of the biggest stunners sits on the appetizer menu. The Spice Bag is Apothecary’s take on the Irish bar snack that originated in Dublin in the early 2010s. Traditionally a mix of chicken, fries, onions, peppers, and spices, Rause’s version is a mouthwatering combination of popcorn chicken, battered fries, onions, bell pepper, jalapeños, and garlic cloves tossed in a bold dirty spice rub. In true Dallas fashion, a “Let’s be Bougie” upgrade adds caviar, crème fraiche, chive, and gold flakes. Served with a curry dipping sauce, it’s a dish that’s not to be overlooked.
Alongside cocktails, Archive introduces an expanded wine program. “On this side, we have a big, full wine list, stuff by the bottle, stuff Apothecary’s never had before,” Agar says. “It never really had a good wine list, to be honest. We now have a full wine list.” Agar, who is currently pursuing sommelier certification, curated a selection of sparkling, white, and red wines including Champagne alternatives like Vol Enchanté Brut Crémant d’Alsace.
For Apothecary newcomers, the cocktail menu is structured. Drinks are organized into categories: Over the Counter, Prescription, and Illicit Elixirs, along with a new spirit-free section. “They’ll get more adventurous as you go from left to right, generally more refreshing at the top of categories, and the more spirit forward at the bottom of categories,” Agar says.
Familiar favorites remain, including the duck fat-washed Pekin Tom old fashioned. A frozen Irish coffee offers a chilled, caffeinated reprieve from the forthcoming Texas heat. Other cocktails showcase the bar’s technical edge with ingredients like buttered popcorn bourbon, acid-adjusted celery, peppercorn-Parmesan gin, all presented with precision.
For Apothecary at its most experimental, Alchemy’s mixology is where boundaries blur. Since 2021, the original space has operated like a chemistry lab cosplaying as a bar. With Rye and Apothecary sharing a kitchen for years, the collision of spirits and culinary creativity felt inevitable. The expansion gave the team a blank slate to push further.
Alchemy pushes the palette into new terrain. The Pickle Cheesecake is an eye brow-raising blend of vodka, cream cheese, rice wine pickles, graham cracker, egg white, and soda. It’s a tangy, creamy cocktail that goes down like a briny dessert. “As long as the idea of pickles and cheesecake sounds good to you, you’ll love it,” Agar admits.
The French Onion Soup cocktail incorporates rye, brandy, and actual French onion soup into a savory pour. The Inappropriate Beet Pun intriguingly layers herbal liqueur, gin, beet, red pepper, orange juice, honey, and goat cheese coconut foam.
Rye may be gone, but its spirit lingers in Apothecary’s new dual form, splitting between comfort and curiosity—and inviting guests to experience both with every visit.
Apothecary, 1922 Greenville Ave., Dallas, apothecary.bar
