Stop the moving van! Old-time Arlington diner stays open after Fort Worth deal nixed

Skillet N Grill’s sale to Dixie House Cafe is canceled and the owners will keep the 30-year Arlington breakfast and lunch favorite open for now, they announced Tuesday on Facebook.

Kevin El-Etoum had announced the sale in August on Facebook, writing that founder Shebli El-Etoum, 65, “puts in 100 hours every week.”

Now, according to the restaurant’s latest Facebook post, Shebli El-Etoum “no longer wants to sell the business” and will keep it going for the “near future.”

Theresa Simon, founder of the 40-year-old Dixie House Cafes. confirmed the deal was called off, saying the cancellation was due in part to an extended illness in the family.

A junkyard omelet, pancake and biscuits at Skillet & Grill restaurant in Arlington.
A junkyard omelet, pancake and biscuits at Skillet & Grill restaurant in Arlington.

Dixie House had been scheduled to take over the sprawling restaurant and garden patio, 1801 W. Division St., on Oct. 1 and reopen by mid-month.

On the Skillet N Grill Facebook page, the El-Etoums wrote that they had no part in the cancellation and “we had no idea it could even fall through at this point or we would never have announced it like we did.”

Skillet & Grill, an Arlington breakfast diner, moved into a former Tex-Mex restaurant and events hall on West Division Street.
Skillet & Grill, an Arlington breakfast diner, moved into a former Tex-Mex restaurant and events hall on West Division Street.

Skillet N Grill opened in 1997 in a smaller former chain diner at 2424 W. Division St.

It became known for inexpensive prices and big breakfasts and was a favorite of Arlington city workers.

In 2018, the cafe moved six blocks east to a hacienda-style former Tex-Mex restaurant built in 1977.

The airy dining room at Skillet & Grill in Arlington.
The airy dining room at Skillet & Grill in Arlington.

The Dixie House Cafes began on the Jacksboro Highway in Fort Worth. In 1996, they adopted the name Theresa’s Dixie House Cafe.

They became known for serving home cooking day and night, and for offering a choice of 10 to 12 cream and fruit pies daily, along with a choice of about five cakes and three or four cobblers.

Current Dixie House Cafes are at 5401 S. Hulen St. and 6200 E. Lancaster Ave. in Fort Worth and 900 W. Airport Freeway in Hurst.

Breakfast at Skillet & Grill in Arlington.
Breakfast at Skillet & Grill in Arlington.