Cibus, the newest culinary creation from the ever-fertile mind of Alberto Lombardi, is now open in NorthPark Center. The dual concept is two restaurants in one: The casual tavola calda (or cafeteria-style) Caffe Cibus opened last week serving panini, pizza, pasta and house-made gelato, while the more-formal Ristorante Cibus opens Oct. 31 with full service and a more ambitious menu of dishes from the owner's native Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy.

In recent years, Mr. Lombardi has focused on foods from France ( Cafe Toulouse), Spain ( Sangria Tapas y Bar) and Cuba ( La Cubanita), and he says it's a pleasure to return to his culinary roots.

"I wanted to do something that would remind me of Italy," he says. "Everything came from Italy – the tables, the chairs, the cases, everything was built over there. I always wanted to do something very, very Italian, and I think this one really makes me feel good."

Hip to be square

More restaurants are filling the spaces at Frisco Square. GoGo Burger has opened next to Mattito's. The two restaurants share a kitchen and an owner, though the menus are completely distinct. While Mattito's serves the same upscale Tex-Mex that has made its Dallas location a longtime favorite, GoGo serves thin-patty hamburgers similar to the much-lauded sandwiches at California-based In-N-Out Burger, along with hand-cut fries, cheese-filled tater tots and gourmet milkshakes in flavors ranging from Twinkie to chocolate frosting.

Also open in the mixed-use complex is Josephine's Italian Bistro, which relocated about two months ago from the Shops at Starwood retail complex, also in Frisco.

Driving ambition

The restaurateur behind Rockfish Seafood Grill and Twin Peaks will debut a new concept next month at Highway 114 and MacArthur in Irving's Las Colinas Village. Randy DeWitt has teamed with Jack Gibbons (formerly with Pappadeaux) to launch Cadillac Ranch, an upscale-casual eatery spotlighting the food of the Texas Hill Country. Signature dishes will include a Texas Kobe beef flat iron steak and slow-smoked ribs with Dublin Dr Pepper barbecue sauce. The restaurant, in the space that formerly housed Bahama Breeze, will also feature nightly entertainment on its "live music porch."

Family first

Bargain-seekers and do-gooders alike should head to Craft next month as the Victory Park restaurant features its special three-course "Family Meal." From Nov. 11 to 15, chef de cuisine Anthony Zappola offers a Restaurant Week-style menu with a choice of entree accompanied by shared starters, sides and desserts for $45 per person; $5 of each meal will be donated to the American Red Cross to assist with hurricane relief. Craft's regular menu will also be available during the five-day promotion.

Mariani digs the Mansion

The Mansion Restaurant at Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek was named one of the best new restaurants of 2008 in the November issue of Esquire magazine. Though the luxe hotel restaurant has been open for nearly three decades, its recent reinvention garnered accolades from Esquire food and travel writer John Mariani, who writes that executive chef John Tesar's contemporary American cuisine "brings a New York edge to Texas swagger."

Welcome wagon

• Chaucer's has opened a third location, this one in downtown's West End. The Japanese restaurant and sushi bar joins two older siblings in Addison and Frisco.
•  Tomato Tamoto opened last month in the food court in Plano's Shops at Willow Bend mall. The fast-casual eatery specializes in gourmet, built-to-order salads and grilled wraps.
• Gourmet pizza franchise Zpizza has landed in Flower Mound. The California-based chain's pies feature dough made from Montana winter-wheat flour and high-end toppings that range from reduced-fat, MSG-free pepperoni to roasted eggplant and pine nuts.

Kim Harwell is a Dallas food writer.