Chadwick Parkway Now Runs From Morning Skate to Last Call

The Children's Health StarCenter Multisport opened on March 31 as a youth sports facility, and nearly seven months later it does more than its ribbon-cutting promised. Since August, the building at 13850 Chadwick Parkway has also housed a full sports bar that stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Add G.O.A.T.'s Arena on Robson Ranch Road, which held its grand opening in September, and Northlake has a skate-dinner-game routine that earlier would have meant a drive to another town.

This fall is the first time all three places are open together for hockey season, football season and the holidays, and their schedules fit together, with the rink taking afternoons and early evenings while the bars pick up weeknights and late nights.

A Building Pitched for Kids

When the facility opened on March 31, the official message was all about families. Northlake Mayor Brian Montini told the Cross Timbers Gazette that it "brings new opportunities for kids and families to experience youth sports close to home." Dallas Stars President and CEO Brad Alberts called it "an attraction that will drive families to their town for years to come."

The facilities back that up. There are two NHL-regulation ice rinks, one of them named for Montini, who brought the idea to the Stars. There are eight basketball courts that convert to volleyball, plus pickleball courts and training space. The Gazette noted that ice rinks and open-play courts were "few and far between" in southern Denton County before this building opened.

The pickleball courts are open for both open play and court rentals, which makes them one of the easiest parts of the building for adults to use without signing up for a league.

The Bar Inside Changed the Building's Hours

At opening, food meant the Shark Shack concession stand. The Gazette reported that a restaurant and bar called The Shark Club would follow, and expected it in June. It opened in August.

The bar has a hockey connection of its own. According to the Cross Timbers Gazette, John Teti and Roger Gibson started Shark Club in downtown Vancouver in 1993. The brand expanded into the U.K. and the U.S. after Dallas Stars owner Tom Gaglardi bought it. Northlake is the second U.S. location, after Plano.

Having the bar inside means the building stays busy after the last public skate ends. Here are the hours listed on Shark Club's Northlake page:

• Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
• Friday, 11 a.m. to midnight
• Saturday, 10 a.m. to midnight
• Sunday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.

The Gazette's August report gave a 4 p.m. Friday opening. The bar's own page, updated in September, now lists 11 a.m.

The menu goes well beyond rink snacks. It includes smothered fries with barbacoa and jalapeños, jambalaya, butter chicken, Frito pie, beef sliders, calamari and shrimp, along with wings, burgers and pizza. Weekend brunch runs Saturday and Sunday from opening until 3 p.m. Dishes include French toast, chicken and French toast, and a Big Texas Breakfast. Because brunch starts at 10 a.m. on Sundays, it overlaps the 10:30 a.m. public skate, so part of a family can eat while the rest skates.

What the Ice Costs, and When It's Open

Public skate is the main way most people use the rinks, and it costs less than many outings. The StarCenter registration page lists:

An adult who needs rental skates pays $23 per session. On the same calendar, the mid-October weekend had a Friday session from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Saturday sessions from 1:15 to 2:45 p.m. and 6:45 to 8 p.m., and Sunday sessions from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m. and 6 to 7:15 p.m. There were also weekday noon sessions. Sessions are booked through a live registration system and can change week to week, so check the calendar before you go.

Homeschool families get a separate deal. The Stars' public skating page lists Northlake homeschool skates on Mondays and Wednesdays from noon to 1:45 p.m., at $11 including skate rental. That's less than half the cost of a regular session with rental.

The evening sessions explain how the building now works. The Saturday 6:45 p.m. skate ends at 8. Shark Club is open until midnight on Saturdays, so dinner or the late game is right inside the same building.

Robson Ranch Road Covers the Weeknights

The StarCenter is busiest on weekends and in the early evening. G.O.A.T.'s Arena Sports Bar & Grill, at 1633 Robson Ranch Road, puts most of its specials on weeknights.

It's the fourth G.O.A.T.'s in Dallas-Fort Worth, and a local group runs this one. Owner Rohit M. told the Cross Timbers Gazette, "We were looking for about two years, and this is the perfect spot," and described it as "more of a neighborhood bar." The bar opened quietly and then held its official grand opening weekend from Sept. 4 to 6.

The main attraction is a 204-inch screen, backed by TVs throughout the room and on the covered patio. Weekend breakfast starts at 10 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. When it opened, the bar told the Gazette it would open at noon daily. The breakfast hours on its website came later. The weekly specials listed on its site:

• Monday and Thursday: $1 wings for the whole Monday and Thursday night football games
• Tuesday: $3 tacos from 7 to 11 p.m., plus karaoke from 7 to 10 p.m. on the first and third Tuesday of each month
• Wednesday: 10 wings for $10 all day, any sauce
• Sunday: game-day watch parties all day

A Northlake Week, Mapped

Combine both bars with the rink calendar and every day of the week has something on it. Skate times below come from the mid-October public skate listings and may change.

The two bars hardly overlap. Shark Club stays open late and draws foot traffic from inside a building full of hockey and court sports. G.O.A.T.'s builds its week around football and cheap weeknight specials, and its website says it serves Northlake, Argyle, Trophy Club, Roanoke and Justin.

Halloween to Thanksgiving on Chadwick Parkway

Hockey season is already underway. The Dallas Stars' October schedule began with a game against the Blues on Oct. 2. This is the first Stars season with a Shark Club in Northlake, a brand the Stars' owner bought, built right into the StarCenter.

The next two Saturdays on the StarCenters holiday guide are the ones to plan around.

Halloween, Saturday, Oct. 31. Northlake has three costume skates: 1:15 to 2:45 p.m., 4:45 to 6:15 p.m. and 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. Anyone in costume gets free skate rental. Northlake has three Halloween sessions. Most StarCenter locations on the guide list one or two. The early session leaves time to go trick-or-treating at home afterward, and the 6:30 p.m. session fits a later evening out.

Thanksgiving weekend, Saturday, Nov. 28. Northlake hosts the Turkey Trot on ice from 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. Skaters who complete 34 laps cover a 5K and get a Turkey Trot medal. Entry is $25. Of the Thanksgiving events on the guide, it's the only one that offers a medal. The other locations have turkey bowling or canned-food skates.

December is still open for Northlake. As of mid-October, the guide's December events, from Santa skates and skate shows to a Frisco food pantry skate and a New Year's Eve skate in Richardson, are all at Farmers Branch, Frisco, Richardson and Plano. None are at Chadwick Parkway. Families planning winter break should check the guide again in late November in case Northlake sessions are added.

The holiday calendar shows the building's two roles together. On Nov. 28, a family can finish the Turkey Trot just before 2 p.m. and then go to Shark Club, which opens at 10 a.m. on Saturdays and stays open until midnight.

If the new rink, the courts or a Saturday at Shark Club have you thinking about which parts of Northlake put you close to Chadwick Parkway and Robson Ranch Road, I'm happy to walk you through how those streets connect and what's around them. K.E. Boyd works across southern Denton County and can answer your Northlake questions directly. Let's Connect.