Rodeo Dallas plans to challenge a Dallas County court ruling that has shut down the Deep Ellum bar indefinitely.
Attorneys for the bar’s parent company, Rodeo Ranch Texas, filed notice Wednesday of their intent to appeal to the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas, seeking to reopen the business. Rodeo Dallas has been closed under court order since Aug. 8.
The formal appeal was filed Thursday, according to online court records. No brief or petition has been filed yet in the case as of 11:15 a.m. Friday.
Related
Judge Veretta Frazier ruled last Friday in favor of a temporary injunction requested by Asana Partners, a North Carolina-based real estate investment firm that owns several Deep Ellum properties near Rodeo Dallas. In its lawsuit filed last month, Asana Partners argued that the bar has significantly harmed the neighborhood since opening in June 2023.
Crime in The News
Related
In her order, Frazier cited testimony that Rodeo Dallas overserves alcohol, serves underage customers and fails to prevent violence, which has fueled late-night disturbances, physical harm to police officers and a March murder linked to its patrons. She also noted that the bar’s environment has forced nearby Asana Partners businesses to close before midnight to avoid the chaos when hundreds of patrons are released at Rodeo Dallas’ 2 a.m. closing time.
“As a result of Rodeo Ranch’s misconduct, including negligent and intentional conduct in the management of its operations, AP Deep Ellum is likely to suffer immediate and irreparable harm unless the court issues a temporary injunction,” the order stated. Frazier added that proposed solutions, such as hiring a third-party security firm or implementing a comprehensive security plan, were not finalized before the expiration of the monthlong temporary restraining order on Sept. 5.
Asana Partners posted a $2 million bond to secure the temporary injunction, court records show, following a $250,000 bond for the temporary restraining order that closed the bar from Aug. 8 to Sept. 5.
In a Sept. 5 letter to the judge, Rodeo Dallas attorney Dave Wishnew said both parties had agreed on Aug. 15 to hire a third-party security firm to assess and improve security at the bar. Asana Partners approved one of the seven firms proposed by Rodeo Dallas — Premier Protective Security — on Aug. 29, and Premier provided its security assessment on Sept. 3.
“On September 4, 2025, Rodeo informed AP Deep Ellum that it agreed to retain Premier as the security firm and would be signing a contract for Premier’s services imminently,” Wishnew wrote. “Nevertheless, on the morning of September 5, 2025, AP Deep Ellum asked the court to proceed with granting the temporary injunction application and indefinitely closing the premises.”
Wishnew argued that the bar needs to reopen to properly develop the final security plan.
The controversy at Rodeo Dallas reflects broader public safety concerns raised recently by Deep Ellum business owners, workers and residents, who have pressed city officials to take action. City officials late last month told Deep Ellum community members that that they had increased police patrols in the area on weekends and added nighttime staffing to address code compliance issues, particularly at bars and clubs frequently cited for overserving alcohol.
The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission launched an investigation this summer into allegations that Rodeo Dallas was selling alcohol to minors. In late July, the city warned the bar to correct multiple code violations by Aug. 25 or face a court-ordered shutdown. The city linked 16 alleged crimes — including disorderly conduct, public intoxication, assault and murder — to the bar over the past year. Despite repeated warnings, the city said the owners failed to make meaningful improvements.
Dallas City Council member Jesse Moreno, the mayor pro tem and Deep Ellum’s representative, told The Dallas Morning News last week that he expected the city to follow through on its threat to sue Rodeo Dallas. A city inspection showed the bar had not “sufficiently met” the city’s demands, he said.
On Aug. 5, Rodeo Dallas’ landlord, Westdale Real Estate Investment and Management, chained the bar’s doors shut, citing lease violations. The lockout ended the next day after the bar obtained a court order allowing it to reopen on Aug. 6. Asana Partners filed its lawsuit on Aug. 8.
Meanwhile, Joseph Ybanez, one of the owners of Rodeo Dallas, posted a video on the bar’s Instagram page Wednesday, arguing that his business is being unfairly blamed for crime in the area. He described the lawsuit as a targeted effort by Asana Partners to gentrify the neighborhood by driving out Black and Latino customers and boosting property values.
Ybanez testified in court in August that the bar was working with the city to improve security, including enhanced staff training and adding metal detectors. He warned that a prolonged closure could force the 2-year-old bar to shut down permanently, costing 30 to 40 employees their jobs. Ybanez said the court-ordered closure cost the bar nearly $200,000 during the first weekend it was closed, noting that Rodeo Dallas made $8 million in sales last year.