My Palace in Dallas - Olivia Constance

“Solitude requires you to move past reacting to information created by other people and focus instead on your own thoughts and experiences – wherever you happened to be”

— Cal Newport, Digital Minimalism

Hello everyone! It’s the middle of July as I’m writing down these new intros, and I sure hope y’all had a fun World Cup summer! Life has been all kinds of whirlwind, but I do blame that on the “ We’ll circle back to it in July” and then “oh it’s July” phenomenon. It’s me; I am that phenomenon; I am the prison guard of the prison of my own making. What was I gonna say? Oh yeah, right new article!

I started My Palace in Dallas during the height of the pandemic, and it was born from pure curiosity: I want to know, I want to see, and, most importantly, I want to document what the people around me have become after these unprecedented years. They can be artists or comedians, or they can also be the people you meet on the street—which is quite hard cause, supposedly, people in Dallas don’t walk at all. So, what is it that they do? This project delves into their stories and, as the name suggests, explores their Palace in Dallas.

Without further ado, allow me to introduce you to Olivia Constance! I wanna say it’s been either four or five years since I’ve been friends with Olivia, back when her hair was really short and curly. She told me she runs a coffee store called Found Board and Table, and I think to myself, what a weird name. Yet as fate had it, we started running in many overlapping circles, and the more small talk we had, the more we realized our love for food and how communal dining should look is actually very similar! Now that it’s 2026, we sat down on a very pollen-heavy morning, scheming about spring and summer, and she walked me through the beauty that is her life and home.

Hello Olivia! Thank you for sitting down with me today! Now, before I bomb you with questions, for anyone who might not have the chance to know who you are, would you like to tell me a bit about yourself? Who are you, and what is it that you do?

I am Olivia Constance, a restaurateur with a few concepts here in Dallas. A coffee shop in Uptown, a wine bar in Bishop Arts, and a deli in the Cedars.

We’ve known each other for a little over 4 years now, and compared to who we were and how far we’ve come since then, it’s been nothing but a treat witnessing all the achievements and milestones you’ve accomplished thus far! Could you tell me what the journey was like for you? How did you get to where you are now?

Oh my god, it’s been 18 years!

When I first moved to Dallas, I was working at a Korean sushi restaurant. I’ve had quite a few years of experience working in the restaurant world when I was living in Cleveland, handling regional food or working with dishes with strong heritage, but this time it was cleaning fish. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and something that really resonated with what I believe to be my core value was that, with or without speaking the same language, food and preparing it have always been an end goal as I scrubbed scales and cleaned out fish guts with all these older Korean ladies. In that tiny kitchen that constantly smelled like fish with loose scales on a wet floor, I understood my love for cooking, community, and dealing with ingredients directly from the source long before I embarked on my own restaurant journey.

Later on, I started a food truck, sold it, and decided to move to Austin. While working as a caterer, I recognized a crucial feeling that has always been in me: the fact that my heritage, my body, and what I really wanted was to work directly with food and get my hands dirty, connecting with the source of what I love, and it has always been in my family for generations.

I went headfirst into field cooking, plucking produce from the ground, working on farms, taking apart animals, and I’ve never felt happier. After I had Towns, I moved back to Dallas and worked for another company doing still pretty similar things, but now with a baby. Many people can tell you stories of seeing me taking apart animals in the field with Eli strapped on my back and Towns running around picking blueberries from a nearby bush on the farm,

Grazing boards were really big in Australia at the time, and to me, it was a vehicle that combined all that I love: communal dining, heritage food directly from farmers we work with, and something that really connects me and the earth while working on it, which then set the tone for Fount later on. When grazing boards and charcuterie made their way here and became super popular, I decided the timing was right for me to open up Fount Board and Table.

Things have expanded and changed so much since then; eighteen years is such a wild timeline to even wrap my head around, but here we are. A big part of my current plan is to really go back to why I started everything. As we start working with distributors more because it’s just how it is when you’re scaling up, I aim to get my hands dirty again, mucking onions, harvesting, and maybe more field cooking. I want to enjoy being around produce again, but with my kids growing up, I think it’s a good time to start incorporating that mentality and experience for them so we can all appreciate and have our bare feet on the rich soil once more.

Running a restaurant, no matter the scale, can be time-consuming and stressful enough for most. How did you make the decision to have two extra concepts and have them in the works simultaneously, and open only a year apart?

I wouldn’t have been able to pull it off without an amazing team, and with each concept I’ve worked with such talented people; otherwise, none of these would’ve happened.

For Seegars, it was meant to be an extra space and kitchen location for Fount because we were running out of space in our less than 100 sqft kitchen. The plan was for Seegars to be a mother kitchen for bigger boards, more hot food that we could work in tandem with Fount’s order, so that we could scale up.

During that process, we ran into so many issues with the general contractor that the project kept getting postponed; that’s when Little Blue’s location became available. As unexpected as it was, I was really drawn to it and knew that, compared to Seegars, it would take a lot less time and money to turn it around, so I asked my team, “ Guys, I know it sounds crazy to add this on top of everything that’s in the works, but I really think it would be a great idea”.

Little Blue opened a year before Seegars did, and I can’t stress enough how grateful I am for Little Blue and the positive response we’ve had. I never thought I would be having three concepts at once, but it really became its own little trifecta. Fount is located in a historic district on the last block that hasn’t been rezoned for alcohol sales, so that’s where Little Blue comes in, and Seegars can serve as our main kitchen/hosting space for catering, and they are all intertwined with the purpose they serve.

I don’t think I will open anything for a while, but you never know. If I do, it would have to be something that could integrate into my existing restaurant baby and not put too much on my plate. I’ve always been forced to operate under the “put something down in order to pick something up” structure, and it has gotten creatively frustrating to compartmentalize since there are so many different directions that little parts of me have to go all in for. There has to be a way that I could integrate everything and make decisions from the same brain, and with my kids, they could see me in every facet and not whatever I have left for them after a long day.

What does the time allocation you have across the three concepts look like now?

They are like children in that you’re only as happy as your unhappiest child, and they all need different things. *laughs

It fluctuates too; earlier this year, Little Blue needed some time, then Seegars, and now I’m back to spending more time at Fount as we start doing some creative branding for Fall. Now that we’ve built a really good team across concepts, it’s exciting to let me lead creatively and have them execute the vision without too much hands-on involvement from me. Everyone on the team knows what they're doing and understands the limits of each space; we can then work under the parameters and create great work with this collaborative structure.

What does the term restaurateur mean to you now?

I don’t even know if I like the phrase, but honestly, there isn’t a better one either. As generalized as it is, it does sum up exactly what I do. Hr, payroll, R&M, working in the pass, rewriting a menu, fixing the website- there’s so much that falls under the umbrella of restaurateur, and ultimately it’s my responsibility to make sure nothing goes up in flames, and if they do, I put it out.

I have many talented friends, and sometimes, as parents, I often hear their kids talk about how they’re never sure what exactly their parents do. Interestingly, I’ve seen Towns and Eli running around Little Blue or handing out free T-shirts during the Seegars opening party. Do you think your kids understood the extent of what it is that you do?

I went through a lot of trials and tribulations to make it work; the structure I was working under after having Eli just didn’t work for my family. His father and I are both hospitality people, and the hours just never aligned, and I refused to do that. From day 1, the kids went everywhere with me, and I was really unapologetic about taking them to all the meetings. I knew I had to build a routine, especially in this industry, a formula that works for me, in order to not just be a present mom but a present person who isn’t constantly thinking about what’s next on my to-do list.

What really brings me the fuel and gets me back on horseback every time is making a difference in their lives. Introducing them to fields, community, unique dining experiences, and being involved in what I do is a huge goal for me, and not trying to be sappy, but seeing their dirty little hands as they dig around for blueberries and working with me so close to what makes food great makes it all worth it.

Seegars is the biggest kitchen in your universe right now, which is interesting compared to how small Little Blue’s is. With Little Blue offering a more sit-down wine bistro mentality, serving a pretty small menu, is there any plan to expand its kitchen capacity there anytime soon?

You want more hot entrees there, don’t you? *laughs

James: Yes, yes, I do. Please, I’m begging. *laughs

It really is just a time thing, so I guess stay tuned? I don’t think we need any adjustments to the kitchen or menu over there right now since we’ve only been open for a year. Since it’s originally a juice place, we didn’t change the existing permit and only did more of an aesthetic refresh to the space, so if we were to give the kitchen some more firepower, we’d rework it and apply for it when the time comes. I am confident it would be a smooth process with our current team, but I’m happy and proud of what Little Blue has to offer now.

With food media on the rise and people discovering restaurants through various channels, inevitably, the spotlight will always creep its way onto you as you navigate through life. Do you notice anything different as the public has designated you as the face for your projects, or being so intertwined with it socially?

To be fair, I think I’m on the opposite end from you on this matter. You probably have reached a point where it’s prime time for you to hermit, whereas for me, I’ve been in a little cocoon of my own making, going through a pretty intense past three years, and I’m ready to come out with a new identity. Can it be weird navigating who I am as a woman, restaurateur, mother, and creative while under the public eye? Absolutely, but I’m also ready to embrace what all these projects are bringing me and see how things unfold.

I understood the weight and the responsibility that come with it; as you said, it’s inevitable being in Dallas, and I don’t take it lightly. I am also very confident in our team and our end product, even though I do have the final say on creative decisions; having a great team who work so well together eliminates the possibility where everything is dangerously shackled by my vision, because that’s when I think things start falling flat.

To further peek into who you are, can you tell me where you usually get your inspiration from?

I made it a point to stay off my phone for a while, especially when I was working on Seegars. With how food media and all types of aesthetics are floating around, I often felt like I was pulled in two directions at all times. One side of me gets super inspired and wants to implement them in what I do, knowing damn well that adds an extra forty-hour work week to all the crew, and the other side gets so numb from all the content made under the same formula, which often leaves me with vast indifference towards anything new.

I also try to put on a blinder when I’m working on concepts to make sure I don’t distract myself or be too inspired to the point where I add in so many different elements that the entire concept just becomes a hodgepodge of everything and nothing.

Aside from that, books, movies, and time with friends are of utmost importance to me. It’s like lucid dreaming, finding the glitch that’s interesting enough to remind you it’s a dream. Bringing that element and seeing how it could actually fit into reality is often how I get over any creative rut.

I’m sure you have your fair share of traveling experience and exposure to different scenes across the states and even countries. From an industry perspective, what do you think sets Dallas apart from all the other well-known big cities or any other city you’ve been to?

Speaking regionally because Texas is just so big, Dallas is very different from Austin and Houston, despite what people across the country might think. We have this warmth, maybe call it Southern hospitality, accompanied by a pretty traditional structure.

On the business side, we still follow a pretty straightforward rule of how things should be or need to operate under; it’s less chaotic, and I’m happy to see new brick-and-mortar businesses breaking this mold in their own way.

As someone from Cleveland, I find another interesting thing about Dallas is how networking happens here. There’s no real need to go to networking events or try to force conversation to happen. As you mentioned earlier in our conversation, there is this invisible string that will always end up tying us together. There are really no “must-know” individuals, but if it’s meant to be, you don’t ever have to worry about not meeting them.

Kind of like us meeting at a birthday party and many years later at my house or Marcello’s studio. Things happen organically, and I find it really endearing here.

Having spent quite some time in the city, discovering your creative identity. What do YOU think of this city?

I love being here!

Like any big city, I’ve lived here for many years now, and it’s starting to feel small, but I am ready to break out of that cocoon. Dallas has changed so much since Fount’s opening, and I’ve evolved alongside this city’s growth. Navigating through that change is a bit disorienting since I run in so many intertwining circles, but I have my core group, and finding my footing in this city once more has been a fun experience.

And we are almost to the bottom of my list of Qs for today, for those who are interested in getting into this business or starting something of their own. What suggestions or advice would you like to give them, or wish you had known sooner?

Just do it; you’ll be surprised at how much you can figure out. As long as you're passionate about it, it really will work out. I am very intense about how there is more money out there than good ideas, so you will always find backing if you have an idea that’s good and you’re passionate about it.

We need more cool stuff and fun competitions; there’s truly enough for everyone out here, and that’s how communities thrive.

To wrap this interview up, also because I am curious personally, what’s on the horizon for you? Are any “Big things coming” in the works for you? What would you like the world (whichever random soul stumbled upon this article) to know about?

Getting Seegars open and continuing to hash out little details that could be better are our top priorities now. We’re doing some pretty fun things with Fount, and I’m pumped to see what that little house in Uptown could do.