The Spread.

Beer, Ice Cream and Bacon In A Glass? Texas Motor Speedway Just Wants To Kill Us All, Maybe.

Welcome to The Spread, our weekly feature that aims to share all the area restaurant, food and beverage industry news that's fit to print. Except that this is the Internet, so space isn't a concern. Also: Good thing, because this is Dallas and this town always has breaking restaurant news going down like whoa.

Yet another State Fair of Texas season has sadly come to a close, bringing with it empty pockets, aching belly and sore feet.

But, whereas the festivities came to a screeching halt just a few days ago, leaving daring artery-clogging enthusiasts feeling a bit empty (if that's even possible), the Texas Motor Speedway has already started to tempt the gods of gluttony with an announcement of its own artery-clogging offering called the Shaken' Bacon Brew.

This monstrosity — also known as “Bacon Cotton Candy's grown up badass brother” — is a milkshake created by combining Blue Bell vanilla ice cream and Rahr & Son's Brewing Co.'s Ugly Pug black lager with bacon-infused maple syrup, candied bacon topped with whipped cream, and, for good measure, even more candied bacon just because.

While thirsty and daring NASCAR enthusiasts will have to wait until November to get their hands on this exquisitely painful culinary concoction, the drink itself has already become infamous around the web, even drawing some national attention in the process. (You can watch TMS chef Joel Pena mix up a fresh Shaken' Bacon Brew here.)

While on the subject of interesting cocktails: Urban Taco recently announced the return of its popular, Halloween-themed Spookirita, which is returning to locations of the growing area tacqueria chain for a limited time only. The $5 pumpkin pie-flavored frozen margarita even features a graham cracker-crusted rim, and those who show up in costume and order one between October 28 through Halloween day will get their first order of the drink for free. Not bad, eh?

Speaking of Halloween specials: Lakewood Brewing Company will be hosting a very special Halloween bash this Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. with a $10 at-the-door cover charge. Among some of the specialty brews being offered up are a Red Wine Till & Toil, a wine barrel-aged Zomer Pils and a bourbon barrel-aged Punkel. The brewery will also debut on this day three extremely experimental to-be-announced brews that beer fans will only get to sample during these festivities.

Out in Fort Worth, the previously mentioned Rahr & Son's Brewing Co. will be hosting its own Halloween party on October 30 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., complete with a costume contest and glow-in-the-dark glassware up for grabs.

In other brew news, Community Beer Company recently celebrated coming home with a gold medal at the 2013 Great American Beer Festival, with its Public Ale beating out nearly 5,000 different beer submissions from over 740 brewing companies from around the country. This honestly comes as no surprise; we were already huge fans of the brewery's delicious brews. The Trinity Tripel is especially great — and, to little surprise, the company recently sold out of its first run of bottled versions of that brew. In response, Community has ordered a second round of 750ml bottles of both the Trinity Tripel and its Inspiration brew, as well as its first round of six-pack orders of Mosaic IPA, Witbier, and Vienna Lager.

Seems like local breweries are kicking ass and taking names at every turn — and that North Texas beer fans are reaping the rich and flavorful benefits.

In food news, October is shaping up to be one of the busiest as far as restaurant news goes: Chef Tim Love officially re-opens Fort Worth's Lonesome Dove Bistro tomorrow after a fire broke out at the spot few months back; Wine Haus, a boutique wine store and bar focusing on small, independently produced batches of wine, opened its doors out in Fort Worth a little over a week ago; Palapas Seafood Bar is reportedly opening up in the old Dallas Tortilla and Tamale Factory spot on Greenville later this year; Oishi officially re-opened its doors just a few days ago after that spot suffered a similar fate too Chef Love's a while back; Genaro's Mexican Cuisine will officially open its doors on Mockingbird this month; Kozy Kitchen is opening up its second location in North Dallas, taking over the old Goghee To Go spot; Shell Shack, a laid-back, throw-the-crab-legs-on-the-table-and-crack-it-open-with-your-bare-hands eatery, officially opened its doors in Uptown earlier this month; Lone Star Attitude Burger Co opens up next month in the old Denton Independent Hamburger Co spot in Denton's Square, complete with a roof-top patio that doubles as a live music venue; Mexican Sugar Coina y Cantina is set to open its doors in the old Coast Global Seafood spot in early November; Dude, Sweet Chocolate has announced plans to move into the Lower Greenville district sometime next month; Village Burger Bar opened up its fourth location just yesterday on Inwood Road; and True Food Kitchen sets a November 9 opening date for its location at The Plaza on Preston Road.

Cover photo via Texas Motor Speedway's Facebook page. Got a tip for The Spread? Email us!