DALLAS — Read this story and more North Texas business news from our partners at the Dallas Business Journal
Tomi Adeyinka has seen the highs and lows of working in the restaurant industry during the past five years.
Adeyinka, service manager at Hero by HG Sply Co., started working at the sports bar and restaurant as a server when it opened in 2019. She experienced the Covid-19 pandemic, when restaurants took a big hit. She has seen what it's like when the Dallas Mavericks or the Dallas Stars go deep in the playoffs and when either misses the postseason.
It makes the past few weeks, when both teams made runs to their conference finals at the same time, that much sweeter. At one point, there was a game every evening. While the Stars saw their bid for the Stanley Cup fall short against the Edmonton Oilers, the Mavericks advanced to the NBA Finals, where they face the Boston Celtics in a best-of-seven series set to tip off on June 6.
The success of both teams has boosted businesses like Hero around the American Airlines Center in Victory Park. Home games amplified foot traffic during a time when the arena would otherwise be quieter if the teams had been knocked out earlier. And even away games have brought in customers for watch parties.
For Hero, located in PNC Plaza right outside the AAC, a packed house every night has led to "record" sales, Adeyinka said. And it's put more money in the pockets of servers, as well.
"I'm watching everyone make a bunch of money," Adeyinka said. "This is amazing. It's been really good. Everyone really needed it. Like, this is a year that we really, really needed, and I can tell you that everyone is happy here."
Adeyinka expects big crowds at Hero for Games 1 and 2 of the NBA Finals, which will begin with the Mavs on the road in Boston. The American Airlines Center will host watch parties for both games, and Hero will as well.
"We're fully staffed around all the bars and we've been doing some deep cleaning at the restaurant as well just because we are expecting to be completely full," Adeyinka said. "Honestly, we've been doing this [for several weeks], so we're ready."
When the Mavs come back home to Dallas to host Games 3 and 4 of the Finals, Adeyinka expects Hero to continue to be packed.
With tickets on the resale market costing upward of $1,000 after fees, going to a nearby bar like Hero lets fans remain close to the action without stepping foot in the arena. The cheapest price for a single ticket for Game 3 on Ticketmaster, through the Mavs' official website, was $840, or $1,074 after fees and taxes, as of June 6.
Dirty Bones, a wings joint from Dallas-based Milkshake Concepts located on Payne Street across from the AAC, has "nonstop business" during the playoff runs, General Manager Vincent Cervantes said.
"The way our business works if there's an event across the street, we're busy here. If there's no event, it's kind of a ghost town," Cervantes said. "But ever since the playoffs started, there have been watch parties. And within the past week or so there's been a whole lot more people coming in and dining in to watch the games and whatnot, even when the game is here."
During the regular season, people may stop in for a bite before games but the restaurant usually empties out by tipoff or when the puck dropped, Cervantes said. During the playoff runs, he said the restaurant has had crowds throughout the entirety of the games.
The boost from the playoff runs this year has been even more important, Cervantes said, considering last summer the AAC was closed due to renovations.
"Now, I look at my sales and I have projected sales that are ten grand above, sometimes four to five grand above a year ago," Cervantes said.
Dirty Bones will host watch parties with DJs for each game of the NBA Finals, Cervantes said. For home games, the restaurant will have burgers, hot dogs and beer available and ready to go for people who want to grab a quick bite before heading into the arena.
"I expect it to stay consistently busy throughout the entire evening," Cervantes said. "I don't expect it to die out at all whatsoever. And if they win that first home game, it's going to be pretty crazy in here."
The Mavs are playing in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2011, when they beat the Lebron James-led Miami Heat in six games for the franchise's first and only NBA championship. Tipoff for Game 1 is set for 7:30 p.m. on June 6, and the game will be telecast on ABC.
