In a city where restaurants live and die by trend, one restaurateur is betting everything on the unexpected.

Thirteen builds deep, Austin Rogers knows the rules: every restaurant runs over budget. Every timeline slips. Every plan meets a wall of contractors, cost overruns, and 4am worry. He's done it before with Goodwins Dallas's beloved neighborhood classic. But this time is different.

This time, it's Corsair.

Named after the pirate ships that once ruled the Mediterranean spice trade, Corsair isn't just another restaurant it's a transportive experience years in the making, built to make Dallas disappear the second you walk through the door. Two patios. A 100-seat dining room. A menu pulling flavor from Turkey, Morocco, Lebanon, Greece, and beyond. No trend-chasing. No copying. Nothing like it exists in Texas.

But building something this ambitious comes at a cost financially, emotionally, and personally. A newborn on the way. A second gym location on the line. Millions of dollars riding on a single opening night. And the same haunting question that's followed Austin through 13 builds: what if people don't show up?

Join hosts Evan, Taylor, and Rachel of Sandbox Sessions as they sit down with Austin Rogers for a raw, unfiltered conversation about ambition, risk, group dining, the death of alcohol culture, microplastics, fridge cigs, and what it really takes to open the most anticipated restaurant in Dallas.

The build is real. The stakes are higher than ever. Corsair is coming.

Listen now to go behind the curtain before the doors even open.