I have to go to Dallas for a work conference at the start of May.
I have most of a day before the conference(I arrive 11am ish, don’t have any work stuff until the evening). What should I see? Is it worth renting a car, rather than uber-ing to a couple of breweries/BBQs and maybe a museum? FWIW my hotel is in the Design District, whatever that means.
Is any of the outdoor stuff that can be reached in like 60-90mins drive worth the effort of renting a car?
Definitely get some barbecue.
Sounds like there are some breweries to explore.
This listing has some interesting sounding eating ideas.
You could take a fair number of Uber/Lyft rides for what a rental car would cost, without any of the hassle. I wouldn’t chose to get mired down in a car rental for those numbers of hours.
If it was me, I’d go to Dealey Plaza.
Have you been to Dealey Plaza? Talk about nothing.
A bunch of concrete, a Y-intersection in a couple of streets, a small area of grass, and a large number of losers standing around gawking. And lots of vendors trying to part the gawkers from some cash for a souvenir.
Yes, an important historical event occurred there. But the place itself is pretty underwhelming. The museum is interesting, but only to the degree one is fired up about what’s now 60 year old history. If one is JFK buff, by all means go. If not, not.
The art museums and such are far more extensive and high quality.
Hmmm part of me does want to do a Facebook post from the grassy knoll. Are there any good BBQ spots or breweries nearby?
Yeah, if you like art, the DMA is a damn good museum. If you somehow make it to Ft Worth, the Ft Worth Modern and the Kimball are great as well.
Ehhh, there are a few, most of the ones I like are on the other side of 1-35, but they are not really walking distance unless you’re really into walking.
Looks like Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse is pretty close to Dealey Plaza, though it doesn’t seem to be among the top recommended BBQ joints.
That’s nearby by Texas standards!
But Pecan Lodge is pretty good BBQ and vaguely in the same area, albeit on the other side of I-35 in Deep Ellum. Deep Ellum itself has some good taprooms.
It’s a bit of a hike from Dealey Plaza as well but the Dallas Farmer’s Market has some decent places to eat and browse
Depends. Do you have…
I was going to suggest Dealey Plaza, too. But it’s also the kind of place you can “visit” on Google Maps.
Nitpick: Pecan Lodge and Deep Ellum are on the other side of I-45/US 75 from Dealey Plaza - but Pecan Lodge is delicious. It’s about a mile and a half walk through downtown. Not far, but further than I’d normally walk for lunch.
Yep, the farmer’s market is pretty great, a little closer than Pecan Lodge is to Dealey at 1.3 mi , and also on the same side as Dealey of all the freeways that ring downtown.
The place I was thinking about is the area where Manhattan Project’s tasting room is at. It’s about 1.6 mi in the other direction from Dealey than the places previously mentioned. Several other places to eat near it, if their food doesn’t seem to be what you want.
Oh, also if you’re a bibliophile and can Uber, you can also easily lose most of a day at the stupendously big Half Price Books off North Central Expressway
D’oh!
Yup. I was just thinking “Interstate” and co-mingled 35 and I-45/US-75
Also, if it happens to be a weekend or just a busy day, it could be an hour or longer wait in line on top of that walk. And better to get there earlier so there’s less chance they run out.
That’s the devil’s bargain with good BBQ joints - the long lines mean good quality (if only historically - quality can slide before reputation does) but also mean long waits.
Yep, you used to be able to tell whether you’re too late for barbecue by whether there’s a person in line who has a sign explaining that only fried chicken is available after this point in line. I’m not sure if they still do that. The chicken is excellent by all reports I’ve heard.
Dealey Plaza itself is just a fairly normal street. But the assassination museum that’s located there is very well developed and worth a visit.
I think he’s thinking of Lockhart Smokehouse in Bishop Arts- that is across 35 and down 30 a bit. If you choose to go over there, I can recommend Eno’s pizza, Boulevardier, Hunky’s burgers, and Veracruz for Mexican (not Tex-mex), as places I’ve been and liked. There are a bunch of others nearby that are also very good from what I hear.
I have heard really, really good stuff about Manhattan Project’s food, and I can vouch that their beer is fantastic. I haven’t made it to their taproom yet- I live in the NE part of town, and work in the south part of downtown a couple days a week.
Rodeo Goat on Market Center between I-35 and Oak Lawn has good solid burgers. And if you’re in the design district, it’s probably walking distance. Meddlesome Moth is good as well- it’s more beer than food, but it still has fantastic food. It’s not far from Rodeo Goat within the design district.
If you’re at the Convention Center for your convention, you’re sort of screwed in terms of what’s nearby- there’s some stuff at the Omni, and a handful of restaurants down Botham Jean Blvd by the police HQ, but not that much, and it’s only sort of within walking distance.
As far as attractions go… I’m kind of at a loss. Dallas is about the least touristy city I think I’ve ever been to/lived in. There’s no big tourist attraction in the area- maybe Dealey Plaza, or Southfork Ranch would hold that title. We do have very good museums - the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is stellar, and so are the art museums - the DMA, the Nasher Sculpture center , and the Crow Collection of Asian Art (behind the Nasher, beside the DMA, by the Trammell Crow center. There’s also the Kimbell Museum in Ft. Worth, which is absolutely a world-class art museum.
If you’re interested in religious art, there’s the Museum of Biblical Art a bit further north along 75/Central. I’ve heard good stuff about it as well.
For breweries, my favorite is Community at the edge of the Design District: good beer, nice atmosphere.
I also liked Pegasus City Brewery. I haven’t been there in ~4 years, but when I went they had a few old-school video games and pinball machines. Peticolas also has great beers and nice space.
No, but I have
If you are in the Design District, I’d suggest food at Mama’s Daughters’ Diner for breakfast or lunch and/or Rodeo Goat while you are there.
For things to do, Dallas can be kind of weak. Bump gave a good overview of the area.
Fort Worth is about a 40 minute drive from there, doesn’t look like the timing will be right, but we drive the Fort Worth Herd through the stockyards everyday at 11:30am and 4pm. If you haven’t seen a dozen or so steers as big as a small cars and twice as wide mosey up a street, it is quite the sight.
You’ll also find the Kimbell art museum over here. It has a great collection but may be best known as the building is by architect Louis Kahn.
The Sid Richardson museum is on Main Street in downtown, it’s probably my favorite as it’s quiet and small. A great collection of art of the American West: Remington, Russell, and more.
And while in Fort Worth, the weather should be nice enough to eat on the patio at Joe T Garcia’s.
Dang, I’ve been going there since I was a little kid. Still can’t spell the name correctly. Either way, Kahn designed a beautiful building - if you go there, make sure to go to the bathroom. It’s a very nice bathroom.
Yep, and just across the street from the Kimbell, there’s the Amon Carter. It has a very nice Russell and Remington collection, and they have several other nice collections ( I really do lurve their photography collection). Their title of being “Western Art” really doesn’t mean it’s all about cowboys these days, just that it’s art of the western heimsphere - e.g. the Hudson River School, American Impressionism, important works by Eakins and Sargent. Plus it has some nice 20th century works.
ETA: Oh, and the building is by Phillip Johnson, at least the parts of the original that are left.
Hehehe, I’d actually advise Esperanza’s. They’re kind of an offshoot, and use a the same recipes for some dishes, but the menu is even more expansive. You can get Joe T.'s enchiladas or fajitas at Esperanza’s, but you can’t get Esperanza’s Guisado en Chile Verde (and so many other good things) at Joe T.'s.
Esperanza’s doesn’t have the patio, though. So, if you’re in Ft Worth, and the weather’s nice, and you only want either fajitas or enchiladas, Joe T. Garcia’s is your place (ok, a quick check shows they also serve flautas, rellenos and tamales, too. I learned something today). If you want more selection (and that heavenly Guisado), go to Esperanza’s.