I had a fantastic time in Dallas, but I left feeling there was way more to explore. There just wasn’t enough time in the weekend! I came to Texas thinking I would just fall in love with it, but I’m gonna venture a guess that Dallas is a little more cosmopolitan than the rest of the state. Maybe I didn’t get a feel for the “real” Texas. Next time around, I’d like to visit Fort Worth, go to the Stockyards, hear some country music (shocking, I know, I’m so predictable), and see some cowboys. All in all, Dallas is a fun city with friendly people and great food. Just fancier than I had imagined Texas.
Apparently Dallas is made up of several different neighborhoods, but I cannot claim to understand their locations or what they are known for. Our hotel was located in the heart of Downtown, according to my law school friend who lives here but was unable to hang out due to the upcoming bar exam. The Monkey King Noodle Company was in Deep Ellum, the hipster, trendy, mural-covered area. And Savor, the brunch spot, was in Uptown located right next to Klyde Warren Park which was pretty fab in itself. The tuxedo place that we had to stop by for Charles was right near SMU, so we got to see the campus and their stadium, but I have no idea what neighborhood it was in… the Internet tells me University Park?
You can see the eyeball from our room!
Check out the views of Downtown from the 24th floor of The Magnolia Hotel . They were pretty incredible (though I wish I could say the same for the elevator situation here… I really started to regret our request for a higher floor as I believe the phrase “Damn Tower of Terror!” may have come out of my mouth more than once during our trip. Don’t worry though, they say they’re being fixed… Just not before I had to squeeze into one elevator with the 18,000 women in town for the Mary Kay Convention. I’m not joking… this is a thing).
With the little remaining time I had between eating and wedding festivities, I wandered around a bit of Dallas with Elise and Kevin and visited different neighborhoods and shops. Well, mostly Uptown. We didn’t get to experience any of the hell-ish Texas heat while we were there, so even though it was cloudy, walking around was very doable.
The Tram that never came to the stop where we waited. I assume there are people on it, but look, no humans anywhere to be seen!
My one question for Dallas: Where the hell are all the people? I walked around a lot, but never really passed many folks on the sidewalks. Does nobody walk here? What is up? It’s not at all like DC or even downtown Raleigh. I guess Dallas is pretty big and spread out, so maybe lots of people drive everywhere? Maybe I was in the loser section of town? It was a bit eerie. Though I can’t say we didn’t take our fair share of Ubers.
You know you’re in Texas when there’s a park named after a guy named Klyde… who spelled it with a “K”
There were two exceptions to the creepy lack of crowds. The first was Klyde Warren Park. There were lots of people hanging out, kids playing in fountains, shelter dogs being adopted, and women with yoga mats just finishing a class on the lawn. Apparently they also offer a fitness boot camp, Zumba, and salsa dancing in the park. Also, holy food truck heaven! I’m talking tacos, sushi, ice cream sandwiches, cupcakes, Vietnamese food, and lots more. I wish I’d had room after brunch to try them! I’m not sure how I feel about sushi served from a truck, but I’d be down to try it, especially from a truck covered in pictures of sushi rolls.
Badass Sushi Truck
Airstream food truck? Yes. And that name is great.
West Village was the other exception to the lack of crowds. It’s a large shopping/hang-out mecca full of restaurants, salons, and shops. Lots of people swarming around here. If you know Raleigh, it’s like a Cameron Village on crack. They had large brand name stores and tons of boutiques, many selling nearly the same thing, and half of them out of my price range. We didn’t end up buying anything. While it was a good way to spend some time, maybe we’d have been better off at the art museum or the Museum of Nature and Science that we saw near our brunch spot. Sorry, I didn’t exactly take any pictures of me shopping.
Party Favors from the wedding gift bag (minus the Shiner Bock)… in the bed.
We didn’t have too much time to kill before we had to head back to the hotel and get ready for the wedding. Of course, I really did want to go have cocktails and small plates at The Woolworth but I barely got ready in time as it was. I’ll be back for you yet, fancy bar food.
Instead I got into bed and ate the cookies and chips and salsa that were provided to us by the lovely couple upon check-in. On to the wedding festivities…
Up-close with the sprinkles. I should’ve taken a tier to go.
The reception was at the hotel. CONVENIENT! The band was great, the bar was great (duh), and it was The. Best. Wedding. Cake. Ever. I cannot even describe it to you. I don’t even like cake that much and I had at least two pieces. Both vanilla and strawberry cake, and so moist, and the greatest icing. Also it’s completely covered in sprinkles. What’s not to love?
A great time was had by all.
This is not my boyfriend.
Charlie loves party favors. Beads, sunglasses, flashing rings, he’ll take them all.
THIS is my boyfriend.
We wrapped up the evening with a country music- Miller Lite hangout in the hotel room on the 24th floor. Solid evening. Thanks, Dallas. I’ll be back.
Adios Amigos! I shall return for more Tex-Mex!
