Fun stuff in Dallas, Texas!

July 23, 2007 1:34 PM

Help me find fun stuff to do in Dallas this week.

I apologize if this seems like chatfilter, but I'm going to be in Dallas, TX from July 24th to July 27th. Flying into DFW, and I'll have a rental car.

Generally these kinds of questions are answered with "Well, it depends on what you want to do.." but I'd like y'all to avoid those kinds of answers if at all possible.

What do you guys think are some "must see/must do" things in the area? I like beef, good beer, guns, NASCAR, and other seemingly 'white trash' activities but I'm open to pretty much anything. Even museums.

posted by drstein to travel & transportation (11 comments total)

The best BBQ in town is arguably Sonny Bryan's. They're a local chain now, but the original location over on Inwood Rd. is still the best.

The best hamburger, at least in my experience, is to be had at Coppell Deli, a favorite of the Dallas Cowboys.

Dallas also has more strip clubs per capita than something or other. It has a staggering amount of nudie bars.

Now.. on to what I like to do in Dallas? Well... Dallas has a couple of major strikes against it: it's very spread out, and damn near anything you do involves spending cash.

That said, there are a lot of good restaurants. I would suggest Arcodoro Pomodoro, Asian Mint, India Palace, Dragonfly, Avanti...

There are a couple of trendy night spots, too. Ghost Bar at the W and Hotel ZaZa come to mind.

If you like Star Wars at all, I would suggest skipping over to Ft. Worth and checking out the Star Wars exhibit at the Science and History Museum.

Good independent films can be had at the Angelika, Inwood, or Magnolia movie theaters.

Bar-crawling around Knox-Henderson, lower Greenville, or the West End can be a good time.

Despite it's reputation, I'd avoid Deep Ellum. It's gotten even trashier than it used to be with all the gang bangers, and the traffic down there at night is frightening.
posted by kaseijin at 1:51 PM on July 23, 2007

A quick look under ask.metafilter.com/tags/dallas rendered this previous question.
posted by allkindsoftime at 1:56 PM on July 23, 2007

allkinds: yeah, I did see that, but I wasn't necessarily asking about dining. Also it's from Jan 2006, and you know how things can change in 18 months. :)

kaseijin: Oh, thats the first I've heard about the Star Wars thing. I will HAVE to check that out! Thanks!

Keep 'em coming!
posted by drstein at 4:17 PM on July 23, 2007

i would like to second this post, as I am here on business until Wednesday night and I am dying to find a good club/bar scene!
posted by ThFullEffect at 5:37 PM on July 23, 2007

Well, if your looking for a good restaurant-night out, La Duni is as good as it gets. At least for myself and my wife. It fusion-latin and very good. Plus, since it's on Knox-Henderson, there are a million places to walk to afterwards.

I second the trashiness of Deep Ellum. Used to be so cool, now it's all gang-bangers and wannabee's ... or yuppies trying to get their first tat. Still, having said that, one of the best record stores I've ever seen is there right past the underpass.
posted by damiano99 at 6:35 PM on July 23, 2007

damiano99: Bill's?

As far as *my* must see/do things, I love the Ft. Worth Modern museum and the Kimball, which are within a block of each other. If you're not into museums, though, that probably doesn't help you much. If you want to find food, I highly suggest Chowhound's Texas board. They have recommendations for pretty much any kind of food you could look for. Another thing, don't be afraid to drive for a good time! Dallas's design and culture pretty much requires that. Other than that... have fun!
posted by MadamM at 7:21 PM on July 23, 2007

In my humble opinion, Lee Harvey's is the best bar in Dallas. It is a little out of the way but totally worth it. I don't know if it will be that good on a weeknight, though.

The Dallas Museum of Art stays open until 9 on Thursdays. They might have a concert or something there, too.

For good beer, The Ginger Man is hard to beat. I don't know what your scene is, but there is a decent mix of ages there and it isn't too fancy.

Campisi's Egyptian Lounge (a pizza/Italian restaurant) is pretty good and has a lot of history. Joe Campisi was apparently pretty good friends with Jack Ruby.

You might as well check out Dealey Plaza and the Schoolbook Depository while you are here. The museum there is very well done. Look for the X in the pavement.

While you are there you can check out John Neely Bryan's cheesy fake cabin. He founded our town and later died in an insane asylum.
posted by Uncle Jimmy at 7:28 PM on July 23, 2007

MadamM, I think damiano99 was probably speaking of (the very fine, indeed) Good Records.
posted by JohnFredra at 8:24 PM on July 23, 2007

The best BBQ in town is arguably Sonny Bryan's.

Oh NO! The beef ribs at Pappas barbecue pit beats the snot out of anything at Sonny Bryan's. Pappas is about 2 miles east of the airport on Northwest Highway. There's a big cow on the roof - you can't miss it.

On weekends, it's all you can eat barbecue.
posted by 26.2 at 8:59 PM on July 23, 2007 [1 favorite]

If you're downtown, there's also the Nasher Sculpture Center which is one block over from the DMA.

There are some good burger places along Hillcrest, between Mockingbird and Northwest Highway - Goff's and Burger House (colloquially known as "Jack's"). There's also a country/Southern? place in the area, Bubba's. Great mashed potato and fried okra...mmm.

Check out GuideLive for events and local stuff.
posted by lhall at 6:05 AM on July 24, 2007

"The best BBQ in town is arguably Sonny Bryan's."

You know, I wasn't really that impressed with that place.

I visited last week and loved the area. the weather is similar to what I had in Japan, and OMG FOOD. I ate like a pig.

I really liked the north part of Dallas. From what I heard the Southern part is where the nasty parts are, but even they looked ok during the day.

the Reunion Tower gave a nice view at night too.
posted by drstein at 5:16 PM on August 7, 2007