maria_so

Hi All,

OK, we've narrowed down the itinerary so please take a look and let me know what you think!

Friday: Leave Houston around 11am and drive to Dallas (how long do you think this will be, 4 hrs?). Check in to Embassy Suites Market Center then head to Dealy Plaza and the book repository. Back to hotel to relax a bit and then head out for dinner. We're thinking of the new Wolfgang Puck restaurant Five Sixty but I just called and they are completely booked for Friday and Saturday nights. Can someone recommend another really good restaurant similar to that? Also somewhere to go after dinner?

Sat. Get up have breakfast at hotel and head to Forth Worth. Site seeing (any suggestions on what to see/do) and have lunch somewhere (suggest a great lunch place? perhaps with outside seating? No BBQ and burger, maybe mediterranean or something unique for dallas?) then DH wants to go to the Rorh and Sons Brewery tour which is from 1-3. Looks like they have a band and so on so we're thinking it should be fun. After that, there's a champagnes and chocolates event at Art and the Boulevard Gallery we want to check out.

Head back to hotel, relax, then head out to restaurant for dinner (can you suggest one that is like a local hang out type of place? I like the tappas bar typeplaces). Then somewhere for drinks that night.

Sunday:
Open. Maybe a good sunday brunch somewhere? Tool about in Dallas sight seeing then heading out of town around 6pm or so back to Houston.

Some background info: We're in ourmid 30's no kids. like art, museums, festivals (LOVE festivals) and pretty much open to alot of things. Not big on BBQ or burgers adn fries joints. LOVE seafood, good wine, good beer.


Thanks All!

dfr4848

My help will be limited because we stay with relatives and do family stuff, but...

Count on 4.5 hrs for drive - and you'll be getting into start of Fri rushhour, so maybe a little longer.

Ft Worth - definitely the Kimball Art Museum.

King Tut exhibit at Dallas Museum of Art.

maria_so

THANKS DFR4848!!! Any restaurant recs?

jcb

Hi maria_so

Saturday, you may consider having lunch at the Reata in downtown Ft Worth. I believe it is all inside seating though.

http://www.reata.net/reata_ftworth.html


Where is the Rorh and Sons Brewery??? I've never heard of it, and didn't find anything on google.

The Kimball and Modern Art Museums are both nice. I haven't been to the Amon Carter Art Museum in many years, but it is in the same area.


Sunday brunch -

There is Ozona on Greenville. The patio is great if the weather is warm.

http://www.ozonagrill.com/locations.aspx

Although I've never been, I believe Maguire's has a good Sunday brunch, but it is in North Dallas/Carrollton.

spirobulldog

We like the Blue Mesa for Brunch.

beckytx

For your Friday night fancier dinner, research some of the following:

Fearing's
Stephan Pyles
The Mansion on Turtle Creek
Abacus
Charlie Palmer
Screen Door
Lola - smaller and not flashy celeb chef type place, but super romantic!

For Saturday night more low key locals type dinner, Google:

La Duni
Sangria
Taverna
Nonna (don't think they have website)
Rise No 1

I believe the best resource for investigating restaurants in Big D is www.guidelive.com. Their reviews are usually right on. Let us know if you have any more specific questions!

beckytx

One more Friday night idea is Craft at the W, and it would be easy to get to from your hotel.

beckytx

Sorry for multiple replies...

For brunch do you prefer buffet or a la carte?

dfr4848

For seafood, we've had very good experiences at Truluck's on McKinney near Uptown.

maria_so

Wow, nice suggestions! Thanks! Will look into all the restaurants mentioned.

For brunch, somewhere with bottomless mimosas or something to that effect? Buffet or per entre is fine but I do prefer per entre.

Thanks ALL

Oh, here's the info on the brewery:

sorry, it's because i didn't spell it right. brewery tours between 1-3 every saturday.

http://rahrbrewery.com/brewery

maria_so

Ok, so out of the list for friday night (haven't looked at brunch, lunch, and sat dinner) here's our choices:

craft (is it really expensive - I mean, it looks like you'll have to order sides separately or no?? Main entre prices are ok but not if it doesn't come with sides at all. Have to admit, it's mostly the Tom Colichio (sp?) thing that's pulling me in)

Stephan Pyles
The Mansion at Turtle Creek
Screen Door

Kind of like lola too.

Anyone have experience for these restaurants they'd like to share?

spirobulldog

If you eat heavy for you evening meals, you might consider "Greens" for lunch. This place serves pretty much salads only, with maybe a couple of soup options. Some of the salads have various meats (tuna, etc) Very very good.

spirobulldog

www.greenzsalads.com

ladybird23

Craft is pretty pricey, but it is at the W Hotel and that could be fun - they have the Ghost Bar and that sort of thing. I would go for the Mansion just because they recently renovated it and it is a beautiful place with a very nice bar as well. Stephan Pyles is very good as well and right by the Dallas Museum of Art. I second the recommendation for www.guidelive.com for reviews and would also add Fuse as a good restaurant downtown. For brunch, I think Breadwinners Cafe on McKinney is a great choice. They have bellinis and other fun drinks as well as fancy coffees and you can wear whatever you want there. You could also go there for a casual lunch or dinner, but dinner gets a little more expensive there than the other meals. La Duni on Oaklawn or Knox-Henderson is also good for brunch on the weekend or lunch or dinner. Since you like Tapas, I would recommend Cafe Madrid, just off of Knox-Henderson on Travis, as a great place for some wine and small plates. For late night drinks, close to your hotel is the Anatole Hotel which has a great hotel bar with a fantastic view and live music on the weekends - it is not unusual to see people dancing here, but you can also enjoy a nice cocktail by floor to ceiling windows and it is quiet enough that you can visit. If you like Mexican food and the weather is nice, I would go to lunch in Fort Worth at Joe T. Garcia's, a cash only limited menu place right by the Stockyards with a huge patio. Reata would be good for lunch or dinner and it is downtown in Fort Worth. Random other dinner suggestion in Dallas is a new restaurant near downtown called Neighborhood Services. It does not take reservations and people start lining up before they open, but it is getting really great reviews. Have a great trip!

maria_so

thanks ladybird! i will definitely check out all those options! Anatole sounds like a fun place to check out later on sat night. especially if it's close to our hotel!

thanks also spirobulldog but although we don't like heavy meals, we do want fish or some sort of protein (not beans or legumes) for dinner. might be good for a visit with our vegetarian friends who plan to come up a few weeks after us though so I'll be sure to forward that recommendation to them! Thanks!

maria_so

hmmm, now i'm thinking fuse for sat lunch! looks good...and interesting. definitely different.

I think i'm leaning on stepham pyles for dinner friday night.

May do the tappas place (not sure which one yet for saturday night as long as they don't have a set menu.

Still not sure for brunch but the suggestions are FANTASTIC! Just our type of restaurants! Many thanks!

sarge56

maria_so-

Which part of Houston are you coming from? I'm betting closer to 5 to 5.5 hours. You will be heading into rush hour traffic- and it's especially bad on Friday nights. (I've made the Dal-Hou run 100 times.)

Friday - The Sixth Floor museum is well worth the price of admission. DO take the audio tour. Great musuem. They close at 6pm, so you will probably want to leave Houston a little earlier than 11am, to make sure you have time to see the whole museum. I think you should plan an hour minimum, but 1-1/2 hrs would not be too much time there.

Saturday - I was a little confused about whether you are doing lunch on Saturday in Ft. Worth or Dallas. I assumed Ft. Worth, but you say, "something unique for Dallas" in the same sentence. I will assume you meant Fort Worth.

I will second the recommendation for Joe T. Garcia's, if the weather is nice and you like Mexican food. Also the Blue Mesa is excellent for lunch. And very Fort Worth-ish.

If you're looking for a light meal (small menu) and you like brewski- the Flying Saucer is where you should stop for lunch. It¡¦s right on the Square. If it is warm, they should have the outdoor dining area open. Try the Turkey Meltdown sandwich. Very good.

http://www.beerknurd.com/stores/fortworth

Here is a link to Sundance Square dining:

http://www.sundancesquare.com/dining...ler_Sushi.aspx

Most of what you'll want to see in Fort Worth is near Sundance Square or the "arts district". (Being that you live in Houston, I assume you don't want to see all the western/cowboy stuff in the Stockyards.)

You say you like museums, so please don't miss the Kimbell. Fabulous museum. https://www.kimbellart.org/index.aspx
If you like western/American art, the Amon Carter is great. They have more Remingtons (paintings and sculptures) than I have seen anywhere.

http://www.cartermuseum.org/

There are plenty of parking garages/lots around Sundance and most are free on the weekend:

http://www.sundancesquaremanagement....ps/parking.asp

Other things you might want to check out are a tour of Bass Performance Hall (10:30am on Saturdays only, schedule permitting). It is a FABULOUS place. Beautiful inside and out.

http://www.basshall.com/thehall.jsp

I-30 is your fastest way to get from downtown Dallas to downtown Fort Worth. There is a lot of construction on it, though, right now. (A good deal of it in preparation for the new Cowboys stadium which is not far from the Interstate, in Arlington.) BUT, it should not be too bad on a Saturday morning.

Take I-30 West and exit at I-35 North (toward Denton). NOW, as soon as you get off the entrance ramp, move left. You want to get on "Spur 280" into Downtown Ft.Worth and it comes up fast. Once you are on 280, you will see that the road splits to 6th Street or 4th Street. You want to take the 4th Street exit. Now, it's not really an exit. There is no ramp or anything- it just goes straight into downtown. Jones street is the first or second light. Turn right on Jones, left on 2nd, left onto Calhoun. (There are all one-way streets.) Bass Hall is one block up on your right. We like to park at the garage on Calhoun- you will see it on your left immediately after passing 3rd street and just before 4th (which is the street the entrance is on for Bass Hall).

And of course, if you are into football, you will want to come by and look at the new stadium. (I live in Arlington.) It is a behemoth.

If you want to see the stadium on your way to Fort Worth, take the Collins Street exit off of I-30 and go south. You go about 1 mile and turn left on to Randol Mill Rd. The stadium will be on your right about 1/4 mile down the road. You CANNOT miss it- trust me.

Here is the website:

http://stadium.dallascowboys.com/

To get back to I-30, stay on Randol Mill until you hit Highway 360. Go under 360 and turn left, getting onto the feeder road going north. Take a right at the first light. (You'll see the McDonald's on the right at the light.) This road is the entrance to I-30. Stay left to go back west on I-30 to Ft.Worth.

We have an absolutely beautiful Botanic Gardens in the arts district. And if you go, do not miss the Conservatory. A walk through there will make you feel like you are in the Land of the Lost. Simply beautiful.

http://www.fwbg.com/

Sunday - If you happen to get up late Sunday and miss brunch, I love Monica's in Deep Ellum for lunch or dinner. Very eclectic Mexican. Try their shrimp cocktail. Outrageously good with chunks of tomato and avocado. (Sunday's, they only do lunch 12-3). Inexpensive.

http://www.monicas.com/reservations.php


Whew! I'm exhausted! hahahaha

I should mention one other thing. Don¡¦t get confused by the fact that both Dallas and Fort Worth have an I-35 Interstate. What happens is that I-35 splits on the north and south ends of the Metroplex (Dallas/Fort Worth). So, in Fort Worth, you would be traveling on I-35W (western leg) and in Dallas you will be on I-35E (eastern leg). Just didn¡¦t want you to get confused, as your hotel is on I-35E and my directions to FW tell you to get off on I-35. ƒº

Additionally, your hotel is close to Highway 183, and you could take that west and then it connects to 121 west and that goes right into downtown FW, also. BUT, I think there is WAY too much ¡§suburban traffic¡¨ on 183. Plus, it goes by DFW airport, and so is always busy.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. [email protected]. ƒº

Have fun!

sarge56

I'm an idiot. Your thread header says you're coming Valentine's Day weekend. If you're going to eat someplace nice on Saturday evening, you'd better already have your reservations. ALL restaurants will be packed!

And I doubt it will be warm enough to eat outside in the evening, but might be during the day. FYI.

Have fun!

Paula

maria_so

HI Paula! Thanks for all the tips! We live in midtown (practically downtown) in Houston but I will be picking up my husband from work at 11am (soonest he can leave - he's got a meeting that morning) and his office is about 30 min on the way to Dallas already. I'm hoping we'll just barely miss traffic.

We didn't want to go out to a fancy dinner Sat night but Friday night, to miss the valentine crowd. We honestly hate eating out that night which is why I was asking for restaurants that won't be in high demand that night and plan to do the fancy one on Friday night instead. So I just made reservations at Stephan Pyles for 8:45 that night and the lady said she'll try to put me by the fireplace (I'm thinking it may be cold that night).

Will look through the other stuff. We're not big american football fans - regular football (soccer) is a different story and yes, no rodeo/country stuff. We get enough of that here.

We may do the sixth floor on Sunday (would it be open?) since we have a full day with no such definite plans yet except for knowing we want to go to brunch.

Thanks again!

lindsley

Definitely Joe T.'s while in Ft. Worth - if the weather is at all decent the patio is perfect - be sure to tour the whole thing. Breadwinner's has an amazing breakfast/brunch and if it was me, I wouldn't miss the filete Cantinflas at Javier's - a Dallas institution.