I've done a little searching on Denton, TX and it sounds like a wonderful place. Is it? I'm thinking about going there when I'm in Dallas this summer.

Joliet, IL (which is similar in size to Denton)won some kind of All-American City award. I live near Joliet and it's a disgusting, run-down pit. What kind of reputation does Denton have?

Denton is a perfectly nice town, but certainly not a tourist destination by any stretch of the imagination. Why in the world do you want to go there?

Thanks for the info! I wanted to see the historic downtown square. Small-midsized, historic towns is my passion.

Try Waxahachie! It's 30 miles south of Dallas and has more than 50% of gingerbread/victorian house in all of Texas!

Waxahachie is already on my list. Along with Denton and Granbury. Let me know if there are any other places I should visit.

Thanks

FYI- Denton is a college town. Go Mean Green!

When you're in Denton, a must-see (hear) are the college jazz bands at the University of North Texas.

The 1 oClock band has toured internationally, cut many CDs and is just a little bit better than the 2-oClock Band. Of course the 2 oClock Band is just the second-best college band in America.

Yes, Denton is a pleasant college town, now somewhat connected to the Dallas/Ft Worth Metroplex... The town square is quaint, everything is in good repair, nothing negative about it.

Ditto on the One O'clock Jazz Band. They are fantastic!

There's a Trail Dust Steak House about 10 miles east of Denton on Hwy 380. If you go, be sure to wear a tie...but maybe not one of your best ones. gt;

I live in Denton and it's a very nice place to live . . . but it's certainly not a tourist destination.

We used to have a wonderful "square" downtown but the city has just finished redoing it and have taken away most of the parking places and made it harder to access if one is handicapped. It's not nearly as attractive as it used to be.

We do have one of the prettiest courthouses in Texas (and in the South, for that matter) and every Sat morning, an impromptu group of fiddlers (of all ages) meets on the courthouse grounds and plays. There's a nice historical museum in the courthouse and it is open on Saturdays.

We have two wonderful universities, University of North Texas (best known for its College of Music and its College of Education) and Texas Woman's University, best known for its School of Nursing.

Our other claim to fame is we have two Miss Americas--Phyllis George and Shirley Cothern.

If time is short, visit Waxahachie and/or Granbury.

Grapevine TX has a nice historic downtown also.

Yuck..I've been to Joliet also. Please do not compare Denton to Joliet, PLEASE.
There is a funky place to eat in Argyle TX called "Babes". Good fried chicken.

Babe's is not in Argyle, it's in Roanoke.

Argyle has a GREAT greasy-spoon lunch spot--Evelyn's. Everything is ho'made, be sure to order your pie first or it will be gone by the time you're through with your lunch.

Evelyn's has different specials everyday and everything is fresh and from scratch. It's only open for lunch.

Babe's is an all-you-can-eat fried chicken or chicken-fried steak place. Food is served family style, it's good but a very limited menu--meat, mashed potatoes, creamed-style corn, green salad (no choice of dressing), and biscuits. I don't believe alcohol is served but you can bring your own.

Thanks Sandy..I thought we were in Argyle when I went to Babe's...never been to Evelyns, though.hmmm...

Go mean green!

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! I'm glad to hear that Denton isn't like Joliet. I'm looking for to visiting soon!

Julia,

In case you need suggestions for places to eat, we have some extra good small restaurants here . . .

1. For hamburgers: Denton Independent Hamburger Co, on the south side of the square, "real" fries, "real" red beans, huge burgers.

2. Beth Marie's: an ice cream shop and sandwich place (also on s side of square near DI above), BM's has GREAT ice cream, all made in-house.

3. Garibaldi's Mexican: on S. Elm, a block off of University Dr., excellent, non-greasy, all homemade Tex-Mex food. The owner is from Peru and cooks Peruvian specialties on Wed nights.

4. Smokehouse: 1123 Ft. Worth Dr, real BBQ, real fries, the biggest plate of onion rings (and good ones) you've ever seen, they even have good steaks . . . and everything here is cheap. If you have room, they have wonderful homemade pies.

Denton has a lot of restaurants and a chains, these 4 are local and excellent, this is where we eat!

Skip the Trail Dust, greasy steaks, very loud music, the words "tourist trap" comes to mind. This WAS a hotspot, in-spot 20 years ago . . .

Hope you enjoy Texas and since you're coming in the summer, bring cool clothes, I guarantee it will be HOT!

Jefferson, TX is pretty interesting in terms of history. It also has some old homes you can tour.