brief visit to Dallas, suggestions needed!

[sarahiki]

Hi, the husband and I will be visiting Dallas from Houston this weekend. Briefly. I'm looking for a fun place to eat or hang out in the evening. We'll be staying at the Hilton Anatole; I don't know what neighborhood that is in. I know nothing about Dallas.

He's giving a talk at the Dallas Museum of Art, so of course we'll see that. Might have time to see one more thing during the day.

Thanks for any suggestions!

[ToryGattis]

If at all possible, have Sunday Brunch at one of the Blue Mesa locations (southwestern food). Just had it yesterday. Absolutely incredible!

http://www.bluemesagrill.com/

You might try the Uptown West Village at night (near McKinney and Lemmon). Walkable area. Lots of shops. Movie theater. Very popular with the young and beautiful set, at least on a Fri night.

[ToryGattis]

Oh, and during the day, check out the Dallas Arboretum on White Rock lake. Really beautiful, cool fountains, and a great walk if the weather is nice.

The Nash Sculpture Center is across the street from the Dallas Art Museum, if that appeals to you.

[dfwcre8tive]

The Anatole is in the Market Center about a mile or two from downtown (too far to walk anywhere). But for some suggestions of places to eat at night here are a few ideas (I'm sure you can search for their individual websites or online revues):

Iron Cactus: Downtown rooftop restaurant/bar on Main Street - for a casual place in the heart of the skyscrapers. http://www.ironcactus.com/dallas.asp

Sambuca: upscale restaurant with live entertainment on McKinney Avenue across from the Ritz in Uptown. http://www.sambucarestaurant.com/

West Village: trendy Uptown shopping district with lots of outdoor patios to see and be seen. Always busy in the evenings. http://www.westvil.com/

Knox-Henderson: another area of good shops and restaurants not far from West Village. http://dallas.citysearch.com/roundup/41689

Bishop Arts District: interesting area of galleries and restaruants in old Oak Cliff. http://www.bishopartsdistrict.com/

The West End is where most tourists end up, but the restaurants there are mostly chains http://www.dallaswestend.org/. Victory Park is also worth checking out but I prefer the others I've listed http://www.victorypark.com/

All of those areas are nice to walk around during the day as well (the West End has Dealey Plaza, museums, etc and according to their website it looks like they have a Cinco de Mayo festival). Other nearby places to see on a nice day are the Nasher Sculpture Center http://www.nashersculpturecenter.org and Fair Park http://www.fairpark.org.

[jb4647]

Go see Dealy Plaza where JFK was shot. It's amazing how it still looks like it did in all the pictures you've seen of that day in '63.

Perhaps one day Dallas will put up a sign outside the city limits saying "Welcome to Dallas, where we havn't had a President killed in 45 years."

[sarahiki]

The Anatole is in the Market Center about a mile or two from downtown (too far to walk anywhere). But for some suggestions of places to eat at night here are a few ideas (I'm sure you can search for their individual websites or online revues):

Iron Cactus: Downtown rooftop restaurant/bar on Main Street - for a casual place in the heart of the skyscrapers. http://www.ironcactus.com/dallas.asp

Sambuca: upscale restaurant with live entertainment on McKinney Avenue across from the Ritz in Uptown. http://www.sambucarestaurant.com/

West Village: trendy Uptown shopping district with lots of outdoor patios to see and be seen. Always busy in the evenings. http://www.westvil.com/

Knox-Henderson: another area of good shops and restaurants not far from West Village. http://dallas.citysearch.com/roundup/41689

Bishop Arts District: interesting area of galleries and restaruants in old Oak Cliff. http://www.bishopartsdistrict.com/

The West End is where most tourists end up, but the restaurants there are mostly chains http://www.dallaswestend.org/. Victory Park is also worth checking out but I prefer the others I've listed http://www.victorypark.com/

All of those areas are nice to walk around during the day as well (the West End has Dealey Plaza, museums, etc and according to their website it looks like they have a Cinco de Mayo festival). Other nearby places to see on a nice day are the Nasher Sculpture Center http://www.nashersculpturecenter.org and Fair Park http://www.fairpark.org.

Great suggestions everyone, thanks so much! I remember now that I went to the Iron Cactus in Austin. The Dallas location sounds nice, in terms of the view.

I think we'll also check out the Nasher, since we'll be right at the museum anyway.

I'm looking forward to seeing Dallas. I have no idea what to expect.

[jayshoota]

Hey, I would suggest eating a Patrizio in Highland Park Village. If you want Mexican, I would suggest Manny's in Uptown or Mi Cocina in West Village.

The hotel you are staying at is just across I-35 from everything and is in a good location. Close to Uptown, Turtle Creek, Oaklawn and Downtown.

[sarahiki]

Hey, I would suggest eating a Patrizio in Highland Park Village. If you want Mexican, I would suggest Manny's in Uptown or Mi Cocina in West Village.

The hotel you are staying at is just across I-35 from everything and is in a good location. Close to Uptown, Turtle Creek, Oaklawn and Downtown.

Patrizio's sounds nice. Thanks!

[sarahiki]

Thanks again for all the suggestions. We had lunch at the Iron Cactus, checked out the Nasher Sculpture center, rode the trolley to the West Village for dinner at an awesome place called Cru... great food, great wine, highly recommend!

Dallas was fabulous. It was so nice sitting at the Iron Cactus and looking out the window at the combination of historic buildings, shops, and skyscrapers. And the trolley ride through pretty neighborhoods, all the action in the West Village... very impressive!