I didn’t expect such a trip so soon after touching down from New Orleans, but surprise, surprise I had a lovely opportunity to visit Dallas! This time it was in true road tripper fashion with my friend Kristen at the wheel and me manning the tunes.
Our first stop was at a mom and pop joint in Amarillo. As an unplanned stop, it ended up being such an outstanding part of our trip. The name of the restaurant is Coyote Bluff Cafe. Their specialty is burgers and I can personally vouch – they were delicious! But that wasn’t why we stopped. We actually stopped because of this picture on Google:
They did not disappoint! The ambience is everything you’d hope for, too, and we sat squarely next to the bath tub full of beer.
Once we were in Dallas, we probably spent most of our time eating, too. I found a spot with the second best croissant I’ve ever had. We found the best macarons I’ve ever had along with the best ice cream I’ve ever had. Shout out to Ari’s Pantry and Joy Macarons!
I had three goals that I specifically set out to achieve during this trip. The first was to visit Meow Wolf Grapevine The Real Unreal. The second was to try Texas brisket. The third was to try pecan pie. I’m proud to declare that I achieved my goals and I was quite pleased with all three!
I had a chopped brisket sandwich at Flaming Grill BBQ which was parked at Truck Yard. I’m not sure if the appropriate term for them is a bar, a restaurant, or a venue but the atmosphere was everything I could’ve ever wanted. It was decked out with lawn chairs and live music. There were three food trucks parked the day we were there and honestly, I could’ve stayed there all night. If I ever find myself in Dallas again, that is 100% going to be a repeat stop. As for the brisket, itself, delicious! With a side of chips and a coke, you can’t go wrong with the sandwich. Their onion rings were some of the best I’ve ever had, too. Admittedly, I don’t do brisket very often so I don’t have much to compare it to, but I can confirm it was melt-in-your-mouth amazing.
For pecan pie, we checked out Emporium Pies after reading so many outstanding reviews and recommendations. Their fridge was broken but we lucked out – I got my hands on both The Drunken Nut (pecan) and Cherry Bomb; Kristen got the seasonal Smorgasbord (smores). Both were absolutely splendid and I was impressed at just how delicious the crust was. Pie crust can be super bland so I was pleasantly surprised that I wanted to finish the crust even after the filling was gone. Also, I have to take a moment to acknowledge how adorable their pie packaging is.
There was still plenty more to do, so make sure to check out Instagram and Patreon for the full scoop, and of course keep an eye out next week for more on our time there!
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