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| Snowy Texas Morning |
The last few days, I have been visiting friends in the great (and big) state of Texas. I have never been to Texas, so this was quite a treat.
Overall, I love Texas minus the roads, drivers (there is no helmet law in Texas - insane people), lack of live music (guess I will have to go to Austin for that), and the extreme weather. Thinking "hey we are going to Texas," I packed tons of short sleeved t-shirts and flip-flops. I even checked the weather. Surprise, winter storm warning with sleet, ice, and snow our first night in town. Luckily, because I was going to Texas (where everyone is a cowboy, obviously), I packed my brown boots and blue jean jacket. Thank you, Texas stereotypes, even though this doesn't happen to be true for the area of Texas I was in.
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| Denton Square |
We stayed in Denton, just north of Dallas. Denton is a little hipster, with tons of charm. We arrived starving from our morning flight, and I was craving Mexican food -- I was hoping for some spice. My friend took us to Fuzzy's, a chain, and a great place to eat. I ordered a beef salad with cheese, beans, and spicy ranch dressing. Just what I needed.
Later that night, we checked out a bar near the square. This place was packed and huge. Unlike Nashville bars, which are typically tiny, this bar has tons of indoor and outdoor space. It was needed because the locals flooded this place. Food trucks, dogs, corn hole, and lots of fun to be had. I have to say that the laid back atmosphere made me feel right at home (which I expected the Texas/Tennessee vibe was similar). Also, we ordered a pizza that was delivered to the outdoor space. It was pretty cool, actually! The only thing lacking was live music.
The square itself was picturesque. A comic book and game store, a used bookstore, a yummy burger joint, and a homemade ice cream parlor are just a few of the highlights.
After enjoying the night at the bar meeting my friends' friends, we awoke to ice! Luckily, the Dentonians had experienced an ice storm in December, so they seemed quiet alright dealing with the snow and ice (surprisingly, because driving on a normal day is sketch at best). We decided to wait out the brunt of the storm and eventually ventured out to try BBQ --- because, duh!
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| Lone Star beer |
We walked into this perfectly Texas BBQ restaurant, Rudy's, to find that we got a free Lone Star beer for Texas's Independence day. Score! I ordered the loaded baked potato with smoked turkey. I was not disappointed. My husband awarded their brisket the best he has ever eaten (and he is a tough critic). Then, the Lone Start girls -- wearing short shorts in the middle of this winter storm --- came around asking trivia questions for prizes. Thankfully, I know that the Texas' state mammal is armadillo, and I was rewarded with not only a koozie but with another free beer.
The storm continued outside, we enjoyed our free beer and decided to grocery shop. We got snacks and such so we could hibernate for the night. A perfect Sunday night, watching television, talking, and enjoying some greasy late night buffalo wings, french fries, and fried pickles.
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| The Last Supper - Jesus with Musicians from Texas |
The next day, Monday, we decided to venture back to the square. Stopped into a local joint that honored musicians from Texas and had a fantastic turkey burger with arugula. The music videos playing on large televisions were also a plus.
In order to digest and make room for homemade ice cream, we ventured down to the used bookstore to kill some time. So cool. You could spend hours in this place with all the records, books, and comics. I left with 3 Golden Books (all about cats) and a weird astrology book that provided and will continue to provide tons of laughs.
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| Beth Marie's Old Fashioned Homemade Ice Cream |
After we finished the journey through art and literature, we headed over to Beth Marie's Old Fashioned Homemade Ice Cream parlor --- another step back in time. Serving malts, floats, ice cream, and fountain drinks, the parlor was a nice tribute to old-style ice cream parlors. The junior, or golf ball, sized cup of Cafe Latte was just enough to hit the spot. Coffee flavored ice cream is slowly becoming my favorite flavor. That night, we went home and enjoyed a delicious, hearty crockpot recipe and talked the night away.
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| Turkey Burger (top left), Beef Salad (top right), Smoked Turkey Loaded Baked Potato (bottom) |
Tuesday was back to work for all of us. I worked from my friends' apartment and Cory ventured into Dallas to work at his company office there. After work, our final night in Denton, we decided to do Italian, and it had to be Giuseppes. Located in a quaint house, the atmosphere was very inviting and homey. The food and service were excellent. I enjoyed the cheese tortellini balonese with meatballs with Pinot Grigio. Perfecto!
All in all, I had a wonderful trip to Denton. Got to see my friends that I typically only see once a year, and I had a great time exploring a new area of the world. I also got to hang with Sherlock, a pretty cool cat --- an actual cat.
Denton has been called on of the best small towns, and I would have to agree.
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