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| Me (second from left) and the girls taking touristy photos in Austin! |
A few weekends ago I visited a friend in Texas for a girls weekend. I had never been to Texas before and loved every minute of it; we bought touristy cowboy hats, ate barbeque, floated in a few rivers and listened to country music. Below is a more detailed account of my favorite things that we did, saw, ate and bought!
Dallas:
Dude, Sweet Chocolate
This chocolate store features chocolate infused with flavors you would
never imagine, and they taste
so good. I tried the Black Gold (black garlic, sweet wild mushrooms) and the Miso Happy (red miso, tahini and black sesame, and bought a mixed box to take home for my boyfriend...though I probably ate most of them for him ; )
dudesweetchocolate.com
408 West 8th Street, Dallas
The Soda Gallery
I don't typically drink much soda besides the odd Diet Coke, but this nostalgic shop dedicated to all different kinds of soda blew me away. It could have been that it was over 100 degrees in Dallas, but the ice cold natural rootbeer that I tried in this shop tasted like the best thing in the entire world!
thesodagallery.com
408 North Bishop Ave, Dallas
Oddfellows
We had breakfast at Oddfellows, a really cute brunch spot that is casual with a bit of a gourmet twist. They are know for their fresh, American style meals, handcrafted coffees, and apparently really amazing beignets - I had never tried beignets before so I didn't have anything to compare them to, but they were
really good. If you haven't tried them or heard of them either, they are little doughnut like pastries dusted with powdered sugar and served with honey and lemon...very yummy and very bad for you!
oddfellowsdallas.com
316 West 17th Street, Dallas
Victor Tangos
Victor Tangos is an amazing restaurant serving inventive food that seems to be best enjoyed as shared plates - we ordered a
ton of stuff because everything looked so good. Some of our favorites were the Mini Chicken and Waffles and the Wild Mushroom, Asparagus, Fontina and Truffle Oil Flatbread. Their food is fresh and inventive, they have tons of great drinks and an extensive wine list, and a really fun atmosphere. This is a great spot to check out if you're in Dallas!
victortangos.com
Katy Trail Ice House
This beer garden style restaurant is a great place to get a little break from the heat. Katy Trail Ice House is a great place to enjoy something off of their unique beer menu while sitting either inside their icy air conditioned restaurant or out on the patio under a cool water mister!
katyicehouse.com
Austin:
Feathers Vintage Boutique
Austin is packed with amazing vintage boutique's, but this one was hands down the best. Feathers is stocked with bedazzled cowboy boots, colorful tunics and any belt, top or piece of jewelry you can think of. They have an amazing selection and their prices are reasonable. This is a must-stop for any girl heading to Austin!
feathersvintageboutique.com
1700b South Congress Ave
image via great vintage blog
Rags From the Past
South Congress Cafe
South Congress Cafe is a bit of an Austin institution - when I told anyone that I was going to Austin, the first thing they said was 'You have to eat at South Congress Cafe'. So, we did! The restaurant is located on bustling South Congress Avenue and apparently always has a long line that's totally worth waiting in. Their menu is classic American food gone gourmet - some of their amazing sounding menu items include Eggs Benedict with Crab Cakes, Carrot Cake French Toast and Jalapeño-Venison Meatloaf. Now I want to go back to try everything!
1600 South Congress Avenue
southcongresscafe.com
Uncommon Objects
This antique store is filled to the brim with gorgeous items from jewelry to signs to furniture to vintage photographs. It's almost overwhelming but totally worth checking out this amazing shop!
1512 Southgress Avenue
The Salt Lick
On our way back to Dallas from Austin we stopped at The Salt Lick for some traditional Texas BBQ - the one we ate at wasn't the original and most famous location, but it was definitely good! We sat outside and listened to the live band playing and tried all sorts of bbq! It was a quintessential Texas experience and I definitely recommend checking out this restaurant if you're ever in Texas!
saltlickbbq.com
