|
|
Post by samncam on Feb 7, 2017 12:49:59 GMT
Hello ladies. I will be taking a road trip to Dallas and Houston soon, and would love to know of anything on your "must-visit list". I am hoping for recommendations for places to visit, eat, and to get scrappy goodies.
We will have 3 kids, aged 6 and under, so food places will need to be child-friendly. We especially love desserts!
I would also love to visit a scrapbook LSS (one that you think is worth dragging three kids to). I read the other thread and learned of a few, including the one in Waxahatchie (sp?). Are there any in Houston? I know there is Google, but sometimes, the info isn't accurate, or the store's website is outdated or non-existent.
We are planning to visit the Perot Science museum, and maybe the Dallas Arboretum or a different botanical garden since we have been to that one a few times already.
Thanks in advance, ladies!
|
|
loco coco
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,662 
|
Post by loco coco on Feb 7, 2017 16:43:15 GMT
Im from Dallas but live in the burbs now. If you are driving to Houston stop at Buccees, its a gas station but us Texans love it. They have tons of food, gifts, and you have to get Beaver Nuggets! Pecan Lodge is in Dallas and its really good. Its supposed to be the best BBQ around and sometimes there is a line outside. There are so many new restaurants in Dallas Im a little out of the know nowadays. I hope you have fun!! www.yelp.com/biz/pecan-lodge-dallas-3?osq=must+eats |
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
May 17, 2024 6:27:26 GMT
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 7, 2017 17:00:25 GMT
Perot Science museum, and maybe the Dallas Arboretum Both excellent choices. The scrapping store in Waxahatchie, I've never been....but have heard great things about it. Ft. Worth has a very nice botanical garden, too and the best zoo ever nearby if you want an alternative to Dallas Botanical Garden. If you want a place to stop in the middle, there is a very nice state park near Huntsville. tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/mission-tejasIt's small and would be doable for young kids like yours, if you like the outdoors. You might want to post this on the NBSR, too. Might get more responses over there. |
|
|
|
Post by iheartpaper on Feb 8, 2017 1:21:27 GMT
Im from Dallas but live in the burbs now. If you are driving to Houston stop at Buccees, its a gas station but us Texans love it. They have tons of food, gifts, and you have to get Beaver Nuggets! Pecan Lodge is in Dallas and its really good. Its supposed to be the best BBQ around and sometimes there is a line outside. There are so many new restaurants in Dallas Im a little out of the know nowadays. I hope you have fun!! www.yelp.com/biz/pecan-lodge-dallas-3?osq=must+eats Buccees...my favorite gas station EVER!!! The restrooms are amazing, too! We would love to have one, or fifty here! Croppin Bug Scrapbooking is in La Marque. It's closer to Galveston. I went last year and found a decent sized shop with many brands to choose from. The Tuesday Morning "flagship" store is somewhere in Dallas...I wish I could remember more details. It's huge! They also had some kind of outlet down the street, but when I went there was nothing for me. Texas is one of my favorite places to be...have fun! |
|
scrapnnana
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,144
|
Post by scrapnnana on Feb 8, 2017 1:26:35 GMT
DH and I recently moved to the Dallas area, so we don't know much of the territory, but Babe's in Roanoke is a great restaurant, where you really get good "home style" cooking and plenty of it. When my sister and BIL came to visit, we went to Babe's the night they arrived. They insisted on going back again before they left, LOL, and we happily agreed.
There are other Babe's restaurants in the Dallas area, but our DS insists that Roanoke's, which is the original, is the best one.
|
|
|
|
Post by dewryce on Feb 8, 2017 2:16:10 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by goldenblind221 on Feb 8, 2017 2:48:21 GMT
Lots to do in Houston! For food, you MUST check out Killens BBQ in Pearland, TX (suburb). It's renowned as one of the absolute best in the state, but you must get there early because it does sell out. Since you have kiddos, I would also recommend checking out either Kemah Boardwalk or Galveston's Pleasure Pier. I like Kemah, personally, but both have cute little boardwalk games and rides for the kids. Down the street from Kemah is the NASA Space Center, and that would also be fun for the kids. We're home to some world class museums, including MFAH, the Children's Museum, Museum of Natural science, the Holocaust Museum, the Menil/ Rothko Chapel, and loads more. On Thursdays, most of the museums are free. The Houston Zoo is also located in the museum district. For shopping, you can't go wrong with the Houston Galleria, where you'll find high end designer stores, a brand new Shake Shack, and lots of fine dining. I like Memorial City mall, which has your usual big mall stores, a small ice skating rink, movie theater, a big kids jungle gym, and it is adjacent to City Centre, which is an outdoor mall with other great shops (and really good coffee and desserts at a place called Sweet). Since you said you guys were into desserts, one of my favorite places to go is Chocolate Factory on West Alabama. I would also check out Central Market and the Highland Village shopping area. Central Market is Houston's foodie favorite with lots of unique culinary finds and a really great bakery. Some of my favorite places for coffee are Common Bond (in the Montrose neighborhood, lots of thrifting and antiquing), Stumptown (in Houston's historic Heights neighborhood, lots of boutique shopping and antiques), Minuti (in midtown, where you should also check out Fluff bake bar), and if I may recommend some bubble tea (lots of great places). There are far too many great restaurants on every kind of budget. If you want more personal recommendations, please reach out to me and I would be happy to make some. I'm Houston born, raised, and proud. I live like a tourist in this town and have a LOT of ideas for people coming in based on their time, location, and budget. The only thing I wish I could help more with is crafting. In this town, there isn't much.  |
|
Deleted
Posts: 0
May 17, 2024 6:27:26 GMT
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2017 13:42:51 GMT
|
|
Mary Kay Lady
Pearl Clutcher
PeaNut 367,913 Refupea number 1,638
Posts: 3,074
|
Post by Mary Kay Lady on Feb 9, 2017 6:18:27 GMT
Grapevine isn't far from Dallas and offers an indoor waterpark that is very family friendly. Great Wolf Lodge |
|
smga1
Shy Member
Posts: 40
|
Post by smga1 on Feb 9, 2017 11:49:01 GMT
Rustico is a great restaurant in Dallas. My kids loved the Perot Museum and lots of hands on activities.
We also loved the Ft Worth stockyards and zoo.
|
|
mlgallegos
Junior Member
Posts: 80
|
Post by mlgallegos on Feb 9, 2017 14:05:02 GMT
Big Mouth Scrappers is in Forney, southeast of Dallas off I-20. A little out of the way, but a nice break from the hustle and traffic of the city. Tons of mixed media, lots of Graphic 45 and Tim Holtz, and their workspace has to be seen to be believed. So incredible. They're only open Thursday-Saturday though, so plan accordingly. There's an awesome park/playground and the Forney Gentle Zoo within a ten minute drive, if your kids want something to do while you shop. I know someone mentioned the Fort Worth zoo, the Dallas zoo is pretty nice too, with a great play area/water feature for kids.
Houston used to have a lot of scrapbook stores (and an Archiver's 😭), but as someone said upthread, I think Croppin' Bug is the only one left. The museum district and zoo in Houston are awesome too and the kids can run around in the park there.
Happy roadtripping!
|
|
|
|
Post by anonrefugee on Feb 10, 2017 15:13:52 GMT
These threads make me hungry, and miss Texas Road Trips. especially at this time of year!
You'll have to report back so we can drool.
|
|
|
|
Post by samncam on Feb 13, 2017 1:18:25 GMT
Thank you ladies for taking the time to post your responses. My family and I really appreciate your input! You've definitely given me some great ideas! loco coco We will definitely have to stop in at Buccees in-between Houston and Dallas so the kids can get rid of some of their pent-up energy. I remember seeing Pecan Lodge listed on Trip Advisor and wanted to go, but couldn't convince my DH. We are from Memphis, and so he's very particular about bbq. I've mentioned Pecan Lodge to him again since I saw your post about it and we may give it a go this trip. Thank you! @elaynef Since we've been to both the Dallas zoo and botanical garden twice, we're very open to seeing what Ft. Worth has to offer. Thanks for the reminder. I only had the Perot Science Museum and 1 restaurant on our Dallas itinerary until this thread. Thanks for the park links too, esp. the one at the midpoint of our drive near Huntsville. iheartpaper , clean bathrooms are definitely a plus, esp. with DD4, so we will definitely try to make Buccees our stop. We will try to make a day trip to Galveston if the weather permits, so Croppin Bug Scrapbooking may need to be added to the agenda. And a TM flagship store? That's just dangerous! I may have to research that. Thanks so much for all your enabling. scrapnnana home-style cooking may be just the thing we need after so many days on the road! Thanks for the recommendation. dewryce OMG! Isn't the Dallas World Aquarium amazing?? I esp. loved seeing the sloth. I've wanted to go back since our first time there, and the fact that DD2 wasn't born at the time is the perfect reason to return. mary Kay Lady I've heard of great things about Great Wolf Lodge and was considering visiting there on our last trip but we just didn't have enough time. If the weather doesn't allow for a day at Galveston, we may have to make that trek to Great Wolf if they have a one-day pass. Thanks for putting them back on my map. smga1 Glad to hear that the Perot Museum is a fun place--it's our main reason for going to Dallas, right now. Thank you. mlgallegos I will look into Big Mouth Scrappers. I can't remember where in Dallas we are staying, but I remember everything being a bit of a drive from our hotel our past few trips--seems to be the norm for Dallas. Maybe Forney won't be too far from some of the other places we plan on visiting, so we can make a pit stop there. Thank you. goldenblind221 Are there any unsafe/high crime areas we should avoid in Houston? We are from a suburb of Memphis, and we avoid going into certain parts of the city here. I will have to screenshot your post because half our trip will be in Houston and it will be our first time there. We know NOTHING about Houston! Thank you so much for taking the time to post your super-informative response. I wasn't considering the museum district because the kids are so young, but maybe it will be age-appropriate for them after all. I appreciate it so much! |
|
|
|
Post by goldenblind221 on Feb 13, 2017 3:16:24 GMT
I think most of it depends... all of what I would consider "touristy" areas are more likely to be fine. There are very few places I would not be comfortable. I would stay away from the airports. Lemme make a map....
|
|
|
|
Post by goldenblind221 on Feb 13, 2017 3:20:34 GMT
goldenblind221 Are there any unsafe/high crime areas we should avoid in Houston? We are from a suburb of Memphis, and we avoid going into certain parts of the city here. I will have to screenshot your post because half our trip will be in Houston and it will be our first time there. We know NOTHING about Houston! Thank you so much for taking the time to post your super-informative response. I wasn't considering the museum district because the kids are so young, but maybe it will be age-appropriate for them after all. I appreciate it so much! http://instagram.com/p/BQb7qPFhzKZ Stay in the blue area (or further west down I-10) if you can. Don't stay in the red areas. Houston is incredibly diverse, so you're going to see... a lot fewer caucasians than you are used to. Don't let that freak you out. I only say that because I often hear that it can be a culture shock from people who have recently moved down here. You are also going to have to budget lots of gas money and travel time because it's an enormous place and you will drive. Just try not to be on the road between 3:30pm and 7:30pm, because that is rush hour, and the city becomes a very angry parking lot. Houston drivers are the worst, and I apologize in advance, because it is very off putting. Try to plan to be occupied during that time if you can. Again, message me or tag me if you need more help! I hope you enjoy your trip and will help you make that happen in any way I can! |
|
|
|
Post by scrappyem on Feb 13, 2017 3:58:00 GMT
I love Dallas! I've lived here almost 10 years. Klyde Warren Park in the heart of downtown is worth the trip. Would be a great place to stop before or after your Perot Museum (which is a must do, glad to see it on your list!) visit. They have food trucks in the park. You can get variety if you have any picky eaters & it's a good price point. Geo-deck @ Reunion Tower is also fun and you can't beat the view. I wouldn't eat there with kids (it's pretty fancy and delicious but more of an adult restaurant). Check out City Pass. You can purchase a City Pass and get discounted admissions on a bunch of attractions including Aquarium, Perot, Geo-deck, etc. It will save you some $ for sure: www.citypass.com/dallas Visit Dallas has a list on their website of fun things to do with kids: www.visitdallas.com/things-to-do/discover-dallas/themes/dallas-with-kids.html#subtheme-family-friendly-city-lifeThe Crafty Scrapper is a really neat scrappy store in Waxachie (40ish minutes from downtown). It's a cute little town with some nice shops and cafes. They have a ton of mixed media and Tim Holtz products but not always the latest collections. Still my favorite LSS though. Have a great trip! |
|
scrapnnana
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,144
|
Post by scrapnnana on Feb 13, 2017 6:19:35 GMT
We also loved the Ft Worth stockyards and zoo. We haven't seen the zoo, but we enjoyed the Ft. Worth Stockyards, especially the Cattlepen Maze! |
|
|
|
Post by **GypsyGirl** on Feb 13, 2017 6:31:39 GMT
I wasn't considering the museum district because the kids are so young, but maybe it will be age-appropriate for them after all. I appreciate it so much! Another Houston resident here. For children 6 and under, I really recommend the Museum of Natural Science & Butterfly Center as well as the Children's Museum of Houston. Those are especially nice if the weather is bad or too hot/humid. The Houston Zoo is very nice as well. This is all located in/close to Hermann Park. The park also has a train for the children, as well as peddle boats on the weekends. I've included the links so that you can check out the hours and current exhibits of each location. If you find yourself in the downtown area, then be sure to check out Discovery Green. It is located across from the convention center and Minute Maid Park (baseball) with a nice open area for the kids to run and play. There are many new restaurants in that area as well. Also worth checking out in that area is the Phoenicia Market where they have food from all over the world, as well as food to eat there or take away. Houston is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the US, so you will be able to find good food from many cultures. While we do have great barbecue, there is so much more to check out as well! Do you know what part of Houston you will be staying in? It is such a spread out town that making general recommendations on restaurants can be difficult. If you aren't careful, you will end up spending a good bit of time in a car & traffic! As for a LSS, there aren't any in Houston proper.  We have Michael's and Hobby Lobby, but that's about it. The Croppin' Bug the other's mention is in La Marque, which is closer to Galveston. If you are going to Galveston on this trip (Moody Gardens is worth a visit), then you might want to check it out. |
|
|
|
Post by samncam on Mar 2, 2017 17:03:22 GMT
I love Dallas! I've lived here almost 10 years. Klyde Warren Park in the heart of downtown is worth the trip. Would be a great place to stop before or after your Perot Museum (which is a must do, glad to see it on your list!) visit. They have food trucks in the park. You can get variety if you have any picky eaters & it's a good price point. Geo-deck @ Reunion Tower is also fun and you can't beat the view. I wouldn't eat there with kids (it's pretty fancy and delicious but more of an adult restaurant). Check out City Pass. You can purchase a City Pass and get discounted admissions on a bunch of attractions including Aquarium, Perot, Geo-deck, etc. It will save you some $ for sure: www.citypass.com/dallas Visit Dallas has a list on their website of fun things to do with kids: www.visitdallas.com/things-to-do/discover-dallas/themes/dallas-with-kids.html#subtheme-family-friendly-city-lifeThe Crafty Scrapper is a really neat scrappy store in Waxachie (40ish minutes from downtown). It's a cute little town with some nice shops and cafes. They have a ton of mixed media and Tim Holtz products but not always the latest collections. Still my favorite LSS though. Have a great trip! Klyde Warren Park is def cool and we have never thought about the Geo Deck. Would love to try some ice cream from the Cool Haus truck (we have been buying it at our local Fresh Market). Thanks for all the suggestions. |
|
|
|
Post by samncam on Mar 2, 2017 17:05:08 GMT
We also loved the Ft Worth stockyards and zoo. We haven't seen the zoo, but we enjoyed the Ft. Worth Stockyards, especially the Cattlepen Maze! It def seems like we should hit up some places in FTW. So many people have mentioned their stockyards. The Cattlepen maze sounds awesome. Thank you for your input! |
|
|
|
Post by samncam on Mar 2, 2017 17:10:47 GMT
I wasn't considering the museum district because the kids are so young, but maybe it will be age-appropriate for them after all. I appreciate it so much! Another Houston resident here. For children 6 and under, I really recommend the Museum of Natural Science & Butterfly Center as well as the Children's Museum of Houston. Those are especially nice if the weather is bad or too hot/humid. The Houston Zoo is very nice as well. This is all located in/close to Hermann Park. The park also has a train for the children, as well as peddle boats on the weekends. I've included the links so that you can check out the hours and current exhibits of each location. If you find yourself in the downtown area, then be sure to check out Discovery Green. It is located across from the convention center and Minute Maid Park (baseball) with a nice open area for the kids to run and play. There are many new restaurants in that area as well. Also worth checking out in that area is the Phoenicia Market where they have food from all over the world, as well as food to eat there or take away. Houston is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the US, so you will be able to find good food from many cultures. While we do have great barbecue, there is so much more to check out as well! Do you know what part of Houston you will be staying in? It is such a spread out town that making general recommendations on restaurants can be difficult. If you aren't careful, you will end up spending a good bit of time in a car & traffic! As for a LSS, there aren't any in Houston proper. We have Michael's and Hobby Lobby, but that's about it. The Croppin' Bug the other's mention is in La Marque, which is closer to Galveston. If you are going to Galveston on this trip (Moody Gardens is worth a visit), then you might want to check it out. We will be staying in the SW side of Houston. We have many of those places you listed already on our itenerary! So exciting to see everyone recommending some of these same attractions. Thanks so much. |
|
