2022
Kishambrea Bowens
The Market- Dallas’ food hall and artisanal vendor market
When in Dallas, visiting the Dallas’ Farmers Market is a must. The Market – A 26,000 square foot food hall and artisanal vendor market containing four anchor restaurants, a mixture of local specialty foods, artisanal food vendors, and seating areas both inside and out where you can grab a bite to eat or enjoy a cup of coffee while taking in a view of the Dallas skyline or observing the market-goers. You can catch them daily from 10AM- 7PM for all your food cravings. The market currently house 27 restaurants. Anything you have a taste for, I’m sure you can get your fix! Here are a list of the ones my family and I have visited:
Dexter enjoying a burger and fries from Beyond The Butchers
- Abundantly Aromatic
- Nammi has the best boba. If you catch them doing happy hour, the bites are discounted!
- Scardello Artisan Cheese if you like wine, they have an affordable selection.
8 Cloves – Spices of India
- Taqueria La Ventana has the best margaritas! We frequent here a lot as a family because they have affordable prices.
- Rex’s Seafood and Market is always respected in my book! Not only is their seafood fresh and delicious they are go-getters and passionate about what they do. The one time it did snow in our city, Rex was open, keeping a lot of risk takers fed.
- Palmieri Cafe
- The 2nd Tap
- Laili Sadly, we only got to try this restaurant once before they left. They have been replaced with
The next time you visit Dallas. Please be sure to stop by. You will not regret it!
Two-Keys Catering
Two Keys Catering is the name of Dallas’ latest elusive pop-up food craze. The business venture is run by two close friends – both appropriately named Kiara, or ‘Key’ for short. Two Keys specializes in a variety of services which include catering and bartending. To be lucky enough to try one of these exclusive dishes – you must stay alert, and keep your eyes glued to their social media pages for pop-up event dates. One should also be prepared to pay in advance, but it is well worth the wait.
Each event is uniquely designed with a new theme which consists of appetizers, entrees, desserts, and even drinks. In their most recent presentation, the stars of the show were Birria tacos, and egg rolls – all supported by cake and lemonade. These entrees were each composed of one protein: chicken, beef, or shrimp. The flavors of each protein were truly bold and delicious. The Birria consumé complimented each of them well. The strawberry crunch cake had just the right amount of sweetness, and contained natural strawberries for a fantastic contrast. The homemade lemonades were the perfect drinks to wash it all down, with the raspberry and blueberry were equally enjoyable. If you would like to indulge as well:
Please follow them on Facebook and social media and keep a lookout for the next event date and menu so you can get your order in!
Road Trippin’ Through Texas – Honeymoon Edition
The Plan
Planning a honeymoon is not the easiest thing to do. Although I’d like to go to the Bahamas with my two piece or get blazed in Jamaica, times are hard and we’re balling on a budget. Marriage to my partner of a decade is mind blowing. It didn’t change much in the relationship, but now it’s official. We had a blast on the trip and we only spent $1000 road trippin’ through Texas.
The main key was to save money, so booking a hotel or Airbnb was out of the question. An SUV and a gym membership is all you need. A Planet Fitness membership that was signed up for at the beginning of the year, but never used, came in handy. Then the showers were clean and it was not a lot of people using them. The initial thought was it’ll feel awkward showing in a public place. It turned out to be way more comfortable than expected. Amazon came in clutch with everything needed to sleep in the SUV. Plus, we had no problem sleeping the car because of all the fun we had. Here’s a list of everything with the links:
The trip started off in Dallas, TX. Our first stop was in Temple, TX. Here we stopped at Buc-ee’s to fill up on gas and goodies. Buc-ee’s is probably by favorite station. They have everything you need while traveling. It’s like a travel grocery store. I got a gallon of water and beef jerky. Their beef jerky is probably the best I’ve tasted.
Austin
Austin was the next stop and this is where day one ended. When taking a trip to Austin ride the scooters. I really hate they were removed from Dallas because I really enjoyed them. They can get a little pricey, so be sure to purchase a Lime Ride Pass in advance. You could also use my promo code RPC6UO2 to get $3 off towards your first ride.
The convenient stores that are in downtown Austin will help you find souvenir items. My guy and I got t-shirts! Cliché, indeed, but we wanted something we could use. Mine is tie dye and says the classic slogan “Keep Austin Weird”! My guy’s shirt says “Where the Weird Things Are” with the character from Where the Wild Things Are as a memorable Austin bat. Speaking of bats, be sure to try out the Austin Bat Tour. It sounds small, but experiencing hundreds of bats flying over your person is a wild experience.
We spent some time in Kyle, TX. I had no idea Texas had so many cliffs! The P Terry’s in San Marcos, TX was a quick stop for a bite to eat. We tried Gumbeaux2Geaux, a Black Owned restaurant, and everything was fire! The food, desserts, and beverages were so good! I even got a small crab in the gumbo! Check them out the next time you’re in Austin.
San Antonio
San Antonio is where the trip ends. The Towers of America’s is like something I’ve never seen and to think it was built as a flex! We tried to see peacocks on the Peacock Trail, but had no luck. We did run into some cool art though. The Hard Rock Cafe is closed in Dallas, but they have one on the Riverwalk! We made a stop at The Friendly Spot and the vibe was lit. Between mixing the liquor and eating all that fried food, we got kind of sick, but I was ready for the next day.
Go City Pass
The Go City Pass is something you’ll need when visiting San Antonio. You have 90 days to cancel and receive a full refund, if not activated. Once activated, you have 60 days to use. Passes that are not registered are good for 2 years. You register a pass by scanning your first attraction. With the Explorer Pass, you can pick 2, 3, 4, or 5 attractions to visit from our list of top San Antonio sights, tours, and must-sees. When you select your 2, 3, 4, or 5-choice Explorer Pass, you’ll also get one premium attraction included with your pass. The attractions we chose were:
- Tower of Americas
- The Magik Theatre (We will redeem this one next trip)
- One-Hour Kayaking at King William District (Closed for the season)
- SeaWorld® San Antonio (Premium Attraction) – The roller coasters look innocent, but those bad boys are scary. My favorite one has to be the Steel Eel! I believe it was preparation for SeaWorld San Antonio Halloween Spooktacular because once nightfall came, the “freaks came out at night”! I danced with cheerleaders bleeding from the mouth and took a photo with Slender Man. The main attraction was really the Orca show! Boy was I in for a treat. It’s hard to believe that killer whales can be trained. The best part was the splash show and I made sure to sit in the Splash Zone!
Overall the trip was amazing! The next road trip you take, please go to SeaWorld! I still have dreams, good ones lol, about the Magical Orcas.
Ruibals- Dallas’ Hidden Plant Paradise
Starting off as just a table and transforming into two stores, Dallas has a retail nursery hidden in plain sight. Plant lovers report here because you are in for a treat. Ruibals the ducked off plant paradise in Dallas. There are so many different plants ranging from bedding plants, perennials, shrubs, trees, tropical plants, floral plants and garden vegetables. Not only do they deliver and offer the location to be rented for events, they also offer gardening services. You can get a landscaping consultation and they’ll even plant your plants for you.
I have passed by so many times when visiting the Dallas Farmers Market and I never stop by, until one day I did. Upon first view, all of the plants are neatly organized lining the street. As you walk through the flowers are color coordinated and they’ll lead you to an actual store. Inside you’ll find a plethora of things such as Ruibals’ merchandise, local products like sage and essential oil aromas, artisanal sodas and ice creams, and flowerpots in almost every size, shape and color. They even have plants inside. While at check out, I spotted a small Venus flytrap.
My first buy was an easy home plant, the cactus. I fell in love with the stature and how tall it stood from the pot. Cacti are succulent perennial plants. They can survive in dry areas. Cacti store water in the stems and can improve your air quality. All forms of cacti are considered to be among the best plants at reducing the levels of bacteria and radiation in their surroundings. If you are looking to improve your air quality, you should get a cactus. After dark, a cactus will absorb the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and then release oxygen. The second buy were two succulents. The succulents were only about $4!
Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mothers. As I’m picking my son up from school the Friday before mother’s day, he walks down the stairs holding two plants with very unique bases. One was a water bottle and the other was a cereal cup. Both colored and decorated with an array of colors. It was supposed to be a secret, but he was so excited about it that he kept telling his dad. We are not sure what kind of flowers they are, but Dexter mentioned one started to grow a purple petal, until falling off.
