Happy Hump Day, loves! I am still feeling completed rejuvenated after spending a weekend in the city with the hubs. Originally, we were supposed to have gone to Austin, TX to celebrate our friends’ 10 year wedding anniversary. However, it was canceled because of rain. Since we already had child care for the weekend, we jumped on the opportunity for a little alone time.
One of our favorite things to do is explore our own city, so we promptly started planning a fun-filled staycation. One of the neatest things about Dallas is that there are so many pockets of neighborhoods each with their own vibe. We knew we wanted to explore several areas, so finding a hotel that was centrally located was essential.
We stayed at The Fairmont – located in the heart of downtown – and had the best time. Not only is the location great, but the rooms are large, well decorated, and clean. It’s also affordable, and has many amenities on site. The Fairmont also had a great happy hour open to guests and locals.
FRIDAY:
Once we booked our hotel, we began creating our personal travel guide. The main criteria for our travel guide? Do all the things we can’t do with kids – coffee in silence, reading, dinner alone, etc.. So naturally, we kicked off our weekend “away” with coffee. We dropped the girls off at school, kissed our sweet puppy, and went to one of our favorite coffee shops – Mudsmith. Mudsmith is located in the heart of Lower Greenville -an East Dallas neighborhood boasting of charm and good eats. We both ordered lattes and sat down to talk. I mean, parents, when do you get to actually drink your coffee and talk to your spouse? It was such a treat!
We both highly recommend ordering a latte – they make the neatest designs and taste fabulous. We also recommend this place because of what it has to offer. It is full of tables to work on, and in the back is a mini library with books and games to play. We flipped through a book about the history of Rock music and I actually learned some things!
Then we packed up our bags and headed downtown. Travis is still carrying his Nomatic bag, and I of course packed in my favorite leather duffel. We arrived in the city in the early afternoon and checked in to the Fairmont. We were both impressed with the customer service, and I couldn’t get over their fall floral arrangements. The other thing we both loved? Their welcome snack bar. You guys, the Fairmont has candy bowls – gummi bears, skittles, etc., just waiting to be eaten by you! I mean who doesn’t love gummies? We may or may not have taken some gummies up to our room to enjoy with vino.
Once in our room, we began to settle in. Now, every person has their own style of living when it comes to hotel stays. Some live out of their bags all weekend. Travis and me, we like to come in and hang up all of our clothes, set up our toiletries, and make the place feel like home. Type A much? Maybe, but it works for us!
We hadn’t been to the Fairmont in awhile and were excited to see our rooms knowing they had been redesigned recently. Y’all, we were so pleased! The rooms are so spacious each with a mini bar, desk, and beautiful view of the city. The bathrooms are gorgeous too and very spacious. And the most important thing – the bed – was so dang comfortable! We both slept like babies both nights!
After checking in we headed downstairs to the Pyramid Bar and Restaurant for their happy hour. I mean, you can’t beat $4 glasses of wine. We actually had such a blast unwinding and people watching. A lot of the guests were locals getting off of work and then we watched a wedding party kick off their weekend.
Once happy hour was over we headed to Deep Elllum, one of our favorite East Dallas, to go to our favorite place to get ramen – Tanoshii. If you love ramen, then this place is a must. It’s super affordable and incredibly delicious. If this is any indication of how good it is, my husband literally drinks the broth straight from the bowl when he’s finished. You win some you lose some, ladies.
SATURDAY:
First on the agenda was sleep in. We failed; kids will do that to ya. We both woke up at 6:45am, but enjoyed laying in our cozy bed and easing into the day. Once up and dressed, we walked to the Dallas Farmer’s Market. The Farmer’s Market is about a mile south of the hotel, making for a great morning walk.
If you haven’t been to the Dallas Farmer’s Market in awhile, I highly encourage you to give it a go. As a Dallasite, it is truly neat to see how it’s changed over the last couple of years. Vendors fill the outdoor halls and the indoor food hall is fabulous. We met up with some friends and strolled around drinking coffee and eating street tacos.
If you visit the Dallas Farmer’s Market in the morning (or afternoon for that matter), I highly recommend Palmieri Cafe. It’s a quaint Italian Cafe where they roast their own beans and hand make all their pastries. Yummy!
When we finished wandering around the Farmer’s Market, we decided to try a Bird for the first time with some friends. If you’re unfamiliar with Bird, it’s an electric scooter that you can rent via their app to scoot around town. Y’all, they are so dang fun!! It can be a bit nerve racking as you have to ride on the road and not the sidewalk, but you get the hang of it fast. We truly had so much fun and only one minor collision!
We took our birds Klyde Warren Park – a must see if you’re visiting Dallas. Klyde Warren Park is a public park that spans over the freeway. It has several great restaurants, a playground for kids, lawn games, and typically some sort of group athletic class going on. But us? We were there for the food trucks. Trav and my favorite food truck of all time is the Nammi truck. They have the best banh mi sandwiches ever!
Once our bellies were satisfied, we got on our birds (naturally), and cruised on over to Community Beer Co in the Design District. They make one of my favorite IPAs – the Mosaic IPA, and Trav kept telling me what a fun environment it was. Once we got there I figured out why this place is such a hit. It’s a giant room full of live music, lawn games, food trucks, and games projected on the walls. It was such a family hang out! And it’s so cheap! If you pay online you can get 3 beers for only $10!
Once we thought we couldn’t put anything else in our bellies we headed back to our hotel to unwind a bit. I always think it’s a testament to the hotel if you actually desire to go back and hang out at the hotel. We had planned on taking a quick nap in our room, but couldn’t resist the energy of the Pyramid Restaurant and Bar. They have one of the best happy hours and it makes for great people watching, too! We sat on a comfy couch, had conversations (without starring at our phones, haha) and just relaxed. It was amazing.
Then we headed to another part of town – Deep Ellum. One of our favorite pizza places in Dallas is Cane Rosso. The original location is in Deep Ellum, so we were excited to go back. We met a couple of friends there and ordered only the best of the best pizza on the menu. Psst – there’s a hidden menu, so when you go, just tell your waiter you want the “Honey Bastard” pizza. Then, thank me later, haha. It’s life changing!
Then like any good parents without kids, we went back to the hotel, climbed into our comfy bed, and fell asleep before 10 pm. Who can blame us? We’re chronically sleep deprived.
SUNDAY:
Sunday was such a relaxing day and the perfect way to end our stay at the Fairmont. We slept in…what’s that? And then slowly gathered our things to head home after enjoying coffee in our room. The Fairmont does have an express check out option, but we checked out at the desk – my husband is old school, y’all. Then we got our car and drove to Uptown – another great neighborhood in Dallas, to try a new coffee shop. We got our latte fix at LDU Coffee – a new “grab and go” coffee shop owned by two Australian brothers. The coffee was fabulous, the customer service was great, and it was quick and easy. We highly recommend it if you’re on the go!
Then with coffees in hand, we ended our weekend date at our favorite store – Trader Joe’s. Once you have kids you really do forget how fun grocery shopping can be when you’re sans children. We had the best time sauntering around the store and gathering our usual items. After our TJoe’s run, we headed to our in-laws and go our babies.
