Texas State Fair

Shannon Ayres
Oct 31, 2018
5 min read

I was so excited to be able to go to Texas about two weeks ago with my dad and aunt. Both of them grew up in Dallas and used to go to the State Fair every year. I had heard about this fair when I was little and had wanted to go forever. Unfortunately the timing never worked out but I made a deal with my dad that if I got my college applications in before October 1st, he would take me to the fair. As you can tell by this title, I did in fact get all my work done and finally made it to the Fair. It was amazing!! I'm going to try a different organization in this post and separate into category the experiences, instead of a chronological order.

Food

Meso Maya

The first evening we flew in, stopped by our hotel, and then headed straight to dinner. My aunt had previously made a reservation for us at Meso Maya saying that we HAD to go to this place for true TexMex. It was really REALLY good. I got veggie enchiladas which were good, but very lime-y, which kinda turned me off. But the elote and fried plantains were so so amazing, I could have made a meal from them. Then we ordered Mexican chocolate cake which was divine to say the least.

Otis Coffee

This coffee shop was located in the hotel we were staying in the, the Adolphis, and since it was raining Saturday morning we didn't want to venture out to find food and decided to have breakfast here. The food was really good. I had a pumpkin cheesecake parfait and a chia pudding along with my staple coffee, a cappuccino. Unfortunately they didn't have soy milk, which I normally drink and only almond milk (I know I'm very bougie and extra but I have my reasons). Anyways, my dad and aunt got the yogurt parfait and we split some of the baked goods. Overall a very good find.

Comissary

I was obsessed with this place as soon as I saw it. The blue tiles and large windows called my name from miles away. It was truly a hipste-coffee lovers dream. I got the avocado toast (of course what else would I eat) and another cappucchino (to keep n mind this was Sunday morning, not the same day). My dad and aunt got a Mexican dish which I am forgetting the name of, but it was absolutely amazing. It was fried tortilla chips with fried egg and an amazing green sauce. We did stop in for a snack Saturday afternoon and got a cookie and more coffee and the cookie was amazing as well. I was in love with this coffee shop and would highly reccomend.

Saint Rocco's

This was the restaurant we went to for our family dinner Saturday night. It was a very chic Italian joint and the food was quite decent. I'm not sure how this happened but I ended up having only tomato and cheese for both appetizer and main meal. My dad and I ordered a bruschetta type with tomato and cheese and then I had a Caprese salad for dinner. So from my perspective the tomatoes and cheeses were very good.

Dallas Grilled Cheese Co

I was so extremely excited to try this place. Especially since I was the one who found it on Yelp. My verdict was a bit dissapointed. I had looked at the menu beforehand and saw a grilled PB&J which sounded amazing since I have a slight addiction to penut butter, but honestly, the sandwitch could have used a lot more filling. It was made with Texas toast which I guess explains some of it, but I really wanted a giant, filling, stuffing even, PB&J. But my dad's pimento cheese grilled cheese was better. I was dissapointed which I normally am not in the case of food.

Fair Food

So I would like to preface this stating that I am a very healthy eater and rarely eat anything close to being fried. Especially not deep fried. So naturally at the Fair I had to try deep fried pecan pie, deep fried s'mores, a veggie corny dog, and deep fried Snickers. I felt quite sick after one bit of each but persevered for the sake of research. My favorite by far out of all of them was the deep fried Snickers, we actually enjoyed it so much my dad and I plan to replace our normal deep fried Oreos at Thanksgiving with deep fried Snickers. My favorite food from the Fair had to be, hands down, the cotton candy taco. This food won an award as one of the top new foods at the fair this year so we knew we had to try it. We got the famous s'mores flavor and it was one of the most interesting things I've tried in a while. I think I liked it, verdict is still out.

Shopping

Neman Marcus

Dallas hosts the original Neman Marcus so we decided to take a stroll around the store. It was very cool to see and I saw some amazingly gorgeous, yet rediculously expensive, dresses which I would love to have designed. The best being a hand painted Oscar de la Renta gown. As you may assume we didn't buy anything at the store except tea from the mini food store (side note my dad and I are obsessed with tea and my mother regularly bans us from buying more. We rarely listen).

Wild Bill's Western Store

My biggest goal in this whole trip was to find a pair of cowgirl boots. I had a pair of pink ones when I was younger but alas, they no longer fit. My dad and I had are hearts set on a pair of Lucchase boots since that is what both my dad and brother have. This store was amazing and did not disappoint. The man who helped me find boots walked us through the whole selection and fitting process and it was quite amazing. I learned a lot about how boots are supposed to fit. The final two choices were classic Lucchase boots in a light brown and a dark brown. I decided on dark since it goes with my wardrobe better and I could not be happier. I love them so much and every time I put them on I feel in touch with my Texas roots. ;) I also bought a belt since somehow I don't actually own a belt, and spurs. Because what girl doesn't need spurs?

Bishop's Art District

Right before we headed to the airport, we got a cab to the Bishop's Art District to have grilled cheese and meander around. The stores there were so cute and hipster, just what I love. We went in tons of stores but I only got a pair of earring that I had been looking for for a while (long and metal). But the stores there deserve a longer paruse especially if I had been looking for gifts for people.

Overall my trip to Texas was amazing and I can't thank my dad enough for taking me and gettin me boots. It was something that I had been dreaming of since being a little girl and it finally can true. Also I didn't write much about the State Fair here but you can go watch my vlogs here on YouTube to get a view of what we did at the Fair; it was amazingly fun and like nothing I have ever experienced before.