Dallas Event & Entertainment Guide
Get Down
Deep Ellum is the beating heart of live music in Dallas, and it has been since the 1920s when Blind Lemon Jefferson and Lead Belly played the blues clubs along Elm Street. Today it's a five-block stretch packed with venues where you can catch everything from punk to cumbia on any given Tuesday. Trees is the flagship - Deftones played their first show here, Erykah Badu basically grew up on this stage, and the room still sounds incredible.
The Granada Theater on Greenville Avenue books the kind of acts that are about to blow up - if you see someone there now, you'll be bragging about it in two years. For the big touring acts, the American Airlines Center downtown handles arena shows for everyone from Beyonce to Bad Bunny, and Dos Equis Pavilion out in Fair Park is the go-to outdoor amphitheater when the weather cooperates (which in Dallas is honestly most of the year).
Game Day
Let's talk about the palace. AT&T Stadium in Arlington is where the Dallas Cowboys do their thing under the world's largest column-free interior - the video board alone is 160 feet wide. Tailgating in the parking lot starts at sunrise, and you haven't lived until you've seen 90,000 people lose it on a fourth-quarter touchdown. The Mavericks and Stars share the American Airlines Center downtown, and both fanbases show up loud. Stars playoff hockey in particular is wildly underrated.
Eat Up
Dallas BBQ is a whole religion. Pecan Lodge in Deep Ellum does a beef rib that's the size of your forearm and so tender it falls apart when you look at it - get there before 11 AM or the line wraps the building. Terry Black's on the north side is the Austin transplant that earned its spot fast. For Tex-Mex, Mi Cocina's Mambo Taxi margarita is dangerously good (you'll have two before you realize what happened), and the brisket tacos at Velvet Taco are the perfect 1 AM decision after a Deep Ellum show.
After Dark
The Bishop Arts District in Oak Cliff is where the cocktail bars live - Midnight Rambler is an underground lounge beneath the Joule Hotel where the drinks take five minutes to make and are worth every second. In Deep Ellum, Armoury D.E. does craft cocktails without the attitude, and Truck Yard has a treehouse bar. An actual treehouse. With a bar in it. You're welcome.
Cowboys, brisket, and a music scene that's been cooking since the jazz age - grab your Dallas tickets on Evil Tickets and go find out for yourself.
