Located just a few miles from Dallas called the Texas Metroplex, Grapevine, Texas offers plenty of exciting family-friendly attractions, world-class events, excellent dining, over-the-top shopping, and just plain fun. You might even say it’s aged to perfection.
Walk through Downtown Grapevine
The first place to head is historic Main Street with its charming shops, restaurants, art galleries, and oh yes, wineries. You’ll feel like you’ve taken a step back in time. Stop at the Visitor’s Center for your free welcome bag, information, and the inside scoop on what to see and do. While you’re there, take the elevator to the top of the Grapevine Main Observation Tower where you can see the entire Dallas Fort Worth metroplex from 150 feet in the air.
Grapevine makes it easy to get around with its free shuttle that loops around three different routes, even coming from DFW Airport. Once you arrive, you don’t even need a car.
Create a Beautiful Momento at Vetro Glass Studio
Learn more about the glassblowing process at Vetro Glass Studio (which means “glass” in Italian) and try your hand at creating lovely glass art where you can create an ornament, wine glass or pumpkin. I took my turn dipping into the glass colors, turning it, and heating the glass. Or, admire the beautiful pieces in their Fine Art collection and bring home a magnificent souvenir.
Chow Down
Grapevine is filled with unique eateries, everything from gourmet dining to pizza. Here are a few of my recommendations. Known for its “Bowl of Red,” that’s chili without beans or tomato sauce, Tolbert’s Restaurant and Chili Parlor has been delighting diners for more than 50 years. Their menu offers salads, burgers, steaks and more. Don’t miss their Donkey Tails (two franks wrapped in a tortilla with cheese and deep fried) and Torpedoes, breaded and fried jalapeno peppers.
Walk down the street to Beth Marie’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream with more than 40 flavors to choose from. You’ll have a hard time deciding from Pralines in Cream, Tin Roof, Butterfinger, and more. For tasty, over-the-top sandwiches, stop at Weinberger’s Deli. Find a souvenir or two to bring home like a treat from Dr. Sue’s Chocolate—natural dark chocolate handcrafted by a physician. My bar of choice was the Moonlight Mocha Bark.
Chez Fabien Bistro is a great way to start the day. Chez Fabien Bistro is a French-inspired restaurant open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We had breakfast there and was delighted with the almond croissant, churro French toast, and banana Nutella crepes. Taste extraordinary pizza at Mister 01 Pizza where the pizza dough is made from imported Italian flour and slow-proofed for 72 hours. The restaurant is known for their outstanding Star Luna Pizza and yes, you guessed it, it’s shaped like a star.
New in town is Teatro Bistro, helmed by Chef Carla Pellegrino, but it has made a big splash with her curated menu of Italian specialties.
Hang out at Peace Plaza at Grapevine Main
It’s an outdoor plaza for listening to music and a European-style indoor food court. Choose from eight venues at Harvest Hall from Texas Sliders to pizza to Mexican street food. Add a cool craft brew or artisan cocktail and head back outside to hear the sounds under the Texas starlit sky.
Shop and Learn all Grapevine Mills Mall
Find Texas-style deals at Grapevine Mills Mall with over 180 stores, including popular, high-end retailers. See a movie at the AMC 30 Dine-In Theatres, explore SEA LIFE Aquarium, and have fun at the Legoland Discovery Center. Recently opened is Meow Wolf, The Real Unreal, an interactive art space that tells the story of an ordinary family that unfolds in each room with psychedelic, multi-sensory experiences.
Down on the Farm – Nash Farms
Bring the kids to Nash Farms and let them have an authentic hands-on experience on this working 5-acre farm. At the farm, they raise sheep, turkeys, and chickens and grow heirloom field crops and produce. Take a self-guided tour of the original 1869 farmhouse, historic barn, farm store, and other structures. Pet the sheep. Pack a picnic or arrange for a farm-to-fork dining experience. You’ve never tasted anything so fresh. Check their full calendar of events.
Grapefest – A Stompin’ Good Time
Come September 12- 15, Grapevine celebrates its namesake with the largest wine festival in the Southwest. At the 38th Annual Grapefest, guests discover new vintages, enjoy live music, and feast on vittles like turkey legs, fajitas and wild game sausage, along with pizza, corn dogs, and funnel cakes. As you’d expect, there will be plenty of cork-popping activities including The People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic, GrapeStomp, Champagne Cork Shoot Off, Pickleball, KidsWorld, and more.
Looking ahead to the holidays, Grapevine is also known as the “Christmas Capital of Texas” with the “Parade of Lights,” the North Pole Express train, ICE! Exhibit, Snowland, and much more.
Truly, Grapevine is a town that knows how to party in any season. Come see for yourself!
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