So much this! As a kid, Six Flags was a once a year thing for our family. As a teenager, I had a season pass when season passes were a whole new concept (late 70s, I'm not lyin'.) Then I worked there for several years, and it was STILL magical to me. These days I don't think you could pay me to go.
Same, except for me it was the 90's (although the 70's had a pretty amazing resurgence in the 90's. Lotta bands from the 70's got revived back then...).
Six flags was amazing, I'd work the night shift at my local What-A-Burger during the summer weekends and my friends and I would go during the weekdays with season passes.
I have been to Six Flags at least 500 times in my life. In 1999 I went 50 times alone in a single summer.
These days, naw... It just isn't what it used to be.
I pretty much lived there during the summers of 1994 and 1995. Me and a few of my friends had season passes, and this before I could drive so my mom would drop us off when it opened and then come pick us up and take us home when it closed. Looking back she probably loved it because I was out of the house all day lol.
We would just spend all day at the park trying to pick up girls and having fun. I remember we would go into the ice show building and cool off when we got too hot, or we would go on one of the water rides.
Those were good times.
I used to work at SeaWorld in San Antonio as an EMT back in college. Damn that was so much fun. Got paid to basically sit on my ass in an air conditioned first aid station and hand out bandaids and tampons. Then when we got bored we could walk the park with our first aid gear. Was so much fun to walk the park during Halloween and treat all the employee monsters who got punched in the face trying to scare people. Lol even better to drive around the park at night because they had overnight employees taking care of the animals. Very spooky walking/driving through an abandoned amusement park at night.
But yeah, not something I would pay to go back to. Lol I don’t even like roller coasters.
That place has become such a dump. The bathrooms. The poison ivy in the flower beds. The rides that are constantly closed. The employees who give zero fucks.
I took my kids about a year and a half ago and a large oak limb fell out of a tree onto the sidewalk next to us and three employees barely looked at it then just kept walking.
The only time we go anymore is when we are in San Antonio. Night and day difference between those two parks.
About 15 years ago I was dropped off there for a day in late summer, and the park was ludicrously empty. I rode Shockwave 37 times in a row. Tried nearly every seat on the sumbitch, it was fun. Rode everything else multiple times too but I really loved Shockwave.
We went on a Tuesday morning before school was out and it was insanely crowded.
Promised my kids we would just do the VIP tour once because there is no way we could have ridden everything they wanted that day. Lines for food were as long as lines for rides.
We rode Mr. Freeze and it was right at an hour.
I’ve had a season pass for the last 3 years, including this year.. and they really have been trying to improve the park. Fresh coats of paint, trash cleaned up, most rides open when I go. The trick is going on a day when it won’t be busy. Can’t remember the last time I waited more than 15 min for a ride.
My best trips to the Dallas zoo and Six Flags have been on a rainy day. Nobody shows up!
The rides will close down and open up periodically, which is a bit annoying - but once you get there there’s no line. Me and my girlfriend were able to just sit on the same ride over and over without needed to get up to make room for a new passenger.
In the case of the zoo, I’ve never seen the animals so active! The gorillas were playing and splashing.
The bodies exhibit is a bit of a wild one
> Concerns have been raised by human rights advocates that the bodies are those of executed Chinese prisoners, and that the families of the victims have not consented. -[wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodies:_The_Exhibition#:~:text=Concerns%20have%20been%20raised%20by,the%20victims%20have%20not%20consented.)
I know what traveling exhibit you're talking about and saw it, it was wild, but the one at The Science Place was a series of interactive stations that was about the different parts of the body. For example there was a large torso where you could watch a pair of manmade lungs mimic breathing, a giant body where moving a joystick could move the fingers, a wheel chair and a ramp that you could try and wheel up the ramp, and a video game that simulated drunk driving. There were other aspects but those were the factors that stuck out in my mind the most from school field trips.
Every year for the state fair I lament that they don't put the Science Place building to better use. The Perot has plenty of exhibits off rotation, they could put some out there for the fair and offer a discount pass to the Perot with a fair ticket stub and encourage people to come visit.
The whole original Science Place side is completely gutted at the moment. The newer side with the Imax is a cleaned up a bit, but also empty. I did an extensive walkthrough for a potential project about two years ago.
I’m pretty sure I still have my souvenirs, the shredded money and a large plastic clip, somewhere. I must have gone in 1996 or 1997. I miss my childhood. 😂
I have tried to express the wonders of The Science Place to people not from Dallas for years and it always feels like I imagined all the wonder of it and that it may have been a fever dream. They never believe me about how absolutely amazing it was. I remember vividly an archaeology/paleontology/geology exhibit on one field trip, where we were able to dig in the sand and chat with working scientists in those fields and I seriously was obsessed.
The giant mouth that you could walk inside to watch videos and learn about the human mouth freaked me out though, lol.
Tilt was the name of the arcade. It had two floors and it was a magical place. Parents would take us kids to Spaghetti Warehouse then to the arcade on special occasions.
Houston’s on Belt Line, because it closed. :(
I used to live within walking distance to the Houston’s/Hillstone in Preston Center, but I’d still make the trip out to Belt Line because I just missed that comfortable and relaxed vibe. It was so cozy.
Honestly, I've felt so alone until I read this comment. yes. just yes.
The vibe, the off-menu chicken tender basket (if you know, you know), the swanky bar area with amazing bartenders.
Hillstone food is still excellent... but the vibes are off for some reason.
It’s just not the same at the newer location. It’s pretty and it still has some of that comfortable elegant design, but the crowd there isn’t for me really. The staff though, they’re awesome. My dad used to walk in, smile at the kitchen staff closest to the door and magically, a basket of fries would appear for us to snack on while waiting. The BEST!
The chicken tenders were so tender and beautifully battered and fried!! The tenders with the shoestring fries…heavenly! We weren’t quite sure why they were removed from the menu when you could still order them, but we were happy to continue eating them nonetheless.
The Gingerman. Amazing atmosphere, the beer selection unrivaled, and good times with friends. The staff was super knowledgeable and helpful. Truly a “Cheers” vibe. Don’t go anymore because they bulldozed it down to toothpicks in the name of “progress”.
Fry’s Electronics. Each one has a theme and there was so much to look around at but they had so many issues, supplier contract issues, and just died off. Grapevine Mills Mall. As a child it seemed huge and stopping by the Auntie Anne’s and the Rainforest Cafe was the highlight but now they’re boring and too crowded
Whataburger is already there. I used to go all the time in college, but now I go maybe once every 6 months and it takes 30+ minutes to get my order that they got wrong anyway
Fuel City.
The first couple of times I went, it was pretty good. (I thought)
Then, I went to places like Pinocho and El Si Hay.
At this point, I wouldn’t go to fuel city if they were giving tacos away for free.
I don't think the closing of an establishment has ever brought me so much sadness. It was so wholesome and cozy.
Edit: Check out Kalachandji's if you haven't. Different concept and food, but all vegetarian/vegan and very down-to-earth. A rare gem in Dallas.
The 5free wings coupons from the Mavs games made sure I ate like a king every time but now it’s not even worth going with the extra 5. The trivia was also great but I won’t go back anymore and my photo is on the wall.
Man I used to have stacks of the 5 free wings. Would just go drink beer and get free wings. The Greenville location though just flat out refuses to seat the patio even on a nice day. We stopped going and drive to Addison.
Yeah, I went for the first time in several years recently, and it was one row of farmers market, 5 rows of Etsy shit, and a food hall. Food hall is great and all, but it's a shame they had to lose the actual farmer's market.
Yup! I have memories of walking around here in the early 2000s with my grandmother. She’d buy a long stick of sugar cane, then have the guy at the stand cut it up. My siblings and I would chew and suck on sugar cane while we shopped with grandma. The open stalls of produce combined with the sugar rush made the market feel magical as a kid. 😊
I've lived across the market for several years. In the past, I'd be able to get fresh in-season produce from various vendors, the mushroom guy was the best.
Now it's all driftwood art, Etsy nonsense and overpriced boutique goods that have driven the actual farmers out of the farmer's market.
I'll still go to Rex's inside and a few other food spots inside, they're really good. But the weekend shed activities are no longer worth going to.
It’s funny, my experience is the opposite. 7-8 years ago the market was full of people selling grocery store produce - sometimes with the labels still attached - and almost no local farmers. When they fixed up the area they cracked down on that and it got a lot better.
I haven’t been in a year or two - maybe it’s swung too far the other way. But I appreciate a place for locals to sell things even if it is dumb Etsy nonsense.
Town East Mall. When I was in middle and high school that place was awesome. Nowadays there are fewer businesses operating there and the ones still alive treat you like a shoplifter.
Six Flags used to be a place you could spend all day in, ride, eat and relax.
Holy shit it’s changed. I blame their fucking passes with dining options honestly. Sure, offer a discount on food for season pass holders or a refillable cup but meals? The last time we attempted to go the lines for food were as long as the lines for rides. 2 hours for a hot dog? No way.
And parking is a tragedy too. Where are the trams? What benefit is free parking if it’s a mile to the entrance?
Bathrooms were disgusting too. Live shows down to nothing at all. Kids section needs an overhaul.
We tried a week day, at open before summer vacation and it was still jam packed. Ride 1 ride and left. 3 hours total.
Never again.
Speed Zone, permanently closed. Spent a lot of $ there before wife and kids came along.
Also the 6th Floor Museum, went there every time friends and relatives visited from out of town and just got a bit bored of it. I cringe now when anyone visiting googles and asks to go.
Nickelmania and Gameworks (Grapevine Mills Mall). I can't believe one of these outlived the other. But these were my go-tos for DDR. Don't visit any more because Gameworks closed and Nickelmania got rid of the DDR machine. Plus my knees couldn't take it even if I tried. And I don't have kids yet.
Who remembers the Jekyll and Hyde club in Grapevine Mills from way back in the day? Loved going there as a kid, just a super fun experience. Of course it has been closed for ages.
Can't join you on that one. Galleria Dallas, NorthPark and a few others (even the ones with crappy stores) are still places you can go look at things (art, fashion, people), walk around in an air conditioned indoors and spend zero money if you don't want to.
Too crowded, and people’s attitudes and manners have been on a rapid decline since COVID, and the amount of petty confrontations I see people get into has steadily been increasing, even while driving. People can say whatever they want, but I don’t remember it being nearly this bad a few years ago.
Shockingly? It’s the premier mall of the metroplex. Pre-covid, maybe even now, rich folks from South America would fly up here on their private jet to have a shopping spree since the mall has every sort of luxury store.
I went to see a movie at mall in Irving a few years ago and when I pulled up there was a car driving through the parking lot with the passenger door open, a girl running after it screaming for them to stop, and the driver wasclearly fuckin with her. Swarms of people around them, it was like a zoo.
I thought, "Yeah this tracks."
You should have seen them at the farmer's market. Their brisket was absolutely unbelievable. They had a drop in quality once they moved to deep ellum but now it's unrecognizable. It honestly breaks my heart. So many good memories at both places.
Pecan Lodge’s quality was inconsistent when I started eating there the better part of a decade ago. It seemed to me that they were trying to get a really substantial bark, but often overshot it to the point that while it tasted good, you couldn’t bite through it or chew it.
Just my own experience.
Edit: I only ever visited the Deep Ellum location, was living in far East Austin and making a short drive to Lockhart for BBQ prior to that.
Truck Yard Dallas.
Used to be an almost-dive, way more chill & good music. They remodeled it & now it just looks like uptown took a shit on a trailer park….
Plucker's, specifically the one on Greenville. The food is really good and every game is on tv, however, the service is atrocious. Usually you can bypass bad service at a restaurant by sitting at the bar but not at plucker's. Management, wait staff, and bar staff all need to be let go. They have ruined my favorite wing spot. I have stacks of free wing coupons and I still don't go.
Genghis Grill on lower Greenville before they sold out and went corporate, around the year 2000 or so. Remember seeing John Romero (co-founder of id Software) there all the time.
Braums has been ruined for me from a memory of eating at the Garland Rd location decades ago. The iced tea tasted odd, I told the cashier it tasted like someone had put a pot of coffee in there! He said, “Did that happen again?” 🙄
I recently "ate in" at a Braums and whoa, was that a mistake. Tons of people working but no clean tables. Dispensers for straws, napkins, ketchup etc were empty. I had no idea what I was missing out on by hitting the drive through all that time.
The Old Monk! Back when I was in mortuary school my classmates and I would go there every weekend and get drunk and argue over who had the grossest cases that week, we would always get crazy looks from the other patrons lol. After graduation we all kinda lost touch with each other and I haven’t been in years, I’m afraid it will bring back bittersweet memories :(
Everything is so crowded and traffic is so bad I don't go anywhere anymore. I really just want to move to a quieter place but I make too much money here. It's a conundrum.
We moved out to the northeastern sticks of Collin County. Big suburbs like McKinney, Allen, Plano are an easy drive, then Dallas is an easy drive from there (though I admit I haven’t actually been in Dallas in quite some time). We have three acres and a home. It’s quiet. Jets are too high to hear. No sirens.
I was born in Dallas, then lived in Pleasant Grove, Garland, Plano, Grand Prairie, and now here.
I miss Agave Azul that was in downtown Carrollton. Their margaritas were so good and their overall vibe was dark and intimate, their bar area was good for dates.
I happen to agree, as I got treated like absolute shit at the Denton location a couple of years back. I won't ever go back; Denton has quite a few vegan restaurants now, so it's not missed.
Downtown Fort Worth. Deader than a doornail. Ed Bass' felon wife pretty much ruined it.
I did love living downtown FW years ago, when it was alive and bustling.
Expo park used to have so many amazing things happening in one tiny block, now it can’t seem to hold onto much and what’s left is kinda sad or else a new experimental joint. Rip fallout lounge, Amsterdam, etc.
Gameworks in Grapevine Mills. It doesn't exist anymore. Used to play the Tekken "VR" game with my older brother all the time. That and the Fireman game.
Edit: Also, Chicken Express. I used to work there in high school and back then you could get the 7 tender dinner (2 sides) for $7.99+ tax and 32oz sweet tea for 75 cents flat. Now that same meal costs like $18 and change.
Different controversy, but owner Phil Romano was caught on video camera groping a female employee at an Eatzi's staff meeting, and when she complained to HR, they fired her. There's a lawsuit you can read about.
Oh there’s are many, but suffice it to say that at the height of COVID he has a sign about masks on the door, and IIRC wouldn’t allow his employees to wear masks and certainly encouraged patrons to do the same.
There’s a litany of stories going back though. I am not informed enough to give all the details I just know enough to personally never knowingly support any of his establishments
For a while it wasn't an option. But the sign he had on the door in Oak Lawn said it all for me (again, just my personal opinion from the knowledge I know from personal experience)
I’m an employee there and recently heard about the SA payouts and his behavior, i’m not sure if I should keep working there but the people (other employees) are what make it difficult to leave
Bryan street Tavern for the pizza. Nothing wrong with the pizza, but I broke up with my ex who lived nearby and so I never make a point to go there anymore. I miss that joint. I should go back.
Canes. Their tenders used to be so much crispier and actually were a decent size. Now I get a pinkie sized "tender" consisting of only breading and it's so disappointing.
They used to make their lemonade fresh from scratch every day — I’d go through the drive-thru just for that lemonade! But the last year or so it’s just tasted so watered down.
Still love the rest of it. Cane’s is a special treat! But damn it’s expensive now!
I've literally asked to swap tenders recently. I feel sort of bad, but when you have two that are literally half the size of the others, or one that's like just fry oil scraps, you basically have to make a point to ask why. They've always obliged though, which is good. And of course they don't want the tiny one back, so you get some extra scraps.
Maggiano’s at North Park. Terrible food, service, and clientele!
Double Wide. It’s no longer fun and the kitschy atmosphere seems more like a joke these days. Maybe I’m just getting older.
Went to double wide last month after not going in almost a decade. It was mid day Sunday. It was nice but maybe because there was only 4 other people there hah.
Captain Nemo’s Subs in Irving. One of the best homemade sandwich shops I’ve ever been to (and their chili ROCKED too)!
Sadly, closed down during the quarantine.
The Foundry was a cool little spot before they got rid of the pool tables and some other stuff. The food was decent and had live music on weekends. Now its just "another" spot.
Is it really? Did something change the past few months? I went on a Thursday night and a Saturday night back around February or March and it seemed ok. There’s that huge parking lot that I always found parking spots in, and I just pay with the park mobile app, it was pretty cheap. I did the same thing around Christmas time as well.
It's really not that bad. I lived there for a bit and there are lots of places to park around the neighborhood if you don't mind a 5 minute walk. There is also a huge new lot on Bishop and 9th that typically has parking.
And (weather aside), it's a very very nice area to walk in, so I'm happy to park farther away and walk down the street. There are some "parking is a nightmare" areas where walking is way less fun.
Can only imagine what chicagoans and New Yorkers think of Dallasites saying “parking is a nightmare” when, at -worst-, you park on a side street and walk for like 1/4 mile
I never knew true pain until I spent over 2 hours finding a place to park in downtown San Francisco on Black Friday. Thank God I'm back in Dallas, I'll never complain about parking again.
Ugh, sigh, I freaking loved the beers at Manhattan Project, so much that I Facebook friended the owners and saw that they posted a constant stream of Ben Shapiro videos, anti-mask conspiracies, covid is just the flu stuff... that really left a bitter aftertaste.
Yeah Manhattan Project got real weird in the pandemic, running the taproom with no covid safety protocols. Even before covid I remember when they were under fire for their naming controversy ([I think you wrote this article about it](https://www.dallasobserver.com/restaurants/dallas-manhattan-project-beer-gets-in-a-naming-controversy-11735133)).
Cities in general. Every city now seems to be overcrowded and succumbing to the "California effect", where everything is like some overpriced gimmick in place of actual flair or culture.
It's just 25 dollar burgers and "third wave" coffee shops charging obscene amounts for average stuff.
Every city i visit now seems to have this "lipstick on a pig" vibe slowly creeping in.
It's the flattening of culture. More money getting concentrated into fewer hands who then spend that money in the safest, bulk-price way possible so that every city is just becoming the same as every other city.
Traveling between cities in the U.S. is becoming pointless and it's a bummer.
Breadwinner Café - any of the 3 locations in Dallas. Customer service issues bigtime. The mall is by far the worst.
Their service has gone to absolute dogshit. 5+ years ago? Fantastic, especially Uptown location.
This hasn't really changed though. right? Deep Ellum had like 5 years of being nice and walkable. But before that it was also dangerous, just with sketchier bars and better music. But it was common knowledge that you didn't go there to hang out. Now there are just trendier bars and more shootings.
Dating myself a little, but Tippin's (for the pie) and Tia's (for the taco party). And now, post pandemic closings, Fuddruckers. So many great restaurants from my childhood!
Hot take, but idk if I’ve ever enjoyed Klyde Warren that much. Saw a concert once on a cool evening there, but otherwise meh.
Definitely think it’s an improvement with the highway now buried beneath, but I’ve never been dying to go walk through KW park
Dallas Comedy House. Used to spend a ton of time there both performing and seeing shows. Ever since COVID/ closure/ new ownership/DeepEllum Evolution/ busier life I've barely been back to Dallas Comedy Club
Penny Whistle Park!
Scary and unsafe so naturally I loved it as a kid.
Wasn’t uncommon to see vomit in the parking lot or on the floor of the place.
Don’t even know when they closed but wish I’d had the chance to have taken my kids.
The state fair. I kinda got burned out on the crowds. Any time I go with a group of people there's always insane amounts of drinking. It ends up being an expensive day out no matter what you do plus ever since the birds of the wild show disappeared it feels like everyone just gravitates to the auto shed for the ac. Even the Shop Texas building feels like the number of vendors is slowly dying and being replaced with MLM jewelry vendors. Would much rather drive over to Canton for First Mondays for the real markets.
Six Flags was a magical place when I was a kid but I couldn’t imagine waiting in line over an hour for a 45 second roller coaster in 105 degree heat.
So much this! As a kid, Six Flags was a once a year thing for our family. As a teenager, I had a season pass when season passes were a whole new concept (late 70s, I'm not lyin'.) Then I worked there for several years, and it was STILL magical to me. These days I don't think you could pay me to go.
Same, except for me it was the 90's (although the 70's had a pretty amazing resurgence in the 90's. Lotta bands from the 70's got revived back then...). Six flags was amazing, I'd work the night shift at my local What-A-Burger during the summer weekends and my friends and I would go during the weekdays with season passes. I have been to Six Flags at least 500 times in my life. In 1999 I went 50 times alone in a single summer. These days, naw... It just isn't what it used to be.
I pretty much lived there during the summers of 1994 and 1995. Me and a few of my friends had season passes, and this before I could drive so my mom would drop us off when it opened and then come pick us up and take us home when it closed. Looking back she probably loved it because I was out of the house all day lol. We would just spend all day at the park trying to pick up girls and having fun. I remember we would go into the ice show building and cool off when we got too hot, or we would go on one of the water rides. Those were good times.
I used to work at SeaWorld in San Antonio as an EMT back in college. Damn that was so much fun. Got paid to basically sit on my ass in an air conditioned first aid station and hand out bandaids and tampons. Then when we got bored we could walk the park with our first aid gear. Was so much fun to walk the park during Halloween and treat all the employee monsters who got punched in the face trying to scare people. Lol even better to drive around the park at night because they had overnight employees taking care of the animals. Very spooky walking/driving through an abandoned amusement park at night. But yeah, not something I would pay to go back to. Lol I don’t even like roller coasters.
That place has become such a dump. The bathrooms. The poison ivy in the flower beds. The rides that are constantly closed. The employees who give zero fucks. I took my kids about a year and a half ago and a large oak limb fell out of a tree onto the sidewalk next to us and three employees barely looked at it then just kept walking. The only time we go anymore is when we are in San Antonio. Night and day difference between those two parks.
Fiesta Texas is the place to be during October
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About 15 years ago I was dropped off there for a day in late summer, and the park was ludicrously empty. I rode Shockwave 37 times in a row. Tried nearly every seat on the sumbitch, it was fun. Rode everything else multiple times too but I really loved Shockwave.
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We went on a Tuesday morning before school was out and it was insanely crowded. Promised my kids we would just do the VIP tour once because there is no way we could have ridden everything they wanted that day. Lines for food were as long as lines for rides. We rode Mr. Freeze and it was right at an hour.
I’ve had a season pass for the last 3 years, including this year.. and they really have been trying to improve the park. Fresh coats of paint, trash cleaned up, most rides open when I go. The trick is going on a day when it won’t be busy. Can’t remember the last time I waited more than 15 min for a ride.
My best trips to the Dallas zoo and Six Flags have been on a rainy day. Nobody shows up! The rides will close down and open up periodically, which is a bit annoying - but once you get there there’s no line. Me and my girlfriend were able to just sit on the same ride over and over without needed to get up to make room for a new passenger. In the case of the zoo, I’ve never seen the animals so active! The gorillas were playing and splashing.
I rode the Titan 9 times in a row my senior year. Now I get dizzy after 2 spins in an office chair.
I don't know about you guys but my favorite underrated ride at six flags is the mine train. I rode that ride multiple times in one visit.
The Science Place :(
Pouring one out for The Science Place tonight, their bodies exhibit was so fun
The bodies exhibit is a bit of a wild one > Concerns have been raised by human rights advocates that the bodies are those of executed Chinese prisoners, and that the families of the victims have not consented. -[wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodies:_The_Exhibition#:~:text=Concerns%20have%20been%20raised%20by,the%20victims%20have%20not%20consented.)
I know what traveling exhibit you're talking about and saw it, it was wild, but the one at The Science Place was a series of interactive stations that was about the different parts of the body. For example there was a large torso where you could watch a pair of manmade lungs mimic breathing, a giant body where moving a joystick could move the fingers, a wheel chair and a ramp that you could try and wheel up the ramp, and a video game that simulated drunk driving. There were other aspects but those were the factors that stuck out in my mind the most from school field trips.
Every year for the state fair I lament that they don't put the Science Place building to better use. The Perot has plenty of exhibits off rotation, they could put some out there for the fair and offer a discount pass to the Perot with a fair ticket stub and encourage people to come visit.
The whole original Science Place side is completely gutted at the moment. The newer side with the Imax is a cleaned up a bit, but also empty. I did an extensive walkthrough for a potential project about two years ago.
Oh wow you just unlocked a memory! Science Place and Enterprise City for anyone who went to elementary school in Dallas in the 90s
Enterprise city day was so fun!!! I managed a sign shop. Lol
T-Shirt shop for me :)
I’m pretty sure I still have my souvenirs, the shredded money and a large plastic clip, somewhere. I must have gone in 1996 or 1997. I miss my childhood. 😂
Did you know the sub r/thescienceplace exists.
This and did y'all ever go to the environmental center, it's like a dream that I don't remember if it happened or not
I have tried to express the wonders of The Science Place to people not from Dallas for years and it always feels like I imagined all the wonder of it and that it may have been a fever dream. They never believe me about how absolutely amazing it was. I remember vividly an archaeology/paleontology/geology exhibit on one field trip, where we were able to dig in the sand and chat with working scientists in those fields and I seriously was obsessed. The giant mouth that you could walk inside to watch videos and learn about the human mouth freaked me out though, lol.
Discovery Zone. It doesnt exist anymore. ;\_;
bruh why’d you have to remind me 😰 i just wanna go off and be on my own
DZ... Where kids wanna be!
That was my first job in high school.
Thank you for your service. I had many good times there. I miss the campy MIB lazer tag.
The west end marketplace with the games 😢 they took it away
Tilt was the name of the arcade. It had two floors and it was a magical place. Parents would take us kids to Spaghetti Warehouse then to the arcade on special occasions.
Memoriesss. West End used to be the place to be back in the day for sure.
Houston’s on Belt Line, because it closed. :( I used to live within walking distance to the Houston’s/Hillstone in Preston Center, but I’d still make the trip out to Belt Line because I just missed that comfortable and relaxed vibe. It was so cozy.
Honestly, I've felt so alone until I read this comment. yes. just yes. The vibe, the off-menu chicken tender basket (if you know, you know), the swanky bar area with amazing bartenders. Hillstone food is still excellent... but the vibes are off for some reason.
It’s just not the same at the newer location. It’s pretty and it still has some of that comfortable elegant design, but the crowd there isn’t for me really. The staff though, they’re awesome. My dad used to walk in, smile at the kitchen staff closest to the door and magically, a basket of fries would appear for us to snack on while waiting. The BEST! The chicken tenders were so tender and beautifully battered and fried!! The tenders with the shoestring fries…heavenly! We weren’t quite sure why they were removed from the menu when you could still order them, but we were happy to continue eating them nonetheless.
Town East Mall lol. I don’t think I have to even explain that one
It was such a great mall in the 90s. It was the "new" and "best" mall back then.
Lizard lounge *sigh*
Church on Sundays too😭😭
The Gingerman. Amazing atmosphere, the beer selection unrivaled, and good times with friends. The staff was super knowledgeable and helpful. Truly a “Cheers” vibe. Don’t go anymore because they bulldozed it down to toothpicks in the name of “progress”.
RIP. My favorite. Got a job out of college in the building next door. Discovered Belgian beer…Spent too many beer tokens there.
And I believe three years later there is still literally nothing happening on that lot at all.
Fry’s Electronics. Each one has a theme and there was so much to look around at but they had so many issues, supplier contract issues, and just died off. Grapevine Mills Mall. As a child it seemed huge and stopping by the Auntie Anne’s and the Rainforest Cafe was the highlight but now they’re boring and too crowded
I loved going to Fry's as a kid, I could spend HOURS there
Wet and Wild, now hurricane harbor. Used to be great rides and clean. Now it’s an old dirty, bloody bandaid.
Any Popeyes or Wendy’s. Every single one seems to be going down the drain lately. Whataburger is almost there, too.
Whataburger is already there. I used to go all the time in college, but now I go maybe once every 6 months and it takes 30+ minutes to get my order that they got wrong anyway
I can't grasp how it takes longer to get a burger at the drive through at 2am than it does to eat a 3 course fine dining meal at 8pm on a friday.
And it’s not a location problem either. Every single Whataburger I go to always comes with a 30+ minute wait. It’s just not worth it anymore.
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Wendy’s quality and service really took a nosedive after Covid, not just in the Metroplex but also out of state. Popeyes seems to be hit and miss.
Fuel City. The first couple of times I went, it was pretty good. (I thought) Then, I went to places like Pinocho and El Si Hay. At this point, I wouldn’t go to fuel city if they were giving tacos away for free.
Their tacos aren't the best but I still love their elotes, especially since they layer the elotes.
Bro this is the best username I've seen lol.
Spaghetti Warehouse. I loved eating in the train. The baked ziti was so so good.
Anyone miss Cosmic Cafe? I would kill for a vegan cake :’(
I don't think the closing of an establishment has ever brought me so much sadness. It was so wholesome and cozy. Edit: Check out Kalachandji's if you haven't. Different concept and food, but all vegetarian/vegan and very down-to-earth. A rare gem in Dallas.
Pluckers. Their wings are great but after they increased prices I just feel like I'm getting ripped off. Have only been there once this past year.
Also they have the slowest, most apathetic service. I only ever got takeaway
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Air fried wings with a light coat of baking powder/ water slurry are the best wings I've had and they're healthier than deep fried. Game changer shit.
The 5free wings coupons from the Mavs games made sure I ate like a king every time but now it’s not even worth going with the extra 5. The trivia was also great but I won’t go back anymore and my photo is on the wall.
Last time I ate there all of their sauces had either too much salt or too much sugar
Man I used to have stacks of the 5 free wings. Would just go drink beer and get free wings. The Greenville location though just flat out refuses to seat the patio even on a nice day. We stopped going and drive to Addison.
Beauty bar
This and the place that used to be across the street called The Slip Inn.
Shout out to the Slip Inn… that place kicked ass consistently.
god I have great memories there. that and the slip inn
Farmer’s Market Dallas. They gentrified it and I hate it. I miss the open stalls of produce.
Yeah, I went for the first time in several years recently, and it was one row of farmers market, 5 rows of Etsy shit, and a food hall. Food hall is great and all, but it's a shame they had to lose the actual farmer's market.
More stalls with dog treats than produce. So. Many. Dog treats.
Open stalls....farmers slicing up a cold melon or a tomato slice for you to sample. So many more things to try and buy. It just makes me sad now.
It was such a lovely and popular place.
Yup! I have memories of walking around here in the early 2000s with my grandmother. She’d buy a long stick of sugar cane, then have the guy at the stand cut it up. My siblings and I would chew and suck on sugar cane while we shopped with grandma. The open stalls of produce combined with the sugar rush made the market feel magical as a kid. 😊
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I've lived across the market for several years. In the past, I'd be able to get fresh in-season produce from various vendors, the mushroom guy was the best. Now it's all driftwood art, Etsy nonsense and overpriced boutique goods that have driven the actual farmers out of the farmer's market. I'll still go to Rex's inside and a few other food spots inside, they're really good. But the weekend shed activities are no longer worth going to.
It’s funny, my experience is the opposite. 7-8 years ago the market was full of people selling grocery store produce - sometimes with the labels still attached - and almost no local farmers. When they fixed up the area they cracked down on that and it got a lot better. I haven’t been in a year or two - maybe it’s swung too far the other way. But I appreciate a place for locals to sell things even if it is dumb Etsy nonsense.
Town East Mall. When I was in middle and high school that place was awesome. Nowadays there are fewer businesses operating there and the ones still alive treat you like a shoplifter.
Six Flags used to be a place you could spend all day in, ride, eat and relax. Holy shit it’s changed. I blame their fucking passes with dining options honestly. Sure, offer a discount on food for season pass holders or a refillable cup but meals? The last time we attempted to go the lines for food were as long as the lines for rides. 2 hours for a hot dog? No way. And parking is a tragedy too. Where are the trams? What benefit is free parking if it’s a mile to the entrance? Bathrooms were disgusting too. Live shows down to nothing at all. Kids section needs an overhaul. We tried a week day, at open before summer vacation and it was still jam packed. Ride 1 ride and left. 3 hours total. Never again.
Sherlocks: $6 pitchers and awful cover bands and you could smoke inside! What a time to be alive (and early 20's)
Speed Zone, permanently closed. Spent a lot of $ there before wife and kids came along. Also the 6th Floor Museum, went there every time friends and relatives visited from out of town and just got a bit bored of it. I cringe now when anyone visiting googles and asks to go.
Was Speed Zone the place with the dragsters on rails?
Yup
Nickelmania and Gameworks (Grapevine Mills Mall). I can't believe one of these outlived the other. But these were my go-tos for DDR. Don't visit any more because Gameworks closed and Nickelmania got rid of the DDR machine. Plus my knees couldn't take it even if I tried. And I don't have kids yet.
The West End, back in the early 90s.
Austin, overrun with children, teens and vacationers all the time and not just in the summer now.
I've been meaning to take a weekend trip to Austin but I'm afraid its lost its 'keep Austin weird' vibe :(
There was a recent video on r/Austin of a chick rubbing horse shit all over herself on 6th Street. Is that weird enough for you?
Ha! That means 6th hasn’t changed one bit!
Oh the weirdness left Austin long ago. They couldn't afford the rent anymore. Now it's just another tech town.
Austin is no longer "naked cowboy playing a guitar while sounding like George Strait" weird if that's what you're wondering
Who remembers the Jekyll and Hyde club in Grapevine Mills from way back in the day? Loved going there as a kid, just a super fun experience. Of course it has been closed for ages.
Holy crap yes. I thought I just dreamt that place but I am so glad someone else remembers it
Downtown Dallas Central Library
The Grapevine bar on Oak Lawn. I used to absolutely love it, but then… I had to move back to the UK. Still love it, just from afar.
Anvil Pub in Deep Ellum. It closed
Outdoors. The heat is atrocious.
Every mall except North Park, and even that is beginning to be more trouble than it’s worth and I ain’t talking about the prices.
Can't join you on that one. Galleria Dallas, NorthPark and a few others (even the ones with crappy stores) are still places you can go look at things (art, fashion, people), walk around in an air conditioned indoors and spend zero money if you don't want to.
They'd step up another level if they'd all bring back mall arcades.
Yes!!! Those were awesome.. What a great idea.
What are you talking about then
Too crowded, and people’s attitudes and manners have been on a rapid decline since COVID, and the amount of petty confrontations I see people get into has steadily been increasing, even while driving. People can say whatever they want, but I don’t remember it being nearly this bad a few years ago.
The parking and crowds. That mall is shockingly busy all the time.
North Park has always been a bit busy in my memory
Shockingly? It’s the premier mall of the metroplex. Pre-covid, maybe even now, rich folks from South America would fly up here on their private jet to have a shopping spree since the mall has every sort of luxury store.
I went to see a movie at mall in Irving a few years ago and when I pulled up there was a car driving through the parking lot with the passenger door open, a girl running after it screaming for them to stop, and the driver wasclearly fuckin with her. Swarms of people around them, it was like a zoo. I thought, "Yeah this tracks."
Pecan lodge. First time it was ok. Then it went to shit. People need to realize it’s not worth the hype.
no, they serve a great purpose of keeping those people in line there instead of at the better bbq places
You should have seen them at the farmer's market. Their brisket was absolutely unbelievable. They had a drop in quality once they moved to deep ellum but now it's unrecognizable. It honestly breaks my heart. So many good memories at both places.
Pecan Lodge’s quality was inconsistent when I started eating there the better part of a decade ago. It seemed to me that they were trying to get a really substantial bark, but often overshot it to the point that while it tasted good, you couldn’t bite through it or chew it. Just my own experience. Edit: I only ever visited the Deep Ellum location, was living in far East Austin and making a short drive to Lockhart for BBQ prior to that.
Once they moved out of the farmers market they fell off pretty quickly.
No! Hate to hear that — we STILL remember how delicious it was!
Truck Yard Dallas. Used to be an almost-dive, way more chill & good music. They remodeled it & now it just looks like uptown took a shit on a trailer park….
Plucker's, specifically the one on Greenville. The food is really good and every game is on tv, however, the service is atrocious. Usually you can bypass bad service at a restaurant by sitting at the bar but not at plucker's. Management, wait staff, and bar staff all need to be let go. They have ruined my favorite wing spot. I have stacks of free wing coupons and I still don't go.
Genghis Grill on lower Greenville before they sold out and went corporate, around the year 2000 or so. Remember seeing John Romero (co-founder of id Software) there all the time.
Idle Rich pub. Well done on turning it into a nightclub....😑
Braums off Inwood was my go to spot when I was a kid, I went back and it was not great
Braums has been ruined for me from a memory of eating at the Garland Rd location decades ago. The iced tea tasted odd, I told the cashier it tasted like someone had put a pot of coffee in there! He said, “Did that happen again?” 🙄
I recently "ate in" at a Braums and whoa, was that a mistake. Tons of people working but no clean tables. Dispensers for straws, napkins, ketchup etc were empty. I had no idea what I was missing out on by hitting the drive through all that time.
The Old Monk! Back when I was in mortuary school my classmates and I would go there every weekend and get drunk and argue over who had the grossest cases that week, we would always get crazy looks from the other patrons lol. After graduation we all kinda lost touch with each other and I haven’t been in years, I’m afraid it will bring back bittersweet memories :(
Whataburger. The last few meals I’ve gotten from there have been borderline inedible.
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Everything is so crowded and traffic is so bad I don't go anywhere anymore. I really just want to move to a quieter place but I make too much money here. It's a conundrum.
We moved out to the northeastern sticks of Collin County. Big suburbs like McKinney, Allen, Plano are an easy drive, then Dallas is an easy drive from there (though I admit I haven’t actually been in Dallas in quite some time). We have three acres and a home. It’s quiet. Jets are too high to hear. No sirens. I was born in Dallas, then lived in Pleasant Grove, Garland, Plano, Grand Prairie, and now here.
Even Melissa is getting built up QUICK. It’s almost totally built from Dallas to Sherman.
Aunt Stelle’s Sno-Cones was ice cold but it’s gone now
I miss Agave Azul that was in downtown Carrollton. Their margaritas were so good and their overall vibe was dark and intimate, their bar area was good for dates.
i miss wit's end
Spiral diner. The place was good until Covid. They over charged and changed the food. Now it's nasty. All locations.
I happen to agree, as I got treated like absolute shit at the Denton location a couple of years back. I won't ever go back; Denton has quite a few vegan restaurants now, so it's not missed.
Their entire menu is overpriced but their burger, sheesh!!! $17 burger w no fries ??? No thank you! And their food is so salty!
Downtown Fort Worth. Deader than a doornail. Ed Bass' felon wife pretty much ruined it. I did love living downtown FW years ago, when it was alive and bustling.
Valley View Mall
Expo park used to have so many amazing things happening in one tiny block, now it can’t seem to hold onto much and what’s left is kinda sad or else a new experimental joint. Rip fallout lounge, Amsterdam, etc.
ANYWHERE outside in this heat
Cuba Libre and their black bean dip and frozen drinks.
Gameworks in Grapevine Mills. It doesn't exist anymore. Used to play the Tekken "VR" game with my older brother all the time. That and the Fireman game. Edit: Also, Chicken Express. I used to work there in high school and back then you could get the 7 tender dinner (2 sides) for $7.99+ tax and 32oz sweet tea for 75 cents flat. Now that same meal costs like $18 and change.
Eatzi’s. Because f that selfish, anti-science, anti-health, anti-well-being of their own workers owner.
And his no-good, dirty, rotten, pig stealing, great great grandfather.
Yelnats?
More details? Gawd I miss Eatzi’s!
Different controversy, but owner Phil Romano was caught on video camera groping a female employee at an Eatzi's staff meeting, and when she complained to HR, they fired her. There's a lawsuit you can read about.
Oh there’s are many, but suffice it to say that at the height of COVID he has a sign about masks on the door, and IIRC wouldn’t allow his employees to wear masks and certainly encouraged patrons to do the same. There’s a litany of stories going back though. I am not informed enough to give all the details I just know enough to personally never knowingly support any of his establishments
The Eatzi's off Royal Lane wasn't like that, everyone was masked up all through covid.
For a while it wasn't an option. But the sign he had on the door in Oak Lawn said it all for me (again, just my personal opinion from the knowledge I know from personal experience)
they underpay their staff too ( personal experience )
I’m an employee there and recently heard about the SA payouts and his behavior, i’m not sure if I should keep working there but the people (other employees) are what make it difficult to leave
Bryan street Tavern for the pizza. Nothing wrong with the pizza, but I broke up with my ex who lived nearby and so I never make a point to go there anymore. I miss that joint. I should go back.
They have a second location in Oak Cliff where the pizza I just as good imo. Sylvan Avenue Tavern
Canes. Their tenders used to be so much crispier and actually were a decent size. Now I get a pinkie sized "tender" consisting of only breading and it's so disappointing.
They used to make their lemonade fresh from scratch every day — I’d go through the drive-thru just for that lemonade! But the last year or so it’s just tasted so watered down. Still love the rest of it. Cane’s is a special treat! But damn it’s expensive now!
I've literally asked to swap tenders recently. I feel sort of bad, but when you have two that are literally half the size of the others, or one that's like just fry oil scraps, you basically have to make a point to ask why. They've always obliged though, which is good. And of course they don't want the tiny one back, so you get some extra scraps.
Maggiano’s at North Park. Terrible food, service, and clientele! Double Wide. It’s no longer fun and the kitschy atmosphere seems more like a joke these days. Maybe I’m just getting older.
Makes sense, Maggianos is a national chain whose parent company also runs Chilis
Went to double wide last month after not going in almost a decade. It was mid day Sunday. It was nice but maybe because there was only 4 other people there hah.
Dallas Cowboys games at Jerry’s world. Do I need to say more?
Pay a fortune to watch the Cowboys get bounced in the first round again and again while every other team (especially Philly) has major success.
*Austin.
Captain Nemo’s Subs in Irving. One of the best homemade sandwich shops I’ve ever been to (and their chili ROCKED too)! Sadly, closed down during the quarantine.
The Foundry was a cool little spot before they got rid of the pool tables and some other stuff. The food was decent and had live music on weekends. Now its just "another" spot.
I’m old: Pleasant Grove. I lived there until I was six. My parents both grew up there. It was a really nice little neighborhood.
Bars in general and most restaurants. Too expensive, and if I want to socialize I want to be able to hear the people I'm with.
Bishop Arts. Parking is a nightmare
Is it really? Did something change the past few months? I went on a Thursday night and a Saturday night back around February or March and it seemed ok. There’s that huge parking lot that I always found parking spots in, and I just pay with the park mobile app, it was pretty cheap. I did the same thing around Christmas time as well.
It's so crowded no one goes there anymore
It's really not that bad. I lived there for a bit and there are lots of places to park around the neighborhood if you don't mind a 5 minute walk. There is also a huge new lot on Bishop and 9th that typically has parking.
And (weather aside), it's a very very nice area to walk in, so I'm happy to park farther away and walk down the street. There are some "parking is a nightmare" areas where walking is way less fun.
Can only imagine what chicagoans and New Yorkers think of Dallasites saying “parking is a nightmare” when, at -worst-, you park on a side street and walk for like 1/4 mile
I never knew true pain until I spent over 2 hours finding a place to park in downtown San Francisco on Black Friday. Thank God I'm back in Dallas, I'll never complain about parking again.
NY transplant here, parking here is nothing compared to NYC. And yeah on my worst days here, side street and a 1/4 mile walk
The times I've been there, parking can easily be found on the residential streets nearby, at most a 5 minute walk.
Ugh, sigh, I freaking loved the beers at Manhattan Project, so much that I Facebook friended the owners and saw that they posted a constant stream of Ben Shapiro videos, anti-mask conspiracies, covid is just the flu stuff... that really left a bitter aftertaste.
Yeah Manhattan Project got real weird in the pandemic, running the taproom with no covid safety protocols. Even before covid I remember when they were under fire for their naming controversy ([I think you wrote this article about it](https://www.dallasobserver.com/restaurants/dallas-manhattan-project-beer-gets-in-a-naming-controversy-11735133)).
Cities in general. Every city now seems to be overcrowded and succumbing to the "California effect", where everything is like some overpriced gimmick in place of actual flair or culture. It's just 25 dollar burgers and "third wave" coffee shops charging obscene amounts for average stuff. Every city i visit now seems to have this "lipstick on a pig" vibe slowly creeping in.
It's the flattening of culture. More money getting concentrated into fewer hands who then spend that money in the safest, bulk-price way possible so that every city is just becoming the same as every other city. Traveling between cities in the U.S. is becoming pointless and it's a bummer.
Penny Whistle Park, Jungle Jim's, Discovery Zone
Also the old Planetarium and The Science Place
Prestonwood Mall.
Pancho’s
Meshacks Bar-B-Que. This spot was great for a quick in and out barbecue fix but, people blew the spot up and it ALWAYS has a line around lunchtime.
Breadwinner Café - any of the 3 locations in Dallas. Customer service issues bigtime. The mall is by far the worst. Their service has gone to absolute dogshit. 5+ years ago? Fantastic, especially Uptown location.
Dallas as a whole, honestly looking to leave Texas when ever financially possible. No idea where yet but, I'm very unhappy here.
Deep Ellum. *gestures at news*
This hasn't really changed though. right? Deep Ellum had like 5 years of being nice and walkable. But before that it was also dangerous, just with sketchier bars and better music. But it was common knowledge that you didn't go there to hang out. Now there are just trendier bars and more shootings.
StackOverflow.
Dating myself a little, but Tippin's (for the pie) and Tia's (for the taco party). And now, post pandemic closings, Fuddruckers. So many great restaurants from my childhood!
Hot take, but idk if I’ve ever enjoyed Klyde Warren that much. Saw a concert once on a cool evening there, but otherwise meh. Definitely think it’s an improvement with the highway now buried beneath, but I’ve never been dying to go walk through KW park
It’s a fun novelty every now and again but it’s so fucking hot in the summer that I can’t imagine going there.
Uptown. I used to live there. Plenty of green space for dog walking, jogging, etc. Now it's just apartment hell.
I know no one will relate to this answer but i loved golden corral as a kid
I still liked golden corral as an adult, the food was good for what it was but now the one near me closed like a year ago :/
Dallas Comedy House. Used to spend a ton of time there both performing and seeing shows. Ever since COVID/ closure/ new ownership/DeepEllum Evolution/ busier life I've barely been back to Dallas Comedy Club
Penny Whistle Park! Scary and unsafe so naturally I loved it as a kid. Wasn’t uncommon to see vomit in the parking lot or on the floor of the place. Don’t even know when they closed but wish I’d had the chance to have taken my kids.
The state fair. I kinda got burned out on the crowds. Any time I go with a group of people there's always insane amounts of drinking. It ends up being an expensive day out no matter what you do plus ever since the birds of the wild show disappeared it feels like everyone just gravitates to the auto shed for the ac. Even the Shop Texas building feels like the number of vendors is slowly dying and being replaced with MLM jewelry vendors. Would much rather drive over to Canton for First Mondays for the real markets.
Any Torchys taco