Food Fest Fun

The 8 fall food fests no respectable Dallas gourmand would miss

It’s all feast and no famine for Dallas foodies this fall. From Texas’ biggest veggie festival to the ultimate meat battle to one very secretive white dinner party, it’s all here for the taking.

Now pencil in these dates for the best food-filled celebrations of the season, listed in order of occurrence:

Harvest, September 15
Event chairs John and Mary Martha Pickens, with honorary chairs Michal and Loyd Powell, host this event at The Shed at the Dallas Farmers Market, now in its third year. Chef chair Sharon Hage recruits some of the best local chefs, resulting in delicious food along with specialty cocktails, entertainment by Aaron Einhouse Music, and silent and live auctions. All proceeds benefit the senior and child programs of the North Texas Food Bank. Tickets are $200, and the event starts at 7 pm.

Smoked Dallas, September 24
Pitmasters from all over the state — including Fort Worth’s Heim Barbecue and Dallas’ Slow Bone — descend on Main Street Garden Park downtown to show off their barbecue skills. There is also a stellar lineup of live music, with performances by the Toadies, Shinyribs, Dirty River Boys, the Roomsounds, and Dean Fearing’s Lost Coyote Band. Tickets start at $28, and general admission starts at 2:30 pm.

Chefs for Farmers, September 25
This event is all about chefs and farmers coming together to provide good food to passionate attendees. More than 120 food vendors from all over the country set up shop alongside DJs and other live entertainment at Gilley’s Dallas. Tickets are $100, and the event starts at 2 pm. Also new noteworthy: the Chefs for Farmers Street Food Night Market the night before, September 24, in the Dallas Design District, sponsored by CultureMap.

Dîner en Blanc, September 30
The picnic-style Parisian dinner party is popping up again, with plans to wine and dine more than 2,200 attendees in an undisclosed location. Expect dinner from Food Glorious Food, entertainment by Bravo, dancing, and a Pyrotex fireworks show. Participants of this mysterious dinner are in charge of setting up and taking down the entire operation, leaving no sign of their experience when it is all over. Tickets are $37, and more information will be emailed before the night of the event — if you make it off the wait list.

DIFFA Burgers & Burgundy, October 7
Chef John Tesar is rounding up celebrity chefs for an epic upscale cookout themed DIFFAcella on the Ron Kirk Pedestrian Bridge. This a definite change in scenery, as it has formerly been held in Karen and Bill Seanor’s backyard. Guests can expect bunned bites; cocktails; entertainment by Repel the Robot and the Please, Please Me; live art installations; three caricature artists; and a henna artist. Oh, and lots of support for DIFFA Dallas via the "Pawkitecture" auction. Tickets are $150, and the event starts at 6:30 pm.

Park & Palate, October 22
In its second year, this two-day shindig at Klyde Warren Park starts with the already-sold-out Down to the Roots event, where 12 chefs create comfort food with a modern twist. But the main attraction is the grand tasting on Saturday, with 30 chefs and 30 wineries offering tastings, cooking demos, and book signings. All proceeds go directly back to Klyde Warren Park. Tickets start at $75 for the grand tasting, which lasts from 2-6 pm.

Texas Veggie Fair, October 22
This free, dog-friendly event is wildly popular in Dallas, and you should expect a packed park full of veggie-enthusiasts. Taking place at Reverchon Park, it’s the largest veggie festival in Texas and features speakers, chef demos, live music, and vendors galore. (Official lineup announcement coming soon.) The festival lasts from 11 am to 6 pm.

Meat Fight, November 13
Tickets for this annual barbecue competition benefiting the National MS Society typically sell out fast, so set your alarm for October 4, 10 am, when they officially go on sale via Meatfight.com. This year the event returns to Four Corners Brewery, where teams of Dallas’ top chefs compete for bragging rights to the best smoked meats, as determined by BBQ authorities like Texas Monthly’s Daniel Vaughn. You must go hungry, because you will want to eat all of the things. Also bring your wallet, to bid in the live auction that in the past has included items like a smoker built by famed pitmaster Aaron Franklin. Last year it raised $150,000.

Head to Lee Park on September 25 for Chefs for Farmers.

Chefs for Farmers/Facebook

Head to Lee Park on September 25 for Chefs for Farmers.

where-to-eat

Where to Drink

Where to drink in Dallas right now: 5 new happy hours for February

Even Coast

The Frozen John D at Even Coast.

The February edition of Where to Drink, CultureMap's monthly column on restaurants and bars you can get a drink at, travels far and wide to find the best and most exotic happy hours around: From sushi deals in downtown Dallas to $5 margaritas in Collin County to Indian bar bites in Irving.

(If you're in a more date-night frame of mind, be sure to consult our list of places where you can share a sweet Valentine's Day meal.)

Here are five happy hours to try in February:

Cafe Gecko
Laid-back perennial favorite in Richardson has just unveiled a brand new happy hour menu featuring their delectable versions of classic bar food treats including pizza fries, pretzel bites, chicharrones, onion rings, and fried pickles, priced from $5-$7, plus $1 off everything in the bar. It's served Monday all day, and Tuesday-Friday from 3-7 pm.

Dozo Omakase
Omakase sushi restaurant which opened a year ago at Trinity Groves with a compact menu that includes the trendy multi-course omakase style of dining, available in small or large versions. They do a cool approach to happy hour by introducing a new menu nearly every month. For February, it includes items from the sushi bar and the kitchen including half-price nigiri, sushi hand rolls for $8, gyoza for $6, crispy rice tuna for $10, and miso soup for a bargain $2.50. Cocktails include sake for $9 and a Kyoto highball cocktail for $11.

Even Coast
Neighborhood restaurant from chef Omar Flores opened on the Addison-Dallas line in 2024 with seafood, pastas, and steaks — and now happy hour. It's a good one, served from 2-6 pm every day with its own menu of $3 oysters, $10 cheeseburgers, and salmon dip. House cocktails are $9, including a rotating flavor frozen drink; a pint of beer is $6, and wine by the glass is $9. The only restriction is where: On Friday-Saturday, it's available only at the bar; Sunday-Thursday, it's also available in the dining room and on the patio.

Neon Cactus
Congenial Mexican restaurant in Fairview has a happy hour with deals that surely seem worth driving for: They run Monday-Friday from 3-6 pm and include margaritas for $5, domestic beers for $4, wine by the glass for $5, and well drinks for $4. They also have daily food specials that run all day, such as queso blanco and chicken tinga flautas, $10 each on Thursdays, and taco plates with rice and beans, $10 to $12 on Tuesdays.

Nirvana
Sultry Indian lounge at Toyota Music Factory with DJ, dance floor, and rooftop patio has what may be the worst website in the world — but buried beneath the PTSD flash graphics and music is a worthy happy hour, served from 4-7 pm featuring $2 off all cocktails, including the Hunan Heatwave with tequila and tandoori pineapple, and the Beijing Berry mocktail with mixed berries and ginger ale. Plus Indian-themed bar snacks such as "drums of heaven" AKA chicken lollipops; street-style chow mein, and crispy chili corn.

cocktails where to drink