On the Road

Small-town charm permeates lakeside Rockwall, just 30 minutes east of Dallas

The free San Jacinto Plaza Music Series is held downtown on Friday and Saturday nights.

Photo courtesy of Visit Rockwall

Picturesque sunsets at the lake, great golf, and small-town charm are par for the course in Rockwall, which is just 30 minutes east of Dallas. Live music is also big — there’s a reason why Rockwall was voted the Free Live Music Capital of North Texas.

From unwinding at the water to savoring the local dining and music scene, discover these summer-perfect possibilities in Rockwall.

Discover — and dine in — Historic Downtown Rockwall
As a designated Texas Main Street City, Downtown Rockwall is a revitalized, historic gem that’s home to shops and boutiques, a majestic Art Deco courthouse, and must-try restaurants, all perfectly set within old-fashioned brick storefronts.

The Book Club Cafe specializes in down-home food with a twist, like sweet and savory takes on waffles and the best scratch-made biscuits and CFS (chicken fried steak).

Look for artisan-style wood-fired pizza and a solid wine list at Zanata; street tacos on hand-rolled tortillas and craft beer at Charlie’s; and an impressive array of burgers and all the fixins’ at the rancher-owned Wells Cattle Co. Word to the wise: Get the PBJ bacon burger for a delicious twist on the norm.

Downtown also hosts a charming Farmers Market from May through September, along with the San Jacinto Plaza Music Series on Friday and Saturday evenings from May through October.

Get a lake life
For beautiful sunsets, Lake Ray Hubbard views, and dining and entertainment, The Harbor is another district that’s not to be missed.

Thursday nights mean Concerts by the Lake, a free series that’s held through July 28. The 2022 lineup includes bands like Dunn & Brooks (a Brooks & Dunn tribute), Back in Black, (AC/DC tribute), Desperado (Eagles tribute), Escape (Journey tribute), and Warehouse (Dave Matthews tribute) along with party bands like crowd favorite Limelight.

While you’re there, grab food and a ’rita or beer to-go at Dodie’s Cajun and creole restaurant.

If it’s not Thursday but you still are craving some music, you can often catch a band or karaoke night at Sideways BBQ, where they sling the smoked goods in a casual, lakeside setting.

Or BYOB for a relaxing night on the lake. Sail with Scott’s 40-foot-long sailing catamaran has starlight cruises along with family-friendly daytime options.

Or book a sunset cruise on one of DFW Boat Ride’s two double-decker boats like the Harbor Lights.

Tee off
Line up your tee shot down a lush, rolling fairway lined by magnificent trees at Buffalo Creek Golf Club, one of North Texas’ top public golf courses. Designed by Jay Morrish and former PGA Tour player Tom Weiskopf, the course features a challenging layout and an abundance of sand and water hazards.

Or for a different kind of golf game, head to the Harry Myers Disc Golf course. The 18-basket course wanders through open prairies and dense thickets of trees, creating a challenge backdrop for pros and amateurs alike.

Taste the good stuff
Neither a trip to Tuscany nor even the Texas Hill Country is required to sample some authentically Texan sips at Rockwall’s Rosini Vineyards, which crafts its dry and semisweet reds and whites with grapes grown in the Texas High Plains.

Just outside of town, San Martino Winery & Vineyards offers tastings of seasonal wines that change by the month, with options that could include an Albarino, Montepulciano, and Cabernet.

On Friday and Saturday nights, VineCrafters hosts a live music and wood-fire pizza night to go with their pours.

If a beautifully hopped IPA or a dark and flavorful porter is more your drink, you’re in for a treat at Siren Rock Brewing Company ,where the beers have big personality with creative characters and flavors like The Prima Diva (an American blonde ale), The Magnetic Muse (chocolate milk stout), and The Loyal Fool (blackberry cobbler sour).

There are more innovative beers to try at Hemisphere Brewing Company, including a Starburst Strawberry summer beer and Hula Girls, a blonde ale made with toasted coconut.

Hit the trail(s)
For some off-road action, ride, hike, or jog the single-track looping pathways of the Squabble Creek Mountain Bike Trail. Consisting of six loops, the trail offers six miles of space to explore, as well as a picnic area where you can rest and recharge before heading out for more adventure

The one-mile trail at the Pettinger Nature Preserve also provides an escape to nature, and they have a butterfly garden, too.

And over in the family-friendly (and dog-friendly!) Harry Myers Park, there are walking trails along with barbecue areas, a swimming pool, and a Sprayground for summer chilling.

Find more to love about this lakeside town at Visit Rockwall.

Rockwall's charming and historic downtown is home to shops, restaurants, and more.

Photo courtesy of Visit Rockwall

Rockwall's charming and historic downtown is home to shops, restaurants, and more.

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Your Expert Guide

Oak Cliff: The underestimated historic and culturally rich 'hood

Photo courtesy of Briggs Freeman

Kay Wood

There are so many great places to live in Dallas that it helps to have an expert on your side. The Neighborhood Guide presented by Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty gives you insider access from the agents who live and work there, providing in-the-know info about your possible new community.

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Bishop Arts is a huge attraction, but Realtor Kay Wood wants people to know that Oak Cliff is a lot more than just Bishop Arts.

"Oak Cliff has a really rich and complex history," the Briggs Freeman agent says. "I think it's one of the most underestimated neighborhoods in Dallas."

Wood has lived in Oak Cliff with her high school sweetheart-husband since 2008, but she's been helping people buy and sell homes there for the past 15 years, currently with her business partner Brian Davis.

"The neighborhoods here are close to everything but still relatively affordable compared to other areas of DFW," she says. "I love all the historic homes with their architectural interest and variety, the strong sense of community engagement, and how there's so much to explore. Whether you're looking for the best new restaurant, the most authentic taco, film festivals, the zoo, the best public high school in Texas, parks, nature preserves — I could go on all day!"

Wood offered up a few of her personal favorites about life in "the Cliff." Here's her guide to the area:

Where to eat & drink
The list is long: Nova ("you have to get the hummus," Wood says), Encina (pro tip: don't skip the blue cornbread), Cibo Divino for pizza and wine on the patio, coffee from Peaberry ("my husband swears their Vietnamese coffee is the best in town"), oysters at Boulevardier, the Perfect Picnic at Eno's Pizza Tavern, tio's elotes next to El Si Hay, the pistachio ice cream at Joy Macarons, and the spicy lobster ramen at Ten Ramen.

Wood advises picking up a great bottle of wine from Neighborhood Cellars and some steaks from Cooper's Meat Market. And, of course, there are tons of taco options in the neighborhood: "We can't get enough of Maskaras, Trompo, and Taco y Vino," she says.

Where to play
Marvel at the best skyline views in town while playing a round at Stevens Park Golf Course, take a walk through Twelve Hills Nature Preserve, bike along the Trinity River, or play disc golf at Founders Park.

The Kessler Theater is "such a great and intimate venue" for concerts, while the Texas Theater adds a touch of history to movie-watching. Escape to The Wild Detectives for books, music, and poetry, or head to the Dallas Zoo for a wild day out — "our whole family loves to feed the giraffes," Wood says.

What to see
Oak Cliff is home to the Stevie Ray Vaughan Memorial at Kiest Park and the La Reunion Monument at Stevens Park Golf Course that honors some of Dallas' earliest settlers.

On Jefferson Boulevard, you can pop into the Oak Cliff Cultural Center for regular art shows, and "my daughters love to walk down the street and look at all the quinceañera dresses in the shop windows," she says.

Where to live
A few years ago, Wood helped her buyers purchase 626 Rainbow Dr., a rare, two-acre midcentury modern estate that's wrapped on three sides by a babbling creek.

"When you're there, it's really hard to believe you're less than four miles from downtown Dallas," she says. The buyers hired local architect Eddie Maestri to update some aspects of the house while carefully preserving its midcentury style. There was an original barn that had been previously converted to a studio, but the buyers reinvented it as a guest house and added a pool and outdoor kitchen.

"It's hard to say what a 'typical' Oak Cliff house would be, because we have some of the very best examples of almost every architectural style in town," Wood says.

"In Winnetka Heights, you'll find Craftsman architecture (four squares, bungalows, Sears catalog, etc). Kessler Park has Tudors and Colonials and Texas eclectics from notable local architects like Charles Dilbeck and David R Williams. Stevens Park has all of these, as well as Spanish Revival and Dutch colonials. Wynnewood, North Kiestwood, and Wynnewood Hills have some of the best midcentury moderns in Dallas, as well as wonderful ranches. East Kessler has cutting-edge contemporaries that take advantage of the rare-to-DFW hilly terrain. You could teach a pretty comprehensive architectural history of Dallas without ever leaving Oak Cliff."

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Kay Wood lives, works, and plays in Oak Cliff. For more information on buying and selling a home in the area, click here, email kwood@briggsfreeman.com, or call 214-908-5442.