Finally, after a week of settling into our new home J and I decided to venture into Fort Worth to do some exploring. The Stockyards have so much history and culture laced up and down their cobbled streets. The Cowtown Coliseum on Exchange Avenue held the first indoor rodeo in 1918 and to this day they hold pro-Rodeos every Friday and Saturday night. We went to the daily cow run which is held 7 days a week twice a day at 11:30 am and 4:00pm. During the run ranchers dressed in traditional cowboy wear and move a herd of Texas Longhorns down the street. It was really something to watch these men and women dressed in traditional wear work cattle down a road cluttered with iphones, cameras, and new cars.
After watching the cattle pass through town we ate lunch at Cattlemen's Steakhouse, internationally renowned, locally beloved. The decor inside of the restaurant has some of the championship cows shoulder-mounted on the walls and huge photographs of the meatiest cows I've ever seen! Lunch was of course delicious. For our appetizer we ordered "Texas Toothpicks" which are jalapeños and onions thinly sliced, battered, fried, and served with a side of ranch. For our main course we both got 6 oz sirloins and baked potatoes with some ice cold Shinerbock.
Finally we got to my favorite part...shopping! We went to Leddy's Boots a beautiful western store where they make their own boots out of all kinds of different exotic leathers. We also went to Maverick's and Fincher's which are both high quality western stores as well. The weirdest thing about the western stores was that they all come complete with a stocked bar. I'm serious! Would you like some beer with your new boots, because that is an option! You can also walk down the streets with your drinks, they have little walk through bars on the sidewalks and everything! We went to a few of the more "tourist-y" shops as well. All of the candy stores, trade-posts, and general stores. Great for el-cheapo souvenirs like fake cow-horns, cowboy hats, and fake whips. Not so great for the home decor we've been yearning for.
The Stockyards have so many shops and bars to tour, we can't wait to go again for an evening out so we can enjoy the Love Shack, Thirsty Armadillo, and the White Elephant. Those were just a few of the saloons that caught our eye!
Finally we got to my favorite part...shopping! We went to Leddy's Boots a beautiful western store where they make their own boots out of all kinds of different exotic leathers. We also went to Maverick's and Fincher's which are both high quality western stores as well. The weirdest thing about the western stores was that they all come complete with a stocked bar. I'm serious! Would you like some beer with your new boots, because that is an option! You can also walk down the streets with your drinks, they have little walk through bars on the sidewalks and everything! We went to a few of the more "tourist-y" shops as well. All of the candy stores, trade-posts, and general stores. Great for el-cheapo souvenirs like fake cow-horns, cowboy hats, and fake whips. Not so great for the home decor we've been yearning for.
The Stockyards have so many shops and bars to tour, we can't wait to go again for an evening out so we can enjoy the Love Shack, Thirsty Armadillo, and the White Elephant. Those were just a few of the saloons that caught our eye!