Experience the Food, Music, Shopping of Bishop Arts
Where’s the Party? South of 30.
While we’re blessed with so many dining and shopping areas in the geographical boundaries of Preston Hollow and the Park Cities, occasionally, it does us good to explore the richness that other parts of Dallas offer.
Bishop Arts is the perfect place to spend the day eating, shopping, and listening to music.
It’s the place to show out-of-towners how texturally rich Dallas is. It’s inclusive and independent, a bit of a contradiction to traditional Dallas.
Perhaps it’s because real estate developer Jim Lake was intentional in fostering the creative vibe there, or maybe it’s because it was originally founded in 1855 as La Réunion, a utopian socialist community formed by French, Belgian and Swiss colonists.
Fine food aficionados praise Bishop Arts for having some of the city’s best dining. Lucia is widely considered one of Texas’ best restaurants and has been since it opened in 2010, when northerners, that is anyone who lives north of Wycliff Avenue, wouldn’t drive south of I-30 unless it was on their way to their lake house.
Chef Peja Krstic has taken the space formerly occupied by beloved Boulevardier to open Pillar, a Vietnamese/American restaurant. Written By the Seasons serves seasonal upscale food with a dining room that spills onto a lively patio. Nora is sensorially spectacular serving Afghani food in a setting as blue as the Arabian Sea.
For breakfast, the iconic Oddfellows serves classic Texas diner fare. Enjoy coffee and a pastry at Village Baking, La Reunion, or Palmieri Café; have a healthy meal at Tribal All Day Café, or super regional Mexican food at Veracruz Café which recently opened for breakfast. For brunch and cute Instagram pics, Paradiso is the spot.
There are cool watering holes and fine drinking establishments here, as well. Barons Creek Vineyards enjoys a large, bright corner spot to serve their wines, appetizers, and pizza. An actual gin joint called ‘l kē, pronounced “lucky,” is a distillery, gin school, and tasting room. Bishop Exchange Bar is an indoor/outdoor bar with a real sense of place.
Live entertainment can and should be found in a place with “arts” in its name. Revelers Hall channels New Orleans with daily jazz performances, craft cocktails, and light bites. It’s a gem owned by Amy Wallace Cowan and Jason Roberts, who are longtime Oak Cliff business and cultural leaders that also own Oddfellows, the newly opened Jaquval, a brewpub and Trades, an upscale deli. Catch live entertainment at the Barons’ tasting room, too.
There’s also no shortage of sweets. Dude, Sweet Chocolate is a must. Botolino Gelato Artigianale is legit and contributes to the international feel of the area. Emporium Pies lends a sweet, southern touch with phenomenal pies and a little porch on which to enjoy a slice.
There are nearly 50 independent retailers here, far too many to list but each ooze with charm. From works from local artists to sophisticated home furnishings, vintage vinyl, and French fashion, it has it all.
Summer is a great time to explore brilliant Bishop Arts.
Kersten Rettig, a freelance writer with leadership experience in the food and travel industries, lives in the Park Cities, where she is known as “the restaurant sherpa” for her recommendations. Follow her on Instagram @KerstenEats.
