From Texas to Beyond

Local, Near and Far: Our journey of exploring the world.

Category: Texas (Page 5 of 9)

Bass Performance Hall

May 29, 2015 / / 1 Comment

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. In the past you’ve read about art, studying abroad, experiencing culture through food, and the great burger adventure. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

One of the most iconic façades in Fort Worth belongs to the Bass Performance Hall.  Two trumpeting angels demand your attention at almost 50 feet tall.  Projecting from the exterior of the Hall over the street below, no one can escape their beauty.  The Hall houses the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (FWSO), the Fort Worth Opera (FWO), the Van Cliburn Foundation which hosts the international piano competition every 4 years, the Texas Ballet Theater, and other touring companies such as Broadway productions.

Bass Performance Hall West Entry

Bass Performance Hall West Entry

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Gourmands Neighborhood Pub

May 28, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Mother’s Day weekend, we took our little family on a road trip to San Antonio; yesterday you read Matt’s post about his tried and true favorite when we visit, Alamo Cafe. As we made our trek back north to DFW, we decided to try a completely new restaurant. Austin is known for its weird vibe, congested traffic, and many original restaurants; our drive through Austin  happened to coincide with lunch and we wanted to avoid some traffic headaches, so perfect! Let’s eat in Austin!

In a post about creating itineraries, I previously mentioned that I love to use Yelp to find new restaurants. Being in the mood for a sandwich (at the time), and still about a half hour away, I plugged in a couple keywords and conducted a search. Gourmands Neighborhood Pub came up second on the list. Whoa! 4.5 stars on Yelp with 307 reviews?! No way! After looking at the menu and preemptively deciding what to order, both Matt and I started to get excited about trying something new. Ultimately, we chose Gourmands over the number one option because of its location, just tucked in the east side of Austin on Webberville, and the menu, which even reading online made our taste buds water.

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Shannon Brewing Company

May 25, 2015 / / 0 Comments

What should I do with a free Saturday?  Rebekah was volunteering, and I was looking for something to do.  I know…check out a new local brewery or two!  I called my good friend John, and we planned on doing just that.  We started with Shannon Brewing Company, and then closed out the day at Bearded Eel Brewing Company (now closed permanently).  First, Shannon Brewing Company…

Shannon Brewing Company proudly brews wholesome Irish-influenced Texas craft beers with old world techniques.  Proud of their old world style, Shannon Brewing markets their brews as “Fire Brewed Beer”.  Instead of using steam jackets for heating like conventional breweries, Shannon Brewing uses fire, via liquid propane, for all heating required in the brewing process.  Fire brewing caramelizes the sugars, which in turn influences the beer’s texture.  This statement made more sense when comparing fire brewing to cooking on a gas cooktop instead of an electric cooktop.  Sure, both cooktops heat things up, but the end result is very different.  In addition, all of their beers are unfiltered and unpasteurized, but are transparent as a result of Shannon’s old word brewing process. Continue reading

Woodshed Smokehouse

April 23, 2015 / / 2 Comments

When friends and family visit Rebekah and I in Fort Worth, one of our favorite places to take them is the Woodshed Smokehouse.  However, it always comes with a disclaimer:  This is not your typical Texas Barbeque hole-in-the-wall.

On one occasion, my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Bob traveled from Pennsylvania just to come to the Woodshed!  Well, maybe their trip also had something to do with my cousin (their daughter) Lynn, her husband Nick and their boys that live on the other side of the Metroplex.  Anyway, our whole group loved the meal, including my two young nephews, who nibbled the very last specks of corn off the leftover cobs.

Recently, Rebekah and I hoped to share a delicious dinner with Rebekah’s close friend, Mary Beth during her Fort Worth visit.  Again, the atmosphere, food and service (by our server Taylor) did not disappoint!

The Woodshed's Woodshed

The Woodshed’s Woodshed

Actually, the Woodshed may not even be a Barbeque restaurant, with offerings as varied as bulgogi (Korean) beef tacos, red fish, 3 kale salad, and even paella, a Texan take on the traditional Spanish recipe, including mussels, clams, shrimp, rabbit-rattlesnake sausage, and game bird.  Nationally-known chef Tim Love takes a new perspective on Barbeque.  This is the only pit experience that comes complete with linen napkins!  But different can be equally delicious!  The Woodshed serves the barbeque staples:  brisket, sausage and ribs, each smoked with different woods (pecan, mesquite, oak and hickory), pairing the meat and wood perfectly.  As you can see, the Woodshed does not mess around with their food.

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Caravaggio's The Cardsharps - Courtesy of KimbellArt.org

Chasing Caravaggio – The Cardsharps

April 17, 2015 / / 42 Comments

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

As part of our continuing desire to bring beauty into focus, From Texas to Beyond will periodically feature brilliant pieces of art that have influenced our lives.  We are excited to showcase these universal works of beauty with you.

As a follow-up to my earlier review of the Kimbell Art Museum, there is one artwork by one artist in particular that I absolutely love:  The Cardsharps by Caravaggio.

Discovering Caravaggio

Caravaggio’s creations reignited my love of art.  As a child, I always loved art.  However, in 8th grade, I quickly learned that others were much more talented than myself.  Gradually I lost interest as I realized I would never be a great artist.  Or a good artist.  Or even a mediocre artist.

What I learned recently is a simple truth: you do not have to be an accomplished artist to appreciate the artwork of others.

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