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

Tag: Texas (Page 2 of 8)

J&J’s Pizza on the Square

David and I celebrated Valentine’s with a day trip to Denton.  After spending the day hiking on the Ray Roberts Lake State Park greenbelt, we decided to head to the Denton County Courthouse Square for some ice cream at Beth Marie’s.  While walking there, we were lured by the scent of freshly baked pizzas at J&J’s Pizza on the Square.  We often make decisions through our stomachs, and being true to ourselves, we decided to make a stop at the pizzeria.  It proved to be a very wise decision!

J&J's Pizza 4The establishment is a narrow, eclectically decorated room with a basement downstairs that features live music.  You can enjoy your pizza indoors at a table, at the bar or at a few tables outside.  We originally thought about ordering a pizza, but the price was a little higher than we wanted and we were not that hungry.   We moved on to ordering pizza by the slice, but then saw a calzone being delivered to a table and that sealed the deal.  A calzone it would be.  We ordered one and split it.  For $10, you can build your own calzone with as many toppings as you want.  Our master plan included cheese, sauce, pepperoni, basil, jalapeños, and sausage.  The staff at J&J’s Pizza was really friendly, helpful, and shared with pride that their sauce and sausage is made in-house!  All homemade! Continue reading

An Evening at the Denton Square

Rebekah and I spent Valentine’s Day night with countless other people, young and old, both couples and friends at the Denton County Courthouse Square. Even though Denton is a city, the small town Texas atmosphere of The Square was perfect for a romantic night, complete with festive white lights strung in the trees around the old Courthouse.

This year, we celebrated the Day of Love with a short Denton day trip. Rebekah and I had just finished a beautiful hike at Ray Roberts Lake State Park. We were getting hungry, and knew we would find some unique places to eat on the Denton Square.

J&J's Pizza on The Square

J&J’s Pizza on The Square

Simply referred to as “The Square,” the old center of Denton includes fun for all ages! Food options abound, from pizza to Thai, and coffee to ice cream. The shopping is amusing, and a bit quirky. There is also a massive used music and book store, Recycled Books that I visited on a previous trip to The Square.

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Hiking at Ray Roberts Lake State Park

Kicking off our day trip to Denton, Rebekah and I enjoyed a wonderful afternoon picnicking and hiking one of the top trails in Texas at Ray Roberts Lake State Park.

Looking for inspiration as we planned our day trip, Rebekah found an article by Texas Monthly listing the top 30 hikes in Texas. Due to the relative convenience of Ray Roberts Lake State Park located just north of Denton, we decided on this hike to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

While the state park has many areas to explore around Lake Ray Roberts, we followed Texas Monthly’s suggestion and focused on the Greenbelt Corridor Park. Following the Elm Fork of the Trinity River, the 11 mile Greenbelt Corridor Trail winds from Lake Ray Roberts south to Lake Lewisville. See the map on the park’s website for detailed information on the Greenbelt Corridor.

Hiking the Greenbelt

Hiking the Greenbelt

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Denton: A Day Trip Overview

Hiking the Greenbelt at Ray Roberts

Hiking the Greenbelt at Ray Roberts

Last Valentine’s Day, David and I wanted to have some sort of shared experience instead of the traditional chocolates and flowers.  We wanted something close (within a 1-2 hour drive), inexpensive, and possibly outdoors, if weather permitted.  In Texas, the weather in February could be freezing with ice all over the road or 80 degrees.  The weather that week turned out to be fantastic 55-75, so we knew something outdoors was an option.  I went to my Texas Monthly Outdoors App which has list of hikes, swimming holes, parks and campgrounds which helped us narrow our search to trails in Mineral Wells, Possum Kingdom, Fort Worth, or Denton.  We had not explored much of Denton, so we started making plans.  We filled up our water bottles, grabbed our Valentine’s cards, and as a treat, stopped by Central Market to get our picnic eats.  After an easy trip up I-35, we arrived at the Ray Roberts Lake State Park.   Continue reading

Lakewood Brewing Company

A few weeks ago, I was presented with another free Saturday, as Rebekah was working. After a great time the previous month checking out some new Fort Worth-area breweries, Shannon Brewing Company and Bearded Eel Craft Brewery (now closed permanently), I knew it was time to trek to the Dallas side of the craft beer scene. I met up with my good friend J-Higs, and had a tasty beer crawl across the eastern part of the Metroplex starting at Lakewood Brewing Company in Garland, and  finishing at FireWheel Brewing Company (now closed permanently), 20 minutes east in Rowlett.

First on the agenda, Lakewood Brewing Company. I had heard great things about this brewery, and I remembered enjoying its flagship beer: The Temptress. This brewery, producing great beer since 2011, is becoming big in the Texas craft beer scene and I wanted to know more!

Exterior of Lakewood Brewing Company

Let’s take a look at Lakewood Brewing based on our Brewery Grading Scale. Continue reading

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