This is one of those weekends where Dallas stacks everything on top of itself. Father’s Day, Juneteenth, the World Cup still running, a free block party in the Arts District, and a music calendar that goes from Randy Rogers to Killswitch Engage to the Dallas Symphony in a single Friday night. Pick your lane and go.
FRIDAY, JUNE 19
Start at the Dallas Arts District Pride Block Party on Flora Street. It runs from 6 p.m. to midnight and it’s free — regional artists, line dancing from Roundup Saloon, a community mural, food, museum programming, films, guided tours, and live concerts spread across the AT&T Performing Arts Center campus. Dallas puts a lot of things together in this city, but not many of them feel this alive from the start. Walk in, see what’s happening, and let the night take you from there.
Across town, the music options are genuinely varied. Billy Bob’s Texas in the Fort Worth Stockyards has Randy Rogers and Pat Green on the same stage tonight — two of the most dependable performers in Texas country, in a room that has been running strong since 1981. If you’ve never been to Billy Bob’s, this is the right night to fix that. The House of Blues Dallas has The Molly Ringwalds at 7 p.m. — they’re an Atlanta cover band and they do the 80s party format better than most. Killswitch Engage is at South Side Ballroom at 6:30 p.m. for anyone who wants something considerably louder and more deliberate.
Ryan Bingham and The Texas Gentlemen play Longhorn Ballroom at 8 p.m. — Bingham won an Academy Award for The Weary Kind and has been making quiet, serious records ever since. Aaron Hibell is at Echo Lounge at 8 p.m. with a high-energy electronic set. Kevin Morby plays Tannahill’s in Fort Worth at 8 p.m. And the Dallas Symphony Orchestra is at the Meyerson at 7:30 p.m., which is the option nobody in your group will suggest but everyone will be glad you pushed for.
Before or between shows, head to Waterproof at The Statler — 1914 Commerce Street, 19th floor. It runs as a pool bar earlier in the day and flips into a proper rooftop lounge by evening, with the DJ going until 2 a.m. and the full downtown skyline in every direction. Champagne cocktails, cabanas if you plan ahead, and a terrace that makes a Friday night feel like it’s supposed to. Open from 4 p.m., 21 and up. (469) 320-8991.
For dinner, go to Alara at 1628 Oak Lawn Avenue, Suite 120 in the Design District. Turkish-American chef Onur Akan opened it in April — Mediterranean mezze and shared plates, European wines, craft cocktails. Akan comes from private chef and fine dining catering, so the kitchen has the discipline of somewhere more formal without feeling like it. Order several things and eat slowly. This one is worth finding before everyone else does.
SATURDAY, JUNE 20
Start the morning at the Dallas Farmers Market. Get there before 10 a.m. while it’s still manageable outside. Saturday in June at the market is as good as Dallas gets in the morning hours — local produce, vendors, and enough coffee to make the rest of the day possible.
Juneteenth is officially Friday, but Saturday is when Dallas really celebrates it. The options are good this year. The Halperin Park Juneteenth Celebration in Oak Cliff runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — free, outdoors, with live music from the Black Canvas Band and a full marching band, Black-owned vendors, trolley tours of the historic Tenth Street District, line dancing, community karaoke, and a cooking demo from Oak Cliff Veggie Project. This is the most community-rooted event of the weekend and worth the drive. The Bath House Cultural Center at White Rock Lake (521 E. Lawther Drive) runs Juneteenth: Liberation in Motion — also free, outdoors, with live music from Sunny & The Heat Rays, BBQ, lemonade, and snow cones beside the lake. The Dallas Juneteenth Soul Food Fest brings 20-plus food vendors from Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Arkansas alongside 500 small business vendors and student scholarship awards. And the Juneteenth Flavor Fest has cultural food, local vendors, and live performances for anyone who wants to spend the afternoon moving between things.
For brunch, Pillar at 408 N. Bishop Avenue in Bishop Arts is the move. Chef Peja Krstic’s Saturday brunch earns the reservation — grilled leeks over binchotan charcoal with butter-poached crab, hazelnuts, and brown butter vinaigrette; chocolate milk French toast baked until fluffy with chantilly and soft caramel. Book ahead.
For afternoon drinks, Happiest Hour at 2616 Olive Street in the Harwood District opens at 11 a.m. on Saturdays and runs until 2 a.m. It’s 12,000 square feet across four bars, with a rooftop deck looking downtown. More than 50 beers, wines on tap, cocktails, a food menu for grazing. The World Cup is on the screens. The crowd on a June Saturday afternoon is exactly what you’d want it to be. Go after brunch, stay through the Juneteenth afternoon, and move when you’re ready.
Ballet North Texas presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Moody Performance Hall this weekend — family-appropriate and worth it for anyone who wants something quieter in the evening hours before the night picks up.
For Saturday night drinks, Catbird at Thompson Dallas — 1401 Elm Street, 10th floor. Asian-inspired rooftop lounge with wraparound outdoor seating, gas fire pits, a crystal pool, and views of downtown that are closer and more dramatic than most rooftops manage. The DJ runs Friday and Saturday nights and the room gets more energetic as the evening goes. Smart casual, enforced. Open until midnight. The Dark Matter and Head in the Clouds cocktails are the ones to order. This is a good place to land after dinner.
For dinner, Lavendou Bistro Provençal at 19009 Preston Road. Pascal Cayet opened this French Provençal room in 1996. The sole almondine, the escargot, the lobster bisque, the soufflé — which you order at the start so it’s ready when you need it — have all been on the menu since then. The bread comes from the oven. The room doesn’t rush you. After thirty years, nothing about it needs to change. Dinner Saturday 5 to 9 p.m. (972) 248-1911.
For music Saturday night, Billy Bob’s has Billy Ray Cyrus at 10 p.m. The Father’s Day Weekend Smooth Jazz Groove II runs at Texas Trust CU Theatre in Grand Prairie at 7 p.m. Reggae Bash World at House of Blues starts at 10 p.m. And the Juneteenth Jazz Jam with Martha Burks at The Women’s Museum (3800 Parry Ave) kicks off at 9 p.m.
SUNDAY, JUNE 21 — FATHER’S DAY
Make the reservation before you do anything else. We have the full Father’s Day guide at CraveDFW — from Fearing’s at the Ritz-Carlton to Nobu’s unlimited brunch to Meridian’s live-fire grill feast where Dad walks up to the fire and picks his own cut. Sunday slots are going fast.
If you’re not doing the Father’s Day brunch route, Mirador downtown runs a produce-forward brunch with cold-pressed juice mimosas that has become one of the better Sunday morning discoveries in recent years. No reservations required for small parties.
Sunday evening, the Dallas Zoo runs its Illuminature lantern festival from 6:30 to 10 p.m. — illuminated wildlife displays across the zoo grounds, which is an unusual and genuinely enjoyable way to close out a Father’s Day with the family. The Juneteenth Jazz Jam with Martha Burks wraps the weekend’s cultural programming at The Women’s Museum at 9 p.m. if there’s still music left in you.
It’s a full weekend. Plan accordingly.
