Famed American writer John Steinbeck called Texas “a state of mind…an obsession.” At the very least, it is a curiosity that must be satisfied, but wrapping your arms around the Lone Star State is an elusive task. Step one is to come to terms with chronic Texas stereotyping; remarkably, many first-time visitors still expect the world of TV’s Dallas, which ran 357 episodes from 1978 to 1991.
Maura Gast, executive director of the Irving CVB, does not want to give up the Southfork Ranch entirely.
“J.R. Ewing’s hard-driving entrepreneur was not a bad image,” she says. “It put us on the map, creating an awareness of Texas as a place of oversized ambitions and personalities.”
True enough; from cowboys on the range to barbecue on the grill, there are Texas essentials to embrace. Its six-flag legacy, including sovereignty as an independent nation, assures that America’s second-largest state will always be larger than life.
However, the winds of change have been sweeping across Texas for years, and star Dallas chef Kent Rathbun is one among many focused on expanding national, if not global, appreciation of the true Texas of today.
“We do not want to push our heritage behind us, but the story is much larger than dude ranches and big cars,” says Rathbun, whose Texas mini-empire includes the acclaimed Abacus restaurant in Dallas.
Forget about that tumbleweed Texas you thought you knew; think modern, cosmopolitan, artful and eclectic, nimbly served with world-class elan and panache. If one word captures the deepest heart of Texas, though, it is “complex.” Texas is a bold expression of the Southwest’s multifaceted ethnic history. From Native Americans to Spanish missionaries to the myriad 19th century immigrant groups who landed at Galveston Island, the state’s family tree bears an extraordinary cultural canopy.
It all makes for a story deep in experience and emotion. Ghosts and ancient whispers are included on tours of the El Paso and San Antonio missions, along the Texas Forts Trail, and at any number of vintage hotels and frontier outposts. At the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, try retracing the steps of the Kennedy assassination without shedding a tear.
The contrasts and eclectic nature of the state can be dazzling. In Arlington, the Top of the Hill predated Vegas as America’s first gambling mecca before becoming a Baptist college. It’s time to rethink that one-note cafeteria food version of Texas cuisine (although chicken-fried steak still rules the roost); expect silver-and-crystal service, small plates and bona fide culinary magic. Fort Worth offers Longhorn cattle drives in the morning, world-class art in the afternoon and honky-tonk at night. Ballet, spas and boutique hotels? Texas has those, too, and much more besides, including endless fun, eccentricity and, as Austin will attest, a dedication to keeping it weird. There’s a hotel in San Antonio with a dog for a concierge, Shakespeare in Odessa and world-class bird-watching in Corpus Christi. And there is constant change and restlessness sweeping across the state’s microcosmic landscape of plains, prairies, hills, lakes and cities.
With its diversified, booming economy as well as 58 corporate headquarters making it a U.S. Fortune 500 king, Texas was a U.S. population growth leader in 2007, welcoming 162,000 transplants to the Dallas-Fort Worth area alone. And with a business, entertainment, convention and hotel infrastructure to match, the product range could not be more complete for meeting groups and leisure travelers alike.
For meetings, the Lone Star State is truly an all-star choice.
