Taste of Dallas leaves locals satisfied

This year's Taste of Dallas left many people walking away with a full stomach and a smile on their faces.

Fair Park hosted the city's annual food festival on July 9-11. The edible exhibition, which was created as a way to promote DFW's various culinary and dining establishments, featured local grills, bistros, bakeries, diners and coffee shops.

Everything from Asian bistro to Mediterranean cuisine made an appearance. The diversity of all the dishes was a perfect reflection of the many rich cultures that make up this Metroplex. With a $5 ticket, people were allowed access to the massive taste test happening inside the park.

As I walked through the gates, I was hit instantly by the mixture of savory aromas floating in the thick summer air.

Numerous restaurants participating in the event set up tents all around the park's Esplanade fountain. These restaurants varied in style, from places like the self-proclaimed "rowdy joint," Dick's Last Resort, to swanky upscale restaurants like Capriccio Ristorante.

Other attractions were found inside Centennial Hall and The Automobile Building surrounding the Esplanade fountain. There festival-goers were greeted by a plethora of merchandise and novelty stands.

Although the buildings offered people a chance to grab a cool souvenir and escape from the thick Texas heat, the real fun was going on outside.

I made my first stop for grub at a Brazilian steakhouse called Texas de Brazil. There I sampled a piece of garlic sirloin steak prepared on the grill along with a dinner roll. The steak was an amazing start to what would become my two-hour eating binge.

After Texas de Brazil, I made my way to the Cowtown Diner tent where I munched on a Texas-style Frito pie. The scrumptious concoction of corn chips, homemade chili and diced onions held true to its promising name.

As I walked around to let my food digest, I ran into one of the most bizarre foods of the festival: a Kool-Aid pickle. A snack-based eatery called The Popcorn Factory had come up with the idea to fill a pickle with Kool-Aid and shove it on a stick. Tons of people sat in line to try this oddity, but I passed on the opportunity. My friend tried out the weird snack and described it as a "sweet and sour disaster."

My next visit was to the Marble Slab Creamery, where I devoured a serving of strawberry frozen yogurt.

While I went to work on my dessert from the creamery, I sat under the shade of the Gilley's live music tent, where I watched performances from classical Western swing group The Quebe Sisters and progressive honky tonk act The King Bucks.

After I finished listening to the bands, I headed to the Selim's Doner House tent. There I tried the Doner kebab wrap, a Turkish sandwich similar to a gyro. The wrap was packed with shaved lamb meat, onions, tomatoes, lettuce and a creamy tzaziki sauce. I then headed to the Quesa-D-Ya's tent to chase my Doner with a chicken and cheese quesadilla and end my day at the park.

Overall, the food was delicious and well-priced. Everything I bought was under $3 and portioned perfectly. The atmosphere of the festival also complimented the warm summer day and made for an overall spectacular time.

The Taste of Dallas festival has been serving real Texas flavor to the mouths of Dallas citizens for several years now and continues to do so. With its new location in Fair Park, it has added an equally tasty environment. So make sure not to miss out on your chance to savor the Taste of Dallas when it rolls through next summer.