Travel

Exploring Dallas: Deep Ellum

Today, I’m sharing one of my favorite Dallas neighborhoods: Deep Ellum!

Introducing Deep Ellum

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Deep Ellum is a great neighborhood in Dallas to spend a day exploring. It’s funky and hipster and packed with great food, drinks, and music! Named after a play on one of its primary streets, the area has been known for its music scene for decades.

Deep Ellum has a TON of great restaurants and spots on offer, more than I could possibly check out unless I lived there. But today I’m sharing a few of my favorites to get you started!

Deep Ellum Brewery

Deep Ellum Brewing

Deep Ellum Brewery was the first spot in Deep Ellum I heard about, and it’s the one that most consistently comes up when you ask around for recommendations. It’s a local microbrewery that’s been around since 2011 and transformed a warehouse into a cool and funky space. The best spot to enjoy a beer is their patio area, perfect to meet friends and bring your pup to relax for an hour or two.

They’ve got a pretty good selection for a local brewery! I opted for the Belgian Squeeze, a limited-release Belgian. It’s smooth, refreshing but also with some substance behind it, perfect for an afternoon listening to live music in the sunshine.

Twisted Root

Twisted Root Deep Ellum
Twisted Root walls

If you’re searching for a burger, you need to go to Twisted Root Burger Co. Now a Dallas institution, Twisted Root has multiple locations but this one can claim to be the original. The burgers are massive, have fun toppings, and they shake up their daily exotic meat to be anything from duck to camel!

Their drinks are great too: from homemade root beer (where the name comes in) to boozy shakes, you can’t go wrong. Don’t skip the pickles at the front either! It was fun to do a taste test, comparing four different kinds, even if you don’t put them on your burgers.


The atmosphere is almost as good as the burgers! The original owner called orders, cracking jokes and

Oni Ramen 

Oni ramen bowls in Deep Ellum

Oni is one of those tiny shops that you’ll miss if you’re not looking for it, but thanks to a friend’s recommendation, we tracked it down.

You place your order by screen, but the staff is super friendly and walked us through the process when he could tell we’d never visited before. Essentially, ordering this way lets you personalize each bowl to exactly what you do (and don’t) want. But if you’re not sure, they’ve got several suggested bowls.

We tried two different “types” to give us a range, and I honestly don’t know which I loved more! There’s just something about a steaming bowl of ramen that is completely irresistible.

Oni Ramen

Emporium Pies

Hungry for more? This is where you should get dessert.

I’ve shared my deep love of Emporium Pies before, but they’ve got a location in Deep Ellum and therefore it bears repeating. Get. Some.

Their options rotate daily, but you can’t go wrong! And if you’re too full, get it to go and take it with you for later – you’ll thank me.

Deep Ellum mural

Another great part of Deep Ellum: the art! The entire neighborhood is packed with murals and street art on every available wall. You could spend hours hunting for your favorite one.

Our only complaint of Deep Ellum was that we didn’t have enough time to try all the restaurants calling to us!

Like this neighborhood guide? Check out our Bishop Arts District neighborhood guide as well!

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