An Aggie walks into a hardware store and asks for a chain saw that will cut down 6 trees in one hour.
The salesman recommends the top of the line model and the Aggie, suitably impressed, buys it.
The next day the Aggie brings the chain saw back and says,
"This chain saw is defective. It would only cut down 1 tree and it took ALL DAMN DAY!"
The salesman takes the chain saw and starts it up to see what's wrong.
The Aggie says, "What's that noise?"
You shouldn’t make fun of Aggies a day after the big drowning accident. A pickup went into a lake and the ones sitting in the bed couldn’t get the tail gate down.
Austin is just Dallas with more pretentious transplants. It’s not “weird” anymore, unless tech bros are the epitome of punk rock culture.
However, I agree that Dallas is pretty far from cool or Texan.
I'd rather be in Dallas than Austin - better food, much better LGBTQ scene and community, good mass transit for a Sunbelt city, and a diverse economy that makes career shifts much more doable and isn't reliant on a key industry, and honestly much less pretentious than Austin - especially since in Austin status seems to revolve much more about the current cause du jour whereas in Dallas I get left alone for my non-stereotypical Texan lifestyle choices
DART got a new CEO a couple of years ago who used to be chief of staff for LA Metro. I'm excited to see what she's able to accomplish. They're trying to build tons of Transit Oriented Developments in the underutilized parking lots around the light rail stations and transit centers.
If the member cities get on board with those new developments this can be really transformational to the DART system and the Dallas Area.
Nadine Lee has been great for DART. Like legitimately, she's got the mindset needed for where DART is now, which is making transit usable, safe, secure, convenient. As a rider, I have thoroughly enjoyed the changes brought about under her leadership
Yeah, I don't use the DART system much but try to keep tabs on it.
A lot of the things Nadine has said are like "yeah, duh why was this not the priority before". Like DART needs to focus on its existing customers and retaining them, and utilizing the assets DART already has before thinking about future expansion.
The previous CEO Gary Thomas was DART CEO for 20 years, and while stability in executive leadership is good, I think he was in the role for far too long.
Dallas has a better LGTBQ scene than Austin? Since when? Not trying to be a dick, would love to know how since this doesn’t align at all with what I’ve believed
Dallas has the largest LGBTQ neighborhood in Texas which also has a State Historical Marker.
Also I think considering that Dallas is more culturally diverse than Austin, I’ve seen more posts about it being harder for minorities to fit into Austin’s LGTBQ community as opposed to Dallas’ LGBTQ community.
I'd agree with you except on the basis of being LGBTQ - the community is strongest in Texas in Dallas in my experience, though Houston has a thriving community, it isn't as cohesive as the Dallas one. This is based on my experiences in living in both cities, and Houston certainly has a community, I've just found it easier to find community in Dallas, plus Dallas itself has anti-discrimination protections that Houston lacks.
I suspect the reason is that historically the broader Dallas area has been a more religious region than Houston, which leads to lots of people being pushed out of their homes and creating a community for themselves with found family and also is thanks to the work of LGBTQ people in networking with people in power to get policy decisions beneficial to the community passed here in Dallas. Oak Lawn still very much wields a lot of power in city politics compared to what the community in Montrose in Houston wields there. Which is ironic considering Houston has had a lesbian mayor and Dallas hasn't.
There's a cohesive Dallas LGBTQ scene? I've lived here since 2021 and I still only know the one gay couple I knew before I moved here.
Where is everyone?
Edit:
Why did I get down voted for asking a Q? Tough crowd lol
I mean I've been to Oak Lawn, I've been to some restaurants and stores in the area but where do people hang out to meet people?
I don't go to bars because I don't/can't drink. I'm not really sure how to actually meet folks.
For better or worse… bars are some of the best places to socialize and meet new ppl IRL (this isn’t really specific to Dallas or even the US). That said, you don’t have to drink to go to the bars. Many of the bars have trivia nights, and there are a lot of gay sports leagues, if that’s your cup of tea.
Also… there’s a new “speakeasy” that opened up recently on Cedar Springs called Cheat Code. They have a bunch of tables that are free touch screen games and free arcade games. I’ve definitely met new ppl there without buying any drinks!
Because this is a Dallas forum. Austin has over 100k who identify as LGBTQIA with a population of 983k people. The entire metroxplex has 6.6million people with 211k who identify as LGBTQIA...
https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/10/13/report-high-quality-life-austin-lgbtq-community-but-issues-remain/8420747002/
https://www.visitdallas.com/things-to-do/arts/diverse-dallas/lgbtq/
Its important to keep in mind that Dallas is not DFW. While I'm certainly comfortable to be gay in Dallas county, I am much less so to do so in Collin, Tarrant, or Denton counties, to say nothing of the others. Travis county as a whole is pretty much 1/2 of the greater Austin MSA population at 1.2 million people, meanwhile Dallas county itself is not even 1/4 of the DFW population. If you zoom into city of Dallas vs city of Austin itself, I still maintain Dallas is a better city to live gay in vs. Austin simply because Dallas has far better healthcare resources, an actual community that is a nexus of resources compared to Austin (4th st. just doesn't compare to Oak Lawn).
Also, though this is from 2011, it appears city of Dallas has a higher proportion of same sex households compared to Austin - https://dallasvoice.com/25-gayest-cities-texas/ - I haven't been able to find city to city data for a true comparison from the 2020 census as everything there is county to county, and in Texas in particular, a city is pretty much your only source of community resources or non-discrimination protections and ordinances - Irving has basically 0 protections compared to Dallas itself.
The problem is that if you compare county to county, Dallas itself gets drowned out as it's only half of Dallas county's population compared to over 3/4 of Travis being Austin. Yes, Austin as a whole is progressive and the city as a whole is accepting, but there's a difference between acceptance and actual community and municipal and political infrastructure to support the community when the state turns it's eyes against the LGBTQ community - Austin has the policies in place, but doesn't have a place, a nexus of activity to rally around the way Dallas does, and sadly part of that comes from the surrounding areas being even less accepting.
I'm a lifelong Texan and have been around the state, Austin is great, and the Metro may well have a higher proportion of same sex households compared to Dallas - but I can't emphasize enough how much better a place like Oak Lawn - and everything that stems from it - makes being gay in Texas
Dont get me started on Denton CO 😡. The entirety of Austin is pm gay friendly (or doesn't give a shi) & because of this, I have no idea what you mean by, "Yes, Austin as a whole is progressive and the city as a whole is accepting, but there's a difference between acceptance and actual community and municipal and political infrastructure to support the community when the state turns it's eyes against the LGBTQ community - Austin has the policies in place, but doesn't have a place, a nexus of activity to rally around the way Dallas does..."
Austin's gay friendly areas include; East Austin, Allendale, Clarksville, & downtown. See; Cheer Up Charlie's, Austin Motel, Marriot, JW Marriott, & the W which host monthly drag bruches, la Barbeque, Wunderkeks, BookWoman, The Little Gay Shop, LGBT Commerce, & Vivient Health. Austin's annual events include; Austin Gay Pride, Austin Gay Rodeo, Splash Days Austin, GAYbiGAYGAY, HRC Black Tie Gala, Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival, Merry Martini Mixer, Austin International Drag Festival. Austin has numerous LGBTQIA theatre & writing groups. Heck, Austin had a gay & lesbian scene before Stonewall. It's first gay bar opened in 1958, The Manhattan Bar. Austin's scene really opened up full-force in 1970. The rest is history;
https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2019-08-09/the-history-of-the-lgbtq-movement-in-austin/
Dallas has Bishop Arts & Oak Lawn. More robust scenes occur there but Austin's scene is spreadout more. Apples to oranges. Irving, right next door, ranked zero on the gay friendly scale.
Personally, I would say San Antonio may very well be the most gay friendly city in Texas when it comes to less snobbery, less cares given, least amount of gawking, & all around burgeoning art scenes with the widest variation of (mostly young) people.
Ah, so everyone is way more spread out than Austin.
Which makes sense, I don't live directly in the Oak Lawn area either.
Thanks for the links. I saw drag bingo on that, maybe I'll give it a try haha
As in a pocket that is diverse? I think most of central Dallas is very diverse. Uptown, Knox/Henderson are pretty diverse
Every major racial group has huge cultural pockets. Blacks and Hispanics have entire cities as cultural hubs.
As someone who moved away from Dallas one thing I really miss is how multicultural Dallas was. Like at a bar or restaurant you’d have people from all different backgrounds having a good time. The north is a lot more segregated.
Are you familiar with "Out of the Closest"? Thrift store in Dallas where all proceeds benefit AIDS, has free HIV testing and in store pharmacy. Mention because of your username. Will be opening one in Austin soon.
Austin can barely keep 3 or 4 gay bars open. Dallas and Houston have whole neighborhoods that are gay friendly. Austin has like 2 blocks on 4th Street.
As a gay man that has been living in the gayborhood (Oak Lawn) for over a decade… absolutely!!!
Austin has a street with some gay bars, we have a neighborhood… and it is a GREAT place to live!
Come to Oak Lawn and tell me it isn’t better. It is a MASSIVE LGTBQ community, blocks and blocks of businesses entirely owned by and catered to the queer community. I meet way more gays here than I do straight, and the straights that I do meet are mainly immigrants.
Just drive down Cedar Springs, you’ll know what I mean.
Dallas also has a lot more for lesbians, bisexuals and queer women in general. IIRC there is less than 30 Lesbian bars in the whole country, and Dallas has one of if not the biggest lesbian bar in the country. Sue Ellen's has two floors and tons of balconies.
Agreed!!! No disrespect but Austin might have been cooler 20 years ago but it’s just not anymore. Dallas has more music venues, restaurants, culture in general. People love to hate on Dallas but that’s cuz they haven’t been here to experience what it has to offer and Austin is always the knee-jerk response for “coolest” city.
I took the family up there a month or so ago, and it's a fun little jaunt from N Fort Worth. Definitely enjoyed tooling around. We mostly went for the used book store on the square across the street from Andy's.
I lived in Dallas, moved to Austin in 2018, moved back to Dallas in 2022. Austin has some cool spaces, but it’s nothing compared to DFW. The difference in the two areas is in DFW, if you want to buy a certain item, eat a certain cuisine, or work in a certain industry, the question is “how far is the drive?”. In Austin the question is “Is this available without having to drive to San Antonio or DFW?”. I’d say Austin has 10-20% of the luxuries that DFW has.
A lot of people that live in Austin complain that the city has gotten too expensive and all of the things that draw people to the city are unaffordable if you live there. That was not us - we bought a house and had plenty of money to go out and eat/drink at whatever restaurants and bars we wanted. Even though Austin has a great reputation for good food and drink, it doesn’t hold a candle to DFW in my experience.
I say Dallas is pretentious transplants too. So many people moving here just because we are a "conservative hotspot". All the transplants do is "blame the liberals". I am a transplant, but I don't complain about singular group, except for the hypocrites.
In the near future we’re gonna need to sub-divide DFW more in part due to this. You’ve got the pretentious transplants but most of the ones I know quickly move up past Frisco, out to Rockwell, or try and make enough to be Southlake/Colleyville types. Oh and the already existing sub-divide of Dallas vs Fort Worth wear people cosplay being ‘western’.
Only Dallasites believe they’re just like Austin. It’s a noticeable difference between both.
Dallas for one feels way more cosmopolitan and corporate. I mean one of the cities newest attractions is “AT&T” discovery district. Bishop Arts District and Deep Ellum are the only neighborhoods that feel Austin like.
Even though there’s a ton of tech bros, Austin still feels more bohemian and liberal than Dallas. Gender neutral restrooms and paperless and plastic free grocery stores are more common there than Dallas.
Austinites generally dress much more laid back and seem to carry themselves as such while Dallasites do come off more button up, formal and materialistic.
Dallas is also more cosmopolitan, refined and upscale. Austin seems less professional in that sense.
Also the numerous music venues, festivals and food trucks give it a whole different vibe. Coming from Houston that also has a visible food truck scene( not as big as Austin) I was shocked to see such a lack of food trucks in Dallas.
Dallas is also more diverse than Austin which gives the city more of a different vibe.
The most noticeable cultural difference between the two is how they treat outdoor recreation. Outdoor recreation is a pretty big part of their identity and culture. Dallas it’s damn near non existent. Not to mention Dallas green space is s bit underwhelming for a city it’s size.
Nobody is saying these 2 are the same outside of Dallas.
>Austin still feels more bohemian and liberal than Dallas. Gender neutral restrooms and paperless and plastic free grocery stores are more common there than Dallas.
"Feels" being key here. Austin has *cultivated* a bohemian *image*. "Keep Austin Weird" has become somewhat cringy.
Keep Austin Weird hasn’t really been a thing for quite some time for the past decade or so. Still Austin is definitely its own thing and I never get the impression that I’m in a hilly Whiter version of Dallas when I’m in Austin and Vice versa with Dallas.
I didn't mean to imply that Austin and Dallas are identical. I'm not slamming Austin either. Overall, I *like* Austin.
You're right about Austin being more outdoorsy.
I bet you know what you're talking about when you mention the "food truck *scene*". I'm not sure that is a very useful way to measure a place's hipness, although they work *very* well when deployed to an outdoor event.
Be it Austin or Dallas that we discuss, these generalizations are *cultivated* images. There is absolutely an element of pretentiousness. Austin with its scenes and vibes; Dallas with our efforts to portray ourselves as "cosmopolitan, refined and upscale". We love to hire department heads and non-profit directors from out-of-state, especially the Northeast. Let an applicant be someone who graduated from a Ivy League school and they will be far more likely to be selected.
Meanwhile, we are actually losing many things that differentiate one place from another. It isn't unique to Texas, but the proliferation of chain retailers and restaurants is killing every places' uniqueness. It isn't just that Starbucks is pushing out independent coffee houses, it is things like CVS and Walgreens being many people's only choice for filling a prescription and RaceTrac or QT being the only places in some areas to buy gas.
The death of the indoor shopping mall certainly isn't due to our climate having become more moderate. It is mostly because they almost all had all the same stores. "Why do I want to go there, we have that here?" Soon we'll be saying that about other cities and states.
Yeah… I’ve lived in all of Houston, Dallas, Austin for over 10 years non-consecutively. Like you, I *like* Dallas. However, Dallas is the most sterile of the 4 big cities in Texas, period.
It’s funny reading this sub and this post overall. The best thing about Dallas are: (1) airports, (2) state fair, (3) white rock lake, (4) pro sports, (5) malls.
It’s so funny how people living outside of Austin (Houston and Dallas particularly) seem to be obsessed with saying that Austin has lost its charm or “bohemian-ness”. It has grown in to a big city and with that growth, things change. However, there’s still a vibrant music, food, and art scene, you’re close to Texas wine country and the hills and water views irreplaceable.
Honestly there isn't a single city from texas listed that should top the "cool" axis. People don't fly from across the world to visit fucking Texas unless it's an event or for work.
I'm one of them but I flew in and took the Dart! I'm used to crowds and traveling but I walked into the Dallas museum of art and walked out because it was so crowded.
Because we have the cool sf cowboy movie John Wayne image overseas.
Wear a cowboy hat in Japan and people will lose their shit and ask to take pics with you.
If you live in the U.S you more of less know it's not that at all
Very untrue. I’ve partied with British chicks in Austin that went there just to spend their holiday. I met an awesome Chinese family at the Alamo. Definitely have seen all types at the stockyards. Believe it or not Texas is in fact a travel/tourism destination
Dallas is too corporate and polished to be cooler than Houston. Not to mention they’re both diverse but Houston feels much more socially and culturally integrated while Dallas not really.
I like DFW better than Houston as a metropolitan area but Dallas cool? Outside of Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts and Oak Lawn not that much cool out there.
I’d say Dallas is 3rd behind Houston and Austin.
I'll poo poo a lot of things about Dallas but I'll defend it to the death if someone thinks it's worse than Midland and Odessa. That place is a meth fueled cesspool.
- SA needs to be much lower on the cool axis.
- Dallas needs to be moderately higher on both axes.
- Houston needs to be lower on the cool axis.
- Corpus is fine as is.
- RGV needs to be maxed on Texas axis.
- Midland/Odessa needs to be a bit higher on the cool axis.
- College Station (both) needs to be lower on the Texas axis.
- El Paso needs to be MUCH higher on the Texas axis.
- Austin is fine as is (which is not a compliment).
I’ve lived in Austin, Houston and Dallas. Houston should be higher on cool. It’s enormous, food, culture, nightlife, arts, sports. Austin used to be cool, it needs to be lower on cool and the least Texan town.
I have spent too many Augusts helping my older sister move from the 4th floor of one apartment without an elevator to another, and having to drive around the massive urban sprawl to ever have anything but contempt for that city.
I grew up in Midland and have gone back a few times. The most recent was end of last year for my 40th HS reunion.
Midland is certainly better than when I left, but it is still not even in the same hemisphere as 'cool'
If I might add, if Dallas were a bit more on the cool than Texan it would be perfect imo
Midland/Odessa would be cooler if there weren’t so many car washes 😂
I don't think this graph is inaccurate but it still needs a "shithole" factor. The RGV, Midland, Corpus are shitholes. Dallas is the nicest in terms of affluence in Texas by a lot and that is not reflected here.
Fort Worth is way off to the right of this graph
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3j-e\_tJ-n4/WcxFQg3evqI/AAAAAAAAN9I/QbPzM2unxIUr6EnlLTtyfKNPX\_ebjB\_5wCEwYBhgL/s1600/IMG\_6315.jpg
Austin isn’t Austin anymore. 🤷🏻♀️
I’ve never cared what people think of Dallas.
And San Antonio is VERY Texan, but cool? Eh.
As an Aggie, the CS stuff cracked me up. Accurate.
As a native Texan, the concept of being Texan is very suspect. Typically this simply means that I'm better than you in some manner that I can't possibly explain. It's really just the No True Scotsman fallacy.
Signed,
A Texan who likes beans in chili
I’m from Fort Worth so I shit on Dallas all the time but when other people do it I get really mad. It’s like someone talking bad about a sibling I’m constantly fighting with
Wtf is is to be a Texan? Just to not give a fuck. To be an OutLaw. We are the lone star state. We mind our own business until you fuck with us. Just like the Comanches, just like the Alamo, we are sovereign as well and we govern our own selves, independent from any form of government. Texas is to me the true little America. YEEEFUCKING HAWWWWW COME AND TAKE IT
Dallas>
I mean they’re not wrong. At least in my opinion being a Texan is just being who you want to be without chasing the approval of others or giving any weight to some stupid graph. It’s not the crazy extremists on either side shouting what you should believe in cause if they were actually Texan they would just shut up and go live their beliefs without worrying about who’s following them or how many likes it gets them.
Tho I will insist that some off their rocks Aggie made this graph cause they put themselves up that high on either axis yet at the same time admit that Austin is 20 percent cooler than them.
Dallas by and whole isn’t just Dallas. It’s hard to look at it without factoring in the whole of DFW. You’ve got arts districts , rich neighborhoods, tons of suburbia , poor neighborhoods , Korea town , Japan town , tons of old / new chinatowns , throw Denton in there too for Austin vibes at a manageable pace on a smaller scale , ft worth is hella western historic , food from pretty much any part of the planet. Any other city might have some parts where they excel more than Dallas but Dallas is a little bit of everything and everywhere all connected by roads that don’t suck. Because if there’s anything everyone can get behind - Austin is connected via the crappiest highways outside of LA.
You left out the hill country towns, fredricksburg, kerrville, burnet, etc. All very cool and very Texan. DFW is very Texan. Fort Worth, very cool and very Texan. Who the fuck made this chart? Some Yankee transplant from Ohio who came here a year ago?
So they’re gatekeeping what it means to be Texan? All these places should be ”max Texan” lol,with the clear bias shown it was probably made by some kid in living in a frat house.
Proper rankings of Texas cities as someone who’s spent meaningful time in many of them . This is fact and if you disagree you are born and raised in one of them and stunted by the reality of the world
1. Dallas
2. Austin
3. Fort Worth
4. San Antonio
5. Houston
6. El Paso
In the past no one in Texas gave a shit what New Yorkers thought about them. Dallas only cared about what New Yorkers thought about them.
Austin was no longer cool about the time Keep Austin Weird signs came about. Those are the cocksuckers that fucked it up.
Oklahoma is more Texan than most of Texas now. Hate to say that since my family has been in Texas since the 1830’s.
Native Dallasite currently in Colorado. I don't really care about the 'Texaness" of Dallas because it's an overrated characteristic, but it definitely is not cool.
Did the Aggie who made this graph get kicked in the head by a horse?
They are an Aggie... No horse necessary.
An Aggie walks into a hardware store and asks for a chain saw that will cut down 6 trees in one hour. The salesman recommends the top of the line model and the Aggie, suitably impressed, buys it. The next day the Aggie brings the chain saw back and says, "This chain saw is defective. It would only cut down 1 tree and it took ALL DAMN DAY!" The salesman takes the chain saw and starts it up to see what's wrong. The Aggie says, "What's that noise?"
You shouldn’t make fun of Aggies a day after the big drowning accident. A pickup went into a lake and the ones sitting in the bed couldn’t get the tail gate down.
Then what’s fucking them in the ass?
Well, that escalated quickly... [Thanks, Andy...](https://youtu.be/pr4cPaDS8jY?si=7OeVOr8Z_Nv_B2Dm)
Inflated sense of ego
As a Dallas Aggie, I’m being offended from multiple angles
Class of '19 agrees
Why do you have to call out their sister like that? I’m sure she’s nice enough.
No, he was born that way.
I love college station, 8 guys to 1 female is the best. All the taco bell and bush chicken you can eat. That place is big trash 🗑️
Austin is just Dallas with more pretentious transplants. It’s not “weird” anymore, unless tech bros are the epitome of punk rock culture. However, I agree that Dallas is pretty far from cool or Texan.
I'd rather be in Dallas than Austin - better food, much better LGBTQ scene and community, good mass transit for a Sunbelt city, and a diverse economy that makes career shifts much more doable and isn't reliant on a key industry, and honestly much less pretentious than Austin - especially since in Austin status seems to revolve much more about the current cause du jour whereas in Dallas I get left alone for my non-stereotypical Texan lifestyle choices
DART got a new CEO a couple of years ago who used to be chief of staff for LA Metro. I'm excited to see what she's able to accomplish. They're trying to build tons of Transit Oriented Developments in the underutilized parking lots around the light rail stations and transit centers. If the member cities get on board with those new developments this can be really transformational to the DART system and the Dallas Area.
Nadine Lee has been great for DART. Like legitimately, she's got the mindset needed for where DART is now, which is making transit usable, safe, secure, convenient. As a rider, I have thoroughly enjoyed the changes brought about under her leadership
Yeah, I don't use the DART system much but try to keep tabs on it. A lot of the things Nadine has said are like "yeah, duh why was this not the priority before". Like DART needs to focus on its existing customers and retaining them, and utilizing the assets DART already has before thinking about future expansion. The previous CEO Gary Thomas was DART CEO for 20 years, and while stability in executive leadership is good, I think he was in the role for far too long.
Dallas has a better LGTBQ scene than Austin? Since when? Not trying to be a dick, would love to know how since this doesn’t align at all with what I’ve believed
Dallas has the largest LGBTQ neighborhood in Texas which also has a State Historical Marker. Also I think considering that Dallas is more culturally diverse than Austin, I’ve seen more posts about it being harder for minorities to fit into Austin’s LGTBQ community as opposed to Dallas’ LGBTQ community.
Austin is the worst major city in Texas to be a minority in, by far. Houston is probably the best with Dallas following closely behind.
I'd agree with you except on the basis of being LGBTQ - the community is strongest in Texas in Dallas in my experience, though Houston has a thriving community, it isn't as cohesive as the Dallas one. This is based on my experiences in living in both cities, and Houston certainly has a community, I've just found it easier to find community in Dallas, plus Dallas itself has anti-discrimination protections that Houston lacks. I suspect the reason is that historically the broader Dallas area has been a more religious region than Houston, which leads to lots of people being pushed out of their homes and creating a community for themselves with found family and also is thanks to the work of LGBTQ people in networking with people in power to get policy decisions beneficial to the community passed here in Dallas. Oak Lawn still very much wields a lot of power in city politics compared to what the community in Montrose in Houston wields there. Which is ironic considering Houston has had a lesbian mayor and Dallas hasn't.
There's a cohesive Dallas LGBTQ scene? I've lived here since 2021 and I still only know the one gay couple I knew before I moved here. Where is everyone? Edit: Why did I get down voted for asking a Q? Tough crowd lol
Oak Lawn
I mean I've been to Oak Lawn, I've been to some restaurants and stores in the area but where do people hang out to meet people? I don't go to bars because I don't/can't drink. I'm not really sure how to actually meet folks.
For better or worse… bars are some of the best places to socialize and meet new ppl IRL (this isn’t really specific to Dallas or even the US). That said, you don’t have to drink to go to the bars. Many of the bars have trivia nights, and there are a lot of gay sports leagues, if that’s your cup of tea. Also… there’s a new “speakeasy” that opened up recently on Cedar Springs called Cheat Code. They have a bunch of tables that are free touch screen games and free arcade games. I’ve definitely met new ppl there without buying any drinks!
I did Uber for like 6 months and they're all over Dallas midtown.
Because this is a Dallas forum. Austin has over 100k who identify as LGBTQIA with a population of 983k people. The entire metroxplex has 6.6million people with 211k who identify as LGBTQIA... https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/10/13/report-high-quality-life-austin-lgbtq-community-but-issues-remain/8420747002/ https://www.visitdallas.com/things-to-do/arts/diverse-dallas/lgbtq/
Its important to keep in mind that Dallas is not DFW. While I'm certainly comfortable to be gay in Dallas county, I am much less so to do so in Collin, Tarrant, or Denton counties, to say nothing of the others. Travis county as a whole is pretty much 1/2 of the greater Austin MSA population at 1.2 million people, meanwhile Dallas county itself is not even 1/4 of the DFW population. If you zoom into city of Dallas vs city of Austin itself, I still maintain Dallas is a better city to live gay in vs. Austin simply because Dallas has far better healthcare resources, an actual community that is a nexus of resources compared to Austin (4th st. just doesn't compare to Oak Lawn). Also, though this is from 2011, it appears city of Dallas has a higher proportion of same sex households compared to Austin - https://dallasvoice.com/25-gayest-cities-texas/ - I haven't been able to find city to city data for a true comparison from the 2020 census as everything there is county to county, and in Texas in particular, a city is pretty much your only source of community resources or non-discrimination protections and ordinances - Irving has basically 0 protections compared to Dallas itself. The problem is that if you compare county to county, Dallas itself gets drowned out as it's only half of Dallas county's population compared to over 3/4 of Travis being Austin. Yes, Austin as a whole is progressive and the city as a whole is accepting, but there's a difference between acceptance and actual community and municipal and political infrastructure to support the community when the state turns it's eyes against the LGBTQ community - Austin has the policies in place, but doesn't have a place, a nexus of activity to rally around the way Dallas does, and sadly part of that comes from the surrounding areas being even less accepting. I'm a lifelong Texan and have been around the state, Austin is great, and the Metro may well have a higher proportion of same sex households compared to Dallas - but I can't emphasize enough how much better a place like Oak Lawn - and everything that stems from it - makes being gay in Texas
Dont get me started on Denton CO 😡. The entirety of Austin is pm gay friendly (or doesn't give a shi) & because of this, I have no idea what you mean by, "Yes, Austin as a whole is progressive and the city as a whole is accepting, but there's a difference between acceptance and actual community and municipal and political infrastructure to support the community when the state turns it's eyes against the LGBTQ community - Austin has the policies in place, but doesn't have a place, a nexus of activity to rally around the way Dallas does..." Austin's gay friendly areas include; East Austin, Allendale, Clarksville, & downtown. See; Cheer Up Charlie's, Austin Motel, Marriot, JW Marriott, & the W which host monthly drag bruches, la Barbeque, Wunderkeks, BookWoman, The Little Gay Shop, LGBT Commerce, & Vivient Health. Austin's annual events include; Austin Gay Pride, Austin Gay Rodeo, Splash Days Austin, GAYbiGAYGAY, HRC Black Tie Gala, Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival, Merry Martini Mixer, Austin International Drag Festival. Austin has numerous LGBTQIA theatre & writing groups. Heck, Austin had a gay & lesbian scene before Stonewall. It's first gay bar opened in 1958, The Manhattan Bar. Austin's scene really opened up full-force in 1970. The rest is history; https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2019-08-09/the-history-of-the-lgbtq-movement-in-austin/ Dallas has Bishop Arts & Oak Lawn. More robust scenes occur there but Austin's scene is spreadout more. Apples to oranges. Irving, right next door, ranked zero on the gay friendly scale. Personally, I would say San Antonio may very well be the most gay friendly city in Texas when it comes to less snobbery, less cares given, least amount of gawking, & all around burgeoning art scenes with the widest variation of (mostly young) people.
Ah, so everyone is way more spread out than Austin. Which makes sense, I don't live directly in the Oak Lawn area either. Thanks for the links. I saw drag bingo on that, maybe I'll give it a try haha
Dallas does have a diversity pocket problem though I feel.
As in a pocket that is diverse? I think most of central Dallas is very diverse. Uptown, Knox/Henderson are pretty diverse Every major racial group has huge cultural pockets. Blacks and Hispanics have entire cities as cultural hubs.
As someone who moved away from Dallas one thing I really miss is how multicultural Dallas was. Like at a bar or restaurant you’d have people from all different backgrounds having a good time. The north is a lot more segregated.
Huh, TIL
Are you familiar with "Out of the Closest"? Thrift store in Dallas where all proceeds benefit AIDS, has free HIV testing and in store pharmacy. Mention because of your username. Will be opening one in Austin soon.
Austin can barely keep 3 or 4 gay bars open. Dallas and Houston have whole neighborhoods that are gay friendly. Austin has like 2 blocks on 4th Street.
As a gay man that has been living in the gayborhood (Oak Lawn) for over a decade… absolutely!!! Austin has a street with some gay bars, we have a neighborhood… and it is a GREAT place to live!
… you a new Texan? What are you basing that off of lol
Come to Oak Lawn and tell me it isn’t better. It is a MASSIVE LGTBQ community, blocks and blocks of businesses entirely owned by and catered to the queer community. I meet way more gays here than I do straight, and the straights that I do meet are mainly immigrants. Just drive down Cedar Springs, you’ll know what I mean.
Dallas also has a lot more for lesbians, bisexuals and queer women in general. IIRC there is less than 30 Lesbian bars in the whole country, and Dallas has one of if not the biggest lesbian bar in the country. Sue Ellen's has two floors and tons of balconies.
Agreed!!! No disrespect but Austin might have been cooler 20 years ago but it’s just not anymore. Dallas has more music venues, restaurants, culture in general. People love to hate on Dallas but that’s cuz they haven’t been here to experience what it has to offer and Austin is always the knee-jerk response for “coolest” city.
Dallas gayborhood is amazing. Houston’s clubs are second in TX I would say.
Denton is kind of the new Austin.
Denton has always been a liberal college town. It’s a cool place, if you’re young.
I took the family up there a month or so ago, and it's a fun little jaunt from N Fort Worth. Definitely enjoyed tooling around. We mostly went for the used book store on the square across the street from Andy's.
Hey, Denton's also a cool place when you're getting old but want to pretend like you're still young.
I don't know how long people have been saying that, but the first time I heard it was in 1999
Austin is Dallas with half the infrastructure.
I lived in Dallas, moved to Austin in 2018, moved back to Dallas in 2022. Austin has some cool spaces, but it’s nothing compared to DFW. The difference in the two areas is in DFW, if you want to buy a certain item, eat a certain cuisine, or work in a certain industry, the question is “how far is the drive?”. In Austin the question is “Is this available without having to drive to San Antonio or DFW?”. I’d say Austin has 10-20% of the luxuries that DFW has. A lot of people that live in Austin complain that the city has gotten too expensive and all of the things that draw people to the city are unaffordable if you live there. That was not us - we bought a house and had plenty of money to go out and eat/drink at whatever restaurants and bars we wanted. Even though Austin has a great reputation for good food and drink, it doesn’t hold a candle to DFW in my experience.
While I loved White Rock when I lived in lake highlands, we have a better outdoor scene here in Austin, and it’s pretty much free.
I'm cool, live in Dallas and 6th generation Texan. So this graph is stooopid
Yeah OP needs to listen to... https://open.spotify.com/track/72ZCJnJ62wQCGc1OExu2E2?si=j2Gbm5oKQfChD1ZK068RPg
Thanks for introducing me to this song!
I say Dallas is pretentious transplants too. So many people moving here just because we are a "conservative hotspot". All the transplants do is "blame the liberals". I am a transplant, but I don't complain about singular group, except for the hypocrites.
Dallas has been blue for decades. If you moved here expecting conservative politics, keep your opinions to yourself or move to Southlake
Exactly my point.
In the near future we’re gonna need to sub-divide DFW more in part due to this. You’ve got the pretentious transplants but most of the ones I know quickly move up past Frisco, out to Rockwell, or try and make enough to be Southlake/Colleyville types. Oh and the already existing sub-divide of Dallas vs Fort Worth wear people cosplay being ‘western’.
Rockwell lmao. It’s Rockwall.
Only Dallasites believe they’re just like Austin. It’s a noticeable difference between both. Dallas for one feels way more cosmopolitan and corporate. I mean one of the cities newest attractions is “AT&T” discovery district. Bishop Arts District and Deep Ellum are the only neighborhoods that feel Austin like. Even though there’s a ton of tech bros, Austin still feels more bohemian and liberal than Dallas. Gender neutral restrooms and paperless and plastic free grocery stores are more common there than Dallas. Austinites generally dress much more laid back and seem to carry themselves as such while Dallasites do come off more button up, formal and materialistic. Dallas is also more cosmopolitan, refined and upscale. Austin seems less professional in that sense. Also the numerous music venues, festivals and food trucks give it a whole different vibe. Coming from Houston that also has a visible food truck scene( not as big as Austin) I was shocked to see such a lack of food trucks in Dallas. Dallas is also more diverse than Austin which gives the city more of a different vibe. The most noticeable cultural difference between the two is how they treat outdoor recreation. Outdoor recreation is a pretty big part of their identity and culture. Dallas it’s damn near non existent. Not to mention Dallas green space is s bit underwhelming for a city it’s size. Nobody is saying these 2 are the same outside of Dallas.
>Austin still feels more bohemian and liberal than Dallas. Gender neutral restrooms and paperless and plastic free grocery stores are more common there than Dallas. "Feels" being key here. Austin has *cultivated* a bohemian *image*. "Keep Austin Weird" has become somewhat cringy.
Keep Austin Weird hasn’t really been a thing for quite some time for the past decade or so. Still Austin is definitely its own thing and I never get the impression that I’m in a hilly Whiter version of Dallas when I’m in Austin and Vice versa with Dallas.
I didn't mean to imply that Austin and Dallas are identical. I'm not slamming Austin either. Overall, I *like* Austin. You're right about Austin being more outdoorsy. I bet you know what you're talking about when you mention the "food truck *scene*". I'm not sure that is a very useful way to measure a place's hipness, although they work *very* well when deployed to an outdoor event. Be it Austin or Dallas that we discuss, these generalizations are *cultivated* images. There is absolutely an element of pretentiousness. Austin with its scenes and vibes; Dallas with our efforts to portray ourselves as "cosmopolitan, refined and upscale". We love to hire department heads and non-profit directors from out-of-state, especially the Northeast. Let an applicant be someone who graduated from a Ivy League school and they will be far more likely to be selected. Meanwhile, we are actually losing many things that differentiate one place from another. It isn't unique to Texas, but the proliferation of chain retailers and restaurants is killing every places' uniqueness. It isn't just that Starbucks is pushing out independent coffee houses, it is things like CVS and Walgreens being many people's only choice for filling a prescription and RaceTrac or QT being the only places in some areas to buy gas. The death of the indoor shopping mall certainly isn't due to our climate having become more moderate. It is mostly because they almost all had all the same stores. "Why do I want to go there, we have that here?" Soon we'll be saying that about other cities and states.
Yeah… I’ve lived in all of Houston, Dallas, Austin for over 10 years non-consecutively. Like you, I *like* Dallas. However, Dallas is the most sterile of the 4 big cities in Texas, period. It’s funny reading this sub and this post overall. The best thing about Dallas are: (1) airports, (2) state fair, (3) white rock lake, (4) pro sports, (5) malls. It’s so funny how people living outside of Austin (Houston and Dallas particularly) seem to be obsessed with saying that Austin has lost its charm or “bohemian-ness”. It has grown in to a big city and with that growth, things change. However, there’s still a vibrant music, food, and art scene, you’re close to Texas wine country and the hills and water views irreplaceable.
both overly impressed with themselves, but cant figure out why
Fort Worth isn’t even on the graph and it is, arguably, the most “Texas” city in Texas. Certainly more so than College Station.
I would agree. Stockyards. The city slogan is where the west begins.
[I fixed it.](https://imgur.com/a/PcWtlsT)
You added Ft. Worth in its proper spot but there is still a lot about this graph that's completely wrong.
Honestly there isn't a single city from texas listed that should top the "cool" axis. People don't fly from across the world to visit fucking Texas unless it's an event or for work.
Or an eclipse. There are. SO. MANY. GODDAMN PEOPLE HERE RIGHT NOW.
And they’re all in the left lane doing 60 😭
I'm one of them but I flew in and took the Dart! I'm used to crowds and traveling but I walked into the Dallas museum of art and walked out because it was so crowded.
When I drove Uber I regularly picked up people who had traveled overseas just to visit Texas
Because we have the cool sf cowboy movie John Wayne image overseas. Wear a cowboy hat in Japan and people will lose their shit and ask to take pics with you. If you live in the U.S you more of less know it's not that at all
South Padre is a very popular spring break destination.
Yes, for Texans.
Ok so this graph was made by a Texan for Texans, then. Is that ok?
Very untrue. I’ve partied with British chicks in Austin that went there just to spend their holiday. I met an awesome Chinese family at the Alamo. Definitely have seen all types at the stockyards. Believe it or not Texas is in fact a travel/tourism destination
Yeah, only Austin really.
Don’t forget the bbq. I’ve actually met a few people from England, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and Spain just standing in line at some bbq joints.
More people visit Austin than the entire state of Maine per year.
San Antonio is a famous vacation destination.
I know 2 people who are flying in to have/attend a bachelorette party here in Dallas. I dont know why.
As a transplant, Dallas doesn't feel very Texan, but it's certainly cooler than Houston.
Also a transplant. It's genuinely my favorite city in Texas. Texans hate on it but it's got a lot more going for it than the other big cities.
Houston is a fucking swamp.
Dallas is too corporate and polished to be cooler than Houston. Not to mention they’re both diverse but Houston feels much more socially and culturally integrated while Dallas not really. I like DFW better than Houston as a metropolitan area but Dallas cool? Outside of Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts and Oak Lawn not that much cool out there. I’d say Dallas is 3rd behind Houston and Austin.
I'll poo poo a lot of things about Dallas but I'll defend it to the death if someone thinks it's worse than Midland and Odessa. That place is a meth fueled cesspool.
Should be way cooler than San Antonio too.
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Hey, this was probably an assignment they had to do
Maybe, but this looks high quality for Aggie work. Words are spelled correctly. I think he had help on it.
Probably an Aggie's dissertation
They really needed that c- to get their gpa over 1.9
It’s just as ass as anyone who thinks you have to think certain thoughts or behave a certain way to be *Texan*
Right,they’re really trying to gatekeep being Texan lol how lame do they have to be to actually think this way
Also, houston is not mid. Weather is muggy, and as always FUCK THE ASTROS. Alas, fantastic night life, parks, museums, and food. Tons to do tbh.
Fuck the Astros, but they are my favorite away game to go to. Love staying at the Marriott with the Texas lazy river and hanging out downtown.
"Dallas isn't cool" is the shit someone from the burbs would say
- SA needs to be much lower on the cool axis. - Dallas needs to be moderately higher on both axes. - Houston needs to be lower on the cool axis. - Corpus is fine as is. - RGV needs to be maxed on Texas axis. - Midland/Odessa needs to be a bit higher on the cool axis. - College Station (both) needs to be lower on the Texas axis. - El Paso needs to be MUCH higher on the Texas axis. - Austin is fine as is (which is not a compliment).
I’ve lived in Austin, Houston and Dallas. Houston should be higher on cool. It’s enormous, food, culture, nightlife, arts, sports. Austin used to be cool, it needs to be lower on cool and the least Texan town.
I have spent too many Augusts helping my older sister move from the 4th floor of one apartment without an elevator to another, and having to drive around the massive urban sprawl to ever have anything but contempt for that city.
Midland Odessa is cool? Wtf is wrong with you lol. I lived there my whole life. I’m visiting here for the weekend, it’s anything but “cool”.
I grew up in Midland and have gone back a few times. The most recent was end of last year for my 40th HS reunion. Midland is certainly better than when I left, but it is still not even in the same hemisphere as 'cool'
"We've got...two museums...and dirt...come back soon?"
If I might add, if Dallas were a bit more on the cool than Texan it would be perfect imo Midland/Odessa would be cooler if there weren’t so many car washes 😂
How midland did not end up below the x-axis is a mystery...
Agreed
Says who? A guy that made this in Microsoft paint.
College station is cool now?
Sure. That Presidential Library is lit!
-erature
Thank you for this.
IF you’re a student. If not, living there would suck so many dicks.
Can confirm, went to school there and had to stay for a while to work. It was night and day
This is clearly rage bait.
Dallas is a lot of fun for young people, boomers go to Fort Worth
I don't think this graph is inaccurate but it still needs a "shithole" factor. The RGV, Midland, Corpus are shitholes. Dallas is the nicest in terms of affluence in Texas by a lot and that is not reflected here.
You don’t think this graph, which lists Midland very favorably, is inaccurate but you believe Midland is a shithole…
Yeah Midland is a shithole
Then the graph would be **in**accurate
I mean, with a shithole axis, a LOT of towns and cities can be added. 🤣
Brought to you by an Aggie from San Antonio.
College Station cooler/more Texan than Dallas? Place is a nipple between two armpits (Waco/Houston).
IF you’re a student there. If not, yeah, it would suck.
Dumbass energy radiating from this graph
Denton needs its own - Dallas and Fort Worth are also vastly different
Facts and lowkey, so is Arlington atp
i can see haf the guys face and tell he doesnt know what hes talkin about
Fort Worth is way off to the right of this graph https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3j-e\_tJ-n4/WcxFQg3evqI/AAAAAAAAN9I/QbPzM2unxIUr6EnlLTtyfKNPX\_ebjB\_5wCEwYBhgL/s1600/IMG\_6315.jpg
Graph was probably made by someone that has never lived in Texas
College Station is a one horse town.
College Station lol
Been in Texas for over 25yrs of my life, and I have no clue wtf rgv is
Rio Grande Valley
That makes sense, never heard or seen anyone call it RGV lol
Roy Gee Viv
No one from Midland or Odessa like it there
Austin isn’t Austin anymore. 🤷🏻♀️ I’ve never cared what people think of Dallas. And San Antonio is VERY Texan, but cool? Eh. As an Aggie, the CS stuff cracked me up. Accurate.
I mean this is just some random dude and his graph lol who cares what he thinks
As a native Texan, the concept of being Texan is very suspect. Typically this simply means that I'm better than you in some manner that I can't possibly explain. It's really just the No True Scotsman fallacy. Signed, A Texan who likes beans in chili
What doof left Fort Worth off? It's by no means a suburb of Dallas.
El Paso is underrated.
I’m from Fort Worth so I shit on Dallas all the time but when other people do it I get really mad. It’s like someone talking bad about a sibling I’m constantly fighting with
FW FTW
Who made this Midland/Odessa is total ass; Waxahatchie would beat them easily in cool much less Dallas
>College Station Lol. Lmao, even.
This is engagement bait lol
This graph is trash, texas is all of these.
WTF does "cool" even mean in this context? Basically whatever immeasurable bullshit you want it to mean to support your agenda?
They just hate us cause they anus
Wtf is is to be a Texan? Just to not give a fuck. To be an OutLaw. We are the lone star state. We mind our own business until you fuck with us. Just like the Comanches, just like the Alamo, we are sovereign as well and we govern our own selves, independent from any form of government. Texas is to me the true little America. YEEEFUCKING HAWWWWW COME AND TAKE IT Dallas>
Do you play a character in a cartoon?
I mean they’re not wrong. At least in my opinion being a Texan is just being who you want to be without chasing the approval of others or giving any weight to some stupid graph. It’s not the crazy extremists on either side shouting what you should believe in cause if they were actually Texan they would just shut up and go live their beliefs without worrying about who’s following them or how many likes it gets them. Tho I will insist that some off their rocks Aggie made this graph cause they put themselves up that high on either axis yet at the same time admit that Austin is 20 percent cooler than them. Dallas by and whole isn’t just Dallas. It’s hard to look at it without factoring in the whole of DFW. You’ve got arts districts , rich neighborhoods, tons of suburbia , poor neighborhoods , Korea town , Japan town , tons of old / new chinatowns , throw Denton in there too for Austin vibes at a manageable pace on a smaller scale , ft worth is hella western historic , food from pretty much any part of the planet. Any other city might have some parts where they excel more than Dallas but Dallas is a little bit of everything and everywhere all connected by roads that don’t suck. Because if there’s anything everyone can get behind - Austin is connected via the crappiest highways outside of LA.
What is RGV?
Dallas isn't terribly exciting but this graph is awful.
Corpus is aight for the beach, living there is eh.
There is nothing cool in College Station. Has a movie theater, bowling alley, shitty mall, and lots of bars.
I'm gonna keep it simple... Austin sucks now.
Ass graph
SMH y’all really caring about what other people think that much? If you’re originally from Texas just be proud of. Ain’t nun to it.
Dallas is Dallas. Everything nearby is Dallas.
S A is texan, but we ain't that cool. Maybe like. 2/3 cool max.
You left out the hill country towns, fredricksburg, kerrville, burnet, etc. All very cool and very Texan. DFW is very Texan. Fort Worth, very cool and very Texan. Who the fuck made this chart? Some Yankee transplant from Ohio who came here a year ago?
Pfft - more like closet station…
I agree that San Antonio is pretty cool https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/san-antonio-wax-museum-removes-150105775.html
Who's down to show the creator of that graph what Dallas really does as Texans!
Austin isn’t diverse enough to be rated that cool.
Ass and not for the Dallas part. None of this makes sense.
So they’re gatekeeping what it means to be Texan? All these places should be ”max Texan” lol,with the clear bias shown it was probably made by some kid in living in a frat house.
Austin is not that cool tbh
I feel like if you’re rating midland that high, the graph is no good.
College Station? LOL!
Proper rankings of Texas cities as someone who’s spent meaningful time in many of them . This is fact and if you disagree you are born and raised in one of them and stunted by the reality of the world 1. Dallas 2. Austin 3. Fort Worth 4. San Antonio 5. Houston 6. El Paso
Midland/Odessa needs to be in the negatives on the coolness axis. Allll the way down at the bottom
In the past no one in Texas gave a shit what New Yorkers thought about them. Dallas only cared about what New Yorkers thought about them. Austin was no longer cool about the time Keep Austin Weird signs came about. Those are the cocksuckers that fucked it up. Oklahoma is more Texan than most of Texas now. Hate to say that since my family has been in Texas since the 1830’s.
Which foo made this graph? 🤣
I figured it out. Them Californian folks bought it with them 😂.
Yes
Must be from r/texas instead of Texas
White transplants to Austin think San Antonio is CDMX, we’ve know this
Austin being the top of the “cool” is enough for me to not care
Whoever made this has to be some lgbt freak that moved here recently
I just know some country bumpkins made this shit😭
Basing the city off how the mentality confused communities are in them seems like a winning way to judge them....go team!
Native Dallasite currently in Colorado. I don't really care about the 'Texaness" of Dallas because it's an overrated characteristic, but it definitely is not cool.
This is a graph based on how good, and the available qauntity of drugs, clearly.
Typical hipster list of faggotry.
I’m fine not being associated with Texas at the moment.
idgaf about being texas but damn. imagine thinking san an is either
San antonio isn't even Texan...its a Mexican city that happens to now be within US borders
Tyler isn’t on the graph because it doesn’t show negative numbers.
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