WEST

A Throwback Kind Of Day

Head slightly west of our neighborhood for a day of nostalgia and whimsy with a dash of spice and action.

IT IS

AN OVERCAST,

BREEZY MORNING. The heat, at this early hour, is not yet oppressive. It’s your day off, and you are feeling sentimental and venturesome. “Let’s do something meaningful,” you think. Now, before you get going, are you one of those wake-up-hungry types?

YES, I MUST FEED. GO TO #1. NO, I PREFER TO WORK UP AN APPETITE. GO TO #2.

ONEYou take the Royal exit off Central Expressway and find a comfy booth at Cindi’s NY Deli, a tried-and-true institution featuring fluffy flapjacks and hearty omelets plus Jewish staples such as Challah breads and Matzo ball soup. You praise the staff for the all-day breakfast offerings and generosity with the coffee refills. Man, those pancakes hit the spot! Now, do you jump right into physical activity or ease into your day with a quiet shopping excursion?

LET’S GET PHYSICAL. GO TO #5.

SHOPPING SOUNDS LIKE ADEQUATE EXERCISE FOR NOW. GO TO #2.

Two

You travel back in time — that is, to Forest Lane at Inwood — arriving at Forestwood Antique Mall, which specializes in sports memorabilia, folk art, collectables and rare jewelry. After scoring a Battle

Armor Skeletor Evil Lord of Destruction action figure for your vintage toy collection (fist pump!), you enjoy lunch at the mall’s Garden Tea Room it opens at 11 a.m. and serves classic comfort foods including casseroles, soups and chicken fried steak until 2:30 p.m. Maybe Forestwood merely whet your shopper’s appetite, or perhaps you met your antiquing quota for the week — which is it?

I COULD SHOP SOME MORE. GO TO #3.

I AM ONE PARCEL AWAY FROM HOARDERS BURIED ALIVE; LET’S JUST LOOK AT SOME COOL OLD THINGS. GO TO #4.

Three

You cruise along Forest until you arrive at the North Dallas Antique Mall, nestled in a shopping park at Marsh. You feel giddy and proud, discovering treasure after treasure including mid-century modern, Mad Menera knick-knacks, old records and eighttracks. Nothing can stop you now that Linda Rhonstadt’s Greatest Hits is in your possession. Your reusable shopping bags are full, but is your tummy?

NO, LET’S EAT. GO TO #6.

I’M STUFFED AND READY TO CONTINUE MY DAYLONG ESCAPE FROM REALITY. GO TO #4.

Five

As you enter the cardiovascular exercise paradise known as Jump Street, off Central Expressway at Royal, you immediately revert to childhood. You are 10 again as

Four

You go back. Way way back. Like 2,000 years back. The Museum of Biblical Art, located at Park Lane and Boedeker, offers all the adventure you can stomach — births, death, war, gore, peace, passion One kindly docent explains that in 2005, a fire destroyed the museum and some 2,500 works inside, but that from the ashes rose a more magnificent venue of 30,000 square feet featuring biblically themed art that, be you devoutly religious or not at all, fuels the soul. Your soul might be filled, but is your gut?

THAT LOAVES AND FISHES STORY MADE ME HUNGRY. GO TO #6.

I’M NOT HUNGRY, BUT I AM INSPIRED. LET’S CARPE THIS DIEM! GO TO #5.

you bounce and test your trampoline-dodge ball (yes, that is all one thing) and arcade game skills, or ride the mechanical bull. Now you’ve worked up an appetite. Are you down for a quick margarita and pulledpork fajitas or do you prefer something a little less heartburn inducing?

BRING ON JALAPENO FLAVORED EVERYTHING. GO TO #6.

BUT MY ULCER IS ACTING UP. GO TO # 7. SIX

Tupinamba restaurant is new to Preston Hollow Village, at Walnut Hill just west of Central Expressway, but this institution has been serving up tacos, fajitas, rice, beans, margaritas and the gamut of Tex-Mex staples for almost 70 years. In other words, the staff here knows its stuff, and that serves you well. Yum! You are pumped full of tacos and Jose Cuervo. As the psychiatrist would ask, “how does that make you feel?”

TEQUILA MAKES ME SLEEPY. I’M CALLING IT A NIGHT. [THANK YOUR DESIGNATED DRIVER, AND GO TO BED.] [END]

THE NIGHT IS YOUNG — WHAT ELSE IS THERE? GO TO #8.

Enter familiar territory NorthPark Center

Tucked inside Neiman Marcus department store, you discover the fabled Mermaid Bar, which opened at the same time as the mall in 1965. You admire whimsical murals by Danish artist Bjorn Wiinblad — Stanley Marcus commissioned them in the

1960s. Reliably good food, service and the “nostalgia effect” has kept customers coming back throughout the years, general manager Chad Boyle tells you. “This is the destination of ladies’ lunches in Dallas — grandmothers brought the mothers, and the mothers brought the daughters, and that’s how it’s been for 50 years,” he says. You smile and try The Mermaid Sampler, which includes a cup of soup, fruit and half a chicken salad sandwich. Now that you’ve had a light meal, do you feel like socializing or sitting in a dark theater where someone else provides the entertainment?

I ENJOY LIVE MUSIC AND POTENT POTABLES, AND I DON’T HAVE ANY CHILDREN WITH ME. GO TO #9.

I’M FEELING ANTISOCIAL, YET ODDLY IN THE MOOD FOR AN OLD, FEEL-GOOD MOVIE. GO TO #8.

Eight

Every third Wednesday of the month, Studio Movie Grill (at Central Expressway and Royal) takes audiences back in time with its Family Rewind series, featuring favorite childhood movies at retro prices — $3 a ticket. It is July, so you grab a soda and settle in for a screening of “The Neverending Story.” You leave with thoughts of luckdragons and childlike empresses dancing in your head, not to mention that catchy theme song. “Dream a dream, and what you dream will be eee ah eee eee …” Speaking of dream, are you ready to hit the pillow or up for more activity?

NEVERENDING STORY? MORE LIKE THE NEVERENDING DAY. I’M DONE. [END]

I COULD DO MORE HOW ABOUT LIVE MUSIC AND ADULT BEVERAGES?

GO TO #9.

Nine

Velvet Elvis, the deliciously divey lounge you discover at 3720 Walnut Hill (near Marsh) draws a mixed crowd, and you feel totally cozy inside its walls. You like to lounge, play pool and have eclectic, but not persnickety, musical taste, which makes this place, which offers live mainstream rock music from just about every decade, perfect. Oh, and cheap, strong drinks you appreciate those too. It’s the ideal way to wind down your pleasant and fulfilling day. [END]