So what can you say about Dallas, which holds the No. 9 spot? Well, we have about 1.3 million people, as of 2022. We’re the home of Robocop and Walker, Texas Ranger. We’ve got Dirk Nowitzki. As the site of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, the city is the birthplace of modern conspiracy thinking.
It also turns out that Dallas is home to some of the biggest brands in the world. You may be surprised to learn what all was started by your home city, other than this publication. Check out some of the biggest brands, products, and other cool stuff.
Paciugo Gelato & Cafe
No, Paciugo didn’t actually come from Italy. The gelato maker was founded in Dallas by Ugo Ginatt. Is it any healthier than ice cream? Do we care?
Half-Price Books
Borders went out of business. Barnes & Noble has become host to toys, tablets, and Blu-Ray mania. You’d be lucky enough to have an independent book store near you, but most of us can thank Dallas for the Half-Price Books chain. It’s not only cheaper but a great option if you’re looking to get rid of your collection before a big move. It’s also a great place to find used DVDs, textbooks, and single comic issues where you don’t have to buy those giant trade paperbacks.
The Container Store
Any college student moving into a new apartment or dorm will certainly have the need to pack their stuff efficiently. The Container Store should have enough plastic-protected products to keep all those textbooks and clothes from spilling out everywhere.
Michaels Arts and Crafts
We’ve all had to find the time to entertain some younger relatives. How do you get a 6-year-old to kill time after they’ve watched their fair share of cartoons? Arts and crafts are always a good option. Thanks, Michaels. Michaels also allows you to wrap up Christmas easily; you can find all the packaging, wrapping and decorating items you’ll need each holiday season.
Dickey’s Barbecue
Texas is known for barbecue, but our barbecue-style can’t easily be found in other areas of the country. Dickey’s is a pretty good solution, and if you’re one of the weird people who doesn’t like barbecue, there’s a side sampler that still offers a chance to pig out. As good as barbecue is, a meal of mac and cheese, rolls, and baked beans isn’t a bad option either.
It's like Chuck E. Cheese for grownups, minus the creepy rodent.
WikiBoy06, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
You loved Chuck E. Cheese as a kid, right? That would be a fun way to spend your birthday or a night out with friends now, right? It would be really, really weird if you went as a grown adult, right? That would actually be kind of creepy. Thankfully, you can fill your appetite for arcade games, air hockey and Skee-Ball with a good beverage at your side thanks to Dave & Busters. Maybe you can even take your kids here instead of Chuck E. Cheese. That mouse is kind of terrifying anyway.
Neiman Marcus' downtown flagship store, the granddaddy of Dallas luxury
Dfwcre8tive, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
It’s not cheap, but luxury retailing doesn’t get much fancier than Neiman Marcus. It’s not just the clothes that make this Dallas-centric chain a cultural landmark. The Christmas cookies and catalog have been a tradition since 1939.
GameStop
Oh boy. You may have heard about this one recently thanks to a controversy over online "meme" stock trading. The gaming chain was founded in 1984 just outside of Grapevine. It is safe to say that the company has changed since then, but we can at least look back at it as the place to thank for a fairly entertaining media cycle and dozens of amusing headlines and tweets.
Brinker International
Although it sounds like it's the name of the evil bank in a Jim Carrey movie, this is actually the corporate chain that holds the rights to Chili's, On the Border and Maggiano’s Little Italy. Most big chains are just hamburgers, sandwiches and fries, so it’s nice to have readily available Mexican and Italian food, and Chili's is a great place to watch football if you’re hungry.
7-Eleven
No need to thank heaven for this national convenience store chain. Thank Dallas, instead ... after you're done writhing in pain from brain freeze brought on by a gallon bucket o' Slurpee.
Hotels.com
Staying in Dallas, or literally anywhere else? We’ve all been desperate to find a place to stay, and traveling is even more stressful thanks to COVID-19. One of the biggest hotel booking sites in the world traces back its origins to Dallas.
Cinemark
It's unclear where exactly this movie theater chain was first founded, but the corporate headquarters are located near us in Plano. We all love movies, and after a while, we get tired of watching everything on Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime, and HBO Max. It’s nice to get out to the theater, and you really don’t want to deal with mall traffic and go to an AMC, right? Cinemark is generally a good option, especially if you like popcorn.
