Best Playground 2022 | Hope Park at Frisco Commons Park | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Dallas | Dallas Observer
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Best Playground

Hope Park at Frisco Commons Park

IKEA isn't the only hot spot in Frisco. The Frisco Commons Park may not have Swedish meatballs, but it does have almost everything else. The 63-acre park has bike and walking trails and a picnic area in a raised amphitheater that allows a grand view of the grounds and pond. Even amid the majesty of nature, however, the playground is the shining centerpiece. Once a maze of wooden, splintery structures, the play space was rebuilt in 2013 as "Hope Park" to be inclusive of families with special needs. It's wheelchair-accessible, with adaptive playground equipment, rubberized surfaces and new play areas designed with endless color (and zero splinters). Frisco Commons also has a spray park that opens in the summer, and it really beats playing outside with the water hose.

Best Pool For Kids

Jack Carter Pool

Jessica Serna

Public pools can be sort of gross. But let's be honest, so are kids. Until you finally win that Powerball drawing you (and only you) prayed about, you'll have to share the water with other bodies and ruin your highlights with heavy loads of chlorine. If you're looking for a spot to hang with rowdy drunk adults, this isn't it. But if you seek a lively space with kids as loud as your own, have a family day at Jack Carter in Plano. Once you tune out the pool's comically young lifeguards excessively blowing their whistles like the overzealous lifeguard Jim Carrey played on SNL, you'll find Jack Carter to be the most joyous type of chaotic. It's got a surf simulator pool, colossal slides, a lazy river with free floats, spray features and a swim area with mere inches of water just for babies.

  • 2601 Pleasant Valley Dr., Plano, 75023 Map

Best Rising Star, Tennis Edition

Liv Hovde

Of course, you've heard of Wimbledon. Even tennis lunkheads know about the storied tournament held in London every year. A list of past women's champions is a who's who of greats, including Serena and Venus Williams, Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova. But what about future champions? One to keep an eye on is North Texas phenom Liv Hovde. Competing in the junior ranks, the 16-year-old McKinney native won the 2022 girls' singles title with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Hungary's Luca Udvardy in the finals at Wimbledon. Best to get on the bandwagon now.

Best Sailing Lake

Lake Grapevine

Ever wanted to try sailing? With more than 7,000 acres of water to sail on, Lake Grapevine is a great place to start. There are multiple marinas and charter companies as well as the Grapevine Sailing Club, which has races throughout the year that you can crew on to get some experience. There is also a juniors sailing program in case the kids want to get started learning a new skill. There are parks and camping available, so this is a great place to spend time with the family enjoying the outdoors all year long.

Best Surprise Playoff Performance

Jalen Brunson, Mavericks

Admit it, when the Dallas Mavericks lost Game 1 of their first-round playoff matchup against the Utah Jazz and then announced that Luka Doncic would also miss Game 2 because of a strained calf, the general feeling around town was, welp, it was fun while it lasted. But Jalen Brunson wasn't having it. The fourth-year guard poured in a career-high 41 points in the Mavs' 110-104 win, and in doing so joined Doncic, Dirk Nowitzki, Rolando Blackman and Nick Van Exel as the only players in Mavericks history to score at least 40 in a postseason game. Even though he's gone now, that's pretty nice company.

Best Sports Venue

American Airlines Center

Dallas-Fort Worth is loaded with amazing sports venues. There's the big bright spectacles of AT&T Stadium and Globe Life Field in Arlington, the friendly and fun Riders Field in Frisco, the historic Cotton Bowl in South Dallas and even some great college venues, such as Lupton Stadium in Fort Worth and the underrated College Park Center in Arlington. Still, American Airlines Center (AAC) is hard to top. Located in Victory Park in the heart of Dallas, the AAC has easy access to bars and restaurants within walking distance. The Stars ranked seventh in the NHL in attendance, while the Mavericks ranked third in the NBA, so the atmosphere within the stadium was consistently very lively and energetic. The AAC plays a great host to concerts and shows as well.

Best Spot for a Picnic

Reverchon Park

Mike Brooks

One thing the pandemic reminded us is that dining outside can be just as valuable as the nourishment you're eating. Even better is doing so while on green grass under the shade of a tree, looking out onto a bit of water with the Dallas skyline in the background. That's the scene when having a picnic at Reverchon Park, the absolute best spot to enjoy a meal al fresco. It's Dallas' premier urban park, where there's plenty of shaded grass and it's easy to grab food from Malibu Poke not far away. Get the sauce on the side, park at the rec center if you're driving and walk to a shaded spot to sit down, take a beat from the day and enjoy.

Best Team

Golden Bears, South Oak Cliff High School

While Ducanville basketball made a case for a second straight award, and Desoto's women's basketball made winning a state championship look easy, just about everyone got lost in the gold and glory that the South Oak Cliff High School football team earned in 2021. After a first-week loss to Ducanville, the Golden Bears went on a dominant run of 15 straight wins en route to a state title. With a powerhouse defense starring Billy Walton and Malik Muhammad and led by head coach Jason Todd, SOC became the first Dallas ISD school to win a state football title since 1958, and the first in South Oak Cliff history.

Best Races

Dallas Athletes Racing

Whether you are a seasoned racer, a newbie who wants to get in shape or just someone who wants to beat your friends at something, Dallas Athletes Racing offers plenty of themed options throughout the year including 5Ks, 10Ks, triathlons and half marathons. In 2022, there was a 5K for Juneteenth, races to support wounded warriors, as well as St. Patrick's Day and Halloween races. You don't need to be expert or even to have raced before to participate.

Best Youth Tournament

Dallas Cup

There was a lot of excitement around here on June 16 when Dallas learned that it would be one of 16 host sites for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Four years from now, people from parts near and far will be here to watch soccer's best kick it around at AT&T Stadium. Of course, they already are thanks to the annual Dallas Cup, held in North Texas each spring. At one of the game's premier youth tournaments, teams come from around the country, including Hawaii, and also from around the globe. No need to wait until 2026 to see soccer's best. The world is here every year.

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