Best Men's Boutique 2015 | Traffic Los Angeles | Best of Dallas® 2020 | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Dallas | Dallas Observer
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If you're a jeans-and-flip-flops kind of guy, Traffic LA probably isn't your thing. But if you spend too much time reading GQ and enjoy haute couture pour homme, Traffic LA is the city's most fashion-forward men's boutique. Sometimes, the offerings look a little outlandish for our conservative city, which makes them even easier to love. The duds you pick up here are certainly going to cost you, but you'll have a unique piece that no one else can either afford or muster up the courage to wear. It takes a sort of confident, sophisticated man to appreciate the clothes at Traffic LA, but that's totally you. Let your impressively stylish, well-heeled freak flag fly.

At first glance, the dusty piles of tables and chairs at Ross at Peak Thrift Store just look like junk. But if you manage to dig past this tiny shop's crowded exterior, you'll quickly find some diamonds buried inside. This is the perfect spot to pick up the cheap furniture you'll need for all those Pinterest refinishing and repurposing projects, along with 15 other things that you didn't realize you totally need. You're going to have to explain to your roommates or significant other why you bought three samurai swords, but no matter — buy the damn samurai swords.

When you screw up — forget your wife's aunt's birthday or accidentally walk in on your boss having an affair, say — you generally have to do something to make up for it. The good people at DIRT can help you figure out the perfect gorgeous, living centerpiece to remedy whatever situation currently has you looking like an asshole. You may still have to spend a little time groveling for forgiveness, but once your pissed off aunt-in-law lays eyes on the trendy, modern floral arrangement you "picked out," things are much more likely to work out in your favor.

A tattoo is a permanent decision, and finding the right tattoo artist is sort of like finding a mate — you're going to spend a lot of up-close-and-personal time together, this person is going to interact with your bodily fluids, and you're stuck with whatever they give you forever. Fortunately, the artists at Davis Street Tattoo are committed to creating a custom piece of work that you'll want to show off to everyone, even when you're all wrinkly and old. Some of them have likely been tattooing since before you were born; their traditional American tattooing practices have been honed over many years. Once you've decided to bite the bullet and get tattooed, Davis Street is the ideal choice.

Best Place To Blow Your Paycheck On Your Pet

Hollywood Feed

All loving pet owners feed their furry friends free-range, organic, grain-free food, right? If those fancy dog food commercials are to be believed, your dog can learn to play chess and read Italian with the right (read: most expensive) kind of nourishment. You can find that at Hollywood Feed, along with plenty of sustainably sourced treats and toys, handmade collars that cost more than your own jewelry collection, and $300 dog beds that you'll find yourself fighting your pooch for. It's comfier than that Ikea mattress you've been sleeping (badly) on, but little Fido and Spike deserve the best life possible.

You can buy makeup pretty much anywhere, but Blue Mercury is much more than a makeup shop — it's an experience. In addition to the impressive selection of luxe skincare, hair and cosmetics brands, there's also a full-scale spa nestled right into the middle of the Highland Park Village shop. If the spa services don't quite fit your budget, you can just splurge on some of your favorite brands — Molton Brown, La Mer and NARS among them — without paying any markup for the chi-chi setting. Most important, the staff here will actually teach you how to apply the makeup, which is infinitely better than sitting at home watching YouTube tutorials.

Best Place to Buy Something Weird/Get a Mugshot

Dolly Python

If your shopping list includes a taxidermied bat, hillbilly tarot cards and ephemera, you'll have no trouble checking it all off at Dolly Python. The 10-year-old vintage store houses 3,800 square feet of such treasures and more. "More" includes a mugshot background salvaged from an old Washington County jail, which shoppers can use as a prop for profile pics. If accused of uncovering one of Dallas' coolest stores, you'll have to plead guilty as charged.

Under certain circumstances, Postmates is a lifesaver. If you're sick, you can use the San Francisco-founded app to send someone to pick up your prescriptions or a grilled cheese and some tomato soup. The rest of time, the service just enables you to indulge in the easiest of the seven deadly sins — sloth. Postmates will bring you anything for sale in Dallas, provided you can figure out a way to pay for it in advance. Don't feel like getting off the couch to go to Whataburger? Postmates will grab it for you at the touch of a button. Happily in need of condoms and Marlboros but can't make yourself go outside? Postmates has you covered. It's bad for your wallet, as the app's delivery charges start at $5 plus 9 percent of order total and can be even higher based on distance traveled. And it's not kind to your waistline, either. That Whataburger? Not healthy, but oh so sweet.

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Austin is just close enough to Dallas that the time and hassle of flying isn't worth it. And you never know when I-35 construction or traffic will turn a three-hour drive into four-and-a-half (or longer). Megabus offers a convenient, cheap way to make the trip. The interstate under the wheels might still be a mess, but at least you're not behind the wheel. Read or get some work done, thanks in part to the Wi-Fi, power outlets and restrooms. The buses are spacious, the seats are comfortable, and so far the element of crazy among passengers is less than on the competition. Tickets start at $13. Buses leave from Market and Young streets in downtown Dallas.

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It would be fair to describe Nest as a "lifestyle store." The showroom on McKinney Avenue is casual enough to make you believe your home could look like it if you just spent a little bit more money, but extravagant enough to remind you that you don't actually need anything it's selling. But you'll want it all ... oh, how you'll want it. A Missoni rug? Yes, please. Designer coasters? Must have for coffee table. A golden wishbone ring-holder? Spoil yourself with jewelry and then spoil the jewelry. That's the kind of place you've walked into. You'll leave with empty pockets but a really chic set of silicone place mats. Your duplex in Old East Dallas will never have looked so cool.

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