A Foodie's Guide to Palestine, TX: From Dinner Trains to Farm-to-Table Dining

825 W. Spring Street
Palestine, TX 75801
visitorcenter@palestine-tx.org
1-800-659-3484
www.visitpalestine.com

While everyone was distracted by its gorgeous dogwood blooms and Victorian architecture, Palestine, Texas has quietly built a food scene that rivals the best of them. This homey Piney Woods town—roughly two hours southeast of Dallas—gives foodies the goodies with dinner trains, four-course tasting menus, a farm-to-table restaurant with its own garden, and a nationally recognized bakery.

If you’re a foodie looking to eat your way through a weekend, Palestine has the table set. And now, the menu:

Chew Chew: The Texas State Railroad Dinner Trains

Food on the go has gotten a worse rap than an overstuffed burrito. One thinks of eating junk food on long road trips and the dry chicken they serve on airplanes. But travel and food don’t have to be enemies. As the Texas State Railroad proves, it is possible to resurrect that age-old notion that travel should be a luxurious experience.

All year long, the Texas State Railroad provides dinner train experiences of every sort for every occasion. Take, for example, the Piney Woods Evening Dinner Train that runs twice a year—once in June and again in September. This train offers a multi-course meal by the lake at Rusk Depot, all while the sun timidly hides behind the pines. It's the kind of evening that earns its ticket price before the entrée even arrives.

The railroad also runs seasonal specials throughout the year, including the Mother's Day Lunch Train and the Spooky Special in the fall, the latter of which brings Halloween-themed entertainment for families. Each ride offers its own menu and atmosphere, but the common thread is a train ride through the pines and a lakeside meal at a real depot. Even the most jaded foodie probably hasn’t checked that box, yet.

Texas Foodie Adventures: Your Own Private Dining Experience

If the dinner train is the spectacle of Palestine’s food scene, Texas Foodie Adventures at Hummingbird Hollow is the graceful subtlety. Its discreet location in the Piney Woods makes it the perfect little culinary hideaway.

This private dining destination centers around Wisteria House, where guests can wander the rose gardens before sitting down for a four-course chef's tasting menu built around ingredients grown on the property. At a time when people are growing increasingly conscious of shortening the path from farm to table, it doesn’t get much shorter than that.

For couples and small groups, Texas Foodie Adventures is one of the most memorable dining experiences in East Texas—and one of the hardest to find unless you know where to look. Good thing you have us!

Restaurant Aubergine at Sabor a Pasión

Just when you think you've seen all Palestine, Texas has to offer, Restaurant Aubergine swings in like Errol Flynn. Housed within the Sabor a Pasión estate just outside of town, Aubergine is a rural, osteria-style restaurant open nightly with a menu that reads like an aromatic love letter to the surrounding landscape.

As with Texas Foodie Adventures, Aubergine’s sourcing is almost entirely local. Herbs and vegetables come from the chef's own garden. Fruit comes from neighboring farmers. The cheese is handmade in East Texas. The proteins are farm-raised. And when the weather's right, outdoor seating lets you eat surrounded by the same land that so kindly provided your dinner. Much like how light pollution has affected our relationship with the cosmos, the modern supply chain has severed our connection to the land. As great as the food is, this reunion is much of what makes Restaurant Aubergine special.

Even though the menu is flexible, there are some stalwart favorites: wood-fired pizza, fresh pasta, and a limoncello tiramisu that, well—we won’t call it a life-changing experience, but we won’t not call it that, either. Oh, and if you’re thinking of swinging in like Errol Flynn yourself, keep in mind that Aubergine is reservation-only!

Beyond the restaurant, the greater Sabor a Pasión property offers a spa, a round of golf at Pine Dunes Golf Course, and fishing and hunting outings through Garzilla Guide Service. Dinner can anchor a full weekend here or be the centerpiece to a larger experience.

Only in Old Town Palestine

The fine dining tells one side of Palestine's story, but Old Town tells the rest. It’s where you’ll find the local legends who have not only stood the test of time, but have stood tall.

Few have stood taller than Oxbow Bakery & Antiques, which has earned a reputation that extends well beyond the Piney Woods. If you’re in town and inexplicably find yourself floating, chances are your nose is following the scent of one of their freshly baked Banana Blueberry pies. Their pies are known to sell out, so float fast!

If you’re into the whole “eating dessert last” thing, right next door to Oxbow is Hambones. When it comes to old-fashioned home-cooking, Hambones is the genuine article. Before you fill up on their alligator bites, prime ribeye, or grilled oysters, remember to save room for pie.

If Old Town Palestine had a communal living room, it just might be Pint and Barrel Drafthouse, located right across the street from Oxbow and Hambones. Actually, it’s better than a living room, unless your living room also has craft beers on tap and easy access to smoked meats.

Together, these spots give Palestine’s food scene its center. They’re living legacies of a Texan culture that’s built to last, thanks to a dedication to craft, respect for what came before, and smiles as warm as the food.

Plan Your Palestine Food Trip Today

In a world of strip malls and chain restaurants, places like Palestine only become more valuable. You get authentic culinary experiences that don’t come out of a factory or a focus-group. Their restaurants and bakeries understand the value of selfhood—that being unique is a strength, not a weakness. You see it in the high-end experiences of Texas Foodie Adventures and Restaurant Aubergine just as much in the modest, character-filled spots of Old Town. And, of course, it may be most apparent in the truly rare experience of sipping cider as an early 20^th-century train takes you through the enchanting woods of East Texas.