Fayetteville - A Little Austin In Arkansas
If you want to visit the hippest place in Arkansas, you've got to get to Fayetteville. It's a cute little college town nestled in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains and, like I said in my previous post, it deserves it's time in the spotlight. Most people describe Fayetteville as how Austin (TX) used to be before the crowds descended. I'm going to suggest a breakfast, lunch, and dinner and hit on some of my favorite shopping destinations I payed a visit to on my most recent trip.
Breakfast is always Arsaga's.
You can pick up a coffee to go or sit and have a proper breakfast.
And the creature-of-habit in me always gets the Fauxzark, a crepe with vegan sausage that makes me feel like I'm at least starting my day off healthy, even if the rest of it goes awry.
A great place for lunch is Hammontree's Grilled Cheese.
This trip I got Where the Wild Things Are; wild mushroom goat cheese, Asiago, sauteed mushrooms, and sun-dried tomato pesto.
Keeping it college-town-casual, I hit up Hugo's for dinner. Hugo's was here when I was here. That's a pretty long time! When looking for Hugo's off the Square, look down. It's in the basement.
Hugos' serves up college student staples: burgers and beer.
Bleu Moon Burger
Swiss Cheese and Bacon Burger
Northwest Arkansas is amazingly beautiful in the fall. If you hit it on a weekend without a home football game, it will be pretty quiet.
Christmas lights going up!
Vintage shopping abounds in this neck of the woods. I've got an old favorite and a new one.
There are always great finds in dresses and accessories.
Accidental selfie.
I hit the motherload of vintage jewelry when I found Mae's.
Mae's is a-Maes-ing!!
Her locket collection is staggering! Every corner and display is packed with deliciousness!
It's a tiny shop but there are so many interesting things everywhere you turn, it can take you a while to see it all.
Something that every shop in Fayetteville has: a Razorback red section!
If you can't find what you are looking for here, it doesn't exist!
If your bank account can handle it, follow her on Instagram. Don't say I didn't warn you.
If you aren't feeling vintage and you want something new, Mason's on Joyce is a good all-rounder. It has clothes, jewelry, shoes, and accessories. You can put together a great outfit in one stop. The girls here are super and I go for a browse (and buy!) every time I'm in town. I was so distracted with the goodies I purchased, I only managed an outside shot.
Another store that's worth a look is the outdoor store, Fayettechill. It's across the street from Mae's.
If you need a little bit of everything just head to Riffraff.
They have gifts for everyone.
Even the Hog lovers!
You can even find something for the tikes!
A short walk down the street was another new find.
I was really impressed with this little shop. After a few gift shop visits, you start seeming the same things over and over. Mustache carries items I've never seen before.
Some of these collections I've only seen online or in very limited quantities. Their selection of Krochet Kids was outstanding! Krochet Kids intl. works with women in impoverished counties. These knitted items are from Peru and are signed by the maker. They are super soft and very well priced. Like they say, "Buy a hat, change a life." In my case it was an iPad cover.
They even have their own line of shirts and mugs.
You can NOT not have a hog section.
The head mustache ringing up my purchases!
This is by no means an exhaustive list but these are the places I go to again and again and a couple of new ones I know I'll be returning to in the future.
Fayetteville has changed a lot since I was tramping its hills as a student but it has still kept it's charm.
I know there are a lot of Razorback fans out there. Where do you like to go? What should I not miss the next trip?
