Lubbock, Texas

This is a frequent destination for us as we have family living in this area. I try to keep this page updated as we visit + experience new aspects of town.

Travelling in:

Airport

This is a very small airport, and only flies through 3 carriers: American Airlines, United, and Southwest. There are only a few restaurants + their hours vary depending on staffing needs. Their service was excellent considering the size, and it is a short distance to terminals from security. The airport is on the north side of Lubbock closer to downtown. While there is some public transportation, renting a car or using a car service is recommended.

Driving

Driving is long but fairly inexpensive as gas prices drop the closer to Texas you are. This is a town built for car travel so it is nice for us to bring our own family car when we can.

What to do:

HEB

This deserves its own post. And yes, HEB is a grocery store, but it is also so much more than that. If you are looking for exploring a grocery store like you may never have before, plus grabbing a coffee and some great Texas BBQ, then HEB is for you. The Texans will tell you, HEB is a staple of many Texas communities. We visited the southwest HEB on Quaker + 114th.

Science Spectrum + OmniTheater

This family friendly museum is a great place to spend the day. There is a children’s play center with a water exhibit, science experiments, historical section, live fish, and a children’s climbing wall. There is also a movie theater on site. Prices were quite reasonable for the size of the museum and even our young kids loved and played here a lot.

Play Street Museum

This children’s play center was a cute and fun addition to our time in Lubbock. While Jeremy spent some time working, I took the girls to go play and adventure at a new place. This was incredibly age appropriate for both my children, they include crafts, snacks, and a take home activity in the cost of play, and had additional activities for sale. The kids asked to go back again and again!

Lubbock Premiere Lux IMAX Theater

We were in town for the release of Avatar II, so we took advantage of the free babysitting and went to the theater. Excellent, clean, lots of self service in the food section. Amazing recliner chair seating. The IMAX theater was well maintained. A great theater experience.

What we ate:

Torchy’s Tacos

IYKYK. Okay but seriously. If you love TexMex, this is a must on your list. We got hooked when we lived in Dallas, and we go to Torchy's every chance we get. Don’t forget to grab some chips and queso, and ask about their secret menu. Divine.

Slim Chickens

Chicken fingers + fries, but their own thing for sure. Their house sauce is a more traditional Texas BBQ sauce, their toast is buttery and delicious. Fresh fries + great southern desserts. We bought a full adult meal for our kids and split it for them for the cost savings.

Whip’d Pies

Think of your favorite gourmet cookie store, now replace cookies with pies. Weekly menus provide lots of fun, interesting options. We have tried several flavors over our time spent in Lubbock and we keep it on our list for every time we visit.

Raising Cane's

It can’t be the south without fried chicken. Raising Cane’s is a popular chicken + lemonade restaurant choice. Their house dipping sauce is a more peppery flavor, the chicken breading is crisp, and their fries are crinkle cut. Great lemonade.

Table 82

We found this through some of the more upscale recommendations in the area. The price point felt accurate for the dining experience. Large bar, lots of seating, and an outdoor patio that is opened based on weather + need. Excellent salmon + steak, with a lot of flexibility in dish creation. Definitely a date night spot, not kid friendly.

Ike's Woodfire Grill

A lovely bar + grill with a large menu. Excellent service, quiet private seating, a large bar space, and an outdoor patio. More pricey. We went out just the two of us while the girls stayed with Grandma + Grandpa. Excellent date night.

Braums

Great simple american style foods at a great price. Burgers, sandwiches, fries, salads, and house made ice cream. Family friendly, and has a small convenience shop built into the restaurant as well. 

McAlister’s Deli

The chicken salad here is divine. I love their soups as well. This is also very family friendly + can easily accommodate a lot of food preferences while staying on a more veggie heavy fast food experience.

Jason’s Deli

This is my favorite salad bar restaurant. Also their baked potatoes are divine and gigantic. Kid friendly options while still being high in veggies (harder in fast food finds!). Good price for a LOT of food. 

BJ’s Restaurant + Brewhouse

A bit more pricey but we ate as a larger group here so we could share around. The wings were great, as were the nachos. We tried the Asian Chopped Salad, Atlantic Salmon, Tritip Special, + 5 meat pizza. Decent kids menu, great desserts, lots of gluten free options, house made Ginger beer.

Other Tips/Tricks/Recommendations for this location:

• Lubbock is built to have a full loop around the city, making it easy to get most places quickly. While a larger city, it is still quite simple to navigate.

• Texas in general is more focused on private business and fewer city run amenities, so be aware that almost all activities will be paid activities. Because of the climate, it can also be very important to be inside a lot. Budget accordingly.

• This is a town that I would highly recommend renting a car or planning to pay for car services. Road services are not set up for walking in most places.

Overall, Lubbock is a fun family location with great food. Watch your costs as it can be a higher price location in activities, housing, + food.