Photo gallery & review: Thursday nights at Nasher Sculture Garden

by Sarah Hall

DALLAS — Whether you love art, sculpture, shopping, yoga, the outdoors, movies, sketching, music, or good food -- there’s a place for you at the Nasher Sculpture Gardens on Thursday nights. Nasher is offering free admission on Thursdays, with July 30 as the last free day. I went to check out what makes this such a good deal.

I arrived at 5 p.m. and found a parking spot right outside the entrance –- score! After walking through the sculptures inside, I browsed the tempting (yet expensive) gift store. There was, however, a 50% off table that caught my eye, but I held off since a little birdie told me come Saturday it’ll be 65% off.

Yoga in the garden started at 6 p.m. I welcomed the cooling drizzle and overcast clouds as the instructor challenged her yogis to go deeper and deeper into each pose. It was quite obvious I was a newbie since I didn’t bring a yoga mat or towel, and by the end of the session I was covered in dirt and grass. Thank goodness I brought a change of clothes! My thirst was quenched by a free water bottle handout, traded for a quick survey about Thursdays at Nasher.

After working up a healthy appetite from yoga, the Nasher Cafe, catered by Wolfgang Puck, seemed like the perfect solution. I ordered the cheapest sandwich on the menu, the grilled vegetable panini with an iced tea. So much for “free” Thursdays -- dinner totaled $12.50. It was delicious though: The herbed foccacia bread on the sandwich was perfectly soft and warm. DJ Jeff Mitchell of the Phonophreaks was spinning lounge music that made the whole scene that much cooler.

On July 30, the last free Thursday at Nasher, the film Grapes of Wrath will be playing downstairs in the Nasher Hall. For the regular admission price of $10 for adults, Saturday Night in the City features the band Cuvae on August 1 as they play in the garden.