The Round Top Antiques Fair is a design lover's, antique fanatic's, decor collector's dream come true. It is the largest antique fair in the country, filled with the best vendors America has to offer. There are three shows a year, Spring being the largest of them all. We chose to start small with the winter show so we could really get to know the vendors, and take our sweet, sweet time. Below we'll give you our best tips for where to shop, what to buy, and most importantly, where to eat. Be sure to check out our last post about where we stayed, you'll love it, we promise.
WHERE TO SHOP
Without question, your first stop should be the Big Red Barn. This is where the official Round Top Show takes place. The barn is packed with certified vendors who have curated their best pieces specially for the show. Prices are notoriously higher in the barn so we kept our purchases there small. What we did not expect upon arrival to the fair were the large amount of other shows happening within just a few miles of the official Round Top show. Everywhere you turn there is another antiques show/shop, it's the best kind of overwhelming. We highly recommend going to these smaller outside shows. Not only do they have amazing treasures, but the prices are significantly lower than those in the barn.
Our best finds by far came from the surrounding towns of Burton and Carmine. Aside from being fully obsessed with these adorable small towns, we were wowed by the huge selection of antique shops. The prices are so good you'll have a hard time believing them. These are the towns where big time antique dealers go to find rock bottom prices on incredible pieces, and purchase them to mark up. It's almost like you're shopping wholesale, and it's glorious.
Listed below are the shops where we purchased our favorite finds!
475 Texas Hwy 237 South Carmine, TX 78932
The original, with too many vendors to count. Make this your first stop to get an idea of what the quality pieces look and feel like. Get there early, it gets crowded.
http://www.roundtoptexasantiques.com/
McLaren's Antiques & Interiors
1745 N State Hwy 237 Round Top, TX 78954
HUGE warehouse full of incredible goodies. Endless vintage and antique architectural pieces, and furniture to make you swoon. Look in every nook and cranny for the smaller pieces. Great prices too!
206 S. Washington Round Top, TX 78954
An absolutely amazing store with a stunning collection of new, antique, and vintage furniture pieces. Go here to find a higher-end Texas vintage farmhouse vibe.
111 E Thigpen Dr. Carmine, TX 78932
A classic small Texas antiques shop. Go to Neese's for a lovely selection of glassware, and other treasures at great prices. Plus, Mrs. Neese sells bags of fresh pecans from her family's orchard.
108 W. Thigpen Dr. Carmine, TX 78932
A personal favorite stop of ours, and the place we bought the most from. This is a surprisingly large store packed with every sort of item you can imagine. The prices and quality cannot be matched, this place is the real deal.
106 E. Sylvan St. Carmine, TX 78932
A beautifully curated mix of old and new, run by one awesome woman. You'll find items ranging from amazing french antique architectural pieces, to adorable new accessories made locally.
12408 E. Texas St. Burton, TX 77835
Think Texas farmhouse meets Parisian flea market. We're obsessed with this store, incredibly curated, great prices, and run by a fellow girl boss. You'll want to move right into this stunning store.
WHAT TO BUY
There are endless items to buy, seriously, it was almost overwhelming. Since we traveled by air, and were shipping all of our purchases home, we tried to keep purchases on the size small side. If you're traveling by air, we recommend doing the same, everything we bought fit into one medium size FedEx box. In a dream world, we would drive a U-Haul in, and buy every piece of furniture we found. Unfortunately, we had limited time, space, and funds, so we kept everything portable.
If you're like us, and need to keep things portable, we recommend very simply buying pieces you love. We LOVE antiques, but we are by no means "collectors" or "experts", so we just go with our guts. That being said, if an item was particularly expensive we would do a quick Google search to understand a bit more about it, and decide from there.
Now, if you are driving to the show, or are willing to ship large items, get ready to SHOP. Prices are so low that it made us want to completely redecorate our homes. Furniture pieces are at least a third of the prices that we see here in Los Angeles, even at our most budget friendly stores. Architectural details were also in abundance at all the stores and shows. Vintage doors, corbels, mantels, windows, and so much more were available for the picking. We immediately started designing our imaginary Texas homes.
Take a look below at some of our favorite finds, and purchases!
WHERE TO EAT
Do you like healthy food? Do you watch what you eat? Are you a fan of clean eating? Well, TOO BAD, Texas doesn't care, and neither do we. Drop your diet, and go eat some of the best pie and BBQ we've ever tasted. Local delicacies include fried catfish, things with lots of butter and cream, and endless varieties of pie. Not to brag, but we ate 6 slices in one day...
Listed below are some of our favorite spots to chow down!
105 Main Street Round Top, TX 78954
The most popular restaurant in Round Top. Royer's serves delicious fried classics like catfish with hushpuppies. Portions are huge, so remember to save some room for pie!
https://www.facebook.com/pg/royerscafe/photos/?ref=page_internal
190 Henkel Street Round Top, TX 78954
A coffee and dessert offshoot of Royer's Round Top, Royer's pie haven serves up the most delicious pie you'll taste. Our personal favorite is the "junkberry pie", a delicious combo of berries and fruits with plenty of buttery crust.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/royerspiehaven/photos/?ref=page_internal
104 West Wantke Round Top, TX 78954
Texas cuisine with a Los Angeles twist, come to Feed & Firewater for a delicious non-fried meal. This restaurant serves more "refined" food, and even has vegetarian friendly options.
http://www.thegardencoandcafe.com/
115 East Thigpen Dr. Carmine, TX 78932
Come to The Pie Shack for a delicious burger or sandwich, and a slice of pie. This tiny bungalow serves up tasty small town eats that are sure to satisfy your cravings.
https://www.facebook.com/ThePieShack.Carmine/
1602 N. Jefferson St. La Grange, TX 78945
A bit further out than the other restaurants, Back Porch BBQ is well worth the drive. Come here for some incredible Texas BBQ, and a diet Dr. Pepper. The brisket was absolutely delicious.
https://www.facebook.com/thebackporchbbq/