The Old Mill Inn, 90 years old, looks almost as good as new. State Fair concessionaire Isaac Rousso and his wife Lily Rousso are using it as a bar and restaurant in September and October 2026; then, they hope to host special events here.
Angela Piazza/The Dallas Morning News
Dallasites who want to get tangled up in the State Fair of Texas’ “crazy fun,” concessionaire Isaac Rousso said, will find games, food and fun for 24 days in Fair Park.
“If you like wonderful wines and great charcuterie boards?” Rousso smiles, standing inside the air-conditioned, renovated Old Mill Inn. “Come in here.”
He’s not judging which environment is better — and he operates nine other concession stands whose staffers will take your coupons in exchange for fair-ified treats like cotton candy bacon. But let’s say you like cocktails and Champagne. Maybe you’re not much for the Texas heat.
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I never thought I’d say this, but the new Old Mill Inn is kinda fancy.
Built in 1936, the Old Mill is one of Dallas’ oldest restaurants, by far. Dallasites once drove into Fair Park year-round to drink and eat at the Old Mill Inn.
“Back in the early ’80s, it was a vibe,” Rousso said.
The historic building isn’t visible from the streets that surround Fair Park, making it a tall order to attract fans in fair off-season to an aging structure in the middle of a concrete jungle. Tenants previously hosted destination events like murder mystery dinners, but the Old Mill Inn has mostly sat there, alone, for decades.
It suffered water damage following the 2021 freeze, and an executive with Fair Park First promised the historic building wouldn’t be torn down. Could somebody make it cool, some wondered?
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It’s the only building on Fair Park grounds with a liquor license — a good opportunity to make money, if only someone could figure out how to get people to go.
Restaurant owner and concessionaire Isaac Rousso pours Eagle Rare 12 year-old bourbon over at the Old Mill Inn. This building is the only location inside State Fair of Texas grounds that sells hard liquor; others with alcoholic drinks serve beer or wine-based cocktails.
Angela Piazza/The Dallas Morning News
It’s a prime location during the State Fair, as the Old Mill Inn sits a hundred feet or so from Big Tex’s left boot. Rousso took it over just before the FIFA Fan Fest in summer 2026, testing it out as a concessions area for soccer fans.
“When it became possible to take over the Old Mill Inn,” Rousso said, “I’m like, ‘Am I crazy?’ ”
It wouldn’t be the first time he’s heard it in the nearly 20 years he’s been a State Fair concessionaire, dreaming up over-the-top food like his Deep-Fried Cuban Roll, still a bestseller since it won “best taste” in 2013.
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Rousso runs the Magnolia Beer Garden next door to the Old Mill Inn. He felt a duty to the dusty two-story building that helped define the neighborhood nearly 100 years ago.
“This is really about the love of Fair Park,” he said.
His Old Mill Inn renovation includes a redone patio with potted flowers aplenty and bright red umbrellas welcoming guests. A new “viewing deck” in a shaded, turfed area flanks the main walking path near Big Tex. Rousso’s favorite seat is in the corner, where he gets a front-row seat when Big Tex bellows “Howdy, folks!”
Ty Trafford opens a bottle of wine behind a charcuterie tray at Old Mill Inn in Fair Park.
Angela Piazza/The Dallas Morning News
Inside and out, the Old Mill’s bars serve cocktails quickly, on tap, such as aperol spritzes, ranch water and old-fashioneds.
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While others walk in the heat eating fried whatever, diners at the Old Mill Inn can order fancy-for-the-fair snacks like garlic Parmesan fries and a grilled chicken wrap alongside a bottle of white wine served in an ice bucket. The bacon jam Wagyu on a brioche bun might make visitors forget they’re dining in the middle of one of the biggest fall festivals in the country.
Keep drinking and stay awhile, Rousso says: A big TV screen outside will show football games.
But what happens when the cowboy rides away at the end of the State Fair and the Old Mill Inn is still there, but mostly invisible? Rousso wants to use it as a year-round wedding venue or private event space.
He won’t promise it’s a slam dunk yet. But if anybody could make Dallasites love Fair Park in the off-season, it might be one of its most charismatic concessionaires.
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“I believe, in time, this place will have the glory it did before,” he said.
The Old Mill Inn is at 3611 Grand Ave., Dallas. Open for lunch and dinner. If you’re visiting during the State Fair of Texas, the closest entrance is at Gate 5.
Ty Trafford and restaurant owner Lily Rousso walk through the bar at the renovated Old Mill Inn, back open as of mid-2026.
Angela Piazza/The Dallas Morning News