I've never been the scenic route, but as a general rule, scenic also means "less developed". You'll likely see less rest stops and gas stations along the way. If I've never been a particular route before, I usually do some pretty detailed planning to see where the rest stops are, gas stations I can get in/out of, etc. I typically travel up through Madisonville to Nacogdoches, then on to Bossier City a few times a year. It's a scenic drive and the first time through, I was looking for someplace to stop every time I had half a tank left. Now that I know the route, I typically stop at locations I know. If you do take the scenic route, you may want to carry an extra 5 gallon tank with you in case you find yourself running low on gas in the middle of nowhere.
Can't go wrong going through Fort Worth. 45 North isn't a bad drive, and if you stay on 20 going through Ft Worth, you should be fine. Just try not to hit Dallas/Fort Worth anytime after 3:00 PM. Traffic still moves, but there's a lot more of it.
What am I saying... You live in Houston---the home of every crazy driver in Texas! Well...except for those you guys push over our way.