When I first flew IFR to Dallas (Addison, KADS to be precise) in 2014, I spent a good amount of time studying Denver's and Dallas' STARs and DPs. Same with Houston and even Tulsa. I had my procedures picked out by which ones came closest to approximating a direct route. I have almost always filed a procedure if an appropriate one is available because I know that if I don't, at least in Class B cities, I'm getting a DP (or an annoying full route clearance) anyway.
It used to be a moderate to large PITA to review all the procedures in FF to figure out which ones to use on arrival and departure. Their procedure planner made that a lot easier IMHO. (They could make it easier still by separating all those "Turbojet Only" procedures.)
But the point is that when you fly IFR into big cities you do yourself a huge favor by becoming familiar with the procedures there.