Best of Houston

For most of us, table tennis (it was called Ping-Pong in our day) was a game best played in the rec room with Uncle Charlie and a few of your Little League team buddies. One visit to the Houston Table Tennis Center on West Bellfort, and you'll realize just how far this little game has come. With 24 tournament-caliber tables, a pro shop and a lounge complete with pool tables, this place is the center of the world for table tennis mavens. While rank amateurs can play for $6 an hour or $8 a day, you also are likely to see some of the finest practitioners of the game flailing away at the little white ball with as much intensity as Pete Sampras at Wimbledon. The center hosts regular tournaments and provides coaches who can teach you how to execute shots like spinny loops, defensive chops and fast counter drives. But you'd better tell Uncle Charlie to at least put on a shirt without mustard stains.