The Downtown Aquarium

Seafood restaurants are probably the only ones where you can see the relatives of what you're eating. In some cases, you can even pick which lil' critter will end up on your plate. Why aren't there any steak houses with grazing cattle in the parking lot? Why don't KFCs have a chicken coop on display? While you can't pick out the tastiest-looking lobster at the Downtown Aquarium, you can view lots of them and more than 200 other species of sea life. Houston native Tilman J. Fertitta, founder of the Landry's chain of seafood restaurants, concocted the restaurant/lounge/ballroom/ attraction/public aquarium. With 500,000 gallons of themed aquatic exhibits, including a 100,000-gallon aquarium in the main restaurant, you can eat swordfish or sip a sex on the beach while watching sea turtles, alligators and electric eels.