Best Place to Hang Out with Local Rock Stars

Poison GirlLittle more than a hole-in-the-hot-pink-wall of a lower Westheimer strip center -- and a brand-new hole at that -- Poison Girl has quickly become the it spot for Houston's Inner Loop punk, indie and hard rock crowd. Not as downright scary as Lola's, nor as off-puttingly hipsterish as the Proletariat, nor as intimidating to newcomers as cliquish Rudyard's, Goldilocks (that original Poison Girl) would find this place just right. The Saint Arnold's is muy affordable; the jukebox is stocked with every variety of Texas music from the Geto Boys to Bob Wills; there's pinball for the wizards; and out back, there's a verdant patio that somehow whisks you away from the urban grit of Darkest Montrose to the wide-open spaces of Austin or the Hill Country. And maybe this bar will keep more musicians from moving to that band-thieving, so-called Live Music Capital of the World -- these days a drink on the back patio is like quaffing a couple in the green room at the Press Music Awards. On one recent midweek night, we spotted members of about a dozen local bands clinking glasses and gossiping about one another. No, there's no stage, and this isn't a music venue, but it is where the musicians really play.