Garden Oaks

Aftermath: Jana Hunter and Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez at the Petrol Station

120 HISD Schools To Open Tuesday -- UPDATED

Green Horns

Naderites have got the art car crowd and ample altruistic ardor. But they're still searching for a sporting chance.

Class War

The "neighborhood school" concept is a simple one. But not in River Oaks.

The Insider

The "neighborhood school" concept is a simple one. But not in River Oaks.

National Pie Day: Do Your Part and Have a Slice

You may not know it, but today is National Pie Day (at least according to the folks at the American Pie Council, which, by the way...sweet gig!).  It's the 23rd anniversary of the venerated holiday, which was created -- appropriately, if rather disgustingly, enough -- to commem ... More >>

Dish

You may not know it, but today is National Pie Day (at least according to the folks at the American Pie Council, which, by the way...sweet gig!).  It's the 23rd anniversary of the venerated holiday, which was created -- appropriately, if rather disgustingly, enough -- to commem ... More >>

The Last Photo Show

You may not know it, but today is National Pie Day (at least according to the folks at the American Pie Council, which, by the way...sweet gig!).  It's the 23rd anniversary of the venerated holiday, which was created -- appropriately, if rather disgustingly, enough -- to commem ... More >>

Megascreen Cinemas March In

Big complexes threaten end to neighborhood era

Letters

Big complexes threaten end to neighborhood era

Draught Dodger

Big complexes threaten end to neighborhood era

Best Bus Stop

Outside Sears

Fight the Power

Could there be a fun, pro-music political action committee in Houston? Why the hell not?

Fit or Fat, Houston?

Could there be a fun, pro-music political action committee in Houston? Why the hell not?

Music to Cover Your Eyes To

Houstonian Nick DiFonzo has one of the world's finest collections of bad album covers

Landmark Fajitas

What you order at Herrera's Mexicatessen depends on how you feel about bacon

Best Skate and Bike Park

Dirtwood Ramp Park

Best Pie

Flying Saucer Pie Company

SMOM-my Dearest

Sound Exchange's David Wilcox hopes to plant a Montrosian colony in the Second Ward

No Mo' Pogo

Time to say "ska-dios" to the Suspects; also, the Music Awards jinx strikes again

Kick Out the Jammies

Not even a baby boom can sidetrack Sugar Shack's garage-punk express

Pursuing Jerry

A former prosecutor finds it was easier to investigate ethically challenged officials than to run against one

Aftermath (Literally): Area Musicians Remember the Days Following Hurricane Ike - "You Could Smell Rotten Stuff About 13 Miles Away from the Causeway"

Bill OliveSilver Jews (and some very grateful fans) at Walter's on Washington, September 18, 2008​Rocks Off originally meant to post this on Friday, but one thing led to another and if memory serves, on September 14, 2008, we were still without power, living out of an ice chest and wondering what ... More >>

Dive Bars

A handcrafted tour of the best, most obscure places to lean on a stool in Houston.

Caffeine Deficiency? Call the Coffee Ambulance

​Katz Coffee Company just bought a new "Transit" van and outfitted it with flashing safety lights and a wacky paint job. They call this high-profile delivery vehicle "the coffee ambulance." Katz custom-roasts proprietary blends for some of Houston's top restaurants, including t'afia, benjy's ... More >>

Year of the Meatball: Doyle's "Spaghetti Works"

​If there is an iconic meatball in Houston, it must be one served on top of he spaghetti at Doyle's on 34th Street in Garden Oaks between Ella and T.C. Jester. Opened in 1954, Doyle's was one of the first restaurants in the city to offer pizza. But what really brought generations of Houstonian ... More >>

Debutantes Run Wild Gala

Track suits and tuxes, garter belts and gowns, it's all okay at this DiverseWorks fundraiser

HISD Employs Shazam-You're-a-Magnet Strategy In Effort To Save Schools

Photo by Margaret Downing​Under a proposal unveiled today by Superintendent Terry Grier and his staff, Jones High School, for years now one of the most academically troubled schools in the Houston school district, will be turned into a science, technology, engineering and math magnet with a specia ... More >>

Garden Oaks Comments Live On in Cyberspace (Updated)

The question as to whether Garden Oaks Elementary, now a neighborhood school split between traditional and Montessori classes, should be turned into an all-Montessori school lit up the comment line on the HISDConnect magnet department website a few days ago. And what's happened to all the comments ... More >>

HISD's Very Own Blackboard Jungle

​Fondren Middle School is "a blackboard jungle. The efforts that are required there are Herculean...The kids at Fondren have to learn how to come to school and where the school is located."Trustee Larry Marshall, not known for mincing words when he considers something unacceptable (famous Larr ... More >>

Long, Loud And Raw Houston School Board Meeting Leaves Few Happy

It wasn't quite like this at last night's HISD board meeting, but it was close​In a lengthy and tumultuous school board meeting Thursday night, trustees voted 8-1 to fire Principal Mable Caleb and five other administrators and teachers from the Key/Kashmere mess, approved another 170 employe ... More >>

Sole Of Houston: And We Are Back, This Time On Two Wheels

Biking and no beer​David Beebe was back in town for a short time, so we put the band back together for an epic adventure in the streets of H-Town. We will have a full account here later in the week after Beebe uploads his pics to Flickr, but for now we'll tease with a few details... We didn't wa ... More >>

The Five Most Underrated Neighborhoods In Houston

This convent is a landmark in Idylwood​Everyone knows THE places to be in Houston. It's just a question of which one fits your taste (and wallet).River Oaks, the Heights, Montrose, Bellaire -- everyone knows those places. But Houston is so vast, so unpredictable, that little bubbles of terrific ne ... More >>

Health Inspector Tells Natachee's Beloved Horse to "Giddy Up"

Lacy, the famed Natachee's horse, nuzzles up to owner Jerry Don Luco. ​ Jerry Don Luco, co-owner of Natachee's Supper & Punch, is a cowboy. He's got the hat, the boots, an endless supply of quirky Southern idioms, and like any good cowboy, Jerry has a horse. Her name is Lacy, and she's quickly ... More >>

Pegging Plonk

A neighborhood wine bar that's hard to categorize

Top It Off

Petrol Station gives Garden Oaks full-service charm.

The Most Disappointing Restaurant Openings of 2010

Gnashing of teeth and rending of clothes accompanied news that we'd no longer be able to enjoy Sabetta's homemade sausage and peppers.​This week, we start our countdown of 2010 restaurant openings and closings, counting down the restaurants that opened in 2010 after great advance buzz only to ... More >>

Drink Up, Texas

Sunday liquor sales to close budget gap.

Burger and an Oil Change at Facundo Cafe

Photos by Katharine ShilcuttI want this burger all over again.​Listen up, because I'm making your lunch plans for you right now: Drive over to Ella, just outside the Loop, and pull in to the Dr. Gleem car wash. Yes, the one with the palapas out front. Get your car's oil changed, or get it det ... More >>

Tunnel Explorer: Miller's Cafe

​My last trip into the fabulous world below the world yielded little but confusion and disappointment. I'm beginning to believe that the tunnels are just one large, subterranean cavern of "meh." I descended again last week in search of something delicious to eat, and found Miller's Café. I w ... More >>

5 Food Trends to Watch For in Houston

F*** yeah, gourmet donuts.​Eater ran a list yesterday of 10 food trends that are -- at least in New York City -- officially dead. Among them included the obvious (the gastropub), the non-events (pie as the new cupcakes, which still hasn't happened) and the debatable (I'm pretty sure Houstonian ... More >>

Songs About Houses, Castles, Mansions, Shacks, And Apartments (And Yurts)

​In Rocks Off's seemingly never-ending quest to live alone, we have been looking at Craigslist listings (so, that's where you got the idea for that blog!), getting help from a realtor friend, and driving aimlessly around the neighborhoods surrounding our office. We have even thought of buying ... More >>

RIP Gay Montrose? Community Members Say Yes, No and Maybe So

According to some, Montrose is seeing fewer rainbows these days.​Montrose's "gayborhood" status is officially over. Or it's just like it has been for the past five to ten years. It depends on who you ask. Hair Balls recently spoke with various movers and shakers of the neighborhood's GLBT co ... More >>

Openings & Closings: Shepherd on Draft

​Anyone who may have mourned the passing of Octane -- the coffee shop-cum-cafe in Garden Oaks -- will be pleased as punch to hear what's taking its place: Shepherd Park Draft House, a "pub/restaurant" which fills as much of a niche as Octane attempted to do. The bar will be located at 3402 N. ... More >>

One Year Later: Plonk Doesn't Need No Stinking Sign

​When I reviewed Plonk a year ago, I mentioned that the wine bar didn't have any signage to speak of -- not even above their endcap space in a Garden Oaks strip center. I got lost heading there for the first time, and all of my dining companions did too. Last night, and one year later, my fri ... More >>

The Rest of the Best: Houston's Top 5 Hidden Treasures

Photo by Troy FieldsScallops and grits at our No. 1 pick.​For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2011 Best of Houston® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, in which the winner had heft ... More >>

Rogelio Martinez: Police Seeking Allegedly Unrepentant Habitual Burglar

Photo by HPDRogelio Martinez: Not bashful about his work​In recent months the near-northwest neighborhoods of the Heights, Timbergrove Manor, Oak Forest and Garden Oaks have been plagued with daylight home burglaries. Sadly, even after police have smashed one such ring of thieves, another cont ... More >>

Health Department Roundup

Photo by Katharine ShilcuttDon't sweat it, girl, Torchy's has been tested and it's totally clean.​This week people across the country will remember just how much cooking can suck. Imagine being a chef or restaurateur, trying to cook for many more diners than the average Thanksgiving party. And ... More >>

Bartender Chat: Mimi of Shepherd Park Draught House

​This week we hopped on over to Garden Oaks to check out Shepherd Park Draught House. We had heard good things so we went in with high expectations and weren't let down. It's a pretty cool little spot with a rock & roll vibe, one long wall lined with red leather booths and retro chandeliers h ... More >>