New England States

Comment of the Day: George W. Bush, Texan?

​We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it's time we paid some damn attention to them. So we'll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day's work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula involv ... More >>

The Sazerac at Branch Water Tavern

​Closing your eyes and pointing to something on a cocktail menu can have amazing results. Such was the case at Branch Water Tavern a few weeks ago when I stumbled upon my new "favorite" mixed drink: the Sazerac. Before sitting down I had already enjoyed a cosmopolitan (icy cold and pale pink-- ... More >>

Jones Soda Cocktails

Chris Frankel.​Everyone likes to talk about the great presents they receive over the holidays. What often goes unmentioned is the laundry list of crappy gifts out there. You know you got them, likely from some far-flung aunt who just can't believe that anyone wouldn't want a collection of salt ... More >>

Stretch That Dining Dollar: Eat Fancy at Lunch

Photo by Kent WangEat like a prince at Da Marco (on a pauper's salary).​At Da Marco, as I ate the last, sweet bites of my antelope paillard -- the barely gamy meat pounded thin and just slightly crispy at the edges, draped with caramelized peppers and finished off with a beautiful mound of flu ... More >>

Carl Crawford Gives Davis High Academic Cred At Harvard

Carl Crawford, not discussing the history he learned at Davis​Carl Crawford, the Davis High School grad who is the Boston Red Sox' latest big-money acquisition, is giving his alma mater some serious academic credibility among his learned new neighbors. Or at least he was, for a while. A base ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 3: Rebecca Masson of Fluff Bake Bar

​Today closes out our discussion with pastry chef Rebecca Masson; for previous installments, click here and here. I had a chance to taste-test her signature petite treat: Fluffernutters and could taste the natural flavors in the peanut-butter oatmeal cookies because they weren't loaded with s ... More >>

Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar Drink

​The recent cold snap in Houston has made me nostalgic for autumn in New England and all its corresponding activities, like day tripping to Salem, Massachusetts, apple-picking, and even raking leaves (in small yards). I've also started craving foods like apple cider, and, on a recent hunt to ... More >>

Why Aren't There Any Good Conservative Comedians?

​It's a valid question, even in light of the specter of Satanism rearing its seven heads over Delaware last week. Actually, maybe that's the quick and dirty answer to my question: the reality of the Tea Party is funnier than any airplane food joke Christine O'Donnell could tell at the Improv. ... More >>

Game Time: Celtics, Feel Better -- Five Officiating Decisions That Were WAY Worse Than Kendrick Perkins' Second Technical

Sorry about that fifth down.....​It's funny, because I'm from New England, people automatically assume that I am a fan of all the Boston teams. To wit, last night as the Celtics were imploding in Orlando, my iPhone was blowing up with text messages asking if I was starting to get worried about th ... More >>

Survey Of Top Pop Culture Dogs Proves Aggies Have Skewed Priorities

​The American Kennel Club is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year, as you no doubt are well aware. (We're still discussing how best to celebrate this momentous event; "ignoring it entirely" is the current leading option.)No such anniversary can be reached without marking it by some sill ... More >>

Did You Know Houston Has Had the Same Official Song Since 1915? Maybe It's Time for a New One.

We don't know if it's the election or what - actually it's not, but bear with us - but this afternoon Rocks Off got to wondering whether or not Houston had its own official song, lyrics and music officially sanctioned and ratified to embody the Space/Bayou City's hopes and dreams. This being Housto ... More >>

Lobster Grits: A Stroke of Genius

Photos by Robb Walsh​As we reported previously, there is a glut of cheap lobster on the market. Last Thursday, I took advantage of the weak market by picking up three sea monsters for a dinner party. The prices at Hong Kong Supermarket in Bellaire Chinatown were $8.99 a pound for big lobster ... More >>

Math the Band: Don't Worry

Aftermath: Bonnie Raitt at Verizon Wireless Theater

Photos by Craig Hlavaty For someone with such a deep California/New England pedigree - daughter of Broadway/Hollywood actor John Raitt, schooled at Radcliffe and the Northeast coffeehouse '60s folk scene, now living in Northern California - Bonnie Raitt sure gets Texas music. She could almost be the ... More >>

Jandek, MV + EE

You Are Now Free To Pahk Your Cah In Boston Yahd

Logo courtesy Southwest AirlinesSouthwest Airlines is taking another step in its plan to stop being thought of as "that airline that flies only to airports no one's heard of."The airline announced today it will begin service soon to Boston's Logan Airport. Up to now, travelling to New England via So ... More >>

Local Scientists Say The Superbugs Are Coming To Get Us

Listen up people - we have run out of options. At least when we come to superbugs, if University of Texas Medical School researchers Dr. Barbara E. Murray and Dr. Cesar Ariasare to be believed. The two study infectious diseases for a living, so they should know. Their article in a recent New England ... More >>

Mississippi Has Got Our Back When It Comes To Pregnant Teens

Thank you, Mississippi!!Ably fulfilling its traditional role of letting other states off the hook, the great state of Mississippi has replaced Texas (and New Mexico) as the worst state when it comes to teen pregnancy.A new federal report released this morning shows that Mississippi has 68 births for ... More >>

An Apalachicola Christmas

Apalachicola is the premier Gulf oyster appellation. Even snobby oyster bars that normally don't include Gulf oysters feature these beauties from Northern Florida. The last time I checked, Apalachicola oysters were going for $2.25 apiece at Oceanaire Seafood in the Galleria--the same price as the pr ... More >>

Someone Has To Keep Up With the Pot Demand From HISD Teachers

Another HISD teacher's been nabbed for pot today; this time a special-ed teacher from the Harper Alternative School. This makes about 14 billion HISD teachers arrested in the last two weeks, officials estimate. (And by "officials," we mean us.)So the U.S. Department of Justice's newest National Drug ... More >>

The Shredder

One Show, One Sentence

Silver Jews Moved to Walter's Tomorrow

Capsule Stage Reviews: Electile Dysfunction, Exit the Body, Gilligan's Island, Moments in a Decade

Did You Know That The High School Pregnancy Pact Is All Juno’s Fault?

Mindless Fun

Gilligan's Island is so silly and appealing, you can only enjoy it

Poison Pen Reading Series

This monthly happening offers a sampling of Houston’s literary scene

Houston Dynamo vs. FC Dallas

Our hometown champions square off against their MLS rival

The Spiderwick Chronicles is Both a Smart Children's Fantasy and a CGI-dependent Weepie

Tangled Web

Edgar Bustillos

Painter draws on past experiences from travel, sports and politics

Stage Capsule Reviews

Our critics weigh in on local theater

Getting the Slip

Something Phishy

Magik Markers, with Lambsbread and Rusted Shut

Friday, June 30, at the Proletariat, 903 Richmond, 713-523-1199

"Fallen" for You

DJ Venom and company are ready to Go

Playbill

Reefer Madness

The government says Clayton Jones shouldn't smoke marijuana. He says it's the only thing that keeps him from blowing his brains out.

Thunder Rolls

A '60s British TV series gets an extreme makeover

Sex, Death and Oysters

Beneath the muddy waters of Galveston Bay lies one of the greatest seafood treasure troves on earth

Gem on Jones

Get to A Taste of Portugal before Tony Vallone tells everybody about it

Versed in Life

A biker poet lets her verse hang out

Repro Man

Darryl Lauster's resin antiques replicas take the art-versus-craft debate to a new level

The Bambi Syndrome

Texas is overrun with native whitetails, so why do restaurants have to buy their venison from game farms?

Shellfish Behavior

Dining ethics are more clouded when a giant lobster is involved

The Great EscApe

In two decades, Wally Swett's sanctuary has become a place of peace for primates - it's the humans that have him going bananas

Cold Comfort

Though their usefulness melted away long ago, icehouses continue to float to the surface

Outside In

Farrellys' Providence pits innocence with outrageous fun

Room with a View

Unfortunately, Mallorca doesn't offer much else

Write On

The Love Letter is a sunny romance with roots in an earlier era

Class Action

A true case offers testimony to the talents of Travolta and Duvall

Press Picks