It's nothing but New Year's right now, as Houston restaurants and bars throw elbows to get you to spend that special night with them and them alone. The Four Seasons Hotel is offering one of our favorite packages this year in case you want to get all glammed up to ring in the 2013.
Starting with dinner at 6:30 p.m. at Quattro, chef Maurizio Ferrarese will be serving a five-course dinner that kicks off with a glass of bubbly for $85 a person. Dinner will be done by 8:30 p.m. in case you have somewhere else to be, but for those who want to stick around...there's a separate dinner that starts at 8:30 p.m. This is the gala dinner, served in seven courses, and accompanied by live music from the popular Ira Perez & Band all night long. Dancing is encouraged between courses and you'll have a champagne toast at midnight.
The cost for the seven-course gala dinner is $155 a person, and includes a special offer to stay in an executive suite at the Four Seasons for only $150 for the night. And even if you don't do dinner, consider booking a VIP table in the Lobby Lounge where Adam & Sunjay will be singing hits from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. If you're sticking around till the morning, Quattro's famed brunch - usually only served on Sundays - will greet you from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for $65 a person. Naturally, the Bloody Mary Bar will also be up and running in case all that ringing in has left your ears still ringing.
Want to celebrate New Year's Eve with a fancy dinner, but don't feel like braving the traffic in town? Here are a few options outside the Loop.
Killen's Steakhouse in Pearland is offering a special steak-centric dinner on December 31 starting at 5 p.m. - and you get to choose the courses. The four-course meal is $80 a person and includes options such as jumbo lump crab cakes or Gulf shrimp cocktail to start, sauteed snapper or seared ahi tuna, a huge selection of wet-aged and dry-aged beef and even choices like sous-vide short ribs, venison chops and Berkshire pork chops. For dessert, Killen's will offer carrot cake and chocolate truffle cheesecake, but we recommend the house special: crème brulee bread pudding. Reservations are required.
Both Mia Bella locations -- in Sugar Land and in Cypress, at Vintage Park -- will be offering two New Year's Eve dinners the night of December 31. The first, from 5 to 8:30 p.m., features three courses and will get you to your NYE parties on a full stomach for $49.95 per person. The second starts at 9:30 p.m. and includes live music and a champagne toast at midnight along with your three courses, for $59.95 a person. Reservations are required for both.
Finally, chef Teresa Tadeo Wittman will be celebrating at her restaurant, Fratelli's Authentic Italian Cuisine, with a five-course, prix-fixe menu served from 5 p.m. until after midnight For $39 a person, you'll enjoy dishes such as fresh Gulf flounder topped with crabmeat and a Béchamel sauce and Ricotta-spinach gnocchi baked in a creamy porcini mushroom sauce - as well as glass of sparkling wine at midnight. There will even be complimentary party hats, noisemakers and other party favors for those who stay to welcome the New Year. Reservations are encouraged.