How Lou Reed Walked on the Wild Side…and Stayed There
Dirty Blvd.: The Life and Music of Lou Reed By Aiden Levy Chicago Review Press, 416 pp. $28.95. There is no such thing as a fan of “Lou Reed music.” That’s simply because there is nothing near any uniformity within his discography. Over the course of Reed’s career, the late singer-songwriter freely…
Metalcore Bands are Going Mainstream, and It’s Painful
Everyone is selling out all the time. Henry Rollins once said, “do you have any idea what some of these bands went through to make that music? The fact that there might be some money for them all these years later is great. You think that paycheck is in anyway…
Five More Ugly Guitars Famous Rock Stars Played
Part of the appeal of most rock stars is that they are larger-than-life characters who seem to be able to get away with style choices that would get anyone else laughed at. As we’ve discussed previously, rock guitarists in particular are a colorful bunch, and their choices in instruments often…
10 Best Restaurants in Midtown Houston
Honorable Mention: Fluff Bake Bar, 314 Gray Fluff Bake Bar is more of a bakery than a restaurant but it’s a must-visit Midtown establishment. There’s a small but surprisingly astute wine program and the staff can help guide guests to good choices for pairing with desserts. Even people who don’t…
The 5 Best Things to Do in Houston This Weekend: Texas Ren Fest & More
“I confess an addiction to pop art,” says Catherine Anspon, curator of the Houston Center for Photography’s exhibit “This Side of Paradise,” which has one of its two opening receptions on Friday. With a focus on Texas artists, the show, she promises, offers a wide range of pop art. [Viewers will]…
Out of This World Desserts From Out of a Gourd at Urban Eats
Although there have always been a plethora of lovely pumpkin dishes to try in Houston, the merry chefs at Urban Eats have unveiled a truly remarkable line-up for squash-infused confections, beginning with the luscious Pumpkin White Chocolate Mouse and Ginger Snap Parfait (46). With alternating crispy and supple layers of pumpkin mousse made…
Burger King Debuts Halloween Whopper
Finally, we have caught up the good people of the Land of the Rising Sun. Since 2014 Japanese Burger King locations have offered customers not one but TWO black burgers featuring black buns and cheese colored with bamboo charcoal, leaving American fans to wonder what we did wrong to be…
5 Breakfast-for-Dessert Dishes You Need to Try in Houston
Humble breakfast items like waffles, doughnuts and croissants are too often relegated to the early hours of the day where my tastebuds are often feeling a little delicate to take a massive hit of sugar. These sugary breakfast items are taking back the night in truly divine desserts all around…
100 Favorite Houston Dishes 2015, No. 52: Green Curry at Asia Market
Phaedra Cook is eating her way through Houston and counting down her 100 favorite dishes of 2015. It’s a collection of personal favorites that is also indicative of Houston dining. It’s a scene where a vast range of dishes coexist: highbrow and lowbrow; local and international; cheap and expensive; modern…
Red Bull Flying Bach Spins Into Houston for the First Time
We gave Red Bull Flying Bach dancer Uwe Donaubauer, a South African, an impossible task: Name the one moment that’s the highlight in the show. “There’s so many!” he tells us. “At some points, there are unbelievable movements; at some other points, there is a lot of humor. So throughout…
Vice Never Tasted So Good: Smashburger’s “Sin City” Burger
Bad news for those who get their kicks by ordering off Smashburger’s secret menu: you can no longer feel like a cool kid by ordering the clandestine “Sin City Burger.” But that’s good news for those who value transparency in the terms of a restaurant’s complete offerings, which I estimate…
Dear Phil Owen: WTF Is RIGHT With Video Games
Phil Owen has a new book out called WTF is Wrong With Video Games in which he talks about how video games have failed to reached the artistic level they should have after the Supreme Court ruled them as protected free speech similar to books and movies in 2011. Polygon…
The Mighty Sword Heads for New Ground on ‘High Country’
For years now, the Sword has served as something of a standard-bearer for Texas heavy metal. The Austin group’s epic, throwback riffage made a big splash upon their debut in 2006, and they’ve been trotting the globe ever since, preaching vintage distortion and high fantasy over three more well received…
Deconstructing Top Food Categories of the 2015 Best Of Houston Awards
By now, you know the “whos” and “wheres” of our Best Of awards, but here are the “whys” behind some of the biggest categories. As always, there were many worthy contenders and the decisions were quite difficult. That is as it should be. Houston needs excellent, ambitious restaurants to continue…
Explaining Grownup Music to Kids: Motown & the Rise of ’60s Soul
Adam P. Newton recently became a father for the first time, so he has decided to explain the entirety of post-WWII Western pop music to his new daughter, “Fig”…one genre at a time. What’s going on, Fig? Things are really heating up on the pop charts these days. This list…
The Dicks From Texas: A Punk Band That Actually Scared People
Deep in the heart of rose-scented Texas, amid the leafy collegiate blocks and despite the barrooms spinning cosmic cowboys, Austin developed a sense of punk that at times seemed every bit as warped, electrifying and venomous as the Sex Pistols. Some of the names were unassuming — Standing Waves, the…
Can’t Feel My Feet, but ACL Fest Weekend One Felt Just Fine
Austin City Limits Music Festival, Weekend One Zilker Park October 2-4, 2015 Since 2002, the fall music festival held inside Austin’s Zilker Park has been a ritual for many Texans. This is our Lollapalloza, our Coachella. Maybe not as hip or cool, but that’s all right with us. This is…
Report: Antiabortion Law Leads to Longer Wait Times at Clinics
When you pass a law that, in one fell swoop, shutters half the abortion clinics in a state the size of Texas, one pretty obvious consequence is that women seeking the procedure might have to wait longer to get an appointment at the clinics that did manage to keep their…
8th Dimension Fosters a New, Diverse Generation of Comic Enthusiasts
The stereotypical image of a comic book store customer is a male adult who still lives at home with his parents and may not have entirely grasped the need for regular hygiene. It’s an idea that’s even perpetuated by shows that celebrate geekdom, like The Big Bang Theory. Every time…
Restaurants From All Over Want Rancher Felix Florez’s Humanely Raised Meat
On a clear August night at Haak Vineyards & Winery, a dressy crowd gathered in a pavilion for an unusual kind of charity auction: a pig butchery demonstration and meat auction. The sale benefited Alvin Community College’s culinary arts program. Students in chef whites hovered nearby, assisting the butcher as…
Harwood Grill Has Its Charms, but the Kitchen Needs to Get Its Act Together
Harwood Grill’s way to the hearts of Houston diners might be through its chicken-fried steak. The restaurant specializes in Akaushi sourced from HeartBrand Beef in Harwood, Texas — hence the name. Harwood has swapped skirt steak for the traditional cube steak, and it works just beautifully. The Akaushi skirt is…
GONZO247 Is the Reason Houston Will Have the First Graffiti Museum in the Country
It’s two or three in the morning, and the quiet of the night has a 13-year-old kid by the name of Mario Enrique Figueroa Jr. on high alert. He’s positioned himself in an alley behind a convenience store in Houston’s East End and he’s prepared to outrun anyone in uniform…
Doctor Who: A Return to Classic Form
Let me just start off saying that this experiment in Season 9 where we do things so far exclusively in two-parters is really, really good. It’s like Steven Moffat has honestly resurrected the best parts of the classic serial era, and Rassilon knows “Under the Lake” feels as much like…
Harden 2.0: How James Harden Became Houston’s Biggest Crossover Sports Celebrity
In the NBA’s financial ecosystem, with the league’s booming popularity and a media-rights deal that is set to double its television revenue in a couple of years, true greatness is not a requirement for a player to get paid the maximum allowable dollars under the league’s cap system. Being merely…
This Week in Houston Food Blogs: October Means Witchcraft and Candied Applies
This week, we’ve got some unusual recipes, plus reviews of a great burger, the revised menu at a spooky bar and a new barbecue location. Charred romaine salad sounds and looks fancy, but the Pancake Princess assures us that it’s very doable. Drizzle some tahini-ginger dressing on top and people…
6 Things Hardcore Gun Rights Supporters Argue After a Mass Shooting
There are few issues more divisive in this country than the continued disagreement over what causes gun violence. Lately it seems like mass shootings are occurring so frequently that they’ve become regular events. Here we are in the aftermath of yet another mass murder committed by an angry young man…
Coming Home Is What the Movies Were Made For
In the mid-twentieth century, movie audiences understood the value of a good melodrama: A picture like Now, Voyager or Black Narcissus or almost anything by Douglas Sirk could be an urn into which you could pour your own unarticulated feelings of loss and loneliness. The heightened, unrealistic intensity of those…
The Martian Is Confident Sci-Fi but Lacking in Poetry
Desperation, anxiety, stubbornly saying yes to survival: If grand struggles are your thing, there are plenty in Ridley Scott’s The Martian, based on Andy Weir’s popular novel, which was first self-published in 2011 and then picked up by Crown in 2014 — itself a rare seedling that took root against…
Five Thoughts on Stonewall‘s Horribleness.
1. “He meant well,” a ticket-buyer said, shuffling miserably out of a Thursday-night screening of Roland Emmerich’s calamitous Stonewall. “That’s got to count for something.” I don’t think that’s true. If those good intentions had counted, they might have inspired Emmerich not to trust himself to helm this fictionalized recounting…
Texas Textbooks Become Embarrassing National News. Again.
Last week, when Coby Burren opened the textbook assigned to his ninth grade geography class at Pearland High School, he turned to a map highlighting the immigrant makeup of the United States with this accompanying text: “The Atlantic Slave Trade between the 1500s and 1800s brought millions of workers from…
Texans Still Missing From the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
When the list of nominees eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2016 is released sometime today, the announcement will probably be met with a resounding “who cares?” This chorus will come from young people who see Green Day as a classic-rock band, disgruntled Nine Inch…
Bad Moon Rising Couldn’t Keep John Fogerty Down
Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music By John Fogerty Little, Brown; 416 pp.; $30 As the lead singer and guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival, John Fogerty was hit-writing machine in the late 1960s and early ‘70s. But anybody going to a Fogerty solo show for most of the ‘80s and ‘90s…
Mark Austin: Behind-the-Scenes Champion of Houston’s Music Scene
“I didn’t want my tombstone to say, ‘This dude was an average accountant, and then he died.’” Mark Austin of The Convoy Group doesn’t do interviews. Most music managers don’t. They’re too busy shining the spotlight on other people to worry too much about their personal brand. There’s not a…
Bun B, Mayor Parker Christen the In-Progress ‘New’ Fitzgerald’s In Style
A lot of questions were on my mind Saturday when walking up to Fitzgerald’s grand reopening. What had become of the classic venue? Was it in capable hands that could deliver high-caliber shows? Those questions were put to rest as Bun B ushered in a new era for the music…
College Football, Week 5 — 4 Winners, 4 Losers
I will admit that, as I write this on Sunday morning, I have only seen highlights of the night games on Saturday, as I was attending the UFC 192 card at Toyota Center on Saturday night (always a good time, UFC never disappoints in person). I was following some of…
Rice Owls Embarrassed by Western Kentucky, Give a New Meaning to Ineptitude
The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers couldn’t have asked for a better, more gracious host than the Rice Owls on Saturday afternoon. Rice gave the Hilltoppers the run of Rice Stadium, letting the team go wherever it wanted, whenever it wanted, unimpeded, without need of escort, for the entire day. And Western…
Dish of the Week: Dolmades (Stuffed Grape Leaves)
From classic comfort foods to regional standouts and desserts, we’ll be sharing a new recipe with you each week. Find other dishes of the week here. This week, we’ll be sharing a recipe inspired by this past weekend’s Greek Fest: Dolmades. From the Turkish verb dolmak meaning “to be stuffed”…
Twenty One Pilots Pack Plenty of Punch in Biggest Houston Stop Yet
Twenty One Pilots Revention Music Center October 2, 2015 Saturday marked my third Twenty One Pilots concert. The Ohio-born duo returned to Houston in support of their new record, Blurryface, selling out a newly minted Revention Music Center in the wake of their chart-topping fourth studio album’s success. Leading up…
Killen’s, Coltivare, Holley’s and More Land Coveted Houston Culinary Awards
The 2015 Houston Culinary Awards, hosted by My Table magazine was held at The Houstonian last night and 25 awards were handed out, as well as the annual Legends Of Houston Restaurants award. The ceremony, a veritable “who’s who” in the Houston restaurant and bar industry, had more than 300 attendees…
Ten-Year Wait Is Over, Houston Astros Are in the MLB Playoffs
Ten years, multiple 100 loss seasons, an ownership change, a transfer to the American League, and hundreds of games that appeared to be played before friends and family only. It was a baseball version of Andy Dufresne’s trip through the shit-smelling drainpipe in Shawshank Redemption that I wouldn’t wish upon my…
Advances in DNA Testing Could Put Thousands of Texas Cases in Legal Limbo
Five days after a Houston woman was raped by two men, she was driving down the street when she spotted 16-year-old Josiah Sutton. She thought she recognized his hat, and then immediately identified him as one of her attackers. Claiming his innocence, Sutton obligingly provided investigators blood and saliva samples—but months…
Sexual Chemistry Flies Like Bullets in Bonnie & Clyde
The set up: Confession time, I’ve never seen Arthur Penn’s 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde. Despite the egregious historical pop culture black hole this puts me in (I can already hear the film buffs sharpening their appalled missives at me) you have to have lived under a rock not to…
This Week in Houston Food Events: Southern Smoke Is Finally Here
All Month Long Berryhill’s Monthly Taco This month’s special taco is The Tailgater, a flour tortilla stuffed to the gills with chorizo, pork meatballs, braised cabbage, sautéed onions, cheese, cilantro and chipotle mustard. You can find it at any Berryhill Baja Grill this month for just $4.25. Tex-Mex for Charity…
The Most Disappointing Food Drop-off Ever at the Houston Press
We get a lot of food dropped off at the Houston Press newsroom and we enjoy nearly all of it. Sometimes it’s from people promoting their new menu, restaurant opening or upcoming event. Sometimes it’s in honor of a special food day. Sometimes we don’t exactly know why they’re feeding…
NFL Week 4: Falcons 48, Texans 21 — 4 Winners, 4 Losers
Well, that sucked. From the Ryan Mallett interception on the Texans’ first possession of the day to every emasculating Devonta Freeman run between the tackles to the final play of the game when Cecil Shorts not only fumbled trying to make a crazy shmozz play for a meaningless touchdown, but…
The Magic Flute and Bringing High Art to Gaming
Lab Like has released a very ambitious mobile puzzle game based on Mozart’s opera The Magic Flute, and it’s one of those games that makes a player examine where gaming as art and gaming as a pastime intersect. On one hand the game is good in ways games are rarely…
So Many Foods, So Little Time. Texas Renaissance Festival Has an App for That
Anachronistic, maybe, but the Texas Renaissance Festival’s new app is the must-have gateway to maximum gustatory overload. With 1,000 types of food spread out over the 55-acre 16th century English township, a bit of strategizing will soon put one of their 84,000 oversized turkey legs in one hand, while you…
The Best Cheap and Lazy Halloween Costumes of 2015
The worst thing is not that you’ve put off figuring out what you’re going to be for Halloween. The worst thing is that you’ve put off figuring out what you were going to be for Halloween again. We understand the struggle. You manage to pull off something at the last…
A$AP Rocky Was Pretty Good for the 40 Minutes He Performed
The Rocky and Tyler Tour, featuring A$AP Rocky; Tyler, The Creator; Danny Brown and Vince Staples NRG Arena October 2, 2015 You can never really judge a show by how it starts. Every show, even shows that end up being bad, seems exciting for the first two minutes. That moment…
Astros Barely Shake Off the Curse of Taylor Swift
Baseball has enjoyed some great curses over its century and a half of organized play. The Curse of the Bambino created a culture of martyrdom in New England for eight and a half decades until, in a tale worthy of Stephen King himself, the Red Sox finally vanquished Babe Ruth’s…
The 10 Most Embarrassed Texans-Falcons Rapper Tweets
The Houston Texans’ 2015 season began with HBO’s Hard Knocks introducing the team to America at large. It took a month of filming and some fancy editing to present to the nation our sometimes thrilling and frequently frustrating NFL franchise. Home Box Office could have saved all that time and…
HBU Says the Feds Are Forcing It to Sin (and These Uber-Conservative Judges Agree)
We’ve written before how the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, once a trail-blazing court that heard some of the nation’s most important civil rights cases, over time morphed into one of the most staunchly conservative federal appeals courts in the country, thanks in large part to judges appointed to…
KHOU vs. DISH Contract Standoff Still Isn’t Over
KHOU and DISH have agreed to give themselves a bit more time to continue to disagree. Last night, the two sides decided to extend their deadline to negotiate a contract by 8 days, meaning KHOU won’t go dark for DISH subscribers for at least another week. On Tuesday, we reported…
Ment’or BKB Young Chef Competition Series With Celebrity Chef Panel Comes to Houston
If you follow the world of haute cuisine, you’ve probably heard of the Bocuse d’Or competition. A biennial international competition that takes place in Lyon, France, the competition is named after French culinary great Paul Bocuse, and is as prestigious in the culinary world as the Olympics are to athletics…
College and NFL Football: This Weekend’s Best Bets
If the Thursday night game is any indicator of the type of gambling weekend it’s going to be, you’d better fasten your seat belts. I was on Baltimore -2.5 (yes, I backed Joe Flacco as a road favorite, not good for your health), and in order to get a cover,…
With ‘Slab God,’ Paul Wall Rides Clean Again
“I’m already looking at my rear view mirror cause I’m like damn, they pull me over, they might take my day away,” Paul Wall says over the phone with a laugh. “I’m like, damn man, it’s official but it’s never official cause they can take it away.” Two months ago,…
5 Interesting Facts About Robb Walsh’s New Chili Cookbook
After years of research, James Beard-winning author Robb Walsh’s The Chili Cookbook is finally in print. There are 60 recipes to try at home that sound absolutely mouthwatering, including short rib, braised chuck roast, lamb, venison and turkey chilis. Walsh, who also authored Texas Eats: The New Lone Star Heritage…
Beach House Has Houston Lost In the Music With Them
Beach House, Flock of Dimes House of Blues October 2, 2015 It’s been just around three years since Beach House played Houston, and the city was more than ready to have them back. Thursday was their second time playing House of Blues, it was apparent that the band had come…
Feds Threaten to Defund St. Joseph After Off-Duty Cop Shoots Mentally Ill Patient in the Chest
Five days after an off-duty cop moonlighting as a security guard shot a mentally ill patient at St. Joseph’s Medical Center, federal investigators were sent to inspect the hospital. The patient had been in the throes of a psychiatric crisis, and had struck one officer with a hospital tray table…
Evan Turner Is Houston’s New Iron Somm
Houston’s food and wine stars were out last night and dressed to the nines at the Periwinkle Foundation’s sixth annual Iron Somm competition and fund-raiser held at the Houstonian Hotel. As a sea of Houston wine lovers cheered them on, Evan Turner of Helen Food and Wine was awarded the…
Stages Are Bigger, But Twenty One Pilots Still Have Nothing to Hide
Twenty One Pilots have officially become a force in the music industry with their fourth studio album, Blurryface. It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in March of this year, moving nearly 150,000 copies in the U.S. in its first week. In the wake of their newfound success,…
SMU Now Holds the Record For Most NCAA Infractions
Let’s hear it for the SMU Mustangs. It’s taken a long, long time, but the school is finally number one at something in college athletics. That’s right, SMU can now lay claim to being the first school in NCAA history to reach the double digits in regards to major infractions…
Houston’s 5 Best Weekend Food Bets: Kick Off Oktoberfest with a Bang
The Original Greek Fest @ Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. & 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday noon to 6 p.m. 3511 Yoakum The o.g. of Greek fests is ready to bring you all of the spanakopita, gyros, and…
Upcoming Houston Food Events: Celebrate National Gumbo Day
Great news, concert goers! Quattro’s, 1300 Lamar, pre-concert dinner series is continuing this fall. The restaurant will offer valet parking for $6 (you can walk to Toyota Center from the hotel), a two-course dinner with multiple options and a free glass of wine at the Lobby Bar after the concert’s…
Classical Theatre Gives Us a Gender-blind Henry V
This is actually not a spoiler: the actor who plays the title role in the Classical Theatre’s production of Henry V is a woman. It’s not a casting gimmick, Classical Theatre’s Executive Artistic Director John Johnston tells us. “There was a production of Henry V in Houston recently. We didn’t…
As HERO Vote Nears, Transgender Houston Man Speaks Out In New Video
After working a ten-hour day underground installing a basement tub, Dylan Forbis is finally ordering a drink. It’s trivia night at Ripcord, one of the oldest gay bars in Houston, decorated with ’80s-era Pacman machines and colorful pride flags. The cash register where Forbis pays is decorated, too, with a…
World Premiere of Two Tracks From Kinky Friedman’s New Album
When we think of Texas icon Kinky Friedman musically, it’s usually via his early wry ironic socio-political send-ups like “They Ain’t Makin’ Jews Like Jesus Anymore” or “Asshole From El Paso”: bawdy, hilarious rhymes with a barely veiled dark side. But Richard Friedman can step out of character and write…
Openings and Closings in Houston: Hunky-Dory Opens This Week
Saigon House at 3101 Main has piqued a lot of curiosity, and now you can satisfy that. The fast-casual café is open, and chef Vu Tuan Anh is ready to show off his tradition-meets-today fusion Vietnamese fare. It’s a dining option before a visit to MATCH, the new Midtown Arts…
Texans-Falcons, Week 4 — Four Things to Watch For
Before we get to Four Things To Watch For in the Texans-Falcons game this Sunday, I just want to give my take on one thing I don’t think we will have to watch for on Sunday, and that’s Arian Foster carrying the football for the Texans. Bill O’Brien has claimed…
The 5 Best Things to Do in Houston This Weekend: Finders Keepers, Wishing Well and More
If you’re looking for a somber, intellectual film exploring self-responsibility, Finders Keepers might not be the first thing to pop into your mind. But the fact that it’s not somber doesn’t mean it’s not serious, and the fact that it’s not intellectual doesn’t mean it’s not thoughtful. A documentary which…
What a Time to Be Alive: Hip-Hop’s Golden Age of Ghost-Writing
I started thinking about the politics of ghostwriting in hip-hop after stumbling on an article in The New York Times about a guy who turned to a company, called Oratory Laboratory, to help him deliver a toast at a friend’s wedding. Then Drake and Future’s new project, What a Time to be…
10 Bars Still Worth Going to on Washington Avenue
Washington Avenue has one of Houston’s worst reputations for nightlife; the line is that many of its bars are often infested with sloppy-drunk bro-dudes wearing Ed Hardy T-shirts out looking to score with the vapid young females who also inhabit said bars. There is truth in the stereotype; however, there…
All That Glitters Is Mud: The TomorrowWorld Experience
The excitement associated with TomorrowWorld ran high among the 190,000 attendees. The festival is located deep in the desolate woods of Georgia’s Chattahoochee Hills, outside of Atlanta. The electronic-music artists are the most talented in the world and the décor resembles an 8,000-acre Cirque du Soleil set. Though the event…
All the Feds Can Really Do Is Shame DuPont. Will That Be Enough to Prevent Another Tragedy Like La Porte?
In 2010, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board launched an investigation after a steel hose carrying phosgene gas burst at DuPont’s plant in Belle, West Virginia, killing one worker. The CSB again sent investigators out to the company’s Buffalo, New York facility after a welder was killed in an explosion later…
Ricky Martin Gets Hearts Racing, Bodies Moving at Toyota Center
Ricky Martin Toyota Center September 30, 2015 You know the phrase “Dance like nobody is watching”? It essentially means to let loose and do something with all of your heart and energy. Or as the great American poet Ice Cube would say, “You can do it, put your ass into…
Border Militia Man Convicted on Weapons Charges
Poor Kevin Massey: all the 48-year-old wanted to do was keep ‘Murica safe from illegals crossing the border near the Rio Grande. As part of the citizen militia so awesome it has two names — Rusty’s Rangers or Rusty’s Regulators — Massey patrolled the border with his trusty .45 and…
Report: It’s Getting More Expensive to Rent or Buy a House in Houston
Lately a lot of people who’ve lived in Houston for years have become concerned with what they feel are rapidly escalating rents and a dwindling supply of affordable housing, particularly in areas of town where that wasn’t always an issue. Many people seem to be feeling that they’re priced out…
On Your Toes! It’s World Ballet Day Today
As it turns out, today, Thursday October 1, has been declared World Ballet Day and professional companies from around the globe are participating — including our own Houston Ballet. Houston’s portion which will be shown from 7-7:30 p.m. on worldballetday.com will include: Rehearsals of Artistic Director Stanton Welch’s Tapestry, Christopher…
L’Olivier’s New Menu Is Full of Surprises
It’s hard to believe that it’s been three years since L’Olivier opened. Chef Olivier Ciesielski was born in France and started as a sous chef at Michelin three-star restaurant Bernard Loiseau. He worked under pastry chef Yves Thuries, followed that with Le Crillon in Paris and was even the personal…
Houston Texans Midweek Report: A Ton Of Transactions And Another JJ Watt Video
Before we get into a day of heavy transactions by the Houston Texans, let’s cleanse the palate with another J.J. Watt video production. This time it’s a trailer for an ESPN E:60 titled “Never Given”. Stop me if you’ve heard this story before — J.J. Watt is a blue collar…
Black Pussy: Worst Band Ever
Earlier this year, Portland-based rock band Black Pussy caused an Internet furor when those offended by their name called for a boycott of their tour and the venues hosting them. Several articles were written in reaction to the name, some criticizing the band for their racist and sexist antics and…
Plan to Pay HPD Officers to Live in High-Crime Areas Sent Back to Drawing Board
When City Council member C.O. Bradford noticed that only 20 percent of Houston cops actually lived in Houston, he set out to start fixing that. He thought that more cops living within city limits might improve the police-community relationship and build up citizens’ trust in law enforcement. Bradford drew up…
Wilde Collection Is Houston’s Newest and Creepiest Shop
If you’ve driven down Yale Street lately you might have noticed an odd, spooky building has just opened up. This is Wilde Collection, which owners Lawyer Douglas and Tyler Zottarelle have envisioned as something Edgar Allan Poe and Oscar Wilde might have put together if they’d ever gone into the…
New Kinky Friedman Album Finds Tragedy In Romance
Leave it to never-elected political kamikaze, novelist, tequila and cigar entrepreneur, and part-time folk singer Kinky Friedman to slide right past The Loneliest Man I Ever Met, his new album and his first fresh recording in 32 years, and jump straight into the political cesspool off the high diving board…
I Had a Threesome With My Man. Help!
CAN THE SCHOOL STOP MY SON FROM MAKING A SONG? Dear Willie D: Today I felt a series of emotions after picking up my son who’s in his senior year of high school. First let me say he’s an aspiring artist and a star student. So today he gets called…
A Goonies Sequel Is Definitely Maybe Happening, Might Not Have Any Actual Goonies in It
The sequel rumor that wouldn’t die keeps chugging along, this time thanks to former hobbit Sean Astin: “I have said and will always say, that it’s not a question of if, but rather when the sequel gets made,” Astin told the Tulsa World. “The precise makeup of it, I have…
Woman Says DA’s Office Fired Her Because She Filed Complaint Against Police
Denise Garcia was rushing to get her eight-month-old baby to a clinic before it closed last November when a Houston police cruiser rolled up next to her at the corner of T.C. Jester and I-10. Over the loud speaker, an officer told her to pull over. Ostensibly, the officers stopped…
Haven’t Memorized Any Phone Numbers? You May Wind Up Stuck in the Harris County Jail
Ten days had gone by, and the 19-year-old’s mother had no idea her son had been sitting in jail. The teenager was charged on September 12 with interfering with a public servant (his attorney did not provide details on what happened). His bond was set at $500, which he didn’t have. With…
Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan is (Of Course) Suing Volkswagen
Well that didn’t take long. It’s only been two weeks since the news broke that Volkswagen’s diesel cars have been secretly polluting 40 times the legal amount allowed, but Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan is already wading into the fray with a lawsuit filed on behalf of Harris County for…
Tacolandia Complete With Lucha Libre!
What goes really well (other than beer) with a taco contest? Why Lucha Libre matches of course. In its first ever Tacolandia, the Houston Press has assembled 25 restaurants to battle it out in the categories of: Best Traditional Taco, Best New School Taco, Best Barbacoa Taco, Best Seafood Taco, Best…
Randy Bullock Cut by Texans, Nick Novak Signed to Kick
On September 10, 2013, in his first game as a starting placekicker in the NFL, Randy Bullock kicked a 41 yard field goal as time expired to defeat the San Diego Chargers 31-28 in the 2013 season opener. In retrospect, it was probably the high point of Bullock’s star crossed…
HFD Chief Terry Garrison Will Step Down
On Tuesday, Houston’s fire chief Terry Garrison announced he is stepping down. According to a press release, Garrison is headed back to his hometown of Glendale, Arizona, where he will start as the city’s new fire chief in early November. In his five-year tenure atop HFD, Garrison brought about sweeping…
Houston’s Restaurant Staffing Shortage — and What It Means for Diners
These days, as a restaurant owner you can’t be too proud to beg—specifically, for staff. Before, and even after, the opening of his new Greek restaurant, Helen, Evan Turner posted multiple requests for applicants on Facebook. “I know you are out there. Charming folks, looking to work at a plucky…
UH Library Releases Rare Duke-Peacock Photos
Almost 100 rare publicity photos and other items that once belonged to Duke-Peacock Records were put online recently by the University of Houston’s digital library, offering an invaluable glimpse into the innermost workings of the most important U.S. record labels of the post-WWII years. Run by the brilliant but tyrannical…
