The AIA Home Tour Opens the Doors to Some of Houston’s Most Well-designed Homes
See that black wood on the top half of the JT ARC STUDIO: Winslow House | Perched (seen above)? That’s not paint; the wood was charred as a means of preservation. The people behind the AIA Home Tour hope you’ll notice things like that when you visit the homes. “I…
Comedian Hari Kondabolu’s Secret Group Visit Is the “Sad Kind of Pioneering”
Hari Kondabolu’s got a unique perspective to share, and he’ll be bringing it to Houston for one night with The Secret Group. The former Totally Biased writer has spent the last “year and a half” developing his new album Mainstream American Comic and, according to him, he’s “happier with this one”…
Murder Map Houston: The Locations of Infamous Local Murders
Houston makes national news all the time. Sometimes it’s our sports teams, sometimes it’s the happenings over at NASA, a breakthrough at the Medical Center or our atrocious weather that’s in the headlines. And sometimes it’s Houston murders. Here are four Houston murders that made news and, in three cases,…
21 Best Things to Do in Houston This Week (Scary and Wonderful)
Tuesday, October 18 Get “scared to death” at the National Museum of Funeral History. The largest museum of its type is celebrating Halloween with its 5th Annual Haunted House — a PG-13 collection of spooky and macabre vignettes that incite goose bumps in every trick-or-treater. Genevieve Keeney, president of the…
The Quietly Moving Humanity of Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women
When a quiet film is set outside of the big cities, it’s often called a “slice of life.” But that’s ultimately a condescending designation; to the millions of people residing on the prairies and in the small towns dotting the throughways, it is simply life, with a capital “L.” In…
Dive Into DEEP: Seaspace With Karen Stokes Dance
When dance-maker Karen Stokes cut a section on the Houston Ship Channel from her piece Hometown in 2003, she had no idea if she’d ever return to it. But now, more than a decade later, that piece has blossomed into a multi-year initiative, which culminates with DEEP: Seaspace, a celebration of…
This Week in Houston Food Events: Escape to Bamboo on the Bayou
From a tikified cocktail crawl to all the tacos you can handle, here’s a look at this week’s hottest culinary happenings: Through Saturday, October 22 Bamboo on The Bayou Bamboo on The Bayou is a citywide, week-long cocktail crawl that features stops at some of Houston’s most beloved craft cocktail…
The Best, Most Easily Available Instagram-able Walls in Houston
We know that there’s no point to doing anything until you can broadcast it on social media. So to help out your social media presence – and to get you out of the house – we’ve compiled a guide of the best public murals in Houston to photograph and upload…
10 Perfect Houston Acts for Your Halloween Party
Halloween is the scariest holiday on the calendar, though anyone who has braved a Black Friday sale might beg to differ. Either way, Halloween is a time when revelry and fear blend into a sort of festively nightmarish concoction. This can result in any number of Halloween parties. As is the…
The Most Memorable Texas Equusearch Stories
Since its founding in 2000, Dickenson-based nonprofit Texas Equusearch has taken on more than 1,000 missing persons cases. We decided to revisit some of their most interesting ones we’ve covered over the years. Texas EquuSearch Founder Wants Custody of Missing 15-year-old He Just Found in Woods Texas EquuSearch founder Tim…
Looking for Love in Houston Restaurants
Looking for love and a good meal and wanting to find all the right places in Houston? Well here’s a compendium of what we’ve written up before so have at it. Some of these posts are tied to specific dates and celebrations but really, when isn’t romance in season? The…
The “Crazy Reality” of Tim Burton Inspires East End Art Show
When East End Studio Gallery put out the call for art inspired by the oeuvre of Tim Burton, local artists responded to the call in droves. Lizbeth Ortiz, gallery curator and artist, says they received almost 600 entries, with nearly 300 on view in the gallery’s “Crazy Reality” Tim Burton Tribute Art…
Hefty Historical Bio Gives General Grant Newfound Respect…and Truth
American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant By Ronald C. White 826 pp. $35 Random House Popular conception of Ulysses S. Grant – the Union General whose victory in the Civil War paved the way for his two terms as the 18th U.S. President, goes something like this: He’s…
Houston’s 5 Best Weekend Food Bets: ShackBurgers Are Coming
From a burger debut to a duo of cultural festivals, here’s a look at this weekend’s best culinary happenings: National Gumbo Days at Liberty Kitchens Friday – Sunday In honor of the first annual National Gumbo Days, each Liberty Kitchen location will feature a Chef’s Special Gumbo recipe available for $14,…
TUTS Presents the Classic Comedy How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Broadway veteran Felicia Finley (Mama Mia!) is not usually in a lot of classic musicals, she says. “I’m more modern rock and roll.” But when Theatre Under the Stars started looking for someone to play Hedy LaRue in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. they thought of Finley…
Reviews For The Easily Distracted: The Accountant
Title: The Accountant Describe This Movie In One Simpsons Quote: Bill: Krusty, as your accountant, I must warn you… Krusty: Did you send those thousand roses to Bea Arthur’s grave? Brief Plot Synopsis: Savant supplies solvency, savate. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To The Film: Two Finns (the Human) out of five. Tagline: “Calculate your…
Upcoming Houston Food Events: Sip Suds for a Cause
Mark your calendars, because you don’t want to miss these deliciously fun culinary happenings, including beer dinners and a “cheese fête”: Throughout the 2016-2017 basketball season, Houston-area fans can take advantage of Papa John’s “Harden Wednesdays,” enjoying 50-percent-off discounts on all large, one-topping pizzas whenever James Harden plays on a…
NFL Week 6: Colts-Texans — Four Things to Watch For
Twice in the Bill O’Brien Era, the Houston Texans have faced the Indianapolis Colts at home. Each time it has been a prime time game following a fairly devastating loss the week before — in 2014, following the 20-17 overtime loss in Dallas to the Cowboys, and in 2015, following…
Openings & Closings: Bye-bye, Black-Eyed Pea
Spanky’s Pizza, Pasta and Amore, 4010 Spencer Highway is close to opening in Pasadena. The Houston Chronicle reported that this locally-owned business wanted to open a family-friendly pizza parlor in the Pasadena area. Construction is in its final stages with an opening set for November on the site where Gabby’s…
Staind’s Aaron Lewis Is a Country-Loving Northern Redneck. Just Ask Him.
Modern mainstream country music has been a safe haven for artists from other genres to lucratively cross over into for many years now. And it’s always humorous to see traditional country-loving elitists get all worked up over the perceived intrusions. Whether it’s Darius Rucker, John Bon Jovi or Steven Tyler,…
The Elixir of Love and the Search for a Magic Love Potion at HGO
Dimitri Pittas originally had no intention of singing opera. He was going to be a music teacher. “I can teach and have the summer off with paid vacations,” he’d concluded. But he happened to land in the studio of a teacher at the Crane School of Music at SUNY-Potsdam, who…
Don’t Look Back in Adder: Revisiting Snakes On A Plane
Ten years ago, America was a markedly different place: immigration and privacy were two political hot button issues, Hollywood was abuzz with talks of a new Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and a young Beyoncé stole our hearts. As Dylan from Beverly Hills, 90210 once said, “The times, they are a-changin.'”…
A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Alley Theatre Fails to Charm
The set up: Two years ago, Ira Glass, host of the beloved and popular public radio show “This American Life”, sent the Internet into a tailspin and flung the arts community into a horrified, head shaking tempest. The offense? Glass, after seeing a production of King Lear starring John Lithgow,…
Eight Famous Pop/Rock Artists Who Went Country
The 14th annual Ziegenbock Music Festival is scheduled for this Saturday at Sam Houston Race Park, and the annual country festival will feature the usual cast of characters. That includes country mainstays like Josh Abbott, Cody Johnson, Kevin Fowler, Roger Creager and Aaron Lewis. Wait, Aaron Lewis? That’s correct. Aaron…
Abbott, Texas Leaders Order CPS to Stop Failing Thousands of At-Risk Kids
Governor Greg Abbott is demanding changes after the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services released numbers last week showing that thousands of Texas children were in danger of abuse because Child Protective Services workers failed to check on them. On Tuesday, Abbott sent a joint letter with Lieutenant Governor…
ICP Showers Fans in Faygo, Nostalgia at Warehouse Live
Insane Clown Posse Warehouse Live October 12, 2016 Twenty years ago, a Detroit rap duo released an album. That album, Riddle Box, catapulted the career of that group, the Insane Clown Posse, and turned its fanbase into a subculture all its own. And so, the Juggalo was born. Years later, Violent…
Eight Years After Ike, Insurance Firm Still Won’t Pay Homeowner
It has been eight years since Hurricane Ike ripped through the Gulf and Houston’s surrounding areas, but homeowner Gail Menchaca’s insurance company has still not paid her a cent for the damages to her home. In a case that could have sweeping implications for how thoroughly insurance companies choose to…
Five Things You Can Do With Your Dog This Fall (Part Two)
Fall is finally here, and now that the weather is so nice outside, why not take Fido out for a day of fun in Houston? In our first round-up, we suggested competition and agility training, amazing watering holes for dogs (like Millie Bush Dog Park), spa day at Rover Oaks Pet Resort (with blueberry…
Best Bets for This Weekend’s College and NFL Games
Sunday was a bad day. Yeah, I went 2-1 on my NFL picks, but the one loss was yet another gut punch during the three-hour debacle that was the Texans’s loss to the Vikings. That little “meaningless” touchdown from Brock Osweiler to Deandre Hopkins to make it 31-13? Yep, it…
The Art of Found Objects Serves as a Who’s Who of Contemporary Texas Artists
It takes an artist’s eye to open the kitchen junk drawer and see the potential for something more, arranging random odds and ends until they take on a new incarnation as assemblage or sculpture. A new book by Robert Craig Bunch offers a brief history of some of the earliest…
Roostar on the Rise: Building a Successful Small Business
The co-owners of Houston’s most popular bánh mì restaurant, Roostar Vietnamese Grill are proud of the success they’ve achieved thus far. College sweethearts since age 18, Ronnie Nguyen and Linda Nguyen are now engaged and both actively involved in the day to day workings of building their business and expanding…
Ten Things to Do in Houston for $10 or Less (Nine Free), October 13-19
Now that the weather is changing it’s time to usher in all the goodness of fall, including scarecrows and pre-Halloween horror flicks. We’ve also got several art openings, a Día de los Muertos class and even a pop culture expo. Keep reading for ten of our favorite events that won’t cost…
Scientists Proclaim Terrifying Wimpy “Bear Dogs” Once Stalked Texas
Fossils discovered outside El Paso 30 years ago belong to a cool-sounding but totally not menacing extinct species of “bear dogs” that roamed the Earth, or at least Texas, around 37 million years ago, according to a new study. Paleontologists at Chicago’s Field Museum and the State University of New…
Okay, We’re Cooking “Monster Mash-Mallow Halloween Krispies”
Halloween is my favorite holiday, and always has been. While I’m a decent cook, I rarely venture into making deserts or snacks, but a month or two ago, I was suddenly inspired to come up with a new for the season and my sweet tooth. I always dug Rice Krispies…
Five Things Not to Miss at East End Street Fest
It’s October in Houston, which means festivals are abundant. Many of these events celebrate certain cultures (Korean Fest; Italian Festival; Egyptian Festival); kids (LEGO KidsFest); beers (Untapped) and corsets and smoked turkey legs (Texas Ren Fest). But few of these festivals are thrown in honor of a specific Houston locale…
My Sex Life Is Fading. Help!
Dear Willie D: I’m a 23-year-old woman, six months into what was once a steaming hot sexual relationship with a 27-year-old man. We used to have sex three times a day. Now it’s down to maybe three times a week. I’m not sure what happened. We still love each other,…
Further Proof That the Funniest Kevin Hart Movies Only Have Kevin Hart in Them
Here’s what matters most: You will laugh. Kevin Hart on a stage before thousands, yapping for more than an hour? I don’t care what kind of miserable killjoy you are, you’re going to laugh. There are two reasons you might be offended — you may find the material either too…
For Years, Jane Lynch Made Iffy Projects Better. Now She’s Free to Say “No.”
“As it always happens in the Chris Guest movies, we really don’t talk to each other before we get to set,” Jane Lynch says, explaining how she creates her menagerie of characters, specifically Gabby Monkhouse from Guest’s newest mockumentary, Mascots. “A couple months before, I got a call from Chris,…
In Netflix’s Mascots, Christopher Guest Ribs Another Subculture You’re Totally Better Than
Christopher Guest’s films mostly deal with passionate but ordinary people who aspire to positions of status within strange little subcultures: mid-century folk music, dog shows, community theater or, in the case of his new mockumentary, Mascots, the world of sports-mascot competitions. In the alternate universe of Guest’s first film in…
The Accountant Adds Up to More of the Same — and Mistakes Autism for a Superpower
There’s plenty of time to wonder, as J.K. Simmons narrates page after page of backstory, whether the creators of The Accountant realized that their dutifully twisty R-rated thriller was actually another superhero story. Yes, it’s got trappings of psychology and adult thoughtfulness, speeches about the mysteries of the brain and…
Crosby BBQ Employee Fired After Directing Anti-Cop NWA Song at Cop Customers
Accidentally jamming to N.W.A.’s gangsta rap anthem “Fuck Tha Police” in the presence of police would have been one thing. Doing it on purpose, however — while on the job? That’s the kind of thing that’ll get you instantly fired, which is what happened to a Going’s BBQ employee in…
MFAH’s Gary Tinterow Revisits an Old French Friend With “Degas: A New Vision”
As artistic partnerships go, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Director Gary Tinterow and French artist Edgar Degas go back a long way. Well, not exactly in a personal sense, since Degas did die in 1917, but in a collaborative sense. Tinterow was one of three organizers of a landmark 1988…
Proposed HSPVA Name Change Not Greeted by a Standing Ovation [UPDATED]
Does a high school dedicated to the arts really need to be named after a successful businessman? Even if that businessman pays for the right to do so? That’s just one of the questions Houston ISD parent Ann Eagleton has for the district after it announced plans to rename the…
Art Takes to the Streets at Second Annual HUE Mural Festival
[related stories] TSA prohibits aerosols, so we’re guessing the shelves of every hardware and art supply store have been cleared of Krylon right about now. Beginning October 15, street artists from as far away as Iran, Spain, Brazil and Australia are descending on H-Town, ready to trick out 20,000 square…
Pappadeaux Celebrating 30 Years With Month-Long Customer Appreciation Specials
In 1986, when Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen first opened its doors at 6015 Westheimer in the Galleria area, the menu started with classic Louisiana-style dishes and seasonal seafood creations. Those classics like Mississippi Catfish Opelousas and Texas Redfish Pontchartrain are still offered today because “our guests love those dishes,” says Robbin Swan-Appleby, general…
The 10 Best NCAA Football Head Coach Jobs That Could Soon Be Open
For many college football programs, we are at the mathematical halfway point of the season, and while at one end of the spectrum, the College Football Playoff race is coming into focus, so too, at the other, less celebratory end of the spectrum, is the coaching carousel beginning to spin…
Main Street Wolf Hall Delves Into the Power of Court Gossip in Henry VIII’s Court
On one level, Wolf Hall operates on a very high plane. After all, a lot of it concerns the establishment of the church of England, aided in large part by its protagonist Thomas Cromwell, minister to King Henry XII. And although Cromwell was known as a schemer, says Rebecca Greene Udden,…
DJ Screw Looms Large Over C-Note’s Birds vs. Words
Just like every SUC tape back in the old days, C-Note’s Birds vs. Words opens with the voice of Robert Earl Davis, better known as the late DJ Screw. He sounds ten feet tall and bulletproof, with his mystical, disembodied voice approximating the Almighty himself. The voice of DJ Screw tells…
Howie’s Tiki Brings a Cool New Vibe to Spring
Tiki bars were wildly popular from 1930 to 1960, but interest started to fade during the ’70s. Lately they’ve made a resurgence in several cities, Houston included. A dimly lit bar heavily decorated with bamboo, rattan, totem poles and a monkey hanging from the ceiling seems right at home in…
New Report Shows Poor, Mentally Ill Face Disadvantage in Harris County Courts
After embarking on a year-long review of Harris County’s pretrial system for poor people, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission released its findings and recommendations Tuesday — and it appears judges have their work cut out when it comes to reform. According to the commission’s analysis, judges appear to be rather…
The 10 Best Places to Shop for Halloween in Houston
The other day I actually walked my dog and didn’t have to change out of a sweat-soaked shirt for the first time in months. You know what that means? Halloween is upon us, gentle readers. It’s the perfect holiday to take your mind off the fact that you’ll be eating…
Partying at the RV Resort, Desert Trip-Style
It’s 11:30 a.m. on a Saturday, and a classic rock cover band is serenading a small, mostly middle-aged crowd lazing around a pool at the Shadow Hills RV Resort in Indio, California. They’re belting out Van Morrison’s “Wild Night,” which seems like an odd choice for this hour — or…
The Best Rockumentaries Released Since 2000
Rock and roll is a genre designed for the cinema. It has everything you could want in a big screen adaptation – sex, drugs and big personalities, all of which culminate into some juicy backstage drama. This was the case for Dig! a 2004 documentary that chronicled the careers of…
Tense and True, Tower Reconstructs America’s First Mass School Shooting
Words can’t do justice to the singular power of Keith Maitland’s documentary Tower, a you-are-there reconstruction of the harrowing 1966 mass shooting at the University of Texas at Austin, where 25-year-old former Marine and engineering student Charles Whitman planted himself in the school’s clock tower and shot 49 people, killing…
Newtown Reveals Life After Sandy Hook — in a Nation Where Nothing Has Changed
“We’re all terrified of forgetting what he looked like or sounded like,” says David Wheeler in Newtown, Kim A. Snyder’s transfixing documentary portrait of collective grief and resilience. Wheeler, like many of the bereaved parents and siblings interviewed for Snyder’s film, finds some comfort in old photos and home movies,…
21 Best Things to Do in Houston This Week
Tuesday, October 11 It wasn’t enough to build life-size dinosaurs out of recycled metal. Asheville sculptor John Payne imbued the 14 interactive sculptures in “Dinosaurs in Motion” with biomechanics and robotics, delighting children and adults with a creative illustration of science and technology. The public is invited to touch the…
Get Married In the Style of the Middle Ages at the Texas RenFest
Before Charlotte Gilbert’s father passed away when she was just 11 years old, he used to take her to the Texas Renaissance Festival. It was like walking into a magical land, like “a fairy tale you’ve read about or seen a Disney movie about, and here it is in real…
Blue Bell Issues Yet Another Listeria-Related Recall
It’s been less than a month since Blue Bell issued a “precautionary” recall for ice cream made in July and August at the plant in Sylacauga, Alabama due to concerns over possible listeria monocytogenes, and the company has already issued another voluntary recall, expanding on its first move to pull…
Mx. Justin Vivian Bond Is on Her Way to Houston, so Listen Up!
After years of doing the highly praised Kiki and Herb, on and off Broadway and around the world, Mx. Justin Vivian Bond (she uses the gender-neutral alternative to Ms. or Mrs.) decided it was time to act her age. The result was Love is Crazy, the show she is bringing to Houston…
A Horribly Drawn Donald Trump Coloring Book
If you think the presidential nominees (especially the Republican one) and/or the debates and/or the email and tax dodge scandals and/or the entire kerfuffle that is the 2016 United States presidential election is the absolute pits, artist Joey Yang offers some solace with Make America Colorful Again. It’s a Donald…
How Drones Can Save the Flood Control District Thousands of Headaches
Every year, Harris County Flood Control District workers and contractors do a lot of tedious, meticulous work monitoring hundreds of miles of bayous and channels in Harris County and tens of thousands of acres of detention basins — work that taxpayers likely don’t give a second thought, or any at…
Vikings 31, Texans 13, the Autopsy: How to Lose a Game in Ten Plays
Ever wonder what the narration of an avalanche would sound like? Well, when translated into “football language,” it would sound a lot like the play-by-play of the first 24 minutes of the Texans’s 31-13 loss to the Vikings on Sunday, a natural disaster in every sense of the football version…
Melt Offers a Chance to Indulge in Your Favorite Cheeses and Meats
It’s clear that Melt, located in a Cypress strip mall, is focusing on doing one thing really well: making magic out of humble, buttery, grilled cheese sandwiches. Then again, most of its sandwiches are far from humble — arriving on your plate with at least two types of cheese and…
Bayou City Haunts: The 2016 Houston Press Halloween Guide
Halloween is right around the corner, so it’s time to get spooked. Houston-area haunts are ready to frighten and delight with a fantastic lineup of events. The only thing not scary about the season is that there’s something for everyone. From trick-or-treating for the kids to costume parties for the…
Dear Men: Here Are Your Post-Trump Tape Marching Orders
Content Warning: rape culture. Over the weekend, the Washington Post released leaked audio from 2005 showing that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump regularly uses his wealth and celebrity status to force himself physically on women. Because there seems to be some confusion, Donald Trump was not caught on tape talking…
Chefs Collaborate on Return of Thyme & Place Pop-Up Dinner at Good Dog in Montrose
In partial response to the sold-out success of his Copenhagen-inspired pop-up dinners this past August, chef Brandon Silva (Wooster’s Garden) is bringing diners another opportunity to enjoy his local-minded “Thyme & Place” perspective, this time with a focus on the fall flavors of Texas ingredients. The dinner will take place…
Upcoming: Coldplay, FEA, Green Day, Kid N’ Play, Vockah Redu, Young Thug, etc.
Note: Events in bold reflect highly recommended shows. 2nd Annual Food Drive: With , Four Letter Language, Kemo for Emo, Jonah The Runner. Sat., November 19, 2 p.m., TBA. Bohemeo’s, 708 Telephone, Houston, 713-923-4277. The African Children’s Choir: Tue., November 22, 7:30 p.m., Free; donations welcome. The Little Country, 14035…
For A Price, You Can Get Behind the Closed Doors of Fort Bend Business
At just after 7 a.m. on a mid-September day, a visitor made it no farther than just inside the glass doors of the development council. About 30 or so directors, mostly white, male, in their fifties, wearing dark suit coats and with the tops of their Men’s Wearhouse dress shirts…
Julian Onderdonk’s Work — Even Bluebonnets — is Celebrated in an MFAH Exhibition
Breaking news alert: Hell may have frozen over. If so, it’s probably because bluebonnet paintings have been spotted in the galleries of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston — lots of them, big ones, hills and fields and canyons of them — in the exhibition “Julian Onderdonk and the Texan…
Kris Kristofferson Delivers a Debate-Night Sermon at Redneck Country Club
Kris Kristofferson Redneck Country Club October 8, 2016 Kris Kristofferson didn’t write “Stop the World and Let Me Off”; two men named Carl Belew and W.S. Stevenson did. Nor has he ever recorded it, unlike his late buddies Merle and Waylon. But that doesn’t matter. Sunday night at the Redneck Country…
The 10 Coolest Things About Desert Trip, a.k.a. “Oldchella”
As a proud 10-time Coachella attendee, I was more than a little curious when Goldenvoice announced Desert Trip, fondly referred to as “Oldchella.” Leave it to the creators of the two-weekend music festival to find another way to make history. When Desert Trip instantly sold out both weekends, it was…
The Longest-Ever Woody Allen Project Pushes Him Someplace New
As has been widely noted, Woody Allen’s Crisis in Six Scenes isn’t really a television series; its six episodes are not particularly self-contained, and plot developments crest and climax willy-nilly regardless of where each segment ends. It’s a two-and-a-half-hour movie, the longest one Allen’s ever made, and with the option…
Being Téchiné: Five Decades Into a Great Career, the Auteur Opens Up
In André Téchiné’s vibrant new film Being 17, two teens wrestle with desire and hostility in a mountainous corner of France. The subject matter is not new for Téchiné, who has for more than 40 years explored sexual self-awakening, alienation and family strife in films notable for their consistency and…
The Glorious, Parodic Comedy of Documentary Now!
Fred Armisen and Bill Hader are a rarity in the comedy world: funny people with hearts of gold. It was obvious all those years when they were cast members on Saturday Night Live. They handled their characters — whether living, dead or purely fictional — with a visible sweetness. Think…
Conservative Texas Justice Terry Jennings Bucks GOP to Become Democrat
It was just after presiding over a same-sex wedding, in January, that the formerly Republican Justice Terry Jennings, of the Texas First Court of Appeals, started thinking more seriously about changing his party affiliation. Jennings had been considering becoming a Democrat for years as he grew increasingly dissatisfied with the…
“Adorable Drug Kingpin,” Daughter of DEA Agent, Finally Faces Charges
Just under a year after 19-year-old Sarah Furay was arrested on suspicion of dealing drugs from her College Station apartment, the “adorable drug kingpin” has finally been indicted and charged with four counts related to dealing drugs. A Brazos County Grand Jury, convened in July, handed down the indictment last…
Top 10 Moments of ACL 2016 Weekend Two
The annual Austin City Limits Music Festival culminated over the weekend at Zilker Park in the heart of our sister city down the road. Most of the lineup carried over from the previous weekend, although a handful of artists opted only to perform on Weekend Two, with the most beloved…
NFL Week 5: Vikings 31, Texans 13 — 4 Winners, 4 Losers
When does a 3-2 record and a one-game lead over the rest of the division not really feel like a 3-2 record and a one-game lead over the rest of the division? Well, I’ll tell you. It feels that way when everyone can see each loss on your schedule coming…
Local Natives Bring Their House Party to House of Blues
Local Natives House of Blues October 8, 2016 “Hello, Houston,” said vocalist Taylor Rice two songs into Local Natives’ performance. “It’s been a while.” It certainly had been. Nearly three years to the day since the California quintet last performed in Houston, Local Natives returned to the Bayou City Friday…
Phi Slama Jama Explored, Benny Anders Found in ESPN’s Latest 30 for 30
Just past the midway point of the ESPN Films upcoming 30 for 30 documentary on Phi Slama Jama, there is a moment of anguish for former players. Members of those University of Houston men’s basketball teams, including Hall of Famers Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, are forced to watch the…
This Heights Shop is Creepy and Spooky, With Just the Right Touch of Macabre
[related stories] When The Wilde Collection first opened its doors in the Heights last year, we got all excited – albeit in an uncomfortable, nervous sort of way. Our walk-through last fall revealed a human skeleton, antique medical paraphernalia (for “where the sun don’t shine”) and other oddities collected by owners Lawyer…
Watch A Horror Movie Every Day For The Rest of This Month With Our Halloween Advent Calendar
Here at the Houston Press, we think it’s a little unfair that we only get to have advent calendars for the month of December. Halloween isn’t so different from Christmas – after all, just like on December 25, you end up with a ton of loot at the end of…
Round Two: Clinton and Trump Slugged it Out in the Second Debate
Going into the second presidential debate on Sunday, it wasn’t a crazy thought to wonder how the hell Republican candidate Donald Trump was going to make it onto the stage. After all, Trump has been living through his own political crucible ever since a video was released on Friday showing…
Dish of the Week: Engagement Chicken
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’re sharing a classic dish that is worth falling for: Engagement Chicken. They say the way to the heart is through the…
RenFest’s Opening Weekend Lets Houstonians Time Travel to Middle Ages
Hundreds of visitors to Todd Mission stepped into a time warp this weekend, as the Texas Renaissance Festival opened its gates for its 42nd season. Everyone from a shirtless man in Ray-Ban sunglasses carrying a bottle of red wine, to a woman in a bright blue Cinderella dress—complete with six-foot-long…
This Week in Houston Food Events: Cupcakes and Gumbo and Burgers, Oh My!
From a whiskey affair to a burger pop-up, here’s a look at this week’s hottest culinary happenings: All month long October’s Cupcake of the Month at Ooh La La Dessert Boutique Ooh La La’s Cupcake of the Month is a Monster Cookie Cupcake. With vanilla cake that is studded with chocolate…
Will White Oak Music Hall’s Outdoor Stage Be Ready by Its Next Show?
Perhaps leaving some music fans on edge, it’s still not entirely clear whether the outdoor stage at White Oak Music Hall will be up and running by its next-scheduled outdoor show on October 22, when Canadian R&B singer Alessia Cara is in town. White Oak’s temporary permit for the outdoor…
Prophets of Rage Mostly Live Up to Their Campaign Promises
Prophets of Rage, AWOLNATION, Wakrat Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion October 8, 2016 If we’re lucky, one day the songs of Rage Against the Machine will stand as snapshots of an America in turmoil before it finally, mercifully, got it together and became the more perfect union we dream it to…
Shows of the Week: A Tightrope Walker at Ease With Pop, Rock and Soul
RACHAEL YAMAGATA White Oak Music Hall, October 11 Since her eponymous debut EP dropped in 2003, Rachael Yamagata has been in high demand as both a singer and songwriter, collaborating with the likes of Ray LaMontagne, Mandy Moore, Bright Eyes and Rhett Miller of the Old ‘97s. After studying at…
Houston’s 10 Best Outdoor Live Music Venues
The temperature still routinely reaches the 90s, and the mosquitos haven’t stopped biting just yet, but make no mistake — fall is here in Houston. And nothing works better on a cool (for Houston standards) fall night than good company, a couple of cold beverages and, perhaps most importantly, some…
Firecracker Productions Stages a Wickedly Dark and Funny Becky Shaw
The set up: Is it just me or does it seem like a new theater company is popping up in Houston every month? This past year, no doubt somewhat spurred by the newly available performance stages at MATCH and other studio spaces, we’ve seen small companies proliferate at an exciting…
The 5 Worst Weather Events to Hit Houston this Century
As Hurricane Matthew churns up the Atlantic coast this weekend, we decided the time is ripe to revisit the worst weather events to hit Houston in the 21st century. Hurricane Allison, 2001 Portions of Houston flooded like never before; other parts of the area didn’t get hit much harder than…
Cougars Kiss Perfection Good-bye in Shocking Loss to Navy
The Houston Cougars making the college football playoffs was always kind of a pipe dream, especially playing in a non-power conference, and especially with a schedule that included Lamar and Texas State. But if UH played a perfect season, dispatched opponents with ease and domination every step every step of…
Opposites Repel — and Attract — in This Ardent Coming-of-Age Tale
A young man tramples through the snow in fast, furious, headlong motion in the beginning of André Téchiné’s Being 17, a film that proceeds at a similar clip. So have many of the director’s previous works: Téchiné, who began making movies five decades ago and remains the best-known of France’s…
Ask a Stoner: Is Pot My Cup of Tea for Nausea?
Dear Stoner: I have bouts of nausea for days sometimes, and I’ve heard that pot tea can help. Do you know how to make it? Blizz Dear Blizz: You’ve heard correctly — pot tea can be a marvel for those suffering from nausea. But since water isn’t a strong enough…
Ask a Stoner: I’m a Smoker — Should I Worry About That Drug Test?
Dear Stoner: I have a drug test in a week and smoked weed ten days ago. I hadn’t smoked for a while before that. Will I be good? Should I be worried? Prickly Dear Prickly: It depends on what method the drug test uses to detect THC. If it’s a…
Federal Judge Dismisses Securities Fraud Civil Lawsuit Against Ken Paxton
A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, accusing him of engaging in securities fraud. In April, the SEC claimed that Paxton, while doing private investment work in 2014 before he became attorney general, pressured and solicited…
Texas RenFest to Host New Three-Day Music Festival This Spring
This year, the medieval festivities in Todd Mission won’t end with the closing of the Texas Renaissance Festival on November 27. Instead, this spring, the grounds of the RenFest will become the site for a new three-day music festival created by Insomniac and C3 Presents, the producers behind – respectively…
LUCKYRICE Draws Huge Crowds for Inaugural Houston Feast
LUCKYRICE, an itinerant Asian food festival by Danielle Chang that launched seven years ago, debuted for the first time in Houston Thursday night at The Astorian. Hosted by Justin Yu of Oxheart Restaurant, who helped curate the list of presenting chefs and restaurants, if there’s one thing that the event…
Backpage.com CEO Arrested in Houston in Two-State Human Trafficking Sting
The CEO of Backpage.com, a website which publishes advertisements for strippers and escorts, was arrested Thursday on felony charges of pimping, pimping a minor and conspiracy to commit pimping, the attorneys general of Texas and California announced Thursday following a joint three-year investigation. CEO Carl Ferrer was arrested on a…
Friday Free For All: NYCQ, Tommy Stinson, Cassette Store Day, Sizzla, Spirit of ’78
Note: the recently retooled Friday Free For All is the Music Editor’s attempt to purge his notebook of selected Houston-related musical happenings he hopes may pique readers’ interest. Ending a year-long hiatus the band abruptly announced at last year’s Untapped Festival, New York City Queens recently premiered their first new…
Stephanie Bennett is the Best Dog Trainer in Houston
Watching Stephanie Bennett work with dogs is not quite like watching a dog whisperer, but it’s close. At Peace Love Dogs, her facility in Spring Branch, she carefully observes and gives positive reinforcement to both pooch and pet parent. She’s patient and, most important, realistic. Her guidance is designed for…
Next Month, Four States May Choose to Join the Recreational Weed Bandwagon
The means to legalization of our sacred herb vary from constitutional amendments to the initiative and referendum ballot process in many (mostly Western) jurisdictions to legislative statutes, but whatever the method, all paths yield the same kind result. The best news is that recreational marijuana is on this November’s ballot…
Houston’s 5 Best Weekend Food Bets: Get Free Killen’s Burgers
From Greek gyros to FREE burgers, here’s a look at this weekend’s best culinary happenings: The Original Greek Festival at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral Friday – Sunday; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m…
“Black America’s Favorite White Comic” Gary Owen Comes to Houston Improv
Gary Owen is coming to the Houston Improv. The comic, veteran and co-star of big screen hits like Daddy Day Care and Get Hard, has been smiling and telling jokes since 1997, right after he exited the Navy. In fact, Owen’s smile was well known during his service. “Everybody always told…
NFL Week 5: Texans-Vikings — Four Things to Watch For
We are now one full game and more than a week removed from the announcement that J.J. Watt would be done for the 2016 season, so for now, we’ve all officially moved on (I hope… if you haven’t, do it, please. J.J. would want it that way.). So with a…
Upcoming Houston Food Events: Time for Dessert
Mark your calendars, because you don’t want to miss these deliciously fun culinary happenings, including dessert deals and fall sweets: Urban Eats, 3414 Washington, has created a new fall dessert menu, Linus’ Great Pumpkin, Served Five Ways, that will be offered now through New Year’s Eve. Guests can enjoy Great…
Reviews For The Easily Distracted: Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life
Title: Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life Describe This Movie In One Simpsons Quote: Principal Skinner: The only monster on this bus is a lack of proper respect for the rules. Brief Plot Synopsis: Hell is for children, and systemic aggravation is for pre-adolescents. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To…
A Merry Olde Weekend In Jolly Houston Town
I confess I am not much of a record collector, and less a geographer, but have you heard of a place called London? Apparently, it is chock-ful of magic. And according to people from there, it has a really promising local scene. On one hand, London is a country from…
Masterpiece: Solange’s A Seat at the Table Is a Modern-Day What’s Going On
The common thread of America in 2016 is trauma. Traumatic images are broadcast upon our phones, our television screens, our daily conversations. We continue to ask when’s the breaking point, when will the anger subside? When will we no longer be docile and meek; rather boiling and too appalled that…
The Five Best Things to Do in Houston This Weekend: Classic Cars and Festival Food
We can pretend that we like festivals for the culture, but in our heart of hearts it’s the food that draws us back, year after year. Get ready for a double-header this weekend, with the Original Greek Festival (spanakopita, souvlaki and gyros) and the Texas Renaissance Festival (they’re doing Oktoberfest…
Fights Abound at the Overpopulated Harris County Juvenile Detention Center
The Harris County Juvenile Detention Center has kicked into “emergency staffing” mode given the 250-capacity detention center was housing 295 kids as of September 22. By the last week of September, the population had grown to 311. According to an email obtained by the Houston Press through an open records…
Openings & Closings: Bidding Adieu to Absinthe, Hello Third Coast
Italian gourmet restaurant Trevisio in the Texas Medical Center, 6550 Bertner closed temporarily over five months ago to remodel and re-brand with a new name and concept. On October 6, Third Coast officially opened for breakfast service at 7 a.m. According to the press release, the new restaurant features signature…
The Best (and Worst) Clowns in Music History
So apparently, clowns are kind of a thing now. Whether they’re popping up and startling children in random neighborhoods across the country, making threats on local schools, or just kinda standing around quietly, freaking out the locals, clowns nationwide are doing exactly what clowns do. Namely, they are scaring the…
Anti-Gun Violence Group Launches Effort to Support Pi Pizza After Online Attacks [UPDATED]
In the wake of pro-gun activists barraging Pi Pizza with so many fake bad reviews that some of its social media pages had to be temporarily shut down, national gun violence prevention group One Pulse for America has dreamed up a way for people across the country to support the…
First Major Paul Simon Biography Is a Real Whopper
Homeward Bound: The Life of Paul Simon By Peter Ames Carlin Henry Holt & Co., 415 pp., $32 In 1984, Paul Simon’s career wasn’t going so well. His semi-autobiographical feature film debut as an actor, One Trick Pony, had tanked at the box office. He decided to turn a surefire-success Simon & Garfunkel…
Pairing European Bands With Their Houston Kin
Tantalizing cuisine and intoxicating beverages draw people with diverse backgrounds together. It doesn’t matter if the drink is rakija, a strong fruit brandy from the Balkans, or a Creole sampler from Frenchy’s — if it’s tasty we’ll enjoy it, no matter who we are or from where we hail. The…
Harris County Deputy Shoots Inmate Being Treated at Ben Taub Hospital [UPDATED]
A Harris County sheriff’s deputy shot an inmate who was being treated for seizures at Ben Taub Hospital just after 10 a.m. Thursday, Sheriff Ron Hickman told reporters at the hospital. According to Hickman, the inmate, Ricky Lynn Hall, grabbed a sharp-edged medical object to use it as a weapon…
Die Antwoord Brings the Mayhem to a Sold-Out House of Blues
Die Antwoord House of Blues October 5, 2016 Bonnie and Clyde. Mickey and Mallory. Ninja and Yolandi. Whether actual or fictional, those notorious couples have done some terrible things, but all were bonded by love. Wednesday night at House of Blues, the South African duo and DJ Hi-Tek, collectively known as…
Best Bets for This Weekend’s College and NFL Games
Before we get started with this week’s picks, I’d like to acknowledge the dawning of the final postseason of one of the great clutch careers in all of team sports — Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz. People oftentimes ask me “Who’s your team?” and quite honestly, for someone who…
Margo Price Channels Her Inner Loretta Lynn at House of Blues
Margo Price Bronze Peacock Room October 5, 2016 Margo Price may be the most underrated woman in all of country music. Sure, she may not move the needle like a Carrie Underwood or Faith Hill, but that’s precisely the point. Simply put, Margo Price should be a bigger deal commercially…
UH Delivers The Crucible and Its Mob Hysteria in Opera Form
When famed playwright Arthur Miller was approached about the possibility of making an opera out of The Crucible, he not only endorsed it, he initially wanted to try to write the music himself. According to Buck Ross, director of Moores Opera Center at the University of Houston, wiser minds prevailed…
Passion vs. Obsession in The Blind Astronomer’s Daughter
Setting a story about astronomy in 18th Century Ireland seems odd at the very least. That’s until you talk with author John Pipkin who’ll clue you in on the history of the era. “It does seem an unlikely location for a story about astronomy. Not only in terms of the…
Resignation of Baylor’s Title IX Officer Should Set Off Alarm Bells in Waco
There are people at Baylor, and associated with Baylor, who believe that the numerous sexual assault allegations levied against the school, especially against the football team, have been blown out of proportion. First and foremost among them being deposed head coach Art Briles and former school president Ken Starr. Maybe…
Texas Concludes Record-Breaking Streak of Not Executing People
Texas concluded last night its impressive, record-breaking gap in executions, having gone a whole six months without killing a single person. It is the longest lull in executions since 2008, when the U.S. Supreme Court was considering the legality of lethal injections, the manner in which Barney Fuller Jr. was…
6 Ways to Dress Like a Houstonian for Halloween
Halloween is coming up, and a lot of folks are trying to figure out what kind of costumes they’ll be wearing this year. This is a weird year, and some outfits just won’t cut it anymore – Dressing like an evil clown might get a person arrested or shot, and…
The 20 Best Green Day Songs
If you believe that history repeats, then we’re likely on the cusp of another round of Green Day greatness. Lots of bands go through ups and downs over the course of their career, but Green Day’s peaks and valleys seem more dramatic than most. From the high of Dookie being…
Same Thieves Suspected of Preying on Women in Houston Parking Lots [UPDATED]
Sarah Elsea was loading groceries into her trunk in the Walmart parking lot on Yale Street in August when a blue Toyota sedan pulled up next to her — a little too close, Elsea said. A woman in the backseat rolled down the window and asked for directions. It was a…
My Mom Called Me a Bitch. Help!
Dear Willie D: As long as I can remember I have had issues with my mother trying to control me. I’m 28 years old with a husband and kids, and she’s still trying to tell me what to do. I was put in charge of planning a family vacation for…
Houston Lawyers Choose Anderson to Remain as Harris County DA, But Just Barely
Houston lawyers say they want to see Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson elected to a second term, but just by a hair. According to the Houston Bar Association’s annual judicial preference poll, attorneys picked Anderson over challenger Kim Ogg, 806-787. That slim margin — just 1 percent — stands…
Taconmadre is the Best Classic Food Truck in Houston
Thanks to being outside city limits and not subject to the silly restriction that states food trucks can’t have a seating area for customers, Taconmadre on Edgebrook has a separate building that serves as a dining room. There’s even a patio. That makes for a relaxed atmosphere for dining on…
It’s All Greek – Houston’s Original Greek Festival Turns 50
The spanakopita. The souvlaki. The gyros. The dancing and singing in traditional garb. The miles-long displays of mouth-watering, gooey pastries. We’ve all welcomed these treats and customs into our daily lives, and with the turn from summer into autumn, it’s also time, once again, to partake in one of our…
Beat-Up Inmate Files Civil Rights Suit Against Harris County Jailers
An inmate beaten by several Harris County jailers has filed a civil rights lawsuit against the jailers and the county, alleging his beating was the result of a culture of excessive force at the jail. Jerome Bartee was booked into the Harris County Jail September 3 after being pulled over…
Recap: My Table Magazine’s 2016 Houston Culinary Awards
The mood was festive Sunday evening among the Who’s Who in the Houston restaurant world. You could barely take a few steps without bumping into someone who played a vital role in the Bayou City’s culinary scene: restaurateurs, chefs, beverage professionals, service, management and support staff. Everyone was dressed to…
9/11 Group Claims It Was Ripped Off by Houston-area Cop
On September 11, 2001, an 18-year-old volunteer paramedic named Richard Pearlman was at 1 Police Plaza when he heard about the Towers. He’d been running an errand for the Queens lawyer he clerked for, but at that moment, his training kicked in, and he rushed toward Ground Zero. A Newsweek…
Kung Fu Saloon Offers the Best Bar Games in Houston
Kung Fu Saloon is like a playground for adults. There’s booze. There’s ping pong. There’s foosball and Mario Kart and shuffleboard. There’s skee ball — and that’s probably all you need to sell your friends. Kung Fu doesn’t have the exclusive feel of an arcade bar, though. Sure, the classic…
Other Than Beating UConn, Last Week Was Rough For #HTownTakeover
On the surface, all seems well with the University of Houston football program, with the #HTownTakeover rolling through the American Athletic Conference now like an unstoppable tsunami. Hell, if we’re going by the length of the weekly media relations emails with fun factoids about the program (shout out to UH…
Feeding Innovation at Third Coast Inside the Texas Medical Center
Five months after the doors to Trevisio closed, new doors opened up to a beautifully designed space that is now home to Third Coast on the sixth floor of the Texas Medical Center (TMC). The Houston Press attended a special chef’s tasting Tuesday to understand what it means to “Feed Innovation.”…
I Hate My Child’s Homework SO Much
I have two kids that have been in grades K – 4, and they have homework by the second day of school, usually busy work labelled “repetition” from what they did that day or the day before. Half of my fights with the kids are because they already know this…
Supreme Court Looks at Whether Duane Buck Should Get a New Trial
Was Duane Buck sentenced to death because he is African American, because he had a bad lawyer or because he was guilty of the crimes he was accused of? On Wednesday the U.S. Supreme Court will look at this thorny, complicated question as justices hear Buck’s case, and examine the…
For One Day Only, Enjoy Gilmore Girls Coffee at Cafes Across Houston [UPDATED]
This Wednesday, Houston will transform into a tiny Connecticut town – or at least parts of Houston will, as three cafes across the city will be converted into pop-up versions of the TV show Gilmore Girls’ most famous restaurant: Luke’s Cafe. To promote Netflix’s upcoming four-episode revival of the series,…
Changed UHD Graduation Date Upsets Some MBA Students
Stephanie Logue missed her high school graduation ceremony in Corpus Christi because of basic training for the U.S. Army. Her decade in the military, where she rose to the rank of staff sergeant and served tours in Iraq and Kosovo, caused her to miss many family milestones back home. Over…
Texans Tailgating Parties Could Stand More Houston Music
If you’re looking for unabashed homerism, the place to find it is NRG Stadium any Houston Texans home Sunday. Virile men and alluring women crowd the parking lots. They wear number 99 jerseys and grill assorted animal meat parts and show great finesse around the cornhole. Of all they do, the thing…
The Genius of Idiocracy Is That It Makes You Dumber, Too
Mike Judge’s Idiocracy might technically be coming back to theaters for one night only, but for many of us, it’s been running on an endless loop for years. In a world where Donald Trump is a presidential candidate and some cafes are now offering blowjobs with your morning coffee, it’s…
Mayor Turner, Super Bowl Host Committee Unveil “Touchdown Tour” Events
At a press conference Tuesday filled with intentionally cheesy football jokes, a marching band and cheerleaders, Mayor Sylvester Turner unveiled a host of Super Bowl 51 events in 11 Houston neighborhoods from the Space Center to Kingwood. Turner said he knows not everyone can afford a ticket to the big…
The Cougar Football Faithful Are the Best Fans in Houston
Houston lays claim to one of the longest, most fascinating and sometimes cruelest chapters in the Sports Fan’s Almanac of Frustration and Heartbreak, but UH athletics post-Phi Slama Jama have hardly even registered as an afterthought. That all changed after Tom Herman arrived as head football coach in December 2014,…
Houston Area Jerks in Clown Masks Chase People With Bats, Tree Limbs
Either a 14-year-old’s social media hoax has inspired people to scare innocent bystanders to death or they are Halloween nuts much too excited that it is October: Yesterday, at least three men dressed in clown masks chased people through neighborhoods and parks, police say. And at least one got away…
Best Radio Station
For years terrestrial radio has struggled to remain relevant in the unending tide of digitally driven alternatives, but KPFT continues to demonstrate that, in the right hands, radio can still bring people together. Celebrating its 45th year on the air with a brand-new 100,000-watt transmitter last year, “The Mighty 90″…
Best New Band
To be so good so early is perhaps unfair to a public hungry for missteps and knocked-knees, but new trio Rough Sleepers are already vets of the cola wars. Singer-guitarist Tyler Morris and drummer Charlie Patranella were two-thirds of well-loved dub-goth act Balaclavas and its funky sequel, Subsonic Voices. With…
Best Radio Program
From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. every weekday, all the familiar complaints about Houston radio disappear in the laid-back, commercial-free climate of KPFT’s eclectic, perfectly curated Wide Open Spaces. Sometimes loosely organized around a different theme (Mellow Mondays, Classic Rock Fridays), Wide Open Spaces highlights artists of the independent and…
Best Brewery
Gone are the ramshackle biergarten and shoddy-looking taproom, and in their place lies a sparkling brewery complete with a renovated patio and brand-spanking-new full-service restaurant. With Karbach’s monster roster of suds ranging from the dry-hopped Hopadillo to the bright and citrusy Weekend Warrior, it comes as no surprise that the…
Best Sommelier
A founding member of the Houston Sommelier Association and partner in the hugely popular Camerata at Paulie’s wine bar, David Keck goes above and beyond his day-to-day responsibilities of running a bar. He has been instrumental in putting the Houston wine scene on the map, working with small producers and…
Best Wine Bar
When you’re longing for the perfect glass of wine but don’t know what you want, it’s time to hit up Camerata. Situated next to neighborhood Italian restaurant Paulie’s, Camerata draws in all kinds of people, from wine aficionados to regular folks who just enjoy a good glass of Chianti. Or…
Best Farmers’ Market
If you’re looking for what’s fresh and seasonal on the Gulf Coast, you can do no better than the Eastside Farmers Market from Urban Harvest. More so than any other market in the city, this is where the chefs shop. You’ll spot them talking strawberries with the folks from Atkinson…
Best New Restaurant
When El Cantina Superior closed, it did so under the gaze of disappointed and underwhelmed diners. Really, it was for the best. The death of that concept made room for the birth of Ritual, helmed by Delicious Concepts’ Ken Bridge and Black Hill Meats’ Felix Florez. The latter is well…
Best Nachos
This classic neighborhood haunt off Airline is old-school in the best possible way. Teotihuacan serves three varieties of vintage Tex-Mex nachos, and our favorite just may be the nachos rocio. Served simply with beans, cheese and borderline greasy ground beef, the chips are best eaten with sour cream, guacamole, pickled…
Best Crawfish
You can visit just about any crawfish restaurant to get a simple Cajun boil. But when you want an added burst of flavor, go to Cajun Kitchen, which specializes in Viet-Cajun crawfish. This award-winning spot leaves its competitors in the dust with a trio of unique flavors that will have…
Best Italian Restaurant
While we all love Italian when it comes to classics like chicken parmigiana and spaghetti and meatballs, a journey through the cuisine should never stop there. Just one meal at Da Marco, the white-tablecloth trattoria from chef Marco Wiles, is all it takes to open your eyes (and mouth) to…
Best Handyman
No one tells you when you buy a house that it doesn’t come with a manual. And despite what shows on HGTV and DIY may lead you to believe, most problems require professional fixes. Finding a contractor who is trustworthy and willing to do a job smaller than an entire…
Best Hairstylist
A third-generation stylist, Martin Orgeron has been working his magic for nearly 30 years on all kinds of clientele — guys and gals — from the frou-frou to the blue collar. The New Orleans native with a colorful Cajun accent and down-home charm moved to the Bayou City in the…
Best Head Shop
Last year’s winner retains the title, and we swear it’s not because we got sidelined with a bad case of the munchies and didn’t research further. This unassuming little shop has some of the friendliest, most knowledgeable folks we’ve ever had the pleasure of discussing various and sundry glass instruments…
Best Place to Buy Plants
It’s no surprise that Buchanan’s is celebrating its 30th year in the Heights area, with its winning formula of hiring friendly, knowledgeable staff and its emphasis on native plants and organic gardening. Customer service is key, from handy take-home reference sheets about seasonal plants to accessible and communicative staffers. Sprinkled…
Best Indoor Playground
Our weather being what it is, the time comes for Houston parents to exercise their demons indoors. And Wonderwild is just the place, spacious enough to run the little horses and affordable enough to visit as needed. The attractions include a huge kiddie habitrail, various chutes and ladders, non-mechanized go-kart…
Best Liquor Store
Spec’s downtown, the epicenter of it all, the giant rabbit source from which all other bunnies flow, is kind of like an enormous playground for grown-ups. Row upon row and aisle upon aisle of wines, beers and libations, arranged by type, subtype, region and subregion, sparkle under the fluorescent lights…
Best Honky Tonk
In H-Town’s shrinking honky-tonk scene, the Firehouse Saloon still holds strong. The hard-to-miss roadhouse and its fire truck, located just off the Highway 59 feeder road near Fountain View Drive, offers three sizable bars, a big dance floor, some pool tables and the main attraction: live country and western bands…
Best Sports Bar
For 23 years, Nick’s has been perfecting the science of what makes a great sports bar. Think you can just tune a TV to ESPN and put a fried dairy product on the menu and call yourself a sports bar? No, sir. You really have to nail the atmosphere, for…
Best Dive Bar
There are a lot of great dive bars in Houston, but when we’re longing for a true bastion of cheap beer, with a good jukebox in an atmosphere as unassuming as a scene can be, we head to the Rose Garden in the Heights. The wood-paneled walls are decorated with…
Best Ceviche
With a new, more visible location downtown, it feels like La Fisheria’s focus is solidly on seafood quality. That means all the ceviches are excellent. There’s the Natural, with fish brined in lime juice and accented with cucumber and avocado; the Enclamatado, with fish and shrimp in tomato, clam and…
Best African Restaurant
The warm, friendly service at Nigerian restaurant Café Abuja means it’s an ideal place for both those well-versed in and new to African cuisine. Just ask and the staff will happily guide you through the menu. The warming Goat Pepper Soup, made with goat meat and tripe, truly packs a…
Best Lunch
Underbelly is just a quick drive for the downtown lunch crowd, and parking is easy thanks to multiple lots and valet. Lunchtime dishes range from light and healthful to downright meaty. The menu changes often, so it’s never boring, but there are always a few continuing, tasty standards, including the…
Best Gay Bar
When Rich’s abruptly shut its doors in 2013, Houston’s gay community lost its wild, sweaty living room. Rich’s had been around 30 years, offering countless Houstonians their first taste of LGBT nightlife. But now Rich’s is back, baby, under new ownership and thumping away once again. Rich’s reopened this summer…
Best Classic Food Truck
Though it is a food truck, Taconmadre on Edgebrook has a separate building that serves as a dining room. There’s even a patio. That makes for a relaxed atmosphere for dining on…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Rice Village
Rice Village welcomed an outpost of the fast-growing Liberty Kitchen empire at the beginning of the year, and Little Liberty quickly became a favorite among locals, mostly thanks to its cozy atmosphere and refreshingly good grub. Get sloppy double burgers smothered with Thousand Island dressing, hickory-grilled Gulf fish and weekend…
Best Korean Restaurant
Stepping into Korea Garden is a bit like entering another world. It starts with the heavy wooden door with iron accents, straight out of a period Asian movie. Inside, tables and booths are arranged around a lush green garden, making you feel like you’re eating on a Korean patio somewhere…
Best Hot Dog
Things are looking up for this gourmet frank shop, which announced plans last year for a second location in the old Brick & Spoon spot in Montrose. That means you will soon have double the chance to stuff yourself with crazy-good Texas-made hot dogs and hand-cut fries. Load up a…
Best New City Policy
Mayor Sylvester Turner was not messing around when he promised during his campaign to do something about the city’s annoying, car-killing pothole problem. Immediately upon taking office, in January, Turner launched his pothole repair initiative, which required Public Works to fill potholes by the next business day when citizens reported…
Best Bookstore
Selling everything from Sylvia Plath to Howard Zinn to contemporary best-sellers, Brazos Bookstore is the kind of shop where you lose track of time browsing titles. If you’re the kind of reader who’s so indecisive (or insatiable) that you can’t quit reading the jackets of almost every single book in…
Best Wedding Venue
When you think back on your wedding day, you don’t remember the minutiae. You see the cinematic version, well-edited with a gorgeous soundtrack, full of scenes you’ll remember forever. Majestic Metro makes quite the setting for those memories, the former downtown theater giving the big day an immediate hint of…
Best Coach
When Tom Herman arrived at the University of Houston in 2015, he came to campus long on credibility and short on head coaching experience. Having just finished a stint as offensive coordinator for the national champion Ohio State Buckeyes, Herman was determined to make the Cougars the top program in…
Best Rocket
It’s rare to have a player about whom you can say, “He is the reason the Rockets finished as the eighth seed in the Western Conference,” and have it be simultaneously an insult and a compliment. Last season Harden’s slow start dug the Rockets into a hole that got Kevin…
Best Place for Cocktails
Leon’s Lounge has been a favorite Houston watering hole for decades for very good reason — the bartenders serve up expertly made cocktails that not only taste amazing but also get you thoroughly, happily drunk. We were relieved when Houston’s oldest bar reopened after briefly shuttering last year, because it…
Best Art Gallery
It’s not just that they keep it local — because, heck yeah, we’re all Texas proud — it’s the multi-pronged way that William Reaves and Sarah Foltz promote artists from the Lone Star State at their ten-year-old gallery. They produce beautifully written essays explaining each piece’s provenance; they invite experts…
Best Public Art
Just as mother of pearl seems to change color when viewed at different angles, the iridescent grids of “Cloud Room Field” twinkle and change with movement and light. Commissioned by the Houston Airport System through Houston Arts Alliance, the ten-foot by 60-foot dichroic glass, aluminum and stainless steel sculpture graces…
Best Chinese Restaurant
Looking for a casual, Chinese restaurant with spicy Szechuan cuisine and a friendly environment? Look no further than Cooking Girl, which feels like someone picked up a Chinatown restaurant and dropped it into Montrose. Dishes like Super Cubic!, with cubes of beef fried with lots of spicy dried peppers, and…
Best Tapas
When you go for tapas, you’re looking for an evening filled with small plates to share, preferably with a pitcher of sangria or a cold beer to wash it down. That’s exactly what you find at Oporto Fooding House in Midtown, which does Portuguese tapas, or petiscos, so authentically well…
Best Margaritas
There’s no place better equipped to create outstanding margaritas than The Pastry War. After all, it has one of the most renowned collections of tequila and mezcal in the United States, and it stocks both Persian and Key limes. The house margarita, available both on the rocks (with Pueblo Viejo…
Best Tourist Attraction
When trying to lay out the reasons why someone should visit Houston, it is not uncommon to come face to face with the reasons not to come here. The heat, the sprawl, the traffic — we’ve heard it all before. This is why a trip to the Museum District should…
Best Mac and Cheese
Steakhouses are simply expected to have an excellent, rich macaroni and cheese, but Del Frisco’s takes it a little further than usual. Topped with breadcrumbs, this decadent offering is loaded with chunks of lobster tail meat. The dish is broiled until the blend of fontina and Parmesan cheese bubbles and…
Best Brunch
If your brunch plans don’t involve at least some sort of seafood, you’re doing it wrong. At his namesake restaurant, veteran chef Mark Holley wows with coastal fare inspired by a tapestry of Southern flavors, from the Lowcountry and Gulf Coast to the bourbon-centric tastes of Kentucky. This year the…
Best Meatballs
You can get soft, succulent meatballs three ways at this urban Italiano joint in Uptown’s BLVD Place. A cool ten-spot will get you braised meatballs swimming in classic red sauce with a side of grilled bread to sop it all up, a rich and flawless shared plate that you have…
Best Greasy Spoon
When it comes to greasy spoons, most people are looking for a few things: great prices, fast service and deliciously unctuous grub. After 77 years, kitschy Lankford Grocery continues to earn five-star ratings in each of those criteria. Hit the shaded picnic tables to take down colossal breakfast plates and…
Best Cigar Seller
Legend has it that the Briar Shoppe was founded in 1962 when single mother Alice Amason got Richard “Racehorse” Haynes to give her a $500 loan to start her own tobacco store. From there, Amason created a tobacco mecca that today offers a walk-in humidor you have to see to…
Best Yoga Studio
Whether you’re new to yoga or on an elevated plane, the flowmasters at Joy Yoga understand that everyone’s path is unique and only ask that you be enthusiastic and keep an open mind. Yogis attend for different reasons, from needing a form of exercise that won’t damage the body, to…
Best Wine Store
We call this one the little store with a big vision. Formerly named Wines of America, this Inner Loop mainstay now stocks some of Houston’s most exclusive bars and clubs. From its origins in 1984 specializing in domestic wines, this oenophiles’ paradise now offers up quality wines from around the…
Best Commentator
Versatility is important in any job, but it’s a must for sports broadcasters in 2016. Kevin Eschenfelder’s varied television skills and adaptability are big reasons why he’s been so successful for so long. Since breaking into television in the early ’90s, Eschenfelder has been a broadcast fixture in both Houston…
Best Picnic Spot
One of Houston’s oldest and most beautiful parks is also one of its most useful. In addition to the zoo, the golf course, the museums across the street, Miller Outdoor Theatre, the train and the brand new McGovern Centennial Gardens, this park has beautiful old oak and pine trees and…
Best Art Installation
Simple in concept yet complex in execution, “Intersections” shone just a bit more brightly in a pack of very strong contenders this past season at Rice University Art Gallery. Artist Anila Quayyum Agha laser-cut six wooden panels to form a six-foot cube, drawing inspiration from the Alhambra’s geometric, Islamic-inspired decor…
Best Movie Theater
Movie theaters are constantly stepping up their games. Everywhere you go, there are bigger screens, fancier menus and reclining seats, no matter if you’re paying $8 or $30 for a ticket. The competition is fierce, but in the end, the Vintage Park outpost of the Alamo Drafthouse remains on top…
Best Neighborhood Bar — Montrose
Okay, before we get into the great beer selection, featuring plenty of local craft beers; before we get into the no-frills, old-school, welcoming décor; before we mention the kick-ass comedians and bands who perform upstairs throughout the week; before we throw in something about how Rudz has been serving up…
Best Coffee
With David Buehrer and Ecky Prabanto, the owners of Greenway Coffee and Blacksmith, behind Morningstar’s coffee program, it was simply expected that the coffee and espresso at this Heights spot would be excellent. They source interesting beans directly from small growers around the world, and the roast levels are adjusted…
Best Tapas
When you go for tapas, you’re looking for an evening filled with small plates to share, preferably with a pitcher of sangria or a cold beer to wash it down. That’s exactly what you find at Oporto Fooding House in Midtown, which does Portuguese tapas, or petiscos, so authentically well…
Best Radio Talk Show
The other day we tuned into Houston Matters and were enthralled by discussion of an issue that would probably bore even loyal public-radio listeners to tears: why appraisal districts and corporations often end up in court. Hosted by the poised and sanguine Craig Cohen, Houston Matters does this a lot,…
Best Brazilian Steakhouse
Sure, other Brazilian-style steakhouses have opened (and closed) in Houston since Fogo de Chão appeared 17 years ago, but this international chain is the one they’re all trying to beat. When it comes to sumptuous salad bars, with everything from cold cured meats to warm black beans and rice, and…
Best Burger
Americans love to joke about how the British can’t cook, but chef Richard Knight at Hunky Dory proves them all wrong daily. In addition to his amazing charcuterie, delicate vegetable dishes and hearth-roasted meats, he also has constructed the best burger in Houston. It’s a lush, two-patty specimen with amazing…
Best Service
Any restaurant can dish out food, but few places provide guests with a sense of being truly valued and taken care of during a meal. La Table, managed by Invest Hospitality, the same company that oversees L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Las Vegas, understands how. It’s all about good training…
Best Vegan Restaurant
Stephanie Hoban knows her way around vegetables, so much so that her vegan food truck can serve up convincing caprese melts made with vegan cheese and pulled-pork-esque sandwiches made from jackfruit. Brunch options range from superfood acai bowls to delicious gluten-free cornmeal pancakes and baked doughnuts. If you can’t catch…
Best Peking Duck
For 26 years, Fung’s Kitchen has been serving Hong Kong-style Cantonese cuisine to generations of discerning Asians. In fact, it’s quadrupled in size since Hoi and Nancy Fung first set up shop on the Southwest Freeway. Through the years, the Fungs have rarely been away from their beloved restaurant, and…
Best Fried Chicken
If you’ve been limiting your fried chicken experiences to that of the Southern variety, it’s time to switch up your game plan. Himalaya’s fried chicken — affectionately known as “HFC” — starts with a brine that’s chock-full of spices like garam masala and ginger. After a nice, long soak, the…
Best Pedestrian Mall
In a city seemingly built for hardcore shoppers, CityCentre is perfect for folks who don’t treat buying like a contact sport. The vibe at CityCentre is just a lot more chill than at other malls, which makes it a fun place to kill a few hours. You can look in…
Best Tattoo Artist
Lana Gooding can handle just about any design request, whether you’re looking for a simple Astrodome icon on your arm or fancy the full-body coverage of a lifelong sailor. She’ll ink up whatever you want, wherever you want it. But it’s her bedside manner that keeps clients coming back again…
Best Florist
Fannin Flowers has been providing customers with bouquets 24 hours a day for more than 30 years. The family-owned shop — conveniently located near the Texas Medical Center — has row after row of cut flowers that can be bought in bulk or in gorgeous arrangements, along with tropical and…
Best Golf Course
With two unique courses, Cypresswood Golf Club offers up the perfect combination of fun and challenge. The Tradition Course is dubbed “a return to the game and its origin, pure and simple,” while the Cypress Course has doglegs and rolling fairways that make it the perfect test for a shot…
Best Weekend Getaway
The thing about a trip to the Hill Country is that it’s modular. With so much to do in the center of our gigantic state, any trip west of Houston can be tailored or suited to your interests, be they culinary, outdoor, historical or something else entirely. New Braunfels puts…
Best Jukebox
It’s no surprise that La Carafe, the history-saturated bar in the oldest commercial building in Houston, also boasts one of the most eclectic, fantastic jukeboxes around. Any night the sounds of Edith Piaf, Billie Holiday or the Ink Spots will come drifting out of the downtown Houston bar before the…
Best Band Name
You can’t escape politics this year. No matter what apps you’re using, no matter what channel you’re on, hell, no matter where you’re sitting, someone is saying something about this year’s election. The members of A More Perfect Union probably didn’t mean to be part of that trend when they…
Best Strip Club
This venerable institution has been entertaining bons vivants since 1989, and it’s easy to understand why with such plush surroundings, talented dancers and stellar food options. You can start the week off with steak and shrimp specials on Monday, and then come back Thursday for a “Kick Ass Filet.” Saturday…
Best Bakery
Tucked away between Le Mistral French Restaurant and Rouge Wine Bar, Foody’s Gourmet is the type of French boulangerie and pâtisserie you might find in Paris. When you walk in, you are assailed by the warmth and aromas of French bread baked fresh that morning. Baskets of tall, thin baguettes…
Best Chocolate Chip Cookie
The salted chocolate chunk cookie at this funky bake shop is a thing of beauty. Crowned with delicate flakes of fleur de sel, speckled with Valrhona chocolate and toasted until golden brown, the fat, stubby cookies strike that perfect balance between being rich, sweet, chocolaty, buttery and salty. Pair them…
Best Place to People-Watch
Houstonians are a diverse group, but we’re united by a few things. We all hate traffic. We all sweat in the summer. Our hearts are broken time and time again by our sports teams. And we all shop at Ikea. Next time you go there, take a break from your…
Best Jazz Club
The explosive jazz at Cezanne overwhelms the packed, intimate room. Bands play everything from crescendo-heavy originals to nearly unrecognizable Nirvana covers, often so loud you can feel the floor shake. The wood-paneled walls and nature paintings that decorate them make you feel like you are perhaps in a rich relative’s…
Best Pizzeria
This Vera Pizza Napoletana-certified shop has changed the way Houstonians think about pizza. Blistered in a 900-degree, custom-made Italian brick oven, the pies cook in about 90 seconds, coming out with a just-scorched crust and soft, pillowy center that is best topped lightly. San Marzano sauce and housemade mozzarella are…
Best Sundae
At Fat Cat Creamery you can create your own marvelous concoction from your choice of ice cream and three toppings, but there’s also the Every Day is Like Sundae, a special offering that changes regularly but always features two scoops of ice cream, housemade sauces, freshly whipped cream, cherries and…
Best Pasta
The only thing bad about the thoughtfully composed pastas at this garden-to-table Italian spot is that your favorite may leave with the change of the season. But that’s okay, because the genius team at Coltivare will likely come up with something new and equally favorable. And if nothing seasonal tickles…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Sugar Land
Unpretentious and family-friendly, Lupita’s has been serving up fine Tex-Mex to Sugar Land for more than a decade. In the kitchen, mama Lupe and her crew prep ingredients in the morning and in the afternoon so that everything is fresh for both lunch and dinner service. In the front of…
Best Peruvian Restaurant
Chef David Guerrero’s large menu at Andes Cafe actually covers seven different countries in South America, but the food of Peru is a significant focus. There are close to 20 different Peruvian dishes on the menu, and they go far beyond just Peruvian-style ceviche. For lunch, dive into the sanduche…
Best Hospital
MD Anderson’s network of hospitals and other cancer-treatment facilities, originally established by the Texas Legislature in 1941, welcomes patients from all over the world, enough that its International Center offers full-time interpreters in Arabic, Mandarin, Russian and several other languages. Even eating in the cafeteria can feel like stepping inside…
Best Place to Buy Western Wear
It’s only called “Boot City” because “Boot, Jeans, Belt, Hat, Dresses, Outerwear, and Accessories City” takes up too much space. But really, there’s no better place to get in touch with your inner urban cowboy. Cavender’s has western gear for the whole family, and with decent prices, you won’t have…
Best Computer Store
That sense of déjà vu you’re experiencing is very real — last year’s winner is again this year’s champ. Sure, Apple stores tend to be prettier, sleeker affairs, which is great for strutting around with a sense of superiority. But if you really want to get down to business and take…
Best Gym
Besides a historic neon sign hoisted over the free weights area upstairs, the only vestige of the old downtown Y is a piped-in soundtrack that occasionally plays Roxy Music and the New York Dolls. Otherwise, the Tellepsen Family Downtown YMCA is clean and completely modern, a popular locale for lunching…
Best Beach
Being only about an hour from the Gulf Coast affords Houstonians the opportunity to go to the beach as frequently as they are able. Most head for Galveston and, sure, it’s fine, but if you want a slightly more laid-back beach experience, try Surfside. Southwest of Galveston along the Blue…
Best New Music Venue
While big brother White Oak Music Hall’s indoor stages have only been running a few weeks, the Pegstar-owned Raven Tower opened this past spring, and the music has never stopped, not even when the city shut down the eagles-nest “bachelor pad” observation deck. Even as a relatively small, partially open-air…
Best Cigar Bar
There are fewer and fewer establishments in the world where a person can enjoy a stogie without violating an ordinance or inciting a tiny riot. That’s why a place like the Heights Cigar Lounge — with its leather recliners and sofas, its impressive walk-in humidor, and its friendly, welcoming vibe…
Best of Houston 2016
Houston. The word conjures up a feeling of motion. The city’s namesake was born in Virginia, then ambled to Tennessee, then the Arkansas Territory, then Texas before it was Texas. The Allen brothers famously founded Houston on the banks of Buffalo Bayou. Not content with the city’s inland location, civic…
Best Charcuterie
When it comes to charcuterie, Revival Market’s game is about as good as it gets. The entire ethos of the market, breakfast and lunch spot was founded on the ideals of locavore sustainability. The meat case is a thing of beauty — all the contents are made from antibiotic-free and…
Best Soul Food
Mikki’s Soul Food Cafe is in the back of a sketchy-looking strip center next to a gym, but this place is one of Houston’s hidden gems. Service is very real in a no-bull kind of way and ranges from “Here’s your food” to “How you doing, hon?” Food is served…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Tomball
In the mornings patrons crowd the ridiculously charming cottage that houses Jane & John Dough for pastries, coffee cake, egg sandwiches and lattes made with care. Light sandwiches with in-house baked bread and housemade mayonnaise satisfy afternoon hungers. A slice of the unique honey pie is not to be missed…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Midtown
When the bakeshop opens at 6 a.m., the folks at Weights + Measures get their neighbors off to a good start by serving espresso drinks that pair nicely with their many flaky pastries and muffins. Then, they segue into lunch service, offering interesting soups, juicy burgers and full-fledged pasta, chicken…
Best Cafeteria
When people think “cafeteria,” images of sad green beans, soggy fish and scoops of mashed potatoes with wells of brown gravy might come to mind. The cafeteria-style service at Aladdin, though, offers flavor-packed, healthy Mediterranean fare. There are big trays of pickled cabbage salad, hummus and baba ghanoush (eggplant dip)…
Best Sushi Restaurant
Sushi lovers in Houston know to count on Kata Robata for a consistently excellent and interesting selection of fresh fish. Every day the first page of the menu highlights special arrivals, such as skipjack, konoshiro (gizzard shad) and uni (sea urchin), as well as the prized otoro and chutoro (fatty…
Best Ramen
Despite Houston’s less than cool climate, locals take no issue slurping this modern Japanese spot’s hot ramen all year round. On weekends you’ll likely find a slight wait for a table even on the hottest days. Once you taste the intensely flavored, 18-hour slow-cooked pork bone broth and toothsome, from-scratch…
Best Banh Mi
Previously known as Vietnam Poblano, Roostar Vietnamese Grill is the brainchild of owners Ronnie and Linda Nguyen. It’s a humble mom-and-pop hole-in-the-wall you can easily fall in love with, not just because the owners are always there and remember you by name after your first visit, but also because they…
Best Pizza
Cane Rosso’s executive chef, Dino Santonicola, is so well-regarded in the pizza world that he’s considered a “fiduciary,” or someone entrusted to check out other pizzerias by Vera Pizza Napoletana, an organization that trains individuals and certifies restaurants that produce authentic Neapolitan-style pizza. That’s likely one reason Houston’s first Cane…
Best Antiques Store
There are plenty of antique meccas in Houston, but when you want a true variety of very old things to dig through, Heights Station Antiques is just the place to look. Housed on Heights Boulevard just south of the railroad tracks, the old carriage barn, built in 1895, has 5,000…
Best Place to Buy Western Wear
It’s only called “Boot City” because “Boot, Jeans, Belt, Hat, Dresses, Outerwear, and Accessories City” takes up too much space. But really, there’s no better place to get in touch with your inner urban cowboy. Cavender’s has western gear for the whole family, and with decent prices, you won’t have…
Best Costume Shop
There’s no need to wait for Halloween to find a costume at this year-round institution. The store’s massive 20,000-square-foot showroom east of downtown occupies an entire city block and has everything you could imagine and then some. With more than 60,000 rental costumes and an enormous supply of stage and…
Best Mascot
Ironically, Orbit made his return to the Houston Astros during the most downtrodden, depressing season in the history of the franchise, the 51-111 debacle back in 2013. Since then the baseball team has been making a steady climb, while the mascot has been on a meteoric rise. Go to any…
Best Sports Franchise
There are any number of ways to measure the caliber of a sports franchise, and right now the Houston Texans check the right boxes. First, the value of the team is estimated by Forbes to be at around $2.5 billion, which is by far the most of any Houston team…
Best Artist
In the interest of hastening and possibly short-circuiting the delay between total obscurity and posthumous renown (see Forrest Bess, Henry Darger and that Dutch guy who cut off his ear), let us praise Mike Hollis, one of the most original and committed painters Houston has produced, still living here and…
Best Arts Education
For 15 years Nameless Sound has made Houston a more sonically interesting spot. The music education non-profit is rooted in inclusion, whether it’s offering children, adults or homeless communities the chance to learn improvised music techniques, or bringing creative music heavy hitters to town to play concerts and teach workshops…
Best Local TV Commercial
Commercials on local TV were never supposed to make viewers pause to ponder the profound philosophical questions of life…until Texas Mattress Makers came along. The camera lingers lovingly over mattresses in production at the company’s East End factory-showroom, as a disembodied voice asks a few simple questions in a tone…
Best Ice Cream
Sure, you can order plain old vanilla at Cloud 10 Creamery (and it will be excellent), but that’s not why you go there. You go for creamy, whimsical flavor combinations that exceed the imagination, like basil mascarpone, brown butter sweet potato or Valrhona chocolate with figs. The brainchild of award-winning…
Best Theater District Restaurant
You don’t even have to leave the building to catch a show at this Theater District gem. That’s because Prohibition Supperclub & Bar houses a theater of its own. Built in 1912 and kissed with Art Deco details, the seriously gorgeous space hosts sultry performances from burlesque troop the Moonlight…
Best Alternative Club
Walter’s Downtown is the best kind of family business. Owner Zack Palmer inherited the warehouse-like venue north of downtown after his mother, beloved Houston nightlife matriarch Pam Robinson, passed away in late 2014, and he has carried over the anything-goes booking policy that makes Walter’s one of the most accessible…
Best Bar Games
Kung Fu Saloon is like a playground for adults. There’s booze. There’s ping pong. There’s foosball and Mario Kart and shuffleboard. There’s skee ball — and that’s probably all you need to sell your friends. Kung Fu doesn’t have the exclusive feel of an arcade bar, though. Sure, the classic…
Best Doughnuts
If you thought there was no reason to drive to Richmond, think again. These gourmet rounds come crispy and golden on the outside, with a heavenly interior of fluffy dough. As excellent as the base is, it’s the extras that truly make these doughnuts special. Get them in flavors like…
Best Tex-Mex Restaurant
El Real Tex-Mex doesn’t take itself too seriously. (Really, you can’t assign too much gravitas to a place that has a combo platter named after Chingo Bling.) It’s a fun place for margaritas, enchiladas and big, sizzling comals of garlic butter-braised beef fajitas. None of it would be nearly as…
Best Mexican Restaurant
When you talk about regional Mexican cuisine in Houston, the conversation inevitably turns to Hugo’s. One of Houston’s finest restaurants since 2002, chef Hugo Ortega’s eponymous venue has been a critical hit from the get-go, a reason why he has been a James Beard Foundation finalist in the Best Chef…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Montrose
The Hay Merchant’s 80 taps — 75 on draft and five on cask — are reason enough to make it a great neighborhood spot. That does not, however, take into account that the $10 burger is one of the best in Houston. There’s a food menu overseen by James Beard…
Best Restaurant Comeback
Who would have thought that the big, bold Cafe Annie sign would ever be seen again, much less those quintessential Southwestern dishes that first put chef Robert Del Grande in the spotlight? What started as an idea on how to celebrate Del Grande’s 35 years in Houston by bringing back…
Best Tailor
Some folks might have to take out a second mortgage to afford a Cortigiani jacket or pair of Moreschi oxfords, but for men of means Taghi’s is the go-to tailor in H-Town. Since 1984, Ali Taghi and his family have been outfitting wealthy Houstonians (and TNT sportscaster Craig Sager) from…
Best New Law
For months, workers’ advocates had decried the city’s practice of giving tax breaks to huge companies like Walmart and Landry’s without requiring them to pay a living wage, which resulted in workers’ still needing to lean on the government for help. In March, though, City Council passed new guidelines that…
Best Dog Trainer
Watching Stephanie Bennett work with dogs is not quite like watching a dog whisperer, but it’s close. At Peace Love Dogs, her facility in Spring Branch, she carefully observes and gives positive reinforcement to both pooch and pet parent. She’s patient and, most important, realistic. Her guidance is designed for…
Best Sporting Goods Store
We adore Luke’s Locker because it offers everything you could possibly need as a runner, plus a few items you probably never dreamed could actually exist, like the world’s most perfect sports bra or running shorts with pockets perfectly sized to hold your keys and a snack. On top of…
Best Cheap Seats
At Minute Maid Park there’s not a bad seat in the house, not even in the upper decks. The Houston Astros offer tickets for as low as $15 on the weekends and as low as $10 during the week. Sure, you aren’t sitting with millionaires and former presidents, but you…
Best Dynamo
As the team’s leading scorer in 2013 and 2014, forward and team captain Giles Barnes has continued to deliver across the board, making the man who wears the No. 28 jersey our No. 1 choice for Best Dynamo. Though he was humble in accepting the armband, the team’s fourth captain…
Best Bar Patio
Housed in a historic downtown building on Travis, El Big Bad’s three levels might seem a little daunting at first. But take the hike to that top level and step outside to the simple but tasteful patio, and you’ll see one of the best views to be had in downtown…
Best Bar
Hear that? That’s the sound of another pretentious cocktail-cove opening, where mixologists, not bartenders, serve you $12 drinks that inexplicably contain an egg and take half an hour to engineer. And if that’s your thing, the Inner Loop is your promised land. But if you like actual bars, you’ll love…
Best Blues Club
You can almost feel the smoke of a different era still hanging in the air at the Big Easy Social and Pleasure Club. On the stage, you’ll likely find a full-bodied blues band with a twanging guitar, fierce keys and throaty vocalist who, yes, sounds like he may have just…
Best Chef
When young chef William Wright talks about the food at Helen Greek Food and Wine, it’s with polite humility. He has the quiet intensity of one who is constantly working to master a subject. In this case, it’s the seasonal aspects and ingredients of Greek cuisine, which he takes far…
Best Enchiladas
There is an art to making the perfect enchilada, and Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen has definitely perfected it. The enchiladas here are the not the biggest you’ll find in Houston, nor are they overstuffed. They are, however, crafted with hand-made corn tortillas, then filled and topped so that each of the…
Best Wings
How hot is too hot when it comes to hot wings? Don’t bother asking at El Big Bad. The chile de arbol sauce on the Jalisco Hot Wangs is spicy enough to satisfy chile-heads and complex enough to intrigue the rest. The base is apple cider vinegar, which lends tanginess,…
Best Bar Atmosphere
La Grange kind of feels like a backyard patio imported from the Alamo. Cacti and tropical plants are everywhere. On chilly autumn nights, fire pits are set up between the outdoor wooden picnic tables. And inside the barebones cement walls and rustic wood-paneled ceilings from which fancy chandeliers hang make…
Best Comfort Food
With an all-star lineup of local talent (including former Underbelly chef Lyle Bento, former Goro & Gun chef J.D. Woodward and BBQ mastermind Patrick Feges), this Southern-inspired eatery provides full-service comfort through contemporary plates, along with craft cocktails and two dozen beer taps. A constantly rotating menu keeps things interesting,…
Best Chips and Salsa
You can get endless baskets of subpar, on-the-house chips and salsa at nearly any Tex-Mex haunt in town, but it’s worth the bit of extra money for chef Jonathan Jones’s badass lineup of freshly made salsas. The big and bold delights pack punches of serrano, cilantro, garlic and lime, as…
Best Bread Basket
All of the bread at Tony’s is baked in-house, including the long, spindly breadsticks called grissini. Dig in the basket and you’ll find a treasure trove of other wonders, including Parmesan-sprinkled focaccia and sesame white pumpkin bread. It’s such a lovely assortment that it seems possible to dine simply on…
Best Deli
Is there a better New York-style deli in Houston than Kenny & Ziggy’s? After years of being named the Best Deli by both our professional critics and beloved readers, Kenny & Ziggy’s is undeniably top of its class. Third-generation deli owner Ziggy Gruber’s appearance in the 2014 documentary Deli Man…
Best Ribs
Dinosaur-size beef ribs are mighty impressive and have gotten a lot of press over the past few years, but the folks behind Tejas Chocolate Craftory know there’s more to great ribs than size. In fact, it’s the humble pork rib here that shines brightest. That’s largely thanks to a balanced…
Best Instrument Store
Two steps inside Fuller’s and it smells like some rock-and-roll-loving woodworker could be sanding down the face of a brand-new acoustic in the back room, so distinct is the scent wafting throughout the store. Fuller’s offers everything for the aspiring guitar hero, from a custom-made double-neck acoustic to a star-shaped,…
Best New Way to Get Around the City
B-Cycle may not necessarily be brand-new, but the bike-sharing service is in the middle of a huge expansion, thanks to a $3.5 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration. With that money, Houston B-Cycle is nearly tripling its service, adding 71 new stations across the city and 568 new bikes…
Best Dry Cleaners
We expect the ideal dry cleaners to be like alchemists. We want them to be able to remove any stain, no matter its age or origin. We’d also like them to be reasonably priced and fast, and we’d prefer to get our clothes back without any iron marks. Most dry…
Best Astro
Looking to build off his 2014 American League batting title, this year Jose Altuve won over enough fans the first half of his season to start at second base in the All-Star Game. He’s upped his power, knocking more balls out of the park while still leading the league in…
Best Bike Trail
Starting at the end of Moy Street right at White Oak Bayou, the Heights Hike and Bike Trail takes you all the way through the historic Heights neighborhood and drops you off at the edge of downtown, right at the University of Houston — Downtown. Along the way, you’ll pass…
Best Pool Hall
Clicks promises a billiards experience free of warped cues, and that attention to detail is evident as soon as you walk into this highly entertaining and friendly pool joint. Clicks may call itself “upscale,” but that doesn’t mean “snooty.” The prices are reasonable — tables are $12 an hour in…
Best Neighborhood Bar — Rice Village
Tucked between a pair of small-homes-turned-businesses just off Kirby, Simone on Sunset is easy to miss. The gate is lined with greenery and fronted by a cobblestone driveway. Walking onto the patio feels like strolling onto someone’s property, which is what gives Simone such a cozy, neighborhood vibe. The bar…
Best Place to See an Intimate Concert
The lack of interior space at Satellite Bar isn’t necessarily a bad thing, especially because it means you get a good, close-up look at the local and national acts taking the stage. This East End venue is the best place in town for experiencing a show right in your face,…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Downtown
At the bottom of the neon sign at Irma’s Original, the motto reads “como en su casa,” which in Spanish means “like in your own home.” This is the motto that 74-year-old Irma Galvan has employed for the past three decades. When you come to her place, there are no…
Best French Restaurant
Since its 2012 debut in Uptown Park, Etoile Cuisine et Bar has steadily gained a loyal clientele, and with reason. This cozy, upscale French restaurant is helmed by chef-owner Philippe Verpiand, and he’s on the kitchen line almost every night, cooking the food himself. What you get, then, is not…
Best Podcast
You probably know somebody who is a walking encyclopedia of music, but rarely do those people share their knowledge with a wide audience on a regular basis. Houston is lucky to have Clint Broussard’s radio program, Blues In Hi-Fi, on KPFT, but neither the length nor formatting restrictions of his…
Best Place to Take a Selfie
Thankfully, public art has in recent years become a priority for Houston, and there are no works that say “Houston” more forcefully than the David Adickes sculptures in and around the area. Sure, the “We Heart Houston” sign along Interstate 10 is probably the most obvious, but there are many…
Best Sandwich
At this homegrown Montrose newcomer, excellent daily baked baguettes get the proper banh mi treatment with the addition of scratch-made truffled garlic aioli, housemade pâté and plently of pickly things. But it’s the 24-hour sous vide pork belly that really warms the soul. The delectably fatty pig comes unctuous as…
Best To-Go Menu
What could be more fun than sneaking up to the back door of a restaurant, handing a worker $20 in cash and getting a rotisserie chicken, tortillas, pico de gallo and two small containers of elote (Mexican corn with lime, chili and crema) in return? It sounds sketchy, but that’s…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Upper Kirby
With the upstairs bake lab adding to the excitement of the downstairs cafe, this Indian street food spot is a full-on powerhouse located in West Ave. (The cafe is so popular, it even expanded operations into NYC.) At breakfast, the Morning Thali is an absolute must. The traditional Indian variety…
Best Pho
Pho restaurants in this town come and go. But Pho Dien has gained that word-of-mouth fame that has people lined up for a steaming bowl of beef noodle soup every afternoon. This place serves the real deal, with broth simmered for hours to give it that fragrant aroma and smooth,…
Best Grocery Store
Grocery shopping can be a pain, but the Bunker Hill H-E-B has all the big problems conquered. Lack of selection? This store is massive, the type of place where you could play a soccer game if the shelves weren’t in the way, and the stockers make the most of the…
Best Mattress Store
If it seems like there is a mattress store on every street corner in Houston, that’s because there often is. It takes something special to stand out in such a labyrinth of franchises, and Texas Mattress Makers found it in the soothing voice of founder and Israeli emigre Youval Meicler,…
Best Place to Buy a Gun
After celebrating its second anniversary, Liberty Armory has shown it can hold its own in a city that doesn’t exactly have a shortage of firearm shops. These friendly folks know their stuff, making Liberty a great place to get your concealed handgun license and defensive training. Members can also take…
Best Scenic View
Because Houston has such a shortage of hills, it’s somewhat easy to forget how great it looks from above the trees. White Oak Music Hall, which opened in August after 18 months of construction and anticipation, now offers one of the city’s more beautiful vantage points as a side benefit…
Best Fans
Houston lays claim to one of the longest, most fascinating and sometimes cruelest chapters in the Sports Fan’s Almanac of Frustration and Heartbreak, but UH athletics post-Phi Slama Jama have hardly even registered as an afterthought. That all changed after Tom Herman arrived as head football coach in December 2014,…
Best Small Museum
Death may be inevitable, but the disposal of one’s corpse is when things really start to get interesting. Just viewing the 14 permanent exhibits at the National Museum of Funeral History can take up an entire afternoon: There’s an actual Popemobile, a hearse used to carry the body of President…
Best Neighborhood Bar — Rice Village
Tucked between a pair of small-homes-turned-businesses just off Kirby, Simone on Sunset is easy to miss. The gate is lined with greenery and fronted by a cobblestone driveway. Walking onto the patio feels like strolling onto someone’s property, which is what gives Simone such a cozy, neighborhood vibe. The bar…
Best Fine Dining
Château, the fine dining area upstairs at La Table, is a much-needed reminder of what a refreshing experience a beautiful meal served with grace can be. Roasted rack of lamb trundled out on a silver cart and carved tableside would be droll if the servers didn’t have such utmost respect…
Best Thai Restaurant
Just inside the entrance of Tony Thai, two large bronze Buddha sculptures welcome you in for a taste of Thai as authentic as it comes. A family restaurant where the owner is the cook and her brother is the general manager, this is the place where you’ll see a group…
Best Drive-Through
Drive-throughs for hamburgers and tacos are standard, but driving through for creamy frozen custard is awesome. Connie’s Frozen Custard is a classic gem in northwest Houston, serving up shakes, floats, concretes and sundaes. There are many options to choose from, including the decadent Almond Delight concrete. It’s essentially an Almond…
Best Happy Hour
A French restaurant and wine bar serving up $20 appetizers and $30 entrées isn’t exactly the first place you’d think to go for cheap drinks and eats after work. But when chef John Sheely gives you a taste of his menu for literally one-fourth the usual price and serves drinks…
Best Neighborhood Bar — The Heights
Alice’s Tall Texan is famous for its 18-ounce Shiner and Lone Star beers served in enormous, fishbowl-shaped goblets, but what really makes this bar special is the feeling you get walking in, certain that everything will be exactly the way it has always been. Sure, the old jukebox was swapped…
Best Breakfast
Though we’ll miss this Heights staple’s brief stint in dinner service, the recent cafe expansion brought a satisfyingly awesome all-day breakfast to the next level. Get farm-fresh yard eggs with a house-made corn beef and potato hash, fat and fluffy buttermilk biscuits stuffed with insanely hot Memphis-style fried chicken and…
Best Wine List
First off, Public Services Wine & Whisky has the best happy hour for wine lovers. Between 4 and 6:30 p.m., every wine by the bottle is half price. What makes Public Services truly exceptional, though, is the range of its wine list. You’ll find an extensive list of sherry and…
Best Breakfast Tacos
Walk into this unassuming blue- and white-painted house on any morning but Sunday, and you will find a line of patrons waiting patiently for their fix. Follow the line and the smell of fresh tortillas, and you will be led, cafeteria style, to a hot-plate counter with that morning’s offerings…
Best Vegetarian-Friendly Restaurant
When you want a good vegetarian meal that’s affordable, healthy and delicious, Duy Sandwiches in Chinatown is hard to beat. Open for seven years now, this humble hole-in-the-wall serves up tasty banh mi subs made with faux-meat fillings that taste pretty darn close to the real thing. A full menu…
Best Vintage Clothing
There’s no “let’s take a quick look around” with this one. Beyond the neon-green door in the historic Houston Heights, you’ll find — by way of a collective of individual vendors — two stories stuffed and overstuffed with vintage, reproduction and retro garb. Looking to win the ugly Christmas sweater…
Best Watch Repair
The small house on the corner of South Shepherd and Welch might not look like much, but inside you’ll find an expert staff who’ve been maintaining Houston’s watches and clocks since 1947. No matter how delicate or complicated your timepiece is, these are the people who probably can fix it,…
Best Record Store
Browsing Cactus is overwhelming at first. The more you flip through every record and CD, the more you realize truly how long it would take you to finish. Not only does Cactus’s expansive library include all your essential classics and alt-rock chart-toppers, but the staff also has a good eye…
Best Car Wash
The Crosstimbers location for this national chain is always jam-packed on weekends, but the employees move dirty trucks, vans and sedans through at lightning speed while ensuring each vehicle is back to that new-car-smell level of cleanliness. While a fleet of attendants vacuums your car, you can wait inside, prowling…
Best Dash
The New York Flash’s loss was our gain. Traded to the Houston Dash in October 2014, New Jersey gal and regular starter Carli Lloyd soon separated herself from the pack, demonstrating a mental toughness that has led this two-time Olympic gold medalist to glory, including being named FIFA Women’s World…
Best Place to Walk Your Dog
When taking the pooch out for a stroll, dog owners seek a setting with interesting smells and varied terrain, not to mention shade. The Houston Arboretum & Nature Center embodies all those characteristics and more. With miles of winding trails that range from the wide and flat to the narrow…
Best Reading Series
The Inprint Margarett Root Brown Reading Series always brings it, and the 2016-2017 season will be no different. Authors Annie Proulx, George Saunders, Colm Tóibín and Jonathan Safran Foer are all slated to come read and share insights about their work. The series has hosted tons of Pulitzer and Nobel…
Best Museum
Already a phenomenal museum thanks to permanent exhibitions of dinosaur bones, precious gems and Egyptian artifacts, the Houston Museum of Natural Science upped its game this year with “Amber Secrets: Feathers from the Age of Dinosaurs.” Showcasing Burmese amber that contains feathers, creatures and plant life from about 100 million…
Best Japanese Restaurant
Chef Adison Lee of KUU cares deeply about the quality of his guests’ experiences, and it shows in his food. This is a restaurant where it’s well worth paying for omakase, the chef’s choice tasting menu. It’s a parade of one kind of delicate nigiri after another, each with an…
Best Taco
The taco is a humble Mexican street food that you can find all over Houston, but in the hands of chef Hugo Ortega it becomes something unforgettable. A hand-made corn tortilla lays flat on the plate, topped with a tantalizingly plump lobster tail sautéed in butter and spices. A smear…
Best Vietnamese Restaurant
Yes, the word is out on this humble family-run Vietnamese restaurant. It will be bustling whenever you come, and there can be a wait, but you’ll know why when you taste the food. There’s the goi vit (duck salad), nothing more than a simple jumble of shredded cabbage and duck…
Best Indian Restaurant
Long a mainstay of Houston’s Mahatma Gandhi District, Shri Balaji Bhavan continues to thrill both newcomers and lifelong customers with its picture-perfect spins on Indian street food classics. The place is as much a snack shop as a restaurant, but it’s easy to cobble a meal together from platters of…
Best New Festival
Nominally, Day For Night is a festival, although its sworn mission is to upend many of the stale characteristics of such events — the long walk between outdoor stages, paint-by-numbers talent lineups, or even the same-old-same-old food and drink offerings. Debuting last December at Silver Street Studios, in practice Day…
Best Soup Dumplings
Soup dumplings, or xiao long bao, are a deliciously delicate type of Chinese steamed bun with soup trapped inside. The best ones are crafted one-by-one using a thin, preferably hand-rolled wrapper, then filled with a dollop of marinated meat and a block of gelatin, before being quickly closed with tiny…
Best Spanish Restaurant
BCN Taste & Tradition admittedly provides the kind of expensive dining experience you’d reserve for a special occasion. That said, this traditional Spanish restaurant takes everything it does very seriously. Start with the exquisite gin and tonic program that sees each variant garnished with ingredients like juniper berries and flowers,…
Best Milkshake
Kuma Burgers, an excellent joint located in an unlikely spot — the food court at Greenway Plaza — has some of the most interesting milkshakes in town. There’s a rotating selection of seasonal offerings, including the sweet corn shake, which is a can’t-miss when it’s available. But you can get…
Best Neighborhood Spot in the Galleria Area
Chef Arturo Boada’s place, tucked into a humble strip center, has hidden-gem status but it’s packed nightly with nearby residents who are well aware of what it has to offer. Boada long ago shook off any sense of cultural boundaries when it comes to his menu, so outstanding carnitas pizzas…
Best Chiropractor
If your life is an endless stretch of staring at screens all day, treat yourself to a dose of chiropractic work: Your neck will thank you. Susan Bradshaw at Lone Star Chiropractic will work your body in ways that will not only start helping with your issues but will also…
Best Manicure
A great manicure looks flawless, lasts for ages and — most important — won’t break your budget. By those standards, CC Nails is the hands-down best nail spot in town. Sitting in a painfully average-looking strip center, the space is beautifully lit and scrupulously clean. You can almost always walk…
Best Barbershop
Big Kat’s is about as old-school as they come. Spinning customers in black metallic chairs on black-and-white checkered tile, the barbers offer traditional cuts, pomade styling and hot-towel straight-razor shaves. With Ramones posters and skateboard decks on the walls, the place kind of feels like the inside of a drummer’s…
Best Doggie Daycare
Cage-free day care and boarding is all the rage in California, and we finally got our own Camp Run-A-Mutt right here in H-Town. Owners and dog lovers Jonathan Lim and Phu Nguyen know their stuff, assessing dogs with a temperament test before they can join the pack. But for those…
Best Play-by-Play Announcer
If you ever sit down with Bill Brown to talk about Houston Astros baseball, you’ll notice the remarkable ease with which he bounces between anecdotes from different generations. The man they call “Brownie” recalls stories about the Biggio-Bagwell-Caminiti nucleus just as easily as he recounts a Carlos Correa or Jose…
Best City Park
For anyone who has lived in Houston more than 20 years, visiting Buffalo Bayou Park for the first time is like entering another city. The innovative and historic project spanning multiple decades has literally transformed a portion of the city from an eyesore to one of the most beautiful city…
Best Place to Bring Out-of-Towners
Houston built out instead of up. There are plenty of ways to entertain yourself, but few of those options are particularly close together. What makes Buffalo Bayou a particularly attractive way to spend some time with guests is just how much there is to see and do. You can watch…
Best Talk Radio Host
To get an idea of how one half — the red part — of the country thinks and feels, don’t wait until late morning to crank the dial to Rush Limbaugh. Local boy Michael Berry, who can be heard during the week from 8 to 11 a.m. and again from…
Best French Macarons
When people want to “taste the rainbow,” instead of opening a bag of Skittles they should head to Tout Suite. Upon entering this cafe, you’re greeted by a long glass case filled with hundreds of French-style macarons in dozens of hues. The colors, of course, are a hint to the…
Best Southern Restaurant
When Chris Williams decided to open his first Houston restaurant, he ultimately looked to his roots for inspiration — particularly the legacy of his great-grandmother, Lucille Bishop Smith, inventor of the first hot roll mix. Lucille’s is decorated with black and white photos of Ms. Smith in her heyday. The…
Best French Fries
Whether piled up next to a legendary Wagyu burger or alongside a steaming pot of mussels and chorizo in white wine sauce, the pommes frites at Mockingbird Bistro are thin, lightly crisp and highly addictive. If you love the pungent richness of truffle oil, this place has you (and the fries)…
Best Family-Friendly Restaurant
Little Matt’s feels like it’s stuck in a time warp. The restaurant sits on a little stretch of Edloe that bears a decidedly old-school, small-town feel. Diagonal street parking in front of American flag-bedecked storefronts, a town hall and postage-stamp fire station just down the street, and the cheerful din…
Best Crepes
Melange fans rejoiced when the beloved Montrose crepe cart announced it would have a full-time spot at the underground food hall and beer garden, Conservatory. That’s because the Parisienne-style creperie slings out what is easily considered the best version of the classic French street eats in town. Get the incredibly…
Best Ethnic Grocery
Shopping at the giant Korean-centric HMart is an absolute delight. In the food court, you’ll find quality food stands selling everything from Korean fried chicken to Japanese pastries to Korean noodles and soups. The produce is bountiful, with exotic and in-season fruits and vegetables aggressively priced so they won’t break…
Best Tasting Menu
When Cureight by Hubbell & Hudson opened last summer in The Woodlands, many questioned whether there would be enough demand to fill its 25 seats. One year later, the restaurant is sold out on most nights, and requires a minimum of a week’s advance booking for patrons to secure a…
Best Steak
It’s all about the beef at this high-end steakhouse. You get a nice look at the goods in the meat case in the entrance, but the real view is inside the enormous, temperature- and humidity-controlled cooler that the restaurant uses to dry-age its beef. The aging process takes at least…
Best Strip Club
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Best Bike Shop
Whether you’re a pro looking for a high-performance racer or a newbie wanting to ride the trails, the staff at Blue Line Bike Lab has you covered. With bikes hanging from the ceiling and stacked on two-tiered racks, the store looks like a giant bike garage, and the staff wields…
Best Sign
It’s a piano in the sky. To appear as a normal-size instrument from 110 feet in the air, this “baby” grand actually needs to be 25 feet long and 15 feet tall. The piano has been nestled among the other Greenway Plaza skyscrapers since 1972, when it was erected at…
Best Vape Shop
Walking into an e-cig supply store, especially for vaping newbies, can sometimes be a self-esteem-crushing experience. Not so at The Vapor Gypsy, which is staffed with super-friendly and erudite employees who aren’t going to denigrate you or thrust their vape-filled nostrils into the sky. Prices are very fair for starting-from-scratch…
Best Hobby Shop
Even before moving to a bigger location on West Road, 8th Dimension always felt like more than just a place to buy stuff. These folks are active when it comes to community-building, and their calendar stays full with various game nights and quarterly ladies night events. There’s a dedicated game…
Best Texan
When DeAndre Hopkins was taken with the 27th overall pick in 2013, most people thought he’d be a pretty good player. Few saw him becoming one of the top five wide receivers in all of football, but that’s precisely what has happened. What makes Hopkins’s performance even more remarkable is…
Best Place to Canoe
If you haven’t seen a Houston sunset from inside a canoe on Buffalo Bayou, you haven’t seen our fair city at its best. Put in near Voss or Woodway and paddle past the stately backyards of Memorial Bend and River Oaks to experience a wild stretch of bayou, where you’ll…
Best Film Festival
Now celebrating its 18th year, the Gulf Coast Film & Video Festival is humble and down-home, with an emphasis on films, not filmmakers. This is one of the perhaps paradoxical reasons the festival attracts so much talent from across the country. Last year’s winners came from Salt Lake City and…
Best Karaoke
If you’re dying to belt out some Pasty Cline but the thought of singing for a room full of strangers makes you queasy, head to P.J.’s Sports Bar on Wednesday and Friday nights for low-pressure karaoke in an intimate space. Upstairs from the bar you’ll find a little area where…
Best Neighborhood Spot in The Woodlands
Fielding’s Wood Grill functions well as a neighborhood hangout thanks to supplying many of the dishes that people most crave: burgers, fries and milkshakes. It’s much more than just a burger joint, though. The bistro options include rotisserie chicken, reasonably priced steaks and inventive sandwiches, such as lamb seasoned with…
Best Fajitas
When it comes to fajitas in Houston, you want them to look mouthwatering, sizzling on a platter and served with rice, beans, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo and cheese. The tortillas need to be made by hand, still warm (and we don’t mean reheated) when they arrive at your…
Best Barbecue
The barbecue scene in the greater Houston area just gets better and better. Over the past two years, new and improved barbecue joints have set down roots in the Heights, Tomball, The Woodlands, near Memorial and even in downtown. Yet when it comes to across-the-board value and quality, Killen’s Barbecue…
Best Mural
New public art has been sprouting up all over Houston, and this past spring one such piece flashed back to when one of our true musical icons could pull off a four-night stand at one of the city’s prime concert halls. Created by native Houstonian Jamal Cyrus, Lightnin’ Field recreated…
Best Burger Joint
With locations in both Bellaire and Katy and a soon-to-open Heights spot under its belt, this new-school burger joint continues to draw crowds of patty aficionados. That’s because the very talented chef Justin Turner focuses on all things house-made, with from-scratch buns, daily ground Angus beef patties, and homemade condiments…
Best Appetizer
This collection of deep-fried, traditional Thai herbs, such as water celery, rice paddy herb, fish mint and sweet leaf, is not only one of Houston’s most unusual appetizers, but also one of its most compelling. The crunchy green treats are drizzled in a bold, creamy sauce of pork and shrimp…
Best Neighborhood Spot in Eado
An institution in the East Downtown area since its days in the ’80s as just a banh mi shop, Cafe TH, now owned by the friendly and outgoing Minh Nguyen, is like Eado’s version of Cheers reincarnated as a restaurant. Regulars come here for a fix of everything from Nguyen’s…
Best Steak Night
Make Tuesdays great again by heading to The Hay Merchant, where the beefy scents begin wafting through the bar starting at 5 p.m. You’ll want to get there sooner than later, as these in-demand steaks often sell out. Made with eight ounces of Angus sirloin from 44 Farms, the stunners…
Best Comic Book Store
With five locations, the comic aficionados at Bedrock City know how to spread the love around town, but we’re giving props to the Westheimer store because of its size, selection and staff. It’s got floor-to-ceiling games, graphic novels, statues, model kits, toys, posters, tees, back issues and so much more…
Best Jewelry Store
Nazar’s has been making Houstonians’ lives richer since 1982. Whether you’re looking for the right jewel for an engagement, birthday, anniversary or just because, the inventory in this spectacularly large showroom will not disappoint. Along with the classic designers like Belle Etoile, Chimento and Jack Kelege, you can also find…
Best Place to Buy Video Games
Walking into Game Over Videogames is like regaining your childhood. The store carries titles, systems and accessories from across the long history of gaming, everything from ColecoVision to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. You can make good money on trade-ins if you’ve got in-demand titles like the classic Final Fantasy…
Best Butcher
We can sum up Pete’s, a Houston institution, in two words: meat heaven. But go do your own investigating — just don’t go hungry, because once you walk through the doors of this bustling, friendly, family-owned business, you will be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of selections. Not only will…
Best Jogging Trail
When we’re looking to burn off some energy and log some miles, we head straight to Memorial Park. Spanning 1,466 acres, it is one of the largest urban parks in the United States and has been set up to offer everything a runner could want. The three-mile loop is always…
Best Bowling Alley
If you like your bowling alleys old-school, they don’t come much more authentic than Del-Mar Lanes. This isn’t some fancy, modern nightclub with a bowling alley attached or an attempt at retro chic. Del-Mar is where real bowlers go to ply their trade. Leagues often fill up multiple lanes on…
Best Art Exhibit
Mari Carmen Ramírez is on fire, leading the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in relentless pursuit of the best and brightest modern and contemporary art from Central and South America. Ramírez, the Wortham Curator of Latin American Art and director of the International Center for the Arts of the Americas,…
Best Curator
For several years now, CAMH senior curator Valerie Cassel Oliver has eschewed fickle fads in favor of the quiet, steady promotion of serious artists like Susie Rosmarin, Trenton Doyle Hancock, Jae Ko, Nathaniel Donnett, Benjamin Patterson, Robert Hodge, Sanford Biggers and Jason Villegas. The art world can be a vast,…
Best Dance Club
Arlo’s Ballroom has turned out to be exactly what owners Ryan Supek and Sara Van Buskirk intended: “a dance dive in an old grandma’s house,” as Supek told the Houston Press last November, a few weeks before it opened. Situated in a large, repurposed East End dwelling that had…
Best Salad
Despite the lumps and bumps caused by a wrongheaded renaming of Houston’s Restaurant to Hillstone then back again, both the Kirby and Westheimer locations have been steadfast gems in our city’s dining scene. Among the well-executed dishes are the salads, the best being the seared ahi tuna, which combines rare,…
Best Rotisserie Chicken
When Enrique Bravo first opened Pollo Bravo in Houston, he had to give away free meals so that people would try his chicken. It was a smart move, because we were hooked. Now Pollo Bravo is regularly packed with couples and families looking to indulge in a chicken feast. Individuals…
Best Icehouse
The TVs are ancient museum pieces, the bartenders no-nonsense, it’s cash only and the beer (which is the only alcoholic beverage they offer) is damn cold and cheap. Just as an icehouse should be. Jimmy’s, located spittin’ distance from Fitzgerald’s in a tumbledown abode, is a throwback to bars of…
Best Neighborhood Bar — Midtown
Located in the more relaxed portion of Midtown, Double Trouble is aptly named. On most days, this spot opens at 7 a.m. and doesn’t shut down until 2 a.m. During those hours, the relaxed staff is either slinging some of the best coffee and espresso drinks in town or pouring…
Best Seafood Restaurant
Coastal Mexican restaurant Caracol is more than a nice place that happens to sell seafood. It’s a celebration of seafood in all its forms, from raw oysters to wood-roasted fish. The warming blue crab soup with rich, chile-infused broth and masa dumplings is a good beginning; or start off on…
Best Neighborhood Spot in the Heights
Southern Goods was pretty much constructed to be a neighborhood hangout. The architecture practically screams it, from the open-air bar and patio to the backyard and small stage set up for live bands. Residents of the Heights have definitely responded to the good intentions, since Southern Goods is busy most…
Best Expense-Account Restaurant
If you’re going to spend someone else’s money, you may as well do so with beef. At Pappas Bros. Steakhouse, you’ll be treating yourself to what is easily one of the best steaks in the city. The barely year-old location in the heart of downtown is impeccably classy, with an…
Best Mediterranean Restaurant
Don’t come to this Rice Village charmer expecting guilty pleasures like deep-fried falafel and greasy shaved lamb. We promise you won’t miss those Mediterranean staples once you get a taste of chef William Wright’s refreshing take on Greek fare. Start with a greens-and-cheese pie, in which buttery phyllo gets layered…
Best Adult Tap Class
If you long to be a modern-day Fred Astaire, Tap Happy will teach you the moves. This adult tap dance studio started out in 2008 with just a beginner class, but now founder Sara Draper offers options for all levels. All the teachers use Draper’s standards, meaning you’ll learn with…
Best Flea Market
Sunny Flea Market is enormous, a labyrinth loaded with a seemingly endless supply of country western gear, jewelry, movies, soccer equipment, Pokémon cards, gardening tools, cooking utensils, shiny speakers, sandals, jeans and dresses. The amount of vendors is essentially overwhelming, so be sure to take a break and hit up…
Best Mechanic
The Dennis behind Dennis Auto Service Center is Dennis Moustakis, who got his start in the auto and petrol business in 1973, moving to the Galleria area about a decade later with purchases of Texaco and Mobil gas stations. He still comes to the repair shop every day, and enjoys…
Best Extreme Thrill
There’s nothing like launching yourself out of an airplane at 14,000 feet and free-falling at 120 miles an hour – safely, of course. Skydive Spaceland gives you the thrill of rushing towards death while being safely strapped to an expert who jumps out of perfectly good airplanes for a living…
Best Sports Role Model
Sometimes the obvious choice is the right one, and that’s the case with J.J. Watt as a role model for kids everywhere. Start with his ungodly work ethic, which has been the fuel that’s allowed Watt to rise from a two-star recruit in high school to the best defensive football…
Best Concert Venue
In its first year, Satellite Bar has already built a reputation for putting on shows that don’t disappoint. The dark dive hosts mostly local and Texas bands, serving up everything from funky space rock to shoe-gazing fuzz. The small stage is tucked into the corner across from the bar, which…
Best Downtown Bar
There’s no going wrong with Captain Foxheart’s Bad News Bar & Spirit Lodge. The slender, cavernous room is dominated by a gleaming wooden bar and a seemingly endless array of alcoholic substances used by the bartenders to create all kinds of magic-in-a-glass concoctions. Once you’ve got your drink, you can…
Best Meteorologist
Brooks Garner, who helped Houstonians navigate this year’s Tax Day floods when KHOU’s more senior meteorologists were indisposed, brings a kind of everydude affability his more button-down counterparts at other local stations lack. He just seems like he would be a fun guy to talk weather with over a beer…
Best Risotto
Quattro, with its lovely views of downtown, has always managed to strike a balance between being a fine hotel restaurant and an Italian restaurant. It does so in a classy, quiet way — no kitschy red-checkered tablecloths or in-your-face Italian folk music blaring overhead. However, when a dish of chef…
Best Pastry Chef
Samantha Mendoza makes waves wherever she goes, having first gained national attention as a pastry chef star at Triniti in Montrose. She worked there for four years, constructing elaborate desserts out of delicate cake rectangles, neat quenelles of housemade ice cream and accents of colorful fresh fruit. This year, she…
Best Gourmet Food Truck
Over the past few years, many gourmet food trucks have washed out, but The Rice Box has proven its staying power, even opening a small storefront in the food court at 5E Greenway Plaza. On Friday and Saturday nights, the truck is optimally positioned across the street from Montrose mainstay…
Best Cajun Restaurant
As if to prove an old dog can indeed learn new tricks, after 28 years Zydeco decided to finally add dinner service instead of just lunch. Downtown workers and residents have long been making pilgrimages to this casual diner setting for warm bowls of étouffée and gumbo, as well as…
Best Beer List
The Flying Saucer beer bar in downtown Houston has been around for 16 years and still feels like a real original, no matter that there are 15 locations across five states and ours wasn’t even the first — Fort Worth holds that honor. The Houston outpost has 85 beers on…
Best South American Restaurant
Designed to emulate an Amazonian rain forest, the restaurant Américas is bold yet whimsical, drawing you in for a dinner experience that takes you on a ride from Argentina to Peru to Nicaragua. For something playful, start with the lobster corndogs or the smoked lamb lollichops, then move on to…
Best Pakistani Restaurant
We’ve crowed over chef-owner Kaiser Lashkari’s chicken curry. We’ve praised his dense, sweet take on flan. His housemade pastrami, in both fried and cold-sliced form, was one of our favorite dishes of 2015. This year, however, he blew everyone away with his Pakistani take on fried chicken, which includes brining…
Best Late-Night Restaurant
It looks like the higher powers have shone down upon us, because last year the already poppin’ Montrose location of everyone’s favorite Tex-Orleans cafe moved from being open late-night to being open all night. Now you can get Maw-Maw’s Gumbo and a bevy of po-boys served on authentic Leidenheimer French…
Best Local Clothing Designer
Texas native Esther Freedman designs clothes for the most discriminating consumers: children. Her online boutique, cuteheads, showcases some of the most adorable kiddo clothes you could imagine. A mother herself, Freedman has a real eye for design, but she also understands practicality. As she told the Press in 2014, “Everything…
Best Mall
This aptly named mall combines the best of North, South and Central American shopping culture. When it was still Sharpstown Mall, it was the go-to place for diamond grills and other personalized jewelry, custom airbrushing services, hip-hop T-shirts and top-of-the-line footwear. As PlazAmericas, it combines those features with many of…
Best Adult Gift Store
Shopping for friends and family takes time — one year we had to go to two different stores just to find a King Cock 8-inch Squirting Dildo and a Mangina Stroker — talk about a hassle! What if there were a place where you could find all the greatest toys,…
Best Fun Run
Out of all the fun runs in the Bayou City, this one takes home the gold because it’s sexy and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Benefiting local charity Girls on the Run Greater Houston, this two-mile run starts and ends at the Gorgeous Gael Irish Bar, and participants race in…
Best State Park
This spring’s horrific flooding, which forced evacuations of most of Brazoria and Fort Bend counties, was equally unkind to Brazos Bend State Park. One of the largest state parks in Texas and easily the closest to a majority of Houstonians, Brazos Bend was knocked out of commission for several weeks…
Best Art for Kids
The Mad Potter’s owner, Meredith McCord, battled dyslexia as a child, and she discovered that art was more than just a pretty distraction — it could actually facilitate communication. But your kiddos needn’t concern themselves with that: All they need to know is that they’ll get to choose from hundreds…
Best Dance Company
This contemporary dance company, headed by Sam Houston State University professors Andy and Dionne Sparkman Noble, has a gift of combining traditional dance athleticism with sparkly production qualities, especially in its use of special effects. A NobleMotion season often consists of three glamorous Houston productions, like L’Dor Vador: Three Generations…
Best After-Hours Hangout
There is little in life more satisfying than a full menu of feel-good diner breakfast food after a night of drinking. But throw in a full menu of freshly baked pies and House of Pies is pretty much an irresistible after-hours option. Open 24 hours, the diner serves up breakfast…
Best Cake
After serving in the Air Force and then spending a decade in finance, Jody Stevens followed her dream of starting her own cake business. Now she fills orders for birthdays and weddings and even takes vegan and gluten-free requests. The cakes are invariably luscious, well-made crowd-pleasers, with creamy, natural-tasting frostings…
Best Chicken-Fried Steak
Texans are very passionate about chicken-fried steak and it’s hard to find one to satisfy all the nitpickers. Mel’s Country Cafe, though, has always served one worth making the drive to Tomball. The steaks come in “small” eight-ounce and “large” (behemoth) 16-ounce portions with all the desired choices of sides:…
Best Bloody Mary
Why have one Bloody Mary when you can have four? The Bloody Mary flight at Fielding’s Wood Grill includes four variations on the delectable hangover cure. There’s the Fielding’s Mary, made with vodka and housemade Bloody Mary mix then garnished with an olive and housemade pickle. There’s also one with…
Best Arts Festival
If your walls are looking a little bare, the semi-annual Bayou City Art Festival has you covered, with more than a dozen different mediums represented among roughly 300 artists. Spread out in downtown’s Hermann Square and Sam Houston Park, the festival offers up artistic gems for a vast array of…
Best Desserts
The desserts at both the fine-dining and casual sides of The Pass & Provisions change regularly. What doesn’t change is that the sometimes fanciful — even improbable — ingredient combinations always end up tasting even better than they sound. Maraschino cherry soft serve with cocoa nibs and chile makes perfect…
Best Oysters
The name of the game at Bernadine’s is Gulf Coast cuisine, so of course there’s an excellent selection of oysters from the region. They are available by the dozen, either raw on the half shell or chargrilled. The shuckers at Bernadine’s don’t limit themselves, though, and they often have oysters…
Best Atmosphere
No matter when you visit Oporto Fooding House & Wine, there’s something about the vibe that feels oh so right. Meant to channel a coastal Portuguese cafe, the restaurant’s design is chic and stylish yet approachable. Octagonal-shaped terra cotta tiles imbue the space with warmth. Hanging woven chandeliers and copper…
Best Kolache
Don’t be fooled by the Original Kolache Shoppe’s roughshod appearance. This southeast-side mom-and-pop has been keeping Houstonians happy with vintage-style kolache and klobasniky since 1956. The shop recently underwent a bit of an interior makeover, but the simple menu, focus on scratchmade ingredients and cheap-as-hell pricing remain. Get crazy-good Czech…
Best Doughnuts
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This place is too cool for school. From bikinis and wetsuits in the summer to hoodies and camo jackets in the winter, Funny Furr has everything the most fashionable canine could want. The River Oaks shop has mini-tuxedos, party dresses with pearls, christening gowns, a Betty Boop pink denim jacket…
Best Party Supplies
Arne’s Texas Size Party Store is the place to go no matter what type of party you’re throwing. Aisle upon aisle is filled with a multitude of balloons, cups, leis, ponchos, banners, placemats, flowers and glow sticks. We could spend hours just taking in all the colors. Whether you’re looking…
Best Pawn Shop
This ten-time Better Business Bureau “Winner of Distinction” leans more toward the high end, and its proximity to Memorial and Tanglewood means the place has bailed out more than a few of our tonier neighbors, which is great news for us. A recent stop showed three artworks valued at around…
Best Cemetery
The jewel of the East End, this historic cemetery is one of the largest in Texas and serves as the perpetual home for blues great Lightnin’ Hopkins, arts patrons John and Dominique de Menil, former U.S. senator Lloyd Bentsen, early Houston developer Jesse H. Jones and infamous pickaxe murderer Karla…
Best Dog Park
Inner Loop dog owners have precious few parks where Fido can really cut loose. That’s why we suggest going the extra mile (or 20) and taking your furry friend to Congressman Bill Archer Dog Park, where he can gallivant across 17 acres, finding new and interesting ways to get dirty…
Best Stadium Announcer
If you want the measure of a professional, go back and watch an Astros game from the horrific 2013 season, in which they went 51-111. Listen to the stadium announcer and the enthusiasm and energy he brought to a near-empty stadium. Now watch the Astros as they chase glory in…
