Houston is fun. Even if the ink is still wet on the lease you just signed after relocating here to work in the Bayou City's booming energy or health-care sectors, it shouldn't take you any more than 48 hours before something here makes you wonder how you ever got along back wherever it is you came from -- a restaurant, a store, a bar, a park, or maybe something uniquely Houston like the Williams Tower waterwall or the no-cover Wednesday-night blues jam at the Big Easy.

You came here at the right time, too. This week -- today, really -- the Houston Press is proud to unveil our annual Best of Houston issue, the product of the combined efforts of dozens of HP staffers and freelancers several months in the making. With dozens, if not hundreds, of winners in all sorts of categories (grouped into the wide-ranging fields of Arts & Entertainment, City Life, Food & Drink, Shopping & Services and Sports & Recreation), this issue should serve as a much better map of Houston than one that shows our often-congested roadways.

Now, Houstonians of an older vintage, we know we're not telling you anything you don't already know...or are we? You'll want to hold onto that not-so-slim volume that comes in this week's issue of the Press, and bookmark its online counterpart, just as much as our newcomers. Because Houston is a city that's always changing, always taking chances, some categories that have been around for years our longtime readers assume are shoo-ins might suddenly have a new winner. But other categories, like so many of our new neighbors, may not have even been around last year.

Really, there's only one sure way to find out. Allow us to present you this year's Best of Houston winners at this very link, and to offer our special congratulations to the music and nightlife winners you see below. Next round's on us!

BEST ALTERNATIVE CLUB: WALTERS DOWNTOWN

BEST BAND TO GET TOGETHER IN THE PAST YEAR: BLSHS

BEST BAR ATMOSPHERE: POISON GIRL Readers' Choice: Cottonwood

BEST BAR GAMES: JOYSTIX

BEST BLUES CLUB: DAN ELECTRO'S GUITAR BAR Readers' Choice: House of Blues

BEST CD BY LOCAL MUSICIAN(S): DOUGHBEEZY, FOOTPRINTS ON THE MOON

BEST CONCERT POSTER ARTIST: JERMAINE ROGERS

BEST CONCERT VENUE: CYNTHIA WOODS MITCHELL PAVILION Readers' Choice: Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

BEST DIVE BAR: COZY CORNER Readers' Choice: Poison Girl

BEST DOWNTOWN BAR: CAPTAIN FOXHEART'S BAD NEWS BAR & SPIRIT LOUNGE Readers' Choice: Flying Saucer Draught Emporium

BEST GAY BAR: GEORGE COUNTRY SPORTS BAR Readers' Choice: JR's Bar & Grill

BEST HONKY-TONK: REDNECK COUNTRY CLUB

BEST HOTEL BAR: HOTEL ZAZA Readers' Choice: Hotel ZaZa

BEST JAZZ CLUB: CEZANNE

BEST JUKEBOX: UNDER THE VOLCANO Readers' Choice: La Carafe

BEST NEIGHBORHOOD BAR (HEIGHTS): BOOM BOOM ROOM

BEST PERFORMANCE SPACE: DISCOVERY GREEN

BEST PLACE FOR COCKTAILS: LEI LOW RUM LOUNGE Readers' Choice: Anvil Bar & Refuge

BEST INTIMATE CONCERT VENUE: MCGONIGEL'S MUCKY DUCK

BEST PLACE TO RELIVE THE '80S: NEILS BAHR

BEST POOL HALL: SLICK WILLIE'S FAMILY POOL HALL Readers' Choice: Slick Willie's

BEST RADIO PERSONALITY: OUTLAW DAVE

BEST RADIO STATION: KACC 89.7 FM Readers' Choice: 94.5 The Buzz

BEST RECORD STORE: SIG'S LAGOON Readers' Choice: Cactus Music

BEST SPORTS BAR: NICK'S PLACE Readers' Choice: Little Woodrow's/Midtown

BEST STRIP CLUB: THE COLORADO SPORTS BAR & GRILL Readers' Choice: Treasures

BEST WINE BAR: LA CARAFE Readers' Choice: 13 Celsius

ROCKS OFF'S GREATEST HITS

If you like this story, consider signing up for our email newsletters.

SHOW ME HOW

X

Newsletters

_{All-access pass to the top stories, events and offers around town.}

• No Thanks
• Sign Up

X

SUCCESS!

You have successfully signed up for your selected newsletter(s) - please keep an eye on your mailbox, we're movin' in!

The Ask Willie D Archives Houston's 10 Coolest Bar Names A Handy Guide to the Band Tool in 2014 Top Five Artists You Need to Stop Hating Houston's Top 10 Cougar Bars

---

Follow @hprocksoff