The holidays may be over for some folks but many of us are still rolling with the Twelve Days of Christmas like Tudor royalty. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have the coffers of King Henry VIII so we’re looking for dining and drinking deals to extend the festivities without overextending our finances.
As we say farewell to the old year and ring in the new, here are some places to enjoy some fun fare that’s not dried-out turkey or Aunt Bertha’s twenty-pound fruitcake. And there are plenty of cocktails to wash away the sins of 2023 and prepare for Dry January and the new us.
Lunch Bunch Bargains:
Hongdae 33, 9889 Bellaire Boulevard, is a hip addition to Asiatown that has been luring in diners for its all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue since it opened this past August. Now, it is offering its traditional tabletop grilled meat for a special price during lunch. And the good thing is, the lunch deal runs Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. so you have plenty of time for a nice, leisurely experience. For $22, guests can enjoy items like Texas Wagyu sliced beef belly, tamari pork jowl, Gangnam spicy marinated chicken and spicy baby octopus along with a choice of freshly prepared banchan and appetizers like scallion pancake and kimchi stew.
It also offers classic cocktails for $10 and its signature drinks for $15. There is a small wine list, a selection of beers plus soju ($13) or flavored soju ($14).
Mandito’s Tex-Mex, 5101 Bellaire Boulevard, has daily lunch specials from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. including its Pick 2 for $10. Guests can choose two items from a list that includes beef enchilada, cheese enchilada, crunchy taco, soft taco, Baja Slaw, tostada and flauta. Even better, the deal comes with rice and a choice of beans.
After a tasty mid-day lunch, stay for its daily happy hour from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. with $8 margaritas, palomas and seasonal frozens. There are also some happy hour bites including large queso, large guacamole, cheese enchiladas or bean and cheese nachos for $8. Select beers are $4 and wine bottles are 50 percent off.
Veegos, 10932 Westheimer, is a vegan Mexican restaurant in Houston that has a $10 lunch special that will please all diets. Diners can choose either the burrito or the burrito bowl with a choice of beans and protein along with rice, cilantro, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, guacamole and cashew sour cream. The $10 price includes a soft drink. Don’t forget to add a cheesecake sopapilla for dessert.
Dinner Deals:
The Pit Room, 1201 Richmond, has some deals for meat lovers this month. Every Wednesday and Thursday is Patio Steak & Burger Night from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. with Wood Fire Grilled NY Strip ($20) or Wood Fire Grilled Pork Chop ($12). Both are served with bacon mac & cheese and green beans. That’s a pretty sweet deal for a Pit Room meat plus two sides. For burger buffs, the Patio Burger and Curly Fries is available Wednesday and Thursday evening for a bargain price of $10. The half-pound top sirloin patty is also grilled over wood fire before being topped with melty American cheese. Guests can then personalize their burger with toppings from the condiment bar.
The barbecue restaurant offers breakfast tacos daily from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. for $4 to $5 each, with refried beans and a choice of condiments. The $10 Chips and Queso will make your day a much happier one.
Hip Happy Hours:
Le Jardinier, 5500 Main, might not be a destination known for its happy hour but that may change. Located at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, this contemporary French restaurant is a perfect spot for bites and drinks after viewing some of the exhibits at our city’s amazing art museum. There are two currently on view that will be leaving in January and are not to be missed. The Robert Frank & Todd Webb photography exhibit exits after January 7 and the Rembrandt to Van Gogh: Masterpieces from the Armand Hammer Collection will depart after January 21.
A stroll through the museum, followed by an elegant happy hour at Le Jardinier is a perfect way to end 2023 on a high note or begin 2024 with some culture and class. And the deals make it an extra special visit. Any guest who shows proof of ticket to the Rembrandt to Van Gogh exhibit the same day will receive a complimentary beetroot salad at lunch Wednesday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For happy hour, the restaurant is offering $12 house wines by the glass, a rotating list of $12 cocktails and $6 select beers, Monday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. There is also a bar bites menu that is available throughout dinner service in the bar, lounge and patio. Chef de cuisine Felipe Botero has created a menu of dishes such as smoked salmon dip ($18), mixed olives ($9), cayenne and rosemary toasted nuts ($10) and pommes dauphines ($12). There’s also a lamb burger with Gruyere cheese. It’s not a cheap buy at $32 but we’re told it’s divine.
Pier 6 Seafood, 113 6th, in San Leon may be a drive for most Houstonians and many may not consider it a holiday destination during the winter but its happy hour and exceedingly fresh oysters should change people’s minds. The happy hour runs Tuesday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Sunday from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. While the hours may vary from day to day, the deals are worth doing the math. Frozen cocktails such as its Ocean Water and House Margarita, along with Signature Cocktails like the Pier 6 Old Fashioned and the Golden Lemondrop are $6. There are also $6 house wines and well drinks plus house draft beer for $4. Bar food includes Shrimp Hushpuppies ($6), Seafood Fondue ($11.99) and Stuffed Crab Claws ($10.99).
In addition to its happy hour, there are deals like half-off bottles of wine Wednesday and Thursday and 50-cent fresh chilled oysters Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Savoy, 4402 Emancipation, has happy hour specials Monday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. with a reverse happy hour Monday from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Thursday from 10 p.m. to midnight. Friday is an even better promotion with happy hour from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. There are $3 domestic drafts, $5 house wines, $6 select premiums, and a rotating top shelf cocktail for $7.
Thursday is also a great night to enjoy its R&B Throwback Thursdays with DJ Michele McKnight providing classic rhythm and blue music along with Sounds by Ingrid, DJ Mulan and Raqq City. For its reverse happy hour, there are specials on brown liquors, $5 draft cocktails and $12 burgers plus a light bites menu of items like lamb empanadas ($4), half order quesadilla ($5) and fried wings ($10).
New Year’s Eve Without Breaking the Bank:
Amrina, 3 Waterway Square Plaza, has two seating options for its New Year’s Eve celebrations. This modern Indian restaurant in The Woodlands is a glamorous setting to ring in the New Year. The first seating ($100) from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. includes a welcome champagne toast, a six-course tasting menu with a performance by a violinist. The second seating ($125) from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. has the same six-course menu plus a midnight champagne toast and a live performance.
URBE, 1101 Uptown Park Boulevard, is hosting its New Year’s Eve Masquerade Party from 8:30 p.m. through midnight. While many NYE events can be upwards of $150 a person, URBE is offering a fun time for $85 plus tax and gratuity. There will be passed bites, Mexican street food stations and an extravagant dessert table. A DJ will be spinning tunes for the festive celebration and there will be a photo station for preserving the moment. The ticketed event includes four specialty tequila cocktails with a cash bar available after that.
Tickets can be purchased on the restaurant’s website.
Belated Christmas Gifts:
Goodnight Hospitality, 1620 Westheimer, has a promotion that lasts through December 31, 2023. For every $100 digital gift card purchase, an extra $30 will be added to either keep for yourself or add to your gift. The purchase must be made through the inKind app. Goodnight Hospitality owns and operates March, Rosie Cannonball, Montrose Cheese and Wine and The Marigold Club here in Houston.
H Town Restaurant Group has a deal on gift cards purchased before December 31. Buyers will get an extra $20 gift card for every $100 purchased. The bonus gift cards are redeemable beginning January 1, 2024. The cards may be purchased at the participating restaurants or online. H Town’s concepts include Backstreet Cafe, Hugo’s, Caracol, Xochi, URBE and Prego.
Customers can also purchase Hugo Ortega’s cookbooks online. Ortega is a James Beard Award- winning chef who operates the H Town concepts with restaurateur and wife Tracy Vaught. .
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
