Tuesday, March 31 is National Oyster on the Half Shell Day. Since that actually exists, Holley's Seafood Restaurant & Oyster Bar, 3201 Louisiana, will be celebrating by offering all happy hour and dinner time raw and baked oysters at half the price. The slurping begins at 4 p.m.
Also on Tuesday is the Houston Press Menu of Menus annual event! Tuesday, March 31
Houston Press Menu of Menus It's held at Silver Street Station where you can sample food and drink from several Houston area restaurants. The highlight of the evening is the Iron Fork Competition where undefeated chef Kevin Naderi of Roost and Lillo & Ella will try to successfully defend his title from new contender Randy Rucker of forthcoming Bramble. Chef Randy Evans is the host and the competitors will be judged by Phaedra Cook, restaurant critic for Houston Press, Eric Sandler, contributing writer for Culturemap Houston and Whole Foods Bellaire team leader Kelly Nelson. Get your tickets asap because they're going fast 1500 Silver Street. 7 to 10 p.m.
And on Tuesday, March 31, Brand Ambassador for Cooley, Cain Fitzgerald will be hosting a Cooley Irish Whiskey Tasting at Reserve 101, 1201 Caroline, at 6:30 p.m. 100 percent of proceeds from the sale of tickets will be donated to Lucky Dog Rescue. RSVP at Reserve101.com.
The six-month long Funky Dog Series kicks off at all JCI Grill locations on Wednesday, April 1. Similar to the popular Chefs and Show Dogs series James Coney Island created two years ago, Funky Dogs will feature only the top dogs. This time, however, all will be created by Chef Randy Evans whose company, Southern Son Restaurant Consulting, has been working with James Coney Island management for the past nine months. Up first: the Colombian, a Wimmer's Red Hot Dog topped with garlic, mayo-ketchup, crushed potato chips, crumbled bacon, fresh pineapple relish, queso fresco and green onions, all on a toasted King's Hawaiian roll. It will be available at all 20 store locations for $5.29.
Also during the month of April, participating Houston restaurants will serve a "Blue Plate Special" to support The Thread Alliance's Blue Plate Special, the third annual citywide child abuse prevention awareness campaign encouraging Houstonians to take action against child abuse and toward healing. Kick-off the Blue Plate Special at Brennan's of Houston, 3300 Smith, on Wednesday, April 1, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. For more information about The Thread Alliance and to see a list of participating restaurants, visit thethreadalliance.org.
Hunky Dory chef Richard Knight will be preparing a five-course Passover Seder dinner at the Kipper Club Test Kitchen, 4400 Yale, on Saturday, April 4 at 7 p.m. CultureMap staff writer Eric Sandler will guide guests through the ritual and ceremony of the Passover tradition as they feast on a "Kosher style" meal. The menu is still TBA, but there will be no leavened ingredients, pork, or shellfish and no courses that mix milk and meat. Tickets are $100 per person and seating is limited, so make your reservations now.
On Monday, April 6, Whole Foods Market will host a preview party for its new Voss location, 1407 South Voss, which boasts a 24 tap beer and wine bar, ramen station, and in-store smokehouse, among other awesome things. The sneak peek event will feature sips and samples of local and exclusive products, as well as live music. Proceeds will benefit the Houston Blues Society. Limited tickets are available for a $10 donation and can be purchased in advance. The store, a relocation of the company's Woodway store, will officially open April 8.
Phaedra Cook contributed to this entry.
