New happy hour alert! BRC Gastropub, 519 Shepherd, launched a new happy hour, called Apps & Taps, this past Monday. The weekday special will feature seven different appetizers for $5 and select American craft beers on tap for $4 (selections change daily). The menu incorporates some new items, including Southwest Poutine and Chicken Fried Pork Belly, as well as favorites like chicken wings, cheddar biscuits and bacon jam, and sliders. Enjoy the specials every Monday through Friday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. 

And on Monday, July 20 (and through Saturday, July 26), you can also celebrate Colombian Independence Day with F.E.E.D. TX Restaurant Group. BRC Gastropub, 519 Shepherd, and both Liberty Kitchen locations, 1050 Studewood and 4224 San Felipe, will be offering specials throughout the week. Feast on authentically made beef and potato empanadas accompanied by an aji pique sauce in addition to different Colombian-inspired entrees at each restaurant. For additional information, visit feedtx.com.

Yellow Rose Distilling, 1224 N. Post Oak, is celebrating National Ice Cream Month with its inaugural “Spiked by the Scoop” challenge on Thursday, July 23 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. The evening will showcase frozen treats – think shakes, sundaes and sandwiches – with a decidedly adult twist. More than a dozen local teams from hotspots like B&B Butchers, Fat Cat Creamery, and Mobile Mug will be vying to freeze out the completion while raising funds for Small Steps Nurturing Center. Tickets can be purchased in advance for $35 or for $40 at the door, and the cost includes entertainment, raffle ticket plus food and drink samplings.

Pappas Bros. Steakhouse, 5839 Westheimer, will be hosting a Real Ale Brewing Co. Beer Dinner, featuring special guest and brewmaster Erik Ogershok, on Thursday, July 23 at 7 p.m. For $95 per person, indulge in five-beer paired courses, including Pistachio Crusted Chicken Rollatine paired with Devil’s Backbone and Lost Gold IPA; and 60 Day Dry-Aged New York Strip & Berkshire Pork Carnitas paired with Scots Gone Wild and Tenebrae Aeterna.

On Saturday, July 25, join food writer Phaedra Cook (of Houston Press and My Table Magazine) on a French-themed Culinary Tour of the city. The restaurant details will be kept secret until you arrive, but Cook has promised us that the tour will "hit every aspect of French dining sensibilities, including wine, savory bites, coffee, dessert and even a cheese course!" There will also be swag bags from the Greater Houston Convention & Visitor's Bureau and beer provided by Saint Arnold. Get your tickets ($125 per person) now, as only 20 spots are available. Guests should arrive at the Central Market, 3815 Westheimer, parking lot (close to Well Fargo) to board The Wave bus by 12:45 p.m. 

Sugar Land’s Aura Brasserie, 15977 City Walk, will be hosting a four-course Boisset Wine Dinner on Tuesday, July 28 at 6:30 p.m. The elegant, wine-paired menu features a cocktail reception, plus dishes like Greek Style Octopus Salad & Almond Dusted Shrimp; and Chicken Fried Quail with foie gras gravy and smoked duck magret. The cost is $69.99 per person and reservations are required. 

Tickets won’t go on sale until Monday, August 24, but you’ll want to mark your calendars now for Southern Smoke, a one of a kind event to Fight MS on Sunday, October 11. When Chris Shepherd learned his good friend and former sommelier Antonio Gianola had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, his first reaction was to “throw a huge party and raise a ton of money.” So Shepherd invited his friends Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue; Sean Brock of Husk, McCrady’s and Minero; and Rodney Scott of Scott’s Barbecue to Houston to help. Southern Smoke – the first event in Houston for all three chefs – will turn Underbelly, Hay Merchant and Blacksmith, 1018 and 1100 Westheimer, into a massive street party that plans to raise at least $100,000 for the MS Society. It also marks the first event featuring the HOUBBQ Collective, formed by a group of local chefs—Seth Siegel-Gardner, Terrence Gallivan, Ryan Pera, Justin Yu and Chris Shepherd. Look out for tickets ($200 for general admission and $350 for VIP) on sale at underbellyhouston.com or southernsmoke.org next month.