Wind Down Doggy-Style

Just fyi, the word of the day is harrowing.  I received an e-mail last night with that word and I just think it is a great word. 

Nothing is harrowing for me; however, it is the summer and things are supposed to be slow and people are supposed to be on vacation (except for me, of course), why is it that things are absolutely crazy?  I can barely keep up with my own life/job and I definitely cannot keep up with my blogging schedule.  I was reading the blog of Patricia Martin, with whom I participated in a conference through the Houston Arts Alliance, on “The Renaissance Generation,” and she blogs every day!  Meanwhile, Fresh Arts Coalition asked me to speak on behalf of blogging at Caroline Collective coming up very soon (must make a mad dash for my calendar — aside:  see nothing really is happening unless you open the calendar — I sometimes have this problem — if I don’t look at my calendar then that must mean it isn’t really happening, right?.)  Wrong.

Any way, I do realize the importance of all of this viral marketing and blogging, etc., and really have been doing it for 12 years now (must be an expert, not!), but if I run a little behind schedule, it’s not because I’m not wanting to, just things have come up that need a bit more attention.  I also want to be able to have the time to attend some of these HIMA conferences going on, too.  In time, in time.

I realize this is not a blog about me, so let’s cut the chatter and get on with it!

If there was one person that I knew that knows how to wind down it is Calvin Broadus aka Snoop Dogg.  Combine hanging out with him and some Landy Cognac and…I would say you are in for a chill ride. 

 

Spec’s Superstore Downtown, 2410 Smith Street, will be registering and drawing for 2 pairs of VIP tickets (includes concert, limo ride, and invite-only after party) to Snoop Dogg’s concert to-nizzle.  Fo-rizzle! 

10 pairs of tickets to the invite-only VIP party will also be drawn.  And you best be wearing your finest because if you do win the VIP concert ticket package, they are going to take you right then and there.

What you need to know:

Today, Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 5:30 pm at the Specs Superstore Downtown, 2410 Smith — will be drawing for 2 pairs of a VIP tickets package for the show tonight AND 10 pairs of VIP tickets to the invite-only after party.  Snoop Dogg may even draw YOUR name ; )  Must be 21 or older to enter, no purchase necessary.  You must be present at the drawing because your limo will be awaiting you.

And one other quick note,  the concert is at Sam Houston Race Park…but if you win, you won’t have to worry about driving to-and-from…just have to get home from Specs : )  Or be a real rock star and take a cab for $6 anywhere downtown, get a hotel room, and take tomorrow off.

Tunnel Vision + What’s for Lunch?

Nary a day goes by that my co-worker and I wonder what is to be had for lunch!  With the Shops at Houston Center a few footsteps away, it usually receives enormous gratitude for its proximity, and sometimes we venture into the tunnels.

Ohhhh those tunnels that reach 7 miles in all that require a day of stepping into the map to figure out where to go…I have yet to master them.  They do provide a nice respite from the hot, summer sun and when a new eatery arrives, you can hear the faint applause of downtown workers ready to try something new.  Here’s a helpful map should you want to try to venture down below:  http://www.houstondowntown.com/Home/GeneralInfo/GettingAround/Maps/AboveBelow/ [PDF]

Chicken breast pita, chocolate chip cookie, Miss Vicki's jalapeno chips & a Diet Coke = $8.95

Here’s What’s For Lunch (let us know what you are having for lunch downtown to Heather[at]downtownhouston.org and we’ll post them.)  Just a simple camera phone shot will do.  Nothing gross please : )  This is about promoting eating! 

 

Pita Pit employees infectious energy and enthusiasm combined with upbeat music pumping through the speakers made us even more excited about What's For Lunch!

Today we stepped out for The Pita Pit!  It opened last Wednesday and I have been hearing raves about this place from my co-worker as she used to eat there when she lived in Austin.  People were standing outside the storefront (and by outside, I still mean inside the tunnel!) rubbing their fingers on their chin just pondering how many combinations you can make with a pita.  This place has tons!  And the staff is eager and happy to help you.  Plus the Spice Girls “Wannabe” playing in the background made me want to bop as I ordered.

Also, we are on a quest for the best chocolate chip cookie — so — stay tuned!!  If you know of the best chocolate chip cookie place downtown, e-mail melissa[at]downtownhouston.org. 

We will alternate What’s For Lunch and Wind Down Downtown each week so we keep everything in moderation….including our stomachs and livers! : )

Pita Pit, tunnels of 1001 McKinney Street, 713.659.7200, pitapitusa.com

Open daily Monday-Friday, 6:30 am (yes, pita breakfast!) to 3:30 pm, delivery too!

Menu [PDF]

Wind Down Downtown

We’ve almost made it over the hump of the week…and what better way to usher in the last two days than with a toast at one of the many places with excellent happy hours in Downtown Houston?  On Wednesdays, we’ll provide you with some options of where to wind down…and if we like something so much, we’ll even repeat it ; )

Happy Hour Special:  1/2 price signature martinis every weeknight from 4-7 pm

Reserve 101, www.reserve101.com, intersection of Caroline and Dallas - this small, but very open bar (thanks to the wall of windows facing the back of the Four Seasons Hotel), may pride itself as a scotch and martini bar but you can also get a decent glass of wine or other drink from the well.  It’s a great place to people watch too, especially if big conventions are in town and you sit alongside the wall of windows.  There is also a cozy loft upstairs too.  And so far, so good on the music the past 2x I have been there.  And, if you get hungry, they seem to be open to ordering food in — Josephine’s Italian restaurant is right next door!

Happy Hour Special:  Daily special prices on beer, wine, cocktails & margaritas served with signature shrimp tacos.  On the first Tuesday of the month, sip on complimentary signature drink tastings of original signature drinks and bites from acclaimed restaurant *17 from 5 pm to 6 pm.

a+ at Alden Hotel, www.aldenhotels.com, 1117 Prairie Street at San Jacinto — on warm days, a+ is definitely where I want to be with its cooling, dark decor and very comfortable furniture that make you just want to make that deep sigh.  On baseball game days, avoid the hassle and cost of parking in the surface lots and valet there.  Then for some extra strength to walk to Minute Maid Park a few blocks down, nibble on their delicious signature shrimp tacos and wash it down with a cold one of your choice.

And if you want to go for a sampling of some of the hottest spots downtown, check out the upcoming Culture + Cocktails Bar Crawl benefiting Fresh Arts Coalition and Houston Young People for the Arts on Monday, July 14 from 6 pm to 9 pm.

Enjoy a drink and nibbles at The Four Seasons Hotel poolside, The Treehouse at The Grove, a+ at Alden Hotel and VOICE at Hotel ICON - all for $20!  And Fresh Arts has even invited some of their artists to perform at some of the venues.  Drinks, food, entertainment — $20?  A steal!  Visit www.houstonarts.org to purchase your ticket.

Music In The City

Tom Waits visited a sold-out crowd at Downtown’s Jones Hall last weekend after a twenty-eight year absence from the bayou city and was a very well-received show.  Summer is always a slower time of the year when we *think* we have more time to spend on ways to entertain ourselves rather than at the office (whether or not that is true, depends on the person); however, here are a few hot shows steaming into Houston soon!

July 14 - George Michael at Toyota Center — they are offering a special $25 ticket offer until 5 pm, Friday,  June 27 for upper level tickets, click here to take advantage and celebrate 25 years of George Michael’s hits : )  You know you want to!

General venue contacts unless otherwise listed are as follows:

Toyota Center - www.houstontoyotacenter.com; Meridian - www.meridianhouston.com; Verizon Wireless - www.verizonwirelesstheater.com; Warehouse Live - www.warehouselive.com.

Other shows coming to Downtown Houston include:

June 28 - Bob Saget, Verizon Wireless Theater 

July 3 - Jill Scott, Verizon Wireless Theater

July 4 - Geto Boys, Warehouse Live, tickets $25-$50, VIP $50

July 4 - Skyrocket!, Sammy’s at 2016 Main

July 10 - Peter Murphy, Meridian, tickets advance $20 / day of show $25

July 11 - Bob Schneider, Warehouse Live, tickets $20

July 12 - Earth, Wind & Fire, Verizon Wireless Theater

July 13 - Faster Pussycat w/ L.A. Guns & Bang Tango, Meridian, tickets $15

July 14 - Ours, Warehouse Live, tickets $15

July 17 - Less Than Jake, Meridian, tickets advance $18.50, day of show $20

July 18 - Skyrocket!, Sammy’s at 2016 Main

July 20 - Vanessa Carlton with Joshua Radin, Warehouse Live, tickets $16.50

 

July 24 - Good Charlotte w/ others, Verizon Wireless Theater

July 26 - Comedian Lewis Black, Hobby Center, tickets $45-65

August 2 - Candlebox, Warehouse Live, tickets $22.50

July 22 - Crüe Fest 2008 including Motley Crüe, Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Trapt and Sixx:A.M. [wonder who that could be....?].  Tickets: $35-$95.

August 3 - The Wiggles, tickets: $18-$38 [warning: very kid-friendly]

August 14 - Melissa Etheridge, Wortham Theater Center, Ticketmaster

August 16 - Nine Inch Nails, tickets: $29.50-$54.50

August 20 - Steely Dan, Verizon Wireless Theater

August 29 - Toadies, Verizon Wireless Theater

August 29, 30 & 31 - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Jones Hall, Houston Symphony

August 30 & 31 - Texas Music Festival, Eleanor Tinsley Park, www.txmusicfest.com

September 30 - The Black Keys, Meridian

Hola!

So it has been over a month since I last updated — not a good sign — but at the urging of a friend at a recent young patrons party for the Houston Grand Opera, I will continue. : )

The Tipping Point is hosting one of their famous art openings this weekend on Saturday, June 7, from 7 pm to 11 pm with music by Witnes and art by John Foreman.  If anything aside from fun merchandise inside the store and the art, it is great people watching and you can also come check out to see how far along the Houston Pavilions are coming as The Tipping Point is right across the street.  Street parking is free on Saturdays after 6 pm.

And since it is Thursday and we are all relishing the fun times still from last weekend and anticipating the ones of this next weekend, make your work colleagues happy and go over to http://www.holafruta.com/ and tell them why you deserve to win a “Fiesta Friday” for your office.  They are giving away 350 packages and I’m sure you can come with up 5 reasons…just look around your office.

The Fiesta Friday giveaway includes:  5 quarts of Hola Fruta (sherbert), 50 bowls, 50 spoons, 100 napkins, 2 ice cream scoops, 1 table cover, 6 signs/invitations, 25 discount coupons for Hola Fruta, 8 strands of party beads and 1 pair of maracas.

The boss may confiscate the maracas but you can do a lot with beads!

p.s.  Magnolia Hotel (I promise, they do not give me any money to promote!) is having another special this weekend for Friday, June 6.  Spend Friday night with them for only $99 and enjoy a complimentary American breakfast buffet (so much more than your standard muffins and bagels), beer & wine reception and the cookie buffet.  Up to two people per room.  Only valid June 6.  Visit here to take advantage!

Hello Houston! Enjoy a Suite Life.

It is about time that I start to write on this. 

Welcome!  I haven’t kept a blog since the early days of livejournal, when everyone thought it was OK to post your 15-year-old thoughts on-line thinking that they wouldn’t follow you ten years later.  Luckily, that blog was deleted long ago.

What I hope to host for you here are information quick bits of things going on in Downtown Houston, places to check out, news you might need to know, and eventually I will have special-themed days.

For now, I’m just going to let you know that if you need to take a break but don’t want to have to go too far away to do it, hole yourself up in one of the many fine hotels in Downtown Houston.

First stop, The Magnolia Hotel, 1100 Texas Avenue.