Live Music Meets Inventive American Dining at The Rustic

If you love live music, craft beer, and fresh air, you should definitely know about Houston newcomer The Rustic. The bar and restaurant already has outposts in Dallas and San Antonio, but as of October, it debuted a new space in your city, complete with a sprawling patio. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy some entertainment and grab dinner.

The menu boasts ingredients that come from nearby, including beef from local ranchers and seafood caught right in the Gulf. You can’t go wrong with choosing anything that comes with the popular jalapeno spoon bread, which is cornbread infused with pickled jalapenos, sharp white cheddar cheese, and creamed corn. The beloved bread comes on the side of the equally popular Tomahawk Chop, a bone-in pork chop that’s wood-grilled and rubbed with ancho-lime butter. Round out your meal with a creative cocktail from the bar at The Rustic.

Returning Jan. 27: Saint Arnold Brewing Company’s One-Pot Showdown

The first One-Pot Showdown at Saint Arnold Brewing Company was held 12 years ago in a parking lot outside the brewery, and it didn’t attract much of a crowd. A few folks showed up to present their homemade chilis for judging, but that was the extent of the event. Fast-forward to Sunday, January 27th of this year, and more than 80 cooking teams are expected to compete.

Needless to say, this beer-centric cooking competition has exploded in popularity over the past decade or so. Whether you opt to cook or just participate as a spectator, you’ll have a fun afternoon in store at the One-Pot Showdown. Competitors are tasked with creating a dish using one Saint Arnold beer and preparing everything in a single pot. Then a panel of judges picks their favorites, and guests taste-test as many as they can handle. Tickets are $40, and the cook-off runs from 1 to 4 p.m.

This Winter, Go Ice Skating at Discovery Green

One of the best parts of living in Houston is that you rarely have to deal with truly wintry temperatures—but that does come with its drawbacks, too. One of them is that you can’t always enjoy the same cold-weather fun as folks in other parts of the country. However, Discovery Green makes sure Houstonites get one quintessential winter experience every year: ice skating.

Ice skating at Discovery Green has become an annual tradition at the popular local park from mid-November through the end of January. This year, the ice-skating rink will remain open through Sunday, January 27th. So grab a pair of rental skates and carve figure 8’s into this man-made rink with a few friends or your significant other. It’s open until 10 or 11 p.m. most days, allowing you plenty of time to get your skate on. General admission is $11 and rental skates are $4.

How to Celebrate New Year’s Eve in Houston

Whether you’re looking for a swanky and intimate New Year’s Eve celebration or a boisterous evening of dancing and fireworks, Houston has you covered. The city boasts a varied lineup of NYE events with something for revelers of all types. Check out this roundup of the New Year’s Eve festivities to plan how you’ll ring in 2019.

If you prefer a quiet evening with your significant other, many local hotels are offering romantic packages for New Year’s Eve. The most opulent of the options comes from the Houstonian, a boutique hotel tucked away on 18 acres of pristine woodlands. The package includes a swanky room, dinner at the in-house eatery, a bottle of sparkling wine delivered directly to your room, and other optional activities. The over-the-top package will run you $650. On the other end of the spectrum, CityCentre will host a free event that kicks off at 9:30 p.m. Collector’s Item, a beloved local Motown band, lays down the perfect soundtrack for dancing until fireworks crackle overhead when the clock strikes midnight.

Coming to The Grand Opera House on Dec. 23: ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas Live on Stage’

A Charlie Brown Christmas aired on TV for the first time during the holiday season of 1965. At the time, Charles M. Schulz Peanuts characters were already beloved—the comic strip had already been around for more than a decade by then. The holiday special was so well-received that it became an annual tradition, and eventually spawned the touring production A Charlie Brown Christmas Live on Stage, which is coming to The Grand Opera House on Sunday, December 23rd.

Snag tickets to the show at 1 or 4 p.m. ($25+) to follow Charlie Brown on his quest for the true meaning of the holidays. He’s starting to believe that greed and gifts drive the holiday cheer around him, which is why Lucy persuades him to direct a holiday play. Linus steps in when the production starts to flounder and ensures everyone remembers what the holidays are really about.

Toast a Special Occasion at Georgia James, Now Open in Houston

Chef Chris Shepherd is no stranger to the Houston culinary scene. Even before he opened Georgia James in October, he already had a glowing reputation for his contemporary American cuisine. And that’s exactly the type of fare he showcases at Georgia James, with an emphasis on quality steaks and fresh seafood. 

Plan a special date night at Georgia James and share an upscale appetizer, such as the shaved Wagyu short rib or the roasted Gulf oysters with bourbon barrel-aged hot sauce butter. You can also start with a classic shrimp cocktail or a seafood tower from the raw bar. Make sure you save enough room to dig into a steak, perhaps the hanger steak. The team wet-ages the steak for 100 days before they grill it over a wood-burning fire. For an even more decadent dish, opt for the long bone rib eye, which dry-ages for 100 days and then cooks to juicy and tender in cast iron. 

A Holiday Must-Do: The Houston Ballet’s ‘The Nutcracker’

It’s not every day a holiday toy comes to life and embarks on a journey with a mortal companion. Only the magic of the season could make it happen. Travel into this enchanting world when you come to see Houston Ballet’s The Nutcracker. The show runs through December 29th at the Wortham Theater Center.

The Houston Ballet recreates this holiday classic with the timeless Tchaikovsky score as the musical backdrop. The professional dancers take to the stage to tell the story of Clara, a young girl who’s surprised to find that the Nutcracker Prince she received as a holiday gift isn’t merely a toy. He leads her on a quest to the Kingdom of Sweets, where they meet many other magical characters—and even encounter a few instances of danger. Bring friends or family to enjoy this show at the Wortham Theater Center. Tickets start at $30.

Magical Winter Lights: Illuminate Your Holiday Season

Your average holiday light display usually involves a handful of decorated pine trees and an illuminated scene of Santa’s workshop. But Magical Winter Lights is far from your average holiday light display. Instead of embracing just a single interpretation of the holiday season, it showcases eight internationally inspired scenes crafted from creative versions of the Chinese lantern.

A glowing castle welcomes you to “The Kingdom,” filled with multi-colored trees, massive lotus flowers, and ethereal orbs of light. “The Globe” brings cultures from around the world to your doorstep with paper-lantern versions of the Egyptian pyramids, a Russian palace, and Spanish flamenco dancers. If you want to get swept away in the traditional holiday scene, head to “The Village.” It’s filled with towering candy canes and snowmen, decked-out holiday trees, and faux homes embellished in honor of the season. Magical Winter Lights runs now through January 6th, and tickets are $22 for adults.

The H-E-B Thanksgiving Day Parade Celebrates Its 69th Birthday This Year

The first Houston Thanksgiving Day Parade was a pretty simple affair. In the late fall of 1949, Santa Claus climbed into his sleigh and jingled all the way from Union Station to Foley’s, a major department store at the time. In the decades since, the parade has evolved into the modern-day H-E-B Thanksgiving Day Parade, and it’s celebrating its 69th birthday this year.

This Thanksgiving morning, round up your friends and family and head downtown to enjoy the festivities starting at 9 a.m. The parade is free to attend, but you can reserve general admission seating if you want a comfortable and close-up view of the action. Expect to see splashy floats, high-flying balloons of your favorite cartoon characters, and a noteworthy Houstonian as the grand marshal. (Last year it was Chandra Wilson of Grey’s Anatomy fame.)

Sapporo Japanese Sushi & Bar Is Now Open Near Siena at Memorial Heights

The Cowboy is the perfect example of the innovative, contemporary maki rolls on the menu at Sapporo Japanese Sushi & Bar. The sushi chef stuffs it with shrimp, cucumber, and yamagobo, and tops it with seared ribeye steak, ponzu, and garlic-olive oil sauce. Since Sapporo opened in August, it’s been offering up unique rolls like these, along with classic Japanese food.

If you’re looking for something simpler, try one of the traditional sushi rolls instead. They feature fresh seafood such as tuna, salmon, and even octopus. Noodles and fried rice round out the menu at Sapporo, along with a lineup of kitchen entrees. So, if you’re craving chicken teriyaki, miso sea bass, or Thai seafood curry, these are all on the menu, too. If you stop in for lunch, grab a bento box or a sashimi/sushi combo.

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