Locations in Houston: Slideshow

14 Pews

800 Aurora St. Heights

Movie Theaters, Theaters, Sponsor, Slideshow

9 articles

Alley Theatre

615 Texas Ave. Downtown/ Midtown

713-220-5700

Theaters, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

The Alley Theatre is the grand dame of Houston theaters. Easily the most visible theater in the city, the downtown institution offers new plays and classics alike in two facilities: the 824-seat Hubbard Stage and the 310-seat Neuhaus Stage. It's one of the country's few theaters to support an entire company -actors, designers and craftspeople - full-time, throughout the year. Even those who don't go for theater have likely seen a production at the Alley - and they've likely enjoyed it, as well.

115 articles

Arena Theatre

7326 Southwest Freeway Outer Loop - SW

713-772-5900

Music Venues, Performing Arts Venues, Theaters, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

With a capacity of about 2,750, Sharpstown's Arena Theatre is the redheaded stepchild of Houston music venues. Even with all the competition it has these days, the Arena manages to keep the lights on most nights out of the month. Its calendar is constantly crowded with music across a wide variety of styles, including R&B, blues, country, rap, Latin and rock, plus comedy, boxing and MMA fighting. The seats are comfortable, the concessions are reasonable (even the cocktails), the sound is clean, the rotating stage never ceases to be a novelty and the gallery of posters for past shows in the walkway leading from the parking garage is second to none.

16 events 65 articles

Bedrock City Comic Company - Westheimer

6516 Westheimer Rd. Galleria

713-780-0675

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16 articles

Blue Willow Bookstore

14532 Memorial Dr. Memorial

281-497-8675

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12 articles

Brazos Bookstore

2421 Bissonnet Kirby-West U

713-523-0701

Retail, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

26 articles

Central Market

3815 Westheimer Greenway Plaza

713-386-1700

Retail, Services, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

179 articles

CityCentre

800 Town and Country Blvd. Outer Loop - NW

713-629-5200

Retail, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

12 articles

Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

5216 Montrose Blvd. Montrose

713-284-8250

Museums, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

The Contemporary Arts Museum Houston's motto is "Always fresh, always free." Located in the museum district, the CAMH is a bit like the edgier, cheaper little sibling of its neighbor the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. There's no permanent collection housed in the strange metallic parallelogram of a building, but there is a fantastic rotating roster of some of the best contemporary works in a variety of media, from the international to the regional.

110 articles

Discovery Green

1500 McKinney St. Downtown/ Midtown

713-400-7336

Community Venues, Music Venues, Sports and Recreation, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

A vast prairie of little-used parking lots downtown was replaced by Discovery Green, a dozen or so acres of green space, bocce courts, lakes, water parks, performance spaces and restaurants. Sure, the name of the place is meh and they got a little sponsor-happy, but when you take in a concert or visit a farmers market at Discovery Green, you really feel like Houston is giving Chicago a run for its money as America's third city.

1 event 275 articles

George R. Brown Convention Center

1001 Avenida De Las Americas Downtown/ Midtown

713-853-8000

Community Venues, Sponsor, Slideshow

4 events 142 articles

The Health Museum

1515 Hermann Downtown/ Midtown

713-521-1515

Health, Organic, Specialties, Museums, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

6 events 12 articles

Hobby Center for the Performing Arts

800 Bagby St. Downtown/ Midtown

713-315-2525

Music Venues, Performing Arts Venues, Sponsor, Slideshow

33 events 382 articles

Hotel Zaza

5701 Main St. Kirby-West U

713-526-1991

Hotels and Resorts, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

The thing about a romantic stay at ZaZa is that you really get to choose how you define "romantic." Its "concept suites" range from Geisha House to An Affair to Remember to SoHo Loft. As if that weren't indulgent enough, you and your significant other could choose from the hotel's "magnificent seven" theme rooms. Like a little hedonism in your romantic getaway? Check out the 2,160-square-foot Rock Star Suite with mirrored walls. Or maybe go old-school with the Fatal Charms room's crystal chandeliers, bronze velvet drapes and "the magnificent bed with the black velvet-tufted headboard," as described on the Web site. There's truly something for everyone.

9 articles

Houston Museum of Natural Science

5555 Hermann Park Dr. Kirby-West U

713-639-4629

Museums, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

Houston was once home to AstroWorld, amusement park extraordinaire. Sadly, AstroWorld is gone, but we still have a world-class family entertainment facility – the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Wait, wait, yes, it's a museum, but it's not the kind where you have to whisper and the exhibits are safely tucked behind velvet ropes. Here, kids are encouraged to talk and touch, even to squeal with delight, if they are so moved. Blending education with entertainment, the museum presents a variety of permanent shows and a year-round schedule of touring exhibitions, including world-famous (and not particularly cheap) exhibits like Titanic and Body Worlds. The in-house Wortham IMAX theater is worth it for the trip alone -- ditto the Burke Baker Planetarium and the Cockrell Butterfly Center.

108 articles

Houston Press

2603 La Branch St. Third Ward

713-280-2400

Community Venues, Sponsor, Slideshow

1 event 21 articles

Houston Zoo

6200 Hermann Park Dr. Kirby-West U

713-533-6500

Attractions and Amusement Parks, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow

The Houston Zoo is one of the cheapest and most democratic of local attractions (despite being a top-notch facility, as far as zoos go), and one of the few places in the heart of town where one can see lots of tourists, both foreign and domestic. The animals are pretty great, too, with everything from the popular sea lions to the creepy-crawly stuff in the humid confines of the reptile house. If you've got young kids, throw them in the dolphin strollers and make a day of it. If you're just planning a trip with grown-ups, forget your pride for a minute and take a ride on the miniature train that takes off from just outside the entrance gates and circles Hermann Park.

2 events 45 articles

Main Street Theater

2540 Times Blvd. Kirby-West U

713-524-3622

Performing Arts Venues, Theaters, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Main Street has produced all its shows with a lustrous dexterity that belies its pint-size venue, keeping us close and thoroughly enthralled. Main Street's abiding professionalism — its ability to do so much within a space that's so little — is the essence of great theater. Seasons include tried and true classics and newer works, as well as children's theater. The Village location is MST's original outpost, open for more than 30 years; there's another location in Montrose's Chelsea Market.

67 articles

Market Square Park

301 Milam St. Downtown/ Midtown

713-224-6133

Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow

Smack-dab in the middle of downtown's historic district, Market Square was ringed with bouncer-inhabited nightclubs and young, pretty patrons not that long ago. Now it's a bustling bar area that draws a more professional, mature crowd. Market Square Park is in the midst of the bar chaos, and even boasts its own small pavilion area for outdoor concerts, when the weather is nice.

50 articles

The Menil Collection

1533 Sul Ross Montrose

713-525-9400

Art Galleries, Historic Landmarks, Parks and Outdoors, Performing Arts Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

Yes, it's uncool to toast the leisure activity of two rich old white people, but Dominique and John de Menil brought to Houston works by true greats of the 20th century, including Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Man Ray, Cy Twombly and Andy Warhol, as well as artifacts from ancient Africa, early Mediterranean civilizations and the Byzantine empire. The Menil Collection is the one most likely to house something from your art history textbook. It's more than a great local art institution -- it's a world-class museum. Not to mention the stunning building itself -- Renzo Piano's light-washed galleries are the standard by which to measure all other museums.

1 event 133 articles

Murder by the Book

2342 Bissonnet Kirby-West U

713-524-8597

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1 event 21 articles

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

1001 Bissonnet Kirby-West U

713-639-7300

Art Galleries, Community Venues, Museums, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

88 articles

Obsidian Art Space

3522 White Oak Dr. Heights

832-889-7837

Theaters, Performing Arts Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Founders Tom Stell and Leighza Walker started the nonprofit Obsidian Art Space in 2010 as a way to promote original work, and they've done just that. The Heights venue provides a space for visual and performance art, as well as outreach programs. The space has become very busy, and is often booked for up to a year in advance. Aspiring artists can be a part of Obsidian's various classes for kids and adults.

28 articles

The Pop Culture Company

11313 Katy Freeway Outer Loop - NW

281-798-0777

Retail, Sponsor, Slideshow

Located inside the Market Place Antiques Center

3 articles

Retropolis

321 W. 19th St. Heights

713-861-1950

Retail, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

7 articles

Sam Houston Race Park

7575 N. Sam Houston Parkway W. Jersey Village

281-807-8700

Community Venues, Sports and Recreation, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Even if all you know of horse racing is what you saw in Seabiscuit, you can still have a grand time betting on the ponies at Sam Houston Race Park. Admission is cheap, parking is easy, and the food and drink are affordable. They offer live Thoroughbred racing from January through early March and and live Quarter Horse racing from late March through early May with simulcast racing 364 days of the year, and from time to time they even have ostriches and camels, too, if you're looking for something a bit more exotic. Place your bets and root for your new favorite four-legged creature. You don't even have to wear a floppy hat.

73 articles

San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site

3523 Independence Parkway, La Porte Outside Houston

281-479-2431

Community Venues, Historic Landmarks, Parks and Outdoors, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Contains San Jacinto Battlground, a monument to where Texas won its independence from Mexico; site of patriotic festivities and re-enactments honoring heroes of the Battle of San Jacinto (1836).

3 articles

Scream World

2225 N. Sam Houston Parkway Inner Loop - NE

713-914-1313

Attractions and Amusement Parks, Community Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Scream World, located on the north side near Greenspoint, has been in business for more than 15 years. The owners have mastered every aspect of it, from the wait in line to the girl with the dead baby in one hand and the machete in the other. Seriously, rehydrate yourself after you leave, because this is one of the best haunted houses to visit come Halloween time, and you're likely to pee your pants.

7 articles

Sylvia's Enchilada Kitchen

12637 Westheimer Rd. Memorial

281-679-8300

Mexican, Restaurants, Critics' Pick, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow

Owner Sylvia Casares started building her reputation as Houston’s Enchilada Queen at a tiny strip center off of Westheimer. Later, the shop moved to its current, nicer location. The enchiladas, of course, are the star of the show, especially the cheese-filled ones. The homemade tortillas, rolled and filled with a blend of cheddar cheeses and topped with Sylvia's signature enchilada chili, are smooth and lack the seemingly requisite pools of grease. Meat enchiladas, too, are a win. They're packed with fresh, well-seasoned meat, and kicked up a notch by the thin, homemade sauce. Another plus is that portions are reasonable—especially for Tex-Mex/Mexican fare—and not slathered with superfluous amounts of cheese.

10 articles