Isabel & Jackson’s HOUSTON GUIDE

Washington, D.C.

October 1, 2025


Dear family and friends: 

We are excited to host you in Houston later this month.  Because the majority of you are traveling to the wedding, and because Houston will be unfamiliar to many of our guests, we thought it prudent to provide a lightly annotated compilation of places to go and things to do in and around our hometown.  

You will notice that most of our recommendations concern bars and restaurants.  That is because Houston is one of the best cities for food and drink in the United States.  While the diversity and quality of regional cuisines available to the South Texas diner puts Houston in the same weight class as larger cities like Los Angeles and New York (both of which conspicuously lack quality BBQ), the creativity and irreverence of Houston’s culinary vanguard (Chris Shepherd, Justin Yu, Ryan LaChaine, Aaron Bludorn, et. al) is, in our view, singular.  We humbly urge you to take advantage.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to either of us with questions, whether about this guide or anything else.  We chose to get married in Houston because, for all of the city’s innumerable imperfections, we truly love it here.  Most of you already know that, because we are shameless evangelists.  Houston is not a pretty place, nor is it a terribly comfortable place (though late October usually isn’t too bad), but it is without question our place, and we are excited to share it with you.  


Love,

Isabel and Jackson

***

Houston is a cruel, crazy town on a filthy river in East Texas with no zoning laws and a culture of sex, money and violence. It’s a shabby, sprawling metropolis ruled by brazen women, crooked cops and super-rich pansexual cowboys who live by the code of the West—which can mean just about anything you need it to mean, in a pinch.


Hunter S. Thompson


Restaurants


Japanese

  • Uchi

    • Sushi, technically a small chain (Houston, Austin, Denver) but the Montrose location is vibey. 

  • Uchiko

    • Same same but different.  Slightly pricier, flashier.  We prefer the original, but others close to us disagree.

    • MF Sushi

      • Pricier than it should be.

    • Kata Robata 

      • A Houston classic for izakaya and sushi.

    • Katami

      • Recently-launched upscale version of Kata Robata.


Sichuanese

  • Cooking Girl

  • Mala Sichuan


Southeast Asian

  • Cali Sandwich 

    • Heir apparent to the late great Les Givral.  Better, cleaner, still dirt cheap.

  • Street Food Thai Market

    • Might change your life.  Best Laotian cuisine I’ve had in the Americas. Cheap.

  • Le Colonial

    • Questionable French Indochina vibes.  Expensive.  Great wine list.

    • Huynh

      • Vietnamese in EaDo which has recently received strong reviews.


Houston Classics

  • BCN

    • The best restaurant in Houston right now.  Not cheap, easily worth it.

  • Nancy’s Hustle

    • A Houston staple.  Get the nancycakes and the pickle party.  I can take or leave the rest, except maybe the burger.

  • Theodore Rex

    • Experimental, fun, pricy.  Natural wine.

  • UB Preserv 

    • The last rampart of Chris Shepherd’s underbelly empire (Georgia James doesn’t count) slowly crumbles into the Gulf.  Play the hits: goat dumplings, vinegar pie.

  • La Lucha

    • Pharmacy burger, oysters however prepared.

  • State of Grace

    • Exceptional, classically Houston.  Steak, oysters.  Rushmore was filmed across the street.  They just hired the chef at Riel (Ryan LaChaine), a criminally underrated and recently deceased restaurant that was on the first draft of this list.  Highly recommended.

  • Coltivare

    • Cacio e pepe, pizza.  You might have to wait, but there are worse places to have a drink than the herb garden.

  • Squable

    • Solid southern food, strong charleston vibes (not enough gulf seafood in Jackson’s view).

  • Brennan’s

    • The original Brennan’s is in New Orleans.  One of the sons fell out with the family, stole a bunch of recipes, and opened this spot up 4 hours down I-10.  Turtle soup, bananas foster.  Not cheap, men have to wear jackets.  Stuff your pocket with free pralines on the way out.  

  • Chopnblock

    • East African cuisine.  New, but well-reviewed.

  • Bludorn

    • Same chef (Aaron Bludorn) as Perseid, the restaurant catering the wedding.  Great food, good vibes. Get the seasonal ice cream.

  • BASO

    • Very trendy spot in the heights.  Open kitchen, positively Oaxacan.  No genre, no rules.  Would be tough for a big party, definitely need a reservation.  “Trust the chef” is the way to go. 


BBQ

  • Pinkerton’s 

    • Candy paint ribs.  They’ll be sold out tho.

  • Truth 

    • Second fiddle to Pinkerton's, but still very good.  Get brisket, ask for it lean unless you know what you’re doing.


Breakfast

  • Croissant Brioche

    • Great breakfast spot.  Very 1980s Houston.  Get a few pastries and a cortado, sit outside, and people watch.

  • Bakery Donut 

    • Kolaches in the heights.  Send the least hungover person to pick up a couple dozen for the house.  Sweet, savory, cheesy.

  • Kolache factory

    • Cheaper, more accessible kolache chain.

    • Island Grill

      • Solid breakfast spot in West U. popular with NFL players.


Tex-Mex and Mex-Mex

  • Candente 

    • Massive tex-mex spot.

  • Hugo’s 

    • Known for brunch.  Won a James Beard years ago.  Chapulines.

  • Ninfa’s on Navigation

    • Classic.  Real heads know it isn’t what it used to be.

  • Laurenzo’s El Tiempo

    • Ninfa’s son fell out with the family and started his own spot.  It’s as good as the OG Ninfa’s used to be.  But it’ll cost.  Get filet mignon fajitas and don’t look at the check.

  • Teotihuacan (in the Heights, off Airline)

    • Crazy Mayan decor on the walls, fresh hot chips, reasonable prices.  This is the real deal, a tex-mex palace.

  • Mambo seafood 

    • Canto-influenced fried rice.

  • Golden seafood

    • Veracruz style seafood fry.  You pick the fish on the way to your table.  Go with a big group.


Local Chains

  • Local Foods (asian chicken salad)

  • Chuy’s

  • Lupe Tortilla

  • Pappasitos

  • Pappadeaux

  • Pepper Twins

  • Handies Douzo

  • Taqueria El Rey (Cuban, good breakfast burritos)

  • Pizarro’s Pizza (IHD only)

  • Betelgeuse (Detroit-style pizza)


Bars


Cocktails

  • Anvil

    • Upscale cocktail bar.  Worth a stop at the beginning of the night.  

  • Better Luck Tomorrow

    • Cool concept in the heights.  Great bites and cocktails.  Small. 

  • Johnny’s Gold Brick

    • If you’re in the heights and going to bars, this is one you might go to.  Not worth a trip by itself, though.


Breweries and Beergardens

  • St. Arnold’s Brewing Co.

    • Massive outdoor space with a fantastic view of downtown.  The staples are exceptional (Santo, Art Car, Lawnmower), but the seasonals can be hit or miss.  AB InBev wanted to acquire them instead of Karbach, but the owner (a Rice alum) refused to sell.

  • Karbach Brewing Co.

    • Acquired by AB InBev about a decade ago, but still a great spot for a cold one.  Love Street Kölsch and Crawford Bock. 

  • Axlerad

    • Massive beer garden with decent food, including pizza.  Some Houstonians will tell you its cringe, and they’re not wrong, but that doesn’t make it a bad bar.  Good beer selection, vibey projections, lights, trees, hammocks.  Also had a very distressing haunted house for halloween a few years back.

Dives

  • Poison Girl

    • This is the best bar in Houston, and likely one of the best in America.  It is a dive with a bunch of pinball machines and velvet paintings of topless ladies.  The patio area out back has a statue of the kool aid man.  If you stay late, you might get to meet the venerable tamale man: get venison with green sauce.

  • Grand Prize

    • Stinky, stinky dive bar.  Appears plugged into the drag, cumbia, biker, punk, and alt scenes.  Cigarette vending machine.  Toilets without dividers. 

  • Cecil’s

    • Historic dive.  Recently closed and re-opened.  Used to have a cat (Cecil!).  Might still have a cat, but it definitely used to.

  • Valhalla

    • This is the Rice grad student campus bar.  It is under the stairs to Keck Hall.  If the light is on, the bar is open.  Do not wear a tie.  Cheap beer, good outdoor space next to Keck.

Dancing

  • Barbarella 

    • This is the best club in Houston.  Emo night, 90s night, etc.  Tons of plasma screen TVs showing music videos. 

  • Wild West 

    • Old-school two-step joint.  I have never seen senior citizens move like this.


Misc.

  • Dan Electro’s

    • Sleeper hit.  Divey ice house out in the heights.  Great music many nights a week.  Killer outdoor space.

  • Catbird’s

    • New bar concept by a cool group we like.

  • Pistolero’s

    • This is a trashy tex-mex bar (not really a dive, just a gross normal bar) that used to do $1 margs on Tuesdays.  It is a horrible place but near and dear to us.  After you get a buzz on, jaywalk to Stone’s Throw and dance on tables until you get kicked out.

  • The Rose Garden

    • Near Dan Electro’s.  This is just somebody’s (Rose’s) house.  She buys whatever light beer is cheap at Costco on Friday and sells out of coolers in her kitchen.  Her husband sits on a rocking chair with a gun in his lap at their house across the street.  Extraordinary people watching.

Coffee Shops

  • Agora

    • Coffee/wine bar  

  • Black Hole

    • If a dive bar was a coffee shop, it would be Black Hole.  People-watching

  • Antidote

  • Blacksmith

  • Mercantile


Museums/Culture

  • MFAH (multiple days worth of art + design)

  • Menil Collection

  • Rothko Chapel

  • James Turrell’s Twilight Epiphany (if you’re in the area at the right time it’s worth a look)

  • Houston Museum of Natural Science (esp. butterfly sanctuary)

  • Space Center Houston (if you’re really into space, I guess.  It’s ~1hr from town.)

  • Beer Can House

  • The Rienzi Mansion (MFAH offshoot)

Parks

  • McGovern Centennial Gardens

  • Houston Botanical Garden

  • Memorial Park Conservancy (excellent golf course)

  • Buffalo Bayou park (incl. The Cisterns and the Waugh Dr. bat colony)

  • Hermann Park (less-than-excellent golf course, but the zoo is decent)

  • Houston Arboretum and Nature Center

Shopping

  • Brazos Books (nice local bookstore)

  • Kuhl Lindscomb (huge upscale boutique) 

  • Manready Mercantile + thrift shops on 19th St. 

  • Cavender’s (if you want boots and/or a hat)

  • HEB (it really is worth comparing this against your local chain, especially if you’re coming in from Europe)

  • Daytripper vintage

  • Bluebird Circle resale shop

  • Second Blessings resale shop

Do not go here

  • The Hobbit Grille (we disagree: Jackson is a fan)

  • Star Pizza 

  • Fat Bao

  • The Downtown Aquarium

  • Common Bond

  • Cle

  • Spire 

  • Oui Banh Mi

  • Any of the bars on Washington Ave near Kung-Fu and Concrete Cowboy  

  • The Thompson Hotel 

  • Goode Co. BBQ (mid)

  • Pit Room BBQ (mid and pricy)

  • Torchy’s Tacos

  • Meow Wolf