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Enjoy Immersive Art & Performances
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Summer is in full bloom at ARTECHOUSE Houston with the latest edition of Blooming Wonders. Reimagined for a new season, the immersive exhibition beloved by hundreds of thousands of visitors transforms ARTECHOUSE's 26,000 sq. ft. of cutting-edge galleries into a vibrant digital garden - one that awakens through movement, interaction, and play. In addition, explore Intangible Forms by Shohei Fujimoto - a multi-sensory, multi-gallery adventure featuring choreographed lasers, strobes, haze, and moving lights that offers you the opportunity to pause and exist outside of normal space and time.
Celebrate Phenomenomaly with new specialty cocktail. Deliciously refreshing!
This summer, Meow Wolf Houston brings a new production of Phenomenomaly, a live immersive performance series inside Radio Tave. Blending interactive theater with a rotating lineup of Houston talent, the experience unfolds as guests explore, with music, dance, spoken word, and surprise performances appearing throughout the space and building into a large-scale finale procession. Visitors can encounter poets, musicians, dancers, and theatrical performers woven into the exhibition, alongside roaming characters who invite participation in a collaborative, story-driven quest. Each visit offers something new, with performances evolving in real time. Performances take place during afternoon hours and are included with general admission. With a new lineup of artists each week, Phenomenomaly offers a dynamic, indoor summer outing for all ages.
Head to The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts and get ready to get in a happier state of mind. Moulin Rouge! The Musical, the winner of 10 Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, is here! Enter a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory! A world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Baz Luhrmann’s revolutionary film comes to life onstage, remixed in a new musical mash-up extravaganza. (Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman: Robert Petkoff and the Company of the 2025 touring production of Moulin Rouge! The Musical.)
Discover New Flavors
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Sprawling across 28,000 square feet, Long Weekend is the brainchild of husband-and-wife duo Paige and Andrew Alvis, who wanted to bottle up the magic of childhood ranch trips and serve it with a side of wood-fired steak. It’s a rustic-chic sanctuary where "kids can be kids" — complete with a state-of-the-art playground and a literal stream with fish — while the adults settle into a leather booth for some Western-inspired fuel. The menu is a love letter to the open hearth. We’re talking "Ax Breaker" Elk Burgers, Wagyu Tomahawk steaks, and "Prairie Side" Deviled Eggs topped with rabbit. If you’re more of a sunrise seeker, their morning-to-midday café slings breakfast burritos and specialty lattes. "Everything is centered around hearty, wood-fired meals, modern cocktails, and a relaxed country-western setting," the Alvises share. "We wanted Long Weekend to feel like a place you’ll want to settle in and stay awhile."
Zaranda shares a modern expression of Mexican and Las Californias cuisine in Downtown Houston. Guided by celebrated chef Hugo Ortega (the first Mexican-born chef to win a James Beard Award) and his brother Ruben (a 2022 James Beard Finalist for Outstanding Pastry Chef), the menu features wood-fired dishes, fresh seafood, premium meats, and coastal flavors inspired by the traditions of Alta and Baja California. Just steps from the park Discovery Green, Zaranda offers a welcoming dining experience with thoughtful design, craft cocktails, and genuine hospitality.
Hotel Daphne. Photo by Julie Soefer, courtesy of the hotel.
Bar Daphne, a sexy, artsy new neighborhood cocktail lounge, is tucked inside the gorgeous new Hotel Daphne. As the latest project from Bunkhouse Hotels group, this 49-room boutique escape brings effortless style to the corner of Ashland and 20th. The cocktail menu is a masterpiece in its own right, featuring libations named after the original modern paintings adorning the walls. Sip on Studio 8, a clever mix of American single malt, pineapple, lime, and clarified banana water, or conquer your FOMO with the Separation Anxiety, a tropical blend of white rum, pineapple, coconut, lime, and falernum. If you're staying grounded, the zero-proof Abstract matches the artsy vibe with pressed coconut water, lime, cherry, and cola. The food program offers elevated bites like Salt & Vinegar Chips topped with caramelized onion dip and smoked trout roe, and Shrimp Stuffed Street Corn tossed with lime mayo and tajín. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy an evening of unadulterated Heights charm.
Petite Lucie has opened its doors in Market Square Park. This all-day French-inspired café, bakery, and garden bar has turned one of Downtown’s most historic public spaces into a lively oasis. Designed by Gensler, the collection of intimate, Art Deco-inspired structures — including a covered dining pavilion and a shaded outdoor bar pod — looks as if it has always belonged in the park. Because it sits right in the middle of the green space, the menu is built for al fresco dining. The bakery program features the acclaimed Love Croissants team serving up decadent Coffee Buns and Blueberry Earl Grey Scones, alongside playful, park-friendly mains like Truffled Fries, a classic Steak Frites, and Coquillettes au Jambon (the ultimate French comfort food of pasta and ham). On the beverage side, a fun wine list is packed with chillable reds and energetic whites. And, don’t miss the St-Germain cart serving up rotating cocktails on tap during peak hours.
