brian0123

Union Bar is really chill and quiet (the Houston Symphony hangs out there sometimes) but dress in business casual for the place. Drinks are decently priced, but you HAVE to go at night and hang out on their awesome deck that overlooks the street below for good people watching. Brewery Tap is casual and quiet... and sometimes ghost hunters come in the bar with rods and blinking lights trying to find ghosts (which is always entertaining to watch). If you like cocktails you should check out Hearsay (good food for dinner as well). I live in Midtown and hang out there a lot... but Downtown is always a fun place too.

The reason I go to Downtown is because of chill bars. How about Union Bar, Deans, La Carafe, Warren's, The Brewery Tap, Flying Saucer, Molly's, Shay McElroy's... etc?

I agree with everyone else that it must have been an off night. My band plays at Dean's often and there always seems to be a decent crowd on Fridays/Saturdays (we play this Thursday... so I'll see how it is on a Thursday night). I hang out a lot downtown (Flying Saucer, Hearsay, The Pavilions, area around Franks and Union Bar, etc.) and a lot in Midtown and always see a lot of people. I don't understand why people like to say Downtown/Midtown are "dead". My guess is some of them either have a vested interest in promoting Washington Avenue... or they just don't get out enough.

There's a new restaurant where This Is It used to be. It's called Cafe Layal.

Those touting the Galleria are missing what the point of the Angelika is. My wife and I loved the Angelika and spent a lot of money there... but we rarely go to the Galleria. A movie theater in Galleria would have to have a lot of mainstream movies to survive... something like an AMC, etc. The Angelika was about revitalization and pulling in people that seek out the type of movies they show. There were people from Beaumont, Cypress, Sugarland, Lufkin, etc. who would come from all directions... so being centralized is key. Getting around the Galleria is a nightmare enough. My vote for a new spot would be just south of Downtown, near the light rail in Midtown. Tons of apartments and townhouses around, easy to get to, between Downtown and the Museums, and some big empty warehouses just waiting for something like this.

Looks like they answered my question. They just put up some "coming soon" signs for a pizza place called Piola http://www.piola.it/ Glad to see there will be more food options in the area.

This thread hasn't been touched in awhile so I thought I'd report that there is finally something else going into the mix (no clue what it is). There have been construction crews working in the place (fairly large) next to the hair salon. Anyone have any info on what's coming?

Your experience is exactly why I avoid Washington at all costs. Don't worry, the scene will eventually move and the bars will get more normal. Either that or they'll build another self storage across the street to block the view and the place will quickly lose its only asset.

Yeah, I refuse to go to Washington because of its ridiculousness. I bought in midtown right when Washington was booming (used to rent along it) because I saw the monster it was going to turn into. I love midtown and know that it's not going anywhere ( train, redevelopment authority and management district, it's super easy road access right into downtown, proximity to museums and Hermann park, etc). My wife and I are going to raise our kids here... so I'm in it for the long haul.

Figured I'd update this thread I started. I went to Hearsay last week for dinner (awesome food btw) and the manager started chatting my wife and I up on the cool building. I mentioned I live near "The White House" on Elgin and said I saw I sign on it, but was wondering when they'd start construction on the new restaurant. He said they are going through design approvals, and the fact that it's a historic building is making it take longer. They cannot move any interior walls, but said he hopes construction will start in a couple months. He said the place is going to be really fancy, with separate dining rooms throughout the house. They will have a valet pull up in the front of the house.

Sure. The Chronicle did an article about the Continental Club the other weekend: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/7037727.html Construction was in full swing this past weekend when I went by for Tacos. They will be the 3600 Main Shops. Here are the highlights: WHEN THEY WILL ARRIVE Planned openings for the 3600 Main Shops Early June: My Flaming Heart (apparel, jewelry and folk objects) and Sig's Lagoon (music, posters and gifts) July: Natachee's (restaurant) and Shop-O-Rama (vintage collaborative). August: Big Kat's (barber shop/tattoo parlor) and Kat's Meow (hair salon) September: Coffeehouse As for Bagby, it's being planned by Midtown and I believe it's supposed to start in 2011. It's going to be a total makeover (new street, sidewalks, ramps, etc.).

How so? We bought our townhome in Midtown 2 years ago and have only seen improvements (new restaurants like Raku, Saint Danes, McGowen Street reconstruction, etc.). They are about to add a lot of retail by Continental Club and totally redo Bagby as well.

Considering the fare is actually $1.25 and my wife and I ride it... I'd have to disagree. In fact, my family just visited us on Friday and we all rode the rail to the hmns.

I would argue that downtown has always been a "hotspot" since it was the heart of the "club scene"... just like Midtown and Montrose are still hotspots. They never died... they just mature into something better.

I think you just created my favorite graphic EVER on this forum. Made for a good laugh at the end of the day.

I don't see how our system would be any better without political parties. It might sound nice... but you'd have a ton of "independents" that you'd have no idea stand for what. In fact, I think it would be even worse. "John Smith was for ___ in this race, but was it Bob Smith in this other race,or John Bob in this one?" etc. Just imagine the average voter (even yourselves) confronting a ballot filled with a plethora of names w/out even a hint at what part of the political spectrum they belong to? Heck, if that was how the system worked... most people would end up voting by name alone, and our country would be run by "Sarah Palin"s instead of "Barack Obama"s.

I love the impact this building is having on the skyline view from Midtown. Can't wait to see what it looks like w/ the sky garden in place.

Wow, I didn't realize that many people come down for the bats. When my wife and I would watch the bats a couple years ago, we were usually only joined by some homeless people.

Rode my bike the other day past the sign for the variance request for Midtown Grove. It's right next to the condos this group recently built. I was curious and found the planning commission meeting on COH website and the developer mentioned that these would be new condos right next to their current development. It's located here. I did a little more digging on HAR, and on the Chenevert Condo page there is the following image. Looks like a lot of stuff is going to be going in at this southern part of Midtown!

I went the other weekend to the "start" according to the city of Houston map on the abandoned RR bridge just north of downtown. There were some work crews on it doing something... maybe prepping it for the trail? Only strange thing is that the other side of the bridge didn't have a path or anything.

Well no wonder why. How complete is the trail from the bridge you posted? Is it a dedicated trail all the way to the Heights?

I was hoping someone could fill me in on the bike paths that enter into Downtown. I have been trying to use the city's map at http://bikeways.publicworks.houstontx.gov/images/maps/cbd-south.jpg, but it isn't labeled that well. In particular, I am trying to find out how to get onto the path that runs from Downtown, slightly north (following 45), underneath onto Spring Street, past the Target, and up into the Heights. From what the map shows, there should be a trail along the north part of Downtown along the train tracks just north of the bayou (somewhere near UH Downtown). I have tried two times now (unsuccessfully) to find a path near here. First, I went to where the train tracks cross (near San Jacinto at Allen), but I just found train tracks... no bike path. I also tried a little further down where it looks like they should cross over the bayou on a railroad bridge.... I went to that point and found the bridge, but it was closed off. Am I not reading the maps correctly? Can someone tell me how to get onto the new trail that goes up to the Heights?

My wife and I met some friends here last night to check out this place. Needless to say, it's one of our favorite places now. Good music, cool vibe, decently priced drinks, and it's a place you can actually have a conversation instead of screaming over music. Also, TONS of free parking. I think this is the only bar in Midtown with a huge parking lot that you just pull up into and walk inside the place.... very awesome.

So I just drove by this place an can't believe how quickly these are going up. They have one block of apartments on one side of Bagby, a parking garage on the other side (and it looks like they will surround it w/ more apartments), and then more apartments one block away from Bagby. The one thing I was wondering is what are they going to do about parking for the two blocks of apartments w/out a garage? I don't see anywhere they could possibly build a skywalk between the blocks. Are people living on the 4th floor one block over going to have to walk across Bagby everytime they want to get to their car?

I had no idea this bar was open. From the looks of their website, it looks like a really cool place. I'll have to go check it out w/ my wife soon. Besides, I'd rather have this than an empty building surrounded by cracked out thugs that used to hang around here. We need more places like this in that area.