Have you been planning a trip to Downtown Houston? If so, I’ve got the perfect guide for you. Where to stay, eat, and do in Houston.
Where to stay:
The Sam Houston Hotel is located in the heart of downtown Houston.
We arrived later in the evening and valet parked our car. For hotel guests, it is $32 per night which I found to be a reasonable price considering you could use your car anytime you want.
Upon walking up to the hotel we were warmly greeted by the staff. They helped us carry our bags inside and check in.
Our hotel room was on the tenth floor and gave us a fabulous view of Downtown Houston. The hotel nicely gifted me a Gnarly Head bottle of wine which I promptly enjoyed while settling into the room.
Some of the things that made me love the hotel:
Complimentary WiFi
Fitness Room
40-inch LED TV with full lots of channel lineup
Local Area Transportation
Keurig coffee maker
Gorgeous bathroom complete with an expansive glass shower
What to eat:
We finally got settled in the hotel around 10 p.m. and since we had a big and early day planned for Saturday, we ordered two of the burgers. We ordered The Pearl Burger from the room service menu, which was the best burger I have EVER had. And, YES, I actually mean that.
The burger was a thick patty, perfectly cooked. I had mine cooked med-well while my sister had hers cooked well-done. They came with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and onions with condiments on the side, paired with fries. The fries were perfectly cooked, crispy and not too salty. It took under 20 minutes for us to receive our food and it was absolutely delicious.
Where to eat breakfast/brunch:
Tout Suite – 2001 Commerce Street, Houston, Texas 77002
Weights + Measures – 2808 Caroline Street, Houston, Texas 77004
La Calle- 909 Franklin St, Houston, TX 77002
The Moonshiners Southern Table + Bar- 1000 Prairie St, Houston, TX 77002
For Brunch, we went to the Mia Bella Trattoria which is nestled in the same complex as the House of Blues.
Their Brunch menu has a great selection of breakfast and lunch options. Since it was around 12 by the time we got there, we settled on eating their make your own pasta plates. For an appetizer, we shared the potato leakes soup and for our entrees, we ordered the Linguini pasta with Alfredo sauce and shrimp and the Cappellini pasta with alfredo sauce, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and chicken. All of the food was delicious and some of the best Italian food I have ever had. I (of course) also ordered two mimosas because what is a brunch without a mimosa?
Next, our sweet tooths took us to the Fluff Bake Bar, which is a bakery located at 314 Gray Street, in Midtown Houston.
This adorable bakery is owned by Rebecca Masson and according to her website, she is “affectionately known in Houston as “The Sugar Fairy” Rebecca’s signature style creatively marries the tradition of French pastry with beloved homemade favorites reminiscent of childhood.”
Outside of the bakery is a super cute outdoor space that would be perfect to relax at rainy at the time so we sat inside the bakery.
One of the things we wanted to try was a cup|cakes which are the Fluff Bake Bars fun twist on a normal cupcake. We had the Birthday Cake flavor which includes funfetti cake, chocolate buttercream, sprinkles, cake crumbles – and it was absolutely delicious.
We also tried a mocha latte, a chocolate chip cookie, and turtle cheesecake. All of it was so flavorful. I’d have to say that my favorite was the turtle cheesecake.
Photo Spots
Next, we went to find some fun spots to take some photos. First, we took some pictures in the veranda on the 2nd floor of the Sam Houston Hotel and at a mural right down the street.
Next, we headed over to the Montrose area and found a fun murals on the side of Next Door which is an art gallery at 2020 Waugh Dr in Houston, TX 77006.
(BTW: you can find more Houston murals and Uptown Houston photo spots here.)
What to do:
Downtown Houston is a great place to catch a show and enjoy some live music. Next, we headed back to the hotel and got dressed for the Lana Del Rey concert which was at the Toyota Center in Houston. Lana Del Rey has the voice of an angel and hearing her in concert is always a delight.
Here are some other venues that have live music:
Warehouse Live
Bayou Music Center
House of Blues, Houston
Sambuca
My dress and tights are from Torrid, and my shoes are from Wix. We took these lovely photos at the Veranda which is located on the 2nd floor of the Sam Houston Hotel.
One of my favorite parts of the Sam Houston Hotel is that they have a car that is available to drive you around in the downtown area until 11:50 PM, which helped us save money. The number for the driver of the hotel’s car is located on the back of the key cards.The driver for the Sam Houston Hotel actually drove us to and from the concert which was very convenient, and the driver was super friendly.
Restaurants and bars in Downtown Houston:
If you are in the city and looking for a fabulous drink or to grab a bite to eat later at night, here are some options for you:
Conservatory Underground Beer Garden & Food Hall – 1010 Prairie St, Houston, TX 77002
Frank’s Pizza – 417 Travis St, Houston, TX 77002
Prohibition Supperclub & Bar – 1008 Prairie St, Houston, TX 77002
Checkout time at the Sam Houston Hotel is at Noon. Overall I absolutely adored this hotel. It is in a super convenient location, nestled in the heart of downtown Houston. The restaurant is fabulous, the staff is super sweet and I would recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a great place to stay in Downtown Houston.
Where to eat:
We went to a late brunch at the Liberty Kitchen & Oyster Bar in the Heights, a short drive from downtown Houston. This is a super busy location, but worth the wait for sure.
We chose to sit in the side by side tables at the bar, which gave us a great view of all the TVs and the bartenders making drinks.
What you should order at the Liberty Kitchen Oyster Bar:
Fried Gulf White Shrimp
Lobster Bolognese
Cowboy Surfers Po-Boy & Bacon Jam
Classic Cheddar-American Mac & Cheese
Drinks to try at the Liberty Kitchen Oyster Bar:
Heights Tiki, Sunset Punch, Liberty Mimosa
There are so many amazing options to try here! Let me know what you have eaten here before.
Next, we went and shopped for a few hours to pass the time before our next activity, which happened to be an amazing Salata/Painting with a Twist Party. (Which you can read all about here)
I have an amazing weekend in Houston! I’d love to hear about any amazing spots you have been to.
Houston looks like a fun place to visit! I’d love to go see the murals!