Honing in on Houston for Arts, Cuisine and Culture
When one thinks of Houston, thoughts may turn to NASA, its annual Livestock Show & Rodeo, the world’s largest, or barbeque. That would be a huge mistake as there’s so much more to H-Town.
The most populous city in Texas and fourth most populous in the U.S., it’s also one of the nation’s most culturally and ethnically diverse metropolitan areas. There are consular offices representing 92 countries, the nation’s third largest concentration, and the Texas Medical Center complex that employs over 120,000 people.
Hard to imagine a softer landing than at George Bush Intercontinental Airport where live, classical music serenades the arrivals area with the ‘Harmony in the Air’ Performing Arts Program.
The Bed
La Colombe d’Or, a Relais & Chateau hotel, and named after the legendry hotel in the French countryside where several artists waited out WWII, is nestled in H-Town’s hip Montrose neighborhood. The historically significant original structure – the Fondren Mansion – houses the lobby, reception, bar, restaurant, lounge, and five guest rooms. There are 18 rooms behind in the elegant, private Residence Tower where I stayed, separated by a lovely courtyard with a water feature and sculpture garden. Behind the Tower are nine free standing bungalows, great for longer or family stays.
Everywhere you turn there’s museum quality artwork. In the Tower lobby are selected works in the Cadence of Light, ‘Signal, Surface, Field’ series by Floyd Newsum, Jr., providing a sensation of sleeping in Ben Stiller’s movie ‘Night at the Museum.’ Only much, much better.
My Tower suite, decorated in a neutral, calming color palette, and more art, had a three-seater sofa, 60-inch flatscreen television, mini-bar, and a separate coffee station with a full-size Nespresso machine, teapot, and refrigerator.
The bedroom had a gloriously comfortable king-size bed with high-count cotton sheets, nightstands with USB ports and another flatscreen television, abundant closet space, cotton robes, and yoga mat.
The enormous bathroom had Carrera-style quartzite counters, separate make-up vanity, deep soaking bathtub, walk-in shower with both European and rain shower heads easily fitting four of your closest friends, and a separate WC.
The spacious 10th floor Fitness Center had TechnoGym equipment and free weights, boasted floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the golden dome of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral. Adjacent, the beautiful swimming pool.
The Meals
In Autry Park, Anaam Houston is a modern take on classic Vietnamese dishes with a continental twist. In a high-ceilinged space, beautifully decorated with both crystal chandeliers and rice paper lanterns, it reflects the cultural juxtaposition in both style and substance. Annam earned Michelin recognition in 2025 during its first operating year, thanks to Chef Kaytee Nguyen. Proving that great things come in tiny packages. Although Nguyen is petite in stature, she’s a veritable giant in the kitchen possessing more talent in her pinky finger than many obtain in a lifetime of study and practice.
We commenced with aromatic minced shrimp squash blossoms, and tender wagyu betel leaf with picked daikon. Following, the Annam fish salad with mango and ginger dish sauce was plated perfection.
Though nearly sated, we marched on. A truly marvelous grilled whole Branzino was accompanied by pork jowl lettuce wraps, while the winter melon soup was both comforting and refreshing. This dining extravaganza ended with a divine pandan coconut mousse cake. Anaam is a dining experience not to be missed when in H-Town. Send me a thank you card later.
While I had reservations for Valentine’s evening elsewhere, a sudden, intense storm and a twisted ankle had me instead happily enjoying live piano music at La Colombe coupled with excellent grilled salmon and espresso ice cream straddling chocolate opera cake at Tonight and Tomorrow. Other than the pesky ankle, this was a perfect Valentine’s Day evening.
The Marigold Club pays homage to London’s Mayfair district with a Parisian twist. The beautiful dining room has pink, orange, and green Murano glass chandeliers and sconces, fabric and hand-painted walls, and mustard and olive-shaded velvet banquettes. The Polspotton China service is multi-colored and of various designs that forces one to contemplate their inner Alice in Wonderland.
A glass of Brut paired perfectly with a half-dozen Massachusetts Mokimoto oysters. Though I considered a Croque Madame with wagyu pastrami, I decided on a fluffy French omelet. If one likes pralines, the Julia Child’s chocolate mousse will fit the bill. The Paris-Brest with pistachio, Chantilly, and gold flakes was a delight.
At the new Hotel St. Augustine is Chef Aaron Bludorn’s newest offering, Perseid, providing Gulf/French fusion cuisine in a modern, Mediterranean atmosphere. This is an excellent date night locale – interestingly with no wall art – perhaps so one can focus on their date, the great food, or discuss art seen at nearby museums.
The sunchoke soup with goat cheese and salsa Macha was a creamy flavor explosion. Any chef who prepares a Caesar salad should take lessons from Bludorn as his croutons are fried with garlic and thyme bringing new meaning, texture, and flavor to the oft wayward crouton. The signature crayfish sausage with sauce creole was followed by a tender, Hangar steak, served with potatoes Anna that was nearly a religious experience.
Regardless of Beyoncé’s thoughts, Dandelion Café has the best fried chicken and waffles with spicy butter in H-Town. Perhaps the free world. No small wonder Good Morning America noticed.
The Finds
The Trellis Spa at the Houstonian is Texas’ largest luxury spa at 26,500 sq. ft. Set apart from the main hotel in a grand European-style villa it’s surrounded by lush, manicured gardens. Enjoying a pampering service overlooking the grounds provided a sensation of relaxing in Sherwood Forest to the sounds of classical music. Several Zen seating areas ensured a departure in a state of bliss.
The Museum District will make cultural aficionados swoon as there are museums for every interest: Fine Arts, Contemporary, Natural Science, and Holocaust, among others. Here too is Rothko Chapel, a sanctuary of calm and stillness. At first glance, it resembles an oddly shaped, apocalyptic, brick bunker. Opened in 1971, inside it’s a modern, sacred art, and contemplation sanctuary.
Outside, amid a garden space is Barnett Newman’s “Broken Obelisk,” set in a pond representing Rothko Chapel’s commitment to human rights and social justice in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King. At night, the obelisk is lit up and looks, gravitationally speaking, to defy those very laws.
Nearby, The Menil Collection houses a significant collection of Max Ernst, Rene Magritte, Victor Brauner, Piet Mondrian and Andy Warhol. There’s also an impressive collection of tribal carved pieces from Papua New Guinea and the Torres Straits.
One of the most striking pieces in The Menil was Joe Overstreet’s dramatic visualization of “New Jemima.” Jemima adorning the pancake syrup container of my youth animatedly firing an AK-47 with the words, “Made in USA,” was disturbingly provocative. The other was John Chamberlain’s “American Tableau,” a massive, 21-foot-long, 12-foot-high colorful sculpture of twisted auto parts in chromium plated steel resembling a skyline, yet inexplicably encompassing the entirety of the human condition.
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is currently showing “Frida: The Making of an Icon” through May 17, 2026, focusing on Kahlo’s transformation into a global cultural phenomenon with over 30 original artworks, personal artifacts, and 120 works by artists she inspired. MFAH also has a lovely sculpture garden. From here, it’s a nice stroll to Rice University with its inspired Mediterranean Revival architecture.
For retail therapy, The Galleria is Texas’ largest shopping mall with over 400 stores. The outdoor River Oaks Shopping Center is several blocks long and can also scratch the shopping itch. Trendy, stand-alone boutiques like Style Concierge, EverEve, and French Cuff are sprinkled amid eateries, cafés, and other shops. In Montrose there are several vintage shops, and Sundays, the Montrose Market has vintage apparel, boots, and jewelry, open from noon to eight.
For a unique, beautifully curated specialty shop, complete with atelier and a western bar, Republic Boot Company has been in business 15 years and makes gorgeous customs cowboy boots starting at $2,200 with a one year waiting list to completion. Off the rack boots starts at $495.
No conversation about Houston would be complete without talking about religion. Part of the Bible Belt of course, it’s also the U.S. third most religious and Christian area by population. That said, nearly all religions are represented, and churches, temples, and synagogues abound throughout H-Town
While Houston is only one-percent Jewish, some arriving as early as the 1830’s, there are nevertheless over 40 synagogues today. Congregation Beth Israel, Texas’ oldest, was established in 1854.
Jewish contributions to the past and present fabric of Houston have been enormous. Early pioneer Jacob DeCordova in 1840 aided in creating the Houston Chamber of Commerce while architect Joseph Finger designed City Hall. Other pivotal contributions like the Jewish community’s response to Hurricane Harvey and the COVID pandemic are archived at Rice University’s Jewish History Archive.
On the other hand, 73-percent of Houstonians identify as Christian. Significantly, Lakewood Church, occupies the former Compaq Center seating 16,800, providing a concert-like, worship experience. Headed by Joel Osteen, it’s the nation’s largest church with an astronomical nearly 45,000 weekly attendees.
Having not grown up in any church, much less a mega church, but having listened to Osteen’s podcast for hours on end for the better part of a year during endless walks around the world, I became energized, encouraged, and more hopeful than I had since COVID wreaked havoc forever eliminating several close friends and family, with a couple of other serious tragedies thrown in since. So off to Lakewood I went for Sunday morning services.
Though not a religious person by nature or design, grasping Osteen’s modern popularity is easily understandable. In a world often hard to comprehend despite best intentions and heroic efforts, Osteen makes practical application of the Old and New Testament stories accessible, making abundantly clear in the process that hope is grief’s best music, and the choice of how to live our lives is uniquely ours.
If performing arts float your boat, H-Town’s 17-block Theater District will deliver extreme happiness with nine organizations and six performance halls providing something for everyone in all disciplines.
The Lesson Learned
Houston is remarkable for several reasons. Not the least of which is that it can be completely satisfying to those with a wide variety of interests. Whether those are cultural, creative, culinary, artistic, educational, or even religious. Once you visit H-Town, you’ll be making plans to return. As Davy Crockett once said, “You may go to hell and I will go to Texas.” Happy travels!
