Houston Day One
H-town's new Metro light-rail system has transformed downtown Main
Street into a hub of popular clubs and nightlife. But during the
day, use the Metro to get to
Hermann Park for a stroll
around the pond and through the park's woody habitat, home to 30
species of birds, including the blue-billed heron and the
snakebird.
After exploring the park (and working up a sufficient appetite),
you'll be ready for some true
Texas barbecue. (Everybody knows the
Lone Star State is synonymous with mighty fine 'cue.) At
Otto's (5502 Memorial Drive, 713-864-2573), you may find
yourself meeting George Bush Sr. over brisket. After eating at
Goode Co. Barbeque (5109 Kirby Drive, 713-522-2530), you'll
want to do as the sign says and "give some serious thought to
thanking your lucky stars you're in Texas." Besides excellent grub,
this joint has an old-time jukebox and a self-serve ice chest full
of beer.
Burn off any excess calories you indulged in while chowing down at
lunch by walking through the
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
(1001 Bissonnet Street, 713-639-7300,
www.mfah.org), which houses an impressive
assortment of Impressionist and Expressionist art, including the
second-largest Jackson Pollock collection in the world. The weekly
lectures and films are also worth sticking around for. If you'd
rather do your walking outside - and if you like to see and be seen
- take a few laps around
Memorial Park (6501 Memorial Drive,
713-845-1000,
www.texashiker.com/
Memorial_Park_Houston.htm) or try hiking the park's mountain-bike
trail, great for hiking and cycling.
While it's hard to believe, after all that barbecue, sooner or
later you will be hungry again.
O'Rourke's Steak House (4611
Montrose, 713-523-4611,
www.finesteaks.com) is a Museum
District standout, with an extensive wine list, a talented pianist,
and excellent service. Also at the top of Houston dining is
Tony's (1801 Post Oak Boulevard, 713-622-6778), where the
red-walled dining room and impeccable, attentive staff let you know
you're surrounded by Houston's power crowd.
Before you head to bed, dance off all that food to some blues at
the
Big Easy Social and Pleasure Club (5731 Kirby Drive,
713-523-9999,
www.bigeasyblues.com) or get a
real taste of Texas and mosey down to Blanco's (3406 West Alabama,
713-439-0072), where you can belly up to the bar for a Shiner Bock
and catch country music in its heartland.
Houston Day Two
Start your day at the
Breakfast Klub (3711 Travis Street,
713-528-8561), where you'll find buttery grits accompanying a true
Southern-fried breakfast. Arguably "lighter" fare is the breakfast
sandwich of bacon, ham, eggs, cheese, and tomatoes on toasted
sourdough.
Shopping is a sport in Texas, and no self-respecting visitor would
go home empty-handed. The suburban
Waterway at Woodlands
Mall, 10 miles north of Houston, (1201 Lake Woodlands Drive,
281-363-3363) is a doable alternative to the small-state-size
Galleria (which could easily eat up your second day in one bite).
Plus, where else are you going to find a 1.25-mile water route that
winds by P.F. Chang's, Barnes & Noble, and the Cheesecake
Factory? But, then, you are in Texas. Another suburban mall, the
Fountains in Stafford (59 South at Kirkwood), has a
boardwalk that links restaurants like Kim Son, Texas Land &
Cattle Company Steak House, and Razzoo's, plus an outpost of
Otto's.
Also worth discovering are the
Funk Yard (7620 Katy Freeway,
713-263-1610), where recycled and found objects become art,
furniture, and jewelry; and
Blossom Street Gallery &
Sculpture Garden (4809 Blossom Street, 713-869-1921,
blossomstreetgallery.com), a must-stop for collectors looking for a
great new piece or two from regional and international artists.
Fine clothier
Norton Ditto (2425 West Alabama, 713-688-9800)
has suited well-dressed Texas men since 1908.
Upon reflection, Day Two could also be referred to as Fried Food
Day - considering the fact that, after your breakfast (assuming you
didn't opt for something lighter), you're going to indulge in some
true Southern-fried chicken.
Frenchy's (3919 Scott Street,
713-748-2233) comes creole-spiced and is accompanied by red beans
and rice and collard greens. Plus, if you're up late (till one a.m.
on weekdays and three a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays), you can
satisfy your fried-chicken craving nearly any time of night.
When a good game's on, we suggest finding a seat at
PJ's Sports
Bar (614 West Gray, 713-520-1748), a cozy sports bar that was
once a two-story house in the Montrose area. If a good seat above
the city lights is more your speed, Scott Gertner's
Skybar &
Grille (3400 Montrose Boulevard, 713-520-9688) offers an
unparalleled vantage of Houston's colorful sprawl.
Houston Day Three
Lace up your running shoes and trot out to
Rice University
(6100 Main Street) for a three-mile lap under a beautiful canopy of
trees. Or, if you've got kids in tow and have already done the
Houston Space Center, head to the 240-plus-acre
Moody
Gardens in Galveston (One Hope Boulevard, 800-582-4673,
www.moodygardens.com)
for a little bit of everything: an indoor rain forest with
bats and tree frogs, an ice rink, an IMAX theater, and Palm
Beach - a white-sand beach where you can slather on the
suntan lotion and bake in the rays throughout the summer.
If blues on Day One was inspirational and you're looking to feed
the inner musician in you (or just find it), check out
Rockin'
Robin (3619 South Shepherd, 713-529-5442,
www.rockinrobinguitars.com).
The place attracts a steady stream of big-name customers -
including
Stevie Ray Vaughan in the old days, and Cheap Trick's
Rick Nielsen, who recently picked up a sweet Les Paul guitar at
this six-string haven.
With so many good restaurants in Houston, it's difficult to narrow
your final night's choices, but
Aries (4315 Montrose
Boulevard, 713-526-4404,
www.ariesrestaurant.com) takes
top billing. Chef Scott Tycer was named by
Food & Wine
as one of the 10 best new chefs in the country. Everything is
freshly made each day - the restaurant has no freezer. And it
contracts with area farmers to grow its own produce. Tycer's bread
earned such accolades that he opened a bakery and now supplies
other Houston restaurants.
Rainbow Lodge (1 Birdsall Street,
713-861-8666), located on a once-private estate, is also a good
choice. After enjoying a cold one on the outside terrace, indulge
in a menu that includes wild game as well as
Gulf Coast seafood
specialties.
To round out your evening, you may be able to catch a Pulitzer
prize-winning play at
Alley Theatre (615 Texas Avenue,
713-228-8421,
www.alleytheatre.org), with the
venue hosting such productions as David Auburn's renowned Proof and
Suzan-Lori Parks'
Topdog/Underdog.
MIAMI DAY ONE
A
Miami Beach landmark serving a hot, happy morning brew,
Puerto
Sagua (700 Collins Avenue, 305-673-1115) is the way to get your
engine revving when you're visiting South Florida.
Afterward, give the kids a dose of culture by visiting the
Miami
Children's Museum (980 MacArthur Causeway, 305-373-5437,
www.miamichildrensmuseum.org).
It's a top-notch playground for the little ones, with dozens of
exhibits, classes, and day camps. The museum also features a film
program for budding artists.
For some adult playtime, myriad showrooms and countless shops in
the
Miami De-sign District(305-573-8116,
www.designmiami.com) showcase
antiques, ceramics, art glass, textiles, and more. At lunchtime,
feed your need for a Cuban sandwich at
Enriqueta's Sandwich
Shop (186 Northeast 29th Street, 305-573-4681), where they pile
on the ham, cheese, pork, and pickles between two pieces of bread,
dot it all with butter, and grill it to perfection.
After such a scrumptious lunch, one can't help but want to be
pampered.
RikRak Salon and Spa (1428 Brickell Avenue,
305-371-5577), a combination clothing store/salon, is literally a
one-stop shop. Do yourself right -
massage, mani and pedi, hair,
and makeup - then shop the racks of designer clothes, shoes, and
accessories. Plus, with fine wine, gourmet coffee and tea, and
yummy snacks on hand, you could easily spend all day without
desiring a change of locales.
When you do decide to move on, though,
Salero, in the
Firehouse Four building (1000 South Miami Avenue, 305-371-3473),
offers hot and cold tapas for a very cool price - between $2.50 and
$9 per plate (which explains its success with the after-work
crowd). Try Serrano ham, Spanish almonds, fried Camembert, or a
tuna empanada accompanied by a fun selection of wine flights
perfect for sipping with your small bites.
If you're up for a true SoBe evening, take your chances getting in
to one of
South Beach's hot, hot, hot clubs along
Washington
Avenue (go early for the best shot at getting in without
standing in line). But for a more leisurely finish to your first
day, have a nightcap at the stunning
Biltmore Hotel (1200
Anastasia Avenue,
Coral Gables, 305-445-1926, biltmorehotel.com),
which was modeled after the Moorish Giralda tower in Seville,
Spain. And, if you're in Miami on Sunday, the Biltmore offers
what's arguably the area's finest brunch.
MIAMI DAY TWO
Your second day in Miami is the perfect day to spend exploring
Miami's
Little Havana, which is bisected by Eighth Street,
better known by locals by its Spanish name,
Calle Ocho. Your
first stop should be Little
Havana's epicenter, Maximo Gomez Park,
where the old-timers come to play dominoes. The neighborhood is
also full of mom-and-pop shops, where you can pick up expertly
rolled cigars. Indulge in authentic Cuban fare at the renowned
Versailles (if you miss it, there's a location at the
airport for a quick Cuban sandwich before you head out). On the
last Friday of each month, you can take part in a street party
called
Viernes Culturales. On other nights,
Hoy Como
Ayer (2212 Southwest Eighth Street, 305-541-2631,
www.hoycomoayer.net)
is the place to be on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday nights.
Sip rum drinks with the locals and dance to the best Cuban
music you've ever heard.
After exploring Little Havana, retreat from the crowds and noise by
going to
Books & Books (265 Aragon Avenue, Coral Gables,
305-442-4408,
www.booksandbooks.com), a bibliophile's
oasis that takes top billing as the best bookstore in the Miami
area. And the 10-acre
Pelican Island Nature Preserve (1275
Northeast 79th Street, 305-754-9330) is a great place to get
outdoors without getting too far out of town. The island park, 400
yards offshore in
Biscayne Bay, is accessible via water taxi. Got a
buck or two and a bunch of friends or coworkers? Reserve the park
for your own private party and make use of the picnic tables,
barbecue grills, trails, and sand
volleyball court. (Actual price
is $150 for up to 50 people and $225 for more than 50 folks. Price
does not include the $2-a-head cost for boat rentals to get to the
island.)
MIAMI DAY THREE
Calling
El Palacio de los Jugos (5721 West Flagler Street,
305-264-4557; 14300 Southwest Eighth Street, 305-226-3141) a juice
bar is a vast understatement. Families and friends meet over mango
and guava shakes, while the aroma of steaming tamales fills the
air. Come hungry, stand in line, and prepare for a treat.
We'll be the first to admit that plunking down nearly $4,000 while
you're on a three-day trip might seem a little, well, extravagant,
but how often do you get to go weightless?
Zero Gravity
(Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, 888-664-7284,
www.nogravity.com) takes
groups on a two-hour flight that includes parabolic maneuvers -
meaning you experience g-forces on ascent, near weightlessness at
the crest, and full weightlessness on the descent. The all-day
affair includes lunch.
Prefer to see a different side of South Florida? Two out-of-town
adventures are highly recommended.
Biscayne National Park
(305-230-1100,
www.nps.gov/bisc) is the only living
tropical reef in the country, sprawling across 173,000 acres - and
since most of it is underwater, seeing what this park offers is
best done in or on the water. Are gators your thing? A large
variety of tour operators will take you through the
Everglades
National Park River of Grass (
www.nps.gov/ever), or you can get up
close and personal by hiking, biking, or riding the tram on the
15-mile
Shark Valley Tram Road (
www.nps.gov/ever/visit/tramroad.htm).
Back in town and still going strong? For your final evening's
dinner (assuming you've made reservations ahead of time), you'll be
dining with those in the culinary know at
Blue Door at the
Delano Hotel (1685 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, 305-674-6400),
Norman's (21 Almeria Avenue, Coral Gables, 305-446-6767), or
Prime One Twelve in the Browns Hotel (112 Ocean Drive, Miami
Beach, 305-532-8112).
CHICAGO DAY ONE
Start your day west of downtown at the
Market District
(Randolph, Fulton, and Lake streets), where vegetable markets,
meatpackers, and fishmongers cozy up to galleries and urban
residential lofts. Here, you'll also find some of the city's best
restaurants and most popular nightclubs.
If it's a cold day and you want to spend some time indoors, while
away the hours at the
Art Institute of Chicago (111 South
Michigan Avenue, 312-443-3600,
www.artic.edu), which houses 300,000 works of art. Pick your
favorites - Monet? Picasso? - and stare away.
The business-lunch crowd dominates
Italian Village (71 West
Monroe Street, 312-332-7005), which has been serving enormous
plates of pasta for almost 80 years. It's busy, but low lighting
and intimate seating create a cozy dining ambience, while an
impressive wine list has garnered
Wine Spectator's Grand
Award annually since 1984.
April through November, there's no better way to see the city's
historic and architectural highlights than aboard the
Chicago
Architecture Foundation's River Cruises (312-922-3432,
www.architecture.org),
narrated by Chicago enthusiasts who know every detail about
the city's skyscrapers. The organization also offers
terrific, informative walking tours. Any time of year is
right to visit Jackson Park's
Museum of Science and
Industry (5700 South Lake Shore Drive, 773-684-9844,
www.msichicago.org), where you
can walk through a human heart and check out another 2,000 or
so amazing exhibits in 75 halls.
At sunset, stroll along the lake before dining at the
Capital
Grille (633 North Saint Clair Street, 312-337-9400), a classic
steak house where pictures of past and present important Chicagoans
adorn the walls. Dry-aged steaks are grilled with butter and fresh
garlic and served with generous sides. After dinner, it's Chicago
blues at
Buddy Guy's Legends (754 South Wabash Avenue,
312-427-0333,
www.buddyguys.com).
CHICAGO DAY TWO
You'd better get started if you're going to search for Chicago's
best pizza, which everyone in this city has an opinion on. Here's a
short locals'-favorites list:
Nino's Pizza (4835 West 111th Street, Alsip, 708-423-9100)
Palermo's Pizza (3751 West 63rd Street, 773-585-5002)
Home Run Inn (4254 West 31st Street, 773-247-9696)
Arrenello's Pizza (325 East Glenwood Lansing Road, Glenwood,
708-758-6160)
Phil's Pizza (8932 Ridgeland Avenue, Oak Lawn, 708-599-4747)
Joe's Italian Villa (8807 South Harlem Avenue, Bridgeview,
708-599-1431)
Louisa's Restaurant (14025 Cicero Avenue, Crestwood,
708-371-0950)
For working off all that pizza sampling,
Foster Avenue Beach
(5200 North Foster Avenue, 312-742-5121) is tops for its typically
uncrowded bike and in-line skating paths, free parking, and a beach
house - not to mention an indescribable view of downtown.
Northerly Island (1400 South Lynn White Drive,
312-745-2910), a 91-acre park, is also a haven for bikers and
walkers. In the warm months, the park's outdoor Charter One concert
pavilion is one of the best concert venues in the city.
Chicago also boasts some great one-of-a-kind boutiques, perfect for
browsing or for finding little homecoming gifts. Stroll and shop
along the
Magnificent Mile (on and around North Michigan
Avenue from the Chicago River north to Oak Street), the Rodeo Drive
of the Midwest. Ladies can set their own fashion trends after a
visit to
Jade (1557 North Milwaukee Avenue, 773-342-5233),
and men will find upscale denim to suit any style at
Jake
(3740 North Southport Avenue, 773-929-5253).
Other city secrets include
Valhalla Wine Shop (3317 North
Broadway, 773-296-6800) on the lakefront. The shop looks like it
could be an art gallery, with bare walls and a huge wood
table-setting with bottles of wine taking center stage. The best
part is that many of the wines are well within reach (price and
palate) of most wine drinkers. And with more author readings than
just about any other bookstore in the city,
Barbara's
Bookstore (1218 South Halsted, 312-413-2665) is a locals'
favorite that'll make you feel like one of the literati.
For dinner,
Meritage Cafe and Wine Bar (2118 North Damen
Avenue, 773-235-6434) has an inviting atmosphere and an excellent
"new American" menu (try the huckleberry-and-goat-cheese tart).
Dine alfresco, weather permitting. Afterward, for a decadent
interlude,
Hot Chocolate (1747 North Damen Avenue,
773-489-1747) offers sensational chocolate creations and
desserts.
For some after-dinner fun,
Lucky Strike Lanes (322 East
Illinois Street, 312-245-8331) isn't your granddaddy's bowling
alley. It has the old-timey kitsch of a classic alley along with
modern touches like flat-screen TVs, pool tables, a tapas menu that
includes ancho-chile-and-citrus chicken, and a
wine bar with cozy
leather couches and fireplaces.
CHICAGO DAY THREE
Metropolis Coffee (1039 West Granville Avenue, 773-764-0400,
www.metropolis
coffee.net) pours what many consider to be the best cup o' joe in
town. Father-and-son owners Jeff and Tony Dreyfuss import their
beans - try the Redline blend for a kick in the pants. In the
evening hours, help yourself to a decaf and enjoy music and art.
Hop the Brown Line to
Lincoln Square, where
Laurie's
Planet of Sound (4639 North Lincoln Avenue, 773-271-3569) is
the place to stock up on indie CDs. The friendly staff at
Reckless Records (3161 North Broadway, 773-404-5080) will
also help you find just the right tunes.
Less than two hours outside of town,
Lake Geneva
(
www.lakegenevawi.com)
will have you in a completely different state - and state of
mind. Hike around the lake (a strenuous 20.6-mile trek) or
rent a bike at
Pedal & Cup (five minutes north of
the lake at
Springfield's Historic Depot, 1722 Highway 120
North, Springfield, Wisconsin; 262-249-1111).
During the summer, make plans to attend the
Chicago Park Outdoor
Film Festival at Butter Field in
Grant Park (100 South Lake
Shore Drive, 312-744-3315), held Tuesday nights. Thousands turn out
to lie under the stars and watch great flicks.
For your final dinner in town, you might want to splurge at
Alinea,/I> (1723 North Halsted, 312-867-0110), where chef Grant Achatz’s cuisine has been called “maximal minimalism,” and where the 24-plus-course tasting menu will set you back $175. We also love the more casual and much more affordable Osteria Via Stato (620 North State Street, 312-642-8450), where you can choose from a lineup of daily specials and antipasto (lunch is a bargain at $15) crafted under Tru executive chef Rick Tramanto’s direction.
How long has it been since you’ve had a Harvey Wallbanger? Probably too long. We like the Motel Bar’s (600 West Chicago Avenue, 312-822-2900) retro-heavy coolness, where you can order up Harvey or his pal, a really well-crafted martini. Still hungry? Snack ’til one a.m. on comfort foods like grilled cheese and tomato soup.
As we’ve already told you, all work and no play makes for a weary road warrior. So, as part of our continuing series on how to make the most of your next business trip, here are some suggestions on what to do and see in three of our favorite cities.
Author