Cool Stuff in Houston Even Locals Don't Know About

Houston is a giant , sprawl city , so no matter how long you ’ve lived here or how many r / houston cony holes you ’ve move down on Reddit , some local jewel just slip properly through your fingers . We ’re here to shine some light onto the cool Houston things you may have miss because you were too busy chasing Pokémon in oncoming traffic to pay attention .

A place to perfect your wakeboarding skills

RosharonBefore you completely block yourself in front of your acquaintance , gain some wakeboarding skills on Wake Nation ’s cable television service - powered wake board class ; and since more fun is always a skillful matter , there ’s a ropes track , some paintball , and an awesome trampoline and microscope slide water park on assumption as well .

A chance to relive the 10th birthday party of your dreams

DowntownICYMI , vintage colonnade dealer Joystix opens up their salesroom for barren play duringPac - ManFever Fridays on the first and last Friday of every calendar month . It ’ll cost you a very un - steep $ 15 to get gaming on over 200 classic , include pinball game machine , air hockey , and ' LXXX and ' XC hits likePaperboyandStreet Fighter . Bonus points if you show up wearing Hammer pant .

Want a tour of Downtown? All you need is headphones

Downtown , Museum DistrictYou can get a local insider ’ guide to Downtown and the Museum District by downloading free audio walk tours . In the business district tour , the legendary Sugar Hill Studios ’ Dan Workman takes you through offbeat and historical gateway , plus some local watering holes for when you ’ve had enough of that scholarship and just need a boozing .

A bar that serves absinthe

Museum DistrictYou may have heard of absinthe , the emerald green elixir that has been called “ bottled insaneness ” and the “ potable of genius , ” perhaps because it famously caused van Gogh to remember , “ Hey , peradventure I should cut my auricle off . ” But if you ’ve never judge the bitter drunkenness , you may at long last have an absinthe - induced hysteria of your own at thishidden , bohemian loungethat you ’ll never , ever estimate the name of .

A place to get barbecue AND chocolate

TomballAs Texas ’ firstbean - to - bar chocolate company , Tejas Chocolate already had an award - make headway chocolate stage business before getting into the barbecue game in 2015 . Since then , it has become an sheer Texas powerhouse . Both the chocolate and the ‘ cue are done the good old - fashioned elbow room , low and dim , with offerings ranging from chile - spiced dark burnt umber to a chocolatey mole - BBQ sauce to coat the center . You ’ll also witness awesomeness in the form of common salt - and - pepper - rubbed brisket and ribs and churros with chocolate to dunk them in , plainly .

This underrated, seriously cheap comedy spot

First WardNot only is Station Theater the best place to fascinate upcoming and veteran sketch comics , it ’s also cheap as hell ( $ 6 pre - sales agreement and $ 8 at the door ) and BYOB , making it a slap-up position to take that particular date you ’re not sure about yet .

An entire bar devoted to daiquiris

GalvestonNew - to - the - picture bar Daiquiri Time Out is spearhead by cocktail guru Brad Stringer , formerly of Johnny ’s Gold Brick , who has big plans to introduce locals to island - style flavors made from fresh juices and house - made syrups . Get Stringer ’s cocktails of choice , the ananas rum cocktail , thirst - quencher made with Plantation Pineapple , Ananas comosus , lime , sugar ; or the Zombie , made with a whole slew of rums , lemon , caustic lime , ananas , passion fruit , bitters , and turbinado .

A party boat, powered by you

Lake ConroeWe’re sure you ’ve seen some rowdy pedal party making their way through the street of Midtown . Well this is a rowdy pedal party ON A BOAT ( making it more of a paddle company if we ’re going for accuracy ) , and it ’s completely awesome . So skip biking through pot - holed streets and land your crew to take a Dryft Cycleboat out on Lake Conroe , where you’re able to totter your way of life to shoreline bar and eating place , jump out for a fast swim , or savour your own recreation right on the gravy holder .

A place to do BYOB karaoke (besides your apartment)

ChinatownHouston ’s Chinatown has many secret secrets , but this BYOB karaoke bar is definitely the most fun . Rent secret room , pop nursing bottle , and embarrass yourself to a bump off lean of over 10,000 songs , plus some in Chinese , Vietnamese , Japanese , Korean , and Thai if you require to go there , too . Heads up : A corking fee applies .

This brunch with a flight of Bloody Marys

WoodlandsBrunching with one sort of Bloody Mary is cool . brunch with four kinds is cooler . Head toFielding ’s Wood Grillto sip on a mix , let in the Fielding ’s Mary with house - brine muddle ; a bacon - infuse varietal ; one spiced with Sriracha and pickled Texas egg ; and an Italian - inspired act with organic basil vodka and mozzarella .

There’s a storytime just for grown-ups

MontroseGrown - up Storytime may not be a neat way to put yourself to log Z’s , but it is a great fashion to spend a Tuesday Nox that you ’d usually spend bout - watching old episodes ofGrey ’s Anatomyand weep yourself to catch some Z’s . Held the third Tuesday of every month at 8 pm and 10 autopsy at Rudyard ’s British Pub , BooTown ’s crack - team picks the brainsick , most screaming and/or heart and soul - warming stories beam in by you , then read them aloud to the crowd . It ’s $ 5 well drop .

These bayou-side pop-up happy hours

MontroseWhen The Dunlavy is n’t using their soft - on - the - optic glass treehouse as coffee bar or case blank space , they open up their door for pop - up happy time of day ( confirmation for announcements onsocial media ) . There is hands - down not a better place to rosé all twenty-four hours .

Pay-what-you-can at the theatre

MidtownThe Catastrophic Theatre has a suggested tag toll , but if you ca n’t afford it , they ’ll still appreciate you come out to experience the show . Its out of the ordinary productions range from the experimental and serious to the screaming and heart - felt , with a focus on creating a meaningful exchange between artists and consultation .

You can be a Lost Lake VIP

Yes , even you’re able to become a Buffalo Bayou power player . For $ 150 a year , a Lost Lake VIP rank gets you unlimited kayak and stand up paddleboard use and lets you bypass that shady 2 - hour time limit imposed on non - very important persons .

You can sip from rare and expensive spirits at cost

MontroseLeave it up to Anvil Bar & Refuge prodigy Bobby Heugel to make “ demote - even nursing bottle ” a affair . Heugelstarted the experimentabout two years ago , and the idea is alreadygaining momentumaround the country . Here ’s how it operate : The legal community will source rare and vintage feeding bottle , then price it out ounce by ounce for your drinking pleasure . Why ? Because Bobby & Anvil are coolheaded like that .

Two words: barbecue pastrami

GalleriaIn a move that showcases Mutt City dining culture at its finest , Roegels Barbecue turns up Thursdays with a Judaic - deli - meets - Texas - barbeque take on brisket and ribs that will remind you just why you love Houston .

Fielding’s Wood Grill