Crawfish, Country Stars and a Cause: CrawFest 2025 Delivers

Crawfish, Country Stars and a Cause: CrawFest 2025 Delivers

Heather Almond and Zinat Ahmed

NEARLY 1,700 GUESTS headed to Cotton Ranch in Katy for Cotton Holdings’ 13th annual CrawFest— a Texas-sized evening of food and music. The event raised a record-breaking $768,000 for the Cotton Foundation, which supports families facing disaster, illness and hardship.


The real star of the evening? 6,500 pounds of crawfish, served up with all the fixings — plus Gulf Coast favorites like lobster fritters, seafood fondue, boudin balls and bread pudding with a boozy twist.

Guests got competitive during the live auction, which featured everything from Caribbean escapes to helicopter hog hunts. A chocolate lab puppy named Blue Bell stole the show — and a new home — with Cotton EVP Zinat Ahmed. He’ll be trained as an emotional support pup for visitors to Taylor’s Place, a retreat for families facing terminal illness that’s set to open this fall.

Closing out the night? A crowd-pleasing performance by country star Mark Chesnutt, who brought the house (or barn) down.

In the crowd was Pete Bell, Fady Armanious, Ellie Francisco, Whitney Kuhn Lawson, Kristen Cannon and Heather Almond.

Bailey Bell Layne and Pete Bell

Opening Performance by Bayou Roux

Houstonians traveled to CrawFest at the Cotton Ranch in Katy

Stacey Lindseth, Fady Armanious, Ally Ehrman

Balloon Details

Crawfish


Parties
Fried Chicken, Fancy Bubbles, and a Side of Glamour: Sundays at The Marigold Club Just Got Fun

Chef-owner Austin Waiter of The Marigold Club, now serving fried chicken and Champagne on Sunday nights.


IF YOUR SUNDAY nights could use a little sparkle—and a lot of fried chicken—The Marigold Club has just the thing. Starting May 25 at 5pm, the Montrose hotspot known for its playful mix of Southern charm and London polish is rolling out a new weekly tradition: Fried Chicken & Champagne Sundays.

This isn’t your average comfort food situation. We're talking a shareable fried chicken dinner for two, made with farm-raised birds from Deeply Rooted Ranch, and served alongside buttery whipped potatoes, minted peas, aged cheddar scones, and some over-the-top sauces — including a foie gras sauce supreme that’s as extra as it sounds.

Keep ReadingShow less
Food

John Bryan, Mary Jon Bryan, Billy Bob Thornton, J.P. Bryan

MORE THAN 500 guests gathered in Galveston for the Bryan Museum Gala, an evening that celebrated both the 10th anniversary of the museum and some of the most influential names in Texas oil and gas. Titled the Wildcatters Gala, the event honored Ernie H. Cockrell, Mary Ralph Lowe, Trevor Rees-Jones and the families of Eddy C. Scurlock and R.E. “Bob” Smith — all recognized for their legacy of leadership and philanthropy in the industry.

Keep ReadingShow less
Parties

Chairs Elia and Michael Gabbanelli

ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER sold-out Wine Dinner and Collector's Auction for the Houston Symphony. This year's event was chaired by Elia and Michael Gabbanelli, and raised more than $900,000 for the Symphony's education and community programs.

Keep ReadingShow less
Art + Entertainment