Healthful Hot Spot!

8.22

Any Houstonian who’s driven around Montrose in recent months has probably wondered what is becoming of the McGowen Cleaners building at 1931 Fairview?


Next week, there’s finally an answer: Mom and newly minted restaurateur Kelly Barnhart opens Vibrant, blending, as she says, health with pleasure. She teamed up with consulting chef Alison Wu to develop a menu of breakfast (all-day!) and lunch dishes made with ingredients that are free of gluten, dairy, refined sugar and non-GMO products.

Expect sustainably harvested meats and pasture-raised eggs, as in the Breakfast socca — chickpea flour flatbread, arugula-hemp pesto, oven-roasted tomato and watermelon radish. Plenty of housemade pastries and yogurt are also available. Lunch brings inventive, layered salads and power bowls.

In addition to creating food that’s delicious and interesting, Barnhart — a former art curator who’s also responsible for the interior design of the light-filled, wood-wrapped space — simply wants folks to feel comfortable knowing that everything at Vibrant is truly good for you.

Here’s a bonus: The wine program adopts the same theory, with all-natural and biodynamic wines.

Food+Travel
As Escape Spa Expands in 2025, Owner Has Advice on Personal Growth: ‘Focus on Intention Setting’

CHANGE IS A good thing, and with the start of a new year, I always like to reflect on how far I've come and start fresh by setting self-care goals for the coming months. Personal growth is a passion for me, and also something I enjoy. Guiding a business through growth and change is also one of my passions, so I am very pleased to announce that Escape Spa is going to be expanding in 2025! We’re honored that we’ve built such a loyal following since opening in Cypress in July of 2022, and we’re thrilled to be in a position to grow our wellness and recovery sanctuary just outside of Houston.

Keep Reading Show less

Alejandra and Edgar Rincon. Patty and Karl Schmidt

ONE OF THE most feel-good fetes of the year, the 2025 Make-A-Wish Gala once again broke records, raising a whopping $1.8 million for the Gulf Coast and Louisiana chapter of the organization.

Keep Reading Show less
Parties

SUPPORTERS OF THE Houston organization BRASS (Baylor Research Advocates for Student Scientists) celebrated the group’s 30th anniversary at a beautiful River Oaks home. BRASS president Elsie Eckert and a former BRASS scholar Sharon Bright were among those who welcomed everyone to the event.

Keep Reading Show less
Parties