Refreshing bites at Bloom & Bee; the famous French onion soup at Artisans (photo by Shane Dante)
THIS SUMMER HAS been uniquely brutal for the hospitality industry, with devastating losses from the derecho and Beryl. But a bright spot for many has been Houston Restaurant Weeks, the annual August event that gives foodies and restaurants alike a jolt of energy.
For just the third time in its 20-plus-year history, HRW has been extended to Sept. 30, giving Houstonians an extra four weeks to taste and toast at many of the city's finest and most fun establishments. The two previous times the event was extended were in 2017 after Hurricane Harvey, and in 2020 during Covid, proving that HRW is committed to helping the industry recover from financial hardships via generating increased traffic.
“We decided to continue HRW this year due to the many requests we had from participating restaurants,” said Katie Stone, President of the Cleverley Stone Foundation, which puts on the event, noting that they are proud to provide "a way for restaurants, staff and others that were impacted by financial distress after this summer to recoup."
HRW will continue through the end of September with a reduced donation amount to the Houston Food Bank. Instead of $3, $5 or $7 donations per lunch or dinner served, a flat $1 per meal will be donated.
"Diners can show how much they stand behind the hospitality industry," said Stone. "It's heartwarming seeing how our city comes together to 'Dine Out & Do Good' every August!”
Two hand-stitched pillowcases based on drawings by Houston artists
TO KICK OFF the fall arts season, Andrew Durham Gallery is hosting a unique cross-cultural collaboration between 22 Houston and Texas artists, and 28 members of the sewing co-op and non-profit, Honduras Threads. Founded in 2001, Honduras Threads seeks to provide women in Honduran rural communities with the means to lift themselves out of poverty and support their families.
The sprawling exhibit, titled Side by Side, is an inspiring example of artists coming together to benefit the lives of people they’ve never met, using the most basic tools at their disposal: pen, ink and paper. Black-and-white drawings by such Houston luminaries as David Aylsworth, Rachel Gardner, Joseph Havel and Sharon Kopriva have been reinterpreted by members of the Honduras Threads collective in color with embroidery and textiles to create a total of 88 one-of-a-kind pillowcases. This exhibition opens Sept. 7, and proceeds from the sales of the drawings and pillowcases will go to the members of the Honduras Threads.
“We are simply doing this because it just seemed like a great thing to do,” says gallery director and participating artist Bob Russell. “The artists are so excited. They have all donated 100% of the sales of their drawings for this cause.”
Honduras Threads was founded in 2001 by Dallas couple M’lou and Bill Bancroft, who served together in Bolivia in the Peace Corps. While on a mission trip to Santa Cruz Arriba, the couple learned that many women in the village worked as live-in domestics for wealthy families in Tegucigalpa, a two-hour bus ride away. For some, poverty and the threat of violence drove them to leave their children behind and attempt the perilous migration to the United States. Honduras Threads provides an opportunity for these women, who learn to embroider at an early age, to earn a living closer to home by designing and sewing pillows, table runners, placemats, and other textiles in a variety of decor styles. Since its inception, the organization has returned $700,000 to the participating women, enabling them to afford food, school supplies, and medications for their children and families.
While the drawings are definitely cool, the pillowcases are even cooler, and there are four for each drawing. The 22 framed drawings will be auctioned off on 32Auctions online Sept. 3-21; the pillowcases will go on sale on the same site on Sept. 7.