Where to watch the Super Bowl

Where to watch the Super Bowl in Houston: 12 best bars, restaurants, and breweries for the big game

Usually on Super Bowl Sunday, people are at home watching it — by themselves or with family and friends. But there are those who dare to venture outside their domiciles, and view the big game among equally enthused strangers, soaking up all the beer and food specials that are generally on hand.

And why not? This year's game looks poised to be at least as exciting as last year's. The Patriots, crusty veterans, squaring off against the rising star Los Angeles Rams: Brady versus Goff, Belichick versus McVay, C.J. Anderson and Todd Gurley versus the stout Pats defense. Never mind that the Rams' presence is tainted by the horrendous non-call at the end of the NFC Championship game — it isn't their fault that the refs swallowed their whistles at the exact wrong moment and ruined the Saints' shot at glory.

We'll leave the game analysis to our Gow Media colleagues at ESPN 97.5. But maybe take the under. If that turns out to be wrong, at least it won't be the worst sports prediction ever made on this website.

BCK Kitchen & Cocktail Adventures
Watch the game on the restaurant’s 100-inch projector screen while enjoying its Sunday supper menu of pork ribs and chicken wings. Get either classic Buffalo or sweet chili lime wings (six for $6, 12 for $12), half or full racks of pork ribs ($10/$20), or a half rack, six wings, and two sides (fries, mashed potatoes, asparagus, broccoli, etc) for $20.

Big City Wings
The locally-owned wing joint with seven Houston-area locations will feature 25 boneless wings for $14.99 (dine-in only). In addition, enjoy happy hour pricing all day, which means $4 frozen drinks, $2 Mexican drafts, $4 pints of craft beer, $3.25 glasses of wine, and $2.50 well drinks.

Biggio’s Sports Bar
Get a little of that Vegas sportsbook vibe at this establishment in downtown’s Marriott Marquis hotel. For $500, high rollers can reserve a VIP booth that comes with four dozen Buffalo wings, six flatbreads, two dozen sliders, chips and salsa, and water. Alcohol will be charged based on consumption.

For something a little more personal, groups of two or more may reserve seats in the 18 leather recliners that face the bar’s massive, 30-foot projector screen. Each seat costs $25 and has a minimum spend of $25. Reserve by calling 346-888-3921.

Chicago Bar and Grill
Get the full bar-and-grill experience at this Super Bowl party. We got $3 beers, margaritas and daquiris, $4 wells, 60-cent wings and a complimentary buffet during the game, which will be shown on a 120-inch, full HD jumbo screen. There will also be a live performance from the band Hard 2 Fine after the game.

Eagle Houston
Who the hell said gay bars can't have Super Bowl parties too? This particular place will have a "Big Game Crawfish Boil," where you can chow down on crawfish for $7.99 a pound. (You can also get 3 pounds for $20, with corn and potatoes for $1 each and sausage for $3.) $20 domestic beer buckets will also be served.

Guava Lamp
The best spot in town to get your karaoke on will have a Super Bowl party. (But management says they're mostly doing it to watch Adam Levine during the Maroon 5 halftime show.) They'll also have complimentary food, $3 domestics, $2 shot specials and, yes, karaoke after the game.

La Cantina by La Calle
Usually, the downtown taco spot devotes itself to soccer, combat sports, and wrestling, but it’ll be all football on Super Sunday. Reserve a seat in advance to get free pozole with any drink purchase. Drink specials include Jello shots, $3.99 Bud Light drafts, and a michelada bar.

Lucky’s Lodge
The casual EaDo spot will have Buck’s Barbeque Co on hand with free whole hog barbecue from 2 pm until it runs out, $25 beef ribs, and the rest of pitmaster Jim Buchanan’s menu. Match all the smoky goodness with drink specials such as $4 can of Love Street, $21 buckets of bottled beer, $3 pints of Bud Light, $4 Jim Beam, $6 Makers Mark, and more.

Feeling lucky? Play Super Bowl bingo, enter raffles at halftime and the end of the game for a 70-inch TV, and buy squares.

Post Lounge
The lounge will not have just a regular, ol' Super Bowl Party. Oh no -- this will be a silent Super Bowl party! Headphones will be given out with three listening options: the big game (of course!), a channel that plays trap, hip-hop & R & B and a channel that plays reggae, classic hip-hop, and Afro beats.

360 Midtown Bar
This midtown watering hole is using the game as an opportunity to have a viewing party and an afterparty. Along with playing the game on 15 big screens and a patio projector, there will also be multiple DJs, live music, model hosts, tacos and crawfish, drink specials during the game and some other special stuff.

Revelry on Richmond
The swanky sports bar and craft-beer haven will be pulling out the big guns for its party: bucket specials, beer specials and shot specials all day. People can guarantee a good spot for the game by reserving a bar seat for $25 (you get a free pint of beer) or a table, which can go between $400 and $1000.

Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Houston’s oldest craft brewery has two options for football fans. Pre-game at the brewery with the sixth-annual Super Beef Sunday (11 am to 2:30 pm). Organized by the Houston BBQ Festival, the event features legendary Texas barbecue joint Louie Mueller Barbecue plus up-and-comers Eaker Barbecue and Eddie O’s Barbecue. The $50 ticket includes samples from all three pitmasters plus beer from the Saint Arnold’s taps.

Alternatively, watch the game on a massive projector screen while sitting on the patio at the brewery’s restaurant. It will be open for regular hours (11 am to 10 pm) with chef Ryan Savoie’s creative menu and a full lineup of Saint Arnold brews.

Wings are only six for $6 at BCK.

Photo by Kirsten Gilliam

Wings are only six for $6 at BCK.

super-bowl news-you-can-eat

a fresh start

River Oaks gourmet grocer unveils cozy new name and big Dallas plans

Photo by Julie Soefer

Tres Market is now known as The Cottage Grocery.

River Oaks’ favorite gourmet grocer is switching things up with a new name and a second location. Tres Market is now known as The Cottage Grocery, but that’s only one of many changes for the five-year old market, bakery, and cafe.

The rebrand comes after founder Julie Rhyne and her business partner Jeannine Holland decided to end their partnership and go their separate ways. While the name may be new, Rhyne’s recipes are the same. The store offers about 450 items, all of which are prepared fresh on site and are available to-go in the restaurant’s refrigerated cases, along with specialty items, wine, and more. Customers have come to rely on The Cottage Grocery for heat-and-serve soups, salads, and entrees that range from roast chicken to pastas to pork tenderloin, meatloaf, and more.

Although the store has only been open for about five years, Rhyne’s history in the business goes back to 1989, when she started a catering company from her home kitchen. Things got bigger when she and her husband moved to Houston. The store took off during the early days of the pandemic, when nearby families turned to then-Tres Market for restaurant quality meals they could heat up at home. Now the store’s 30 cooks produce more than 2,000 containers of food daily, along with cookies, cakes, and other sweets for the store’s bakery.

A Family Affair

Rather than operate The Cottage Grocery on her own, Rhyne is now working with her daughter, Lauren Van Wagenen, and her son, Taylor Rhyne, as well as their spouses. The new name is an homage to the business’ location — Rhyne refers to the building adjacent to the market as ‘The Cottage’ — as well as a nod to the family’s preference for taking vacations to cozy places that offer comfort and respite without being too fancy.

“When we go on vacation, the whole family goes — my kids, their spouses, the grandkids, the whole fam-dam-ily,” she tells CultureMap. “We love going to places that are laidback and relaxed. They all have a common theme. You walk in and realize they get it. It’s how people would spend all their time if they could.”

Coming to Dallas

Van Wagenen, an accountant who worked in finance for more than a decade, will take the lead on the store’s new Dallas location that’s expected to open this summer. She’s already made her mark on the business by creating barcodes for all of the store’s prepared items. The simple change cut check out times down from five minutes to 30 seconds, she says.

Both Rhyne and Van Wagenen are excited about the upcoming Dallas location, which will be located in the Highland Park neighborhood at 4919 McKinney. They see a lot of similarities between Highland Park and the store’s original location in River Oaks.

“The site itself is kind of an island where three roads intersect,” Van Wagenen says. “You can’t miss us. When we were looking, we wanted to be in Highland Park. It’s similar to River Oaks — tree-lined streets, a lot of walkability.”

Just as Rhyne’s constant presence at the River Oaks location assures customers that an owner is keeping an eye on the business, Van Wagenen and her husband David plan to be fixtures at the Dallas store. As in Houston, everything will be prepared fresh at the store from Rhyne’s recipes.

“It’s a two-story, cottage-looking house with these huge high-rises around it,” Rhyne adds. “Everyone’s going to be looking down at us, and we’ll be out there waving cookies at them.”

Once Dallas is open and running smoothly, Rhyne and her son Taylor, an IT specialist, will begin looking for a second Houston location. More details on those plans will be revealed in the future.

Photo by Julie Soefer

Tres Market is now known as The Cottage Grocery.

news-you-can-eat openings the cottage grocery tres market