After wowing a sold-out audience at Minute Maid Park Friday night, Beyoncé and Jay Z made time for a little r&r in her hometown over the weekend before heading to New Orleans.
First stop after the concert ended was the after-party at H-Town's FunPlex Entertainment Center, where Bey and crew from the show let their hair down and laced up their skates to perform their own version of Roller Derby. The 32-year-old entertainer posted several photos from the party on her Instagram account. The rink, where she reportedly skated as a child growing up in Houston, was the location for her recent “Blow” video.
Since it was past daughter Blue Ivy Carter's bedtime, the toddler did not attend the party. But she was front-and-center on Saturday afternoon when the family unexpectedly showed up at the Menil Collection. Museum officials received a call about 10 minutes before the couple arrived and, soon afterwards, two large black SUV's pulled up at the entrance.
After three of Beyonce's girlfriends altered staff that the couple were on their way, the two singers, with Blue Ivy, entered through the back door and sat at table 31, which faces the back door.
The Carter family, with a small entourage, milled about the museum's impressive gallery of modern and contemporary art, with the toddler clutching her father's hand or perched on his shoulder throughout the visit.
"She's a real daddy's girl," one observer noted.
Though only 2-1/2-years old, the youngster seemed to enjoy the paintings more than her parents as she gazed at the modern art and kept a running conversation.
Beyonce wore a midriff-baring gray top, black tights and large gray sunglasses — "if she had come in off the street, you wouldn't have recognized her," said one observer. Jay Z was casually dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt.
After leaving the museum, the couple and child strolled down the block to visit the Rothko Chapel before departing the area.
It was not Beyoncé's first visit to the Menil. A couple of years ago, she, sister Solange Knowles, mom Tina Knowles and three young friends showed up at the back entrance on a Tuesday, when the museum is closed. A worker recognized them and Menil curator Toby Kamps and communications director Vance Muse gave them a private tour.
On Sunday, the couple and Blue Ivy, along with several friends and two bodyguards, visited Max's Wine Dive for an afternoon brunch before heading to New Orleans for a performance that night in the Superdome.
After three of Beyonce's girlfriends alerted staff that the couple were on their way, the two singers, with Blue Ivy, entered through the back door and sat at table 31, which faces the back door. They feasted on the restaurant's famous Southern fried chicken, Jake's Cakes and Wings, Smothered Chicken Fried Lobster Tails, and eggs cooked in a variety of ways.
The visit was so unobtrusive that rapper Slim Thug, who was also at the restaurant at the same time, didn't realize they were there.
CultureMap reporters Eric Sandler and Ellen Goodacre contributed to this story.
See the "Blow" video, filmed in Houston:
The Carters visited the Menil Collection on Saturday afternoon.
