This Week's Hot Headlines

Houston bar's historic James Beard Award win leads this week's top stories

Julep won Outstanding Bar Program in the James Beard Awards.

Photo by Julie Soefer

Editor's note: It's time to recap the top stories on CultureMap from this past week.

1. Acclaimed Houston bar scores city's first-ever national James Beard Award. In her acceptance speech, Julep owner Alba Huerta thanked the city of Houston for “loving immigrants like me, like my family, welcoming us, and giving us the path to opening our own businesses.”

2. Ken Hoffman broadcasts the big return of one of Houston's most beloved morning radio personas. Hear the radio character's return Saturday mornings on a new Internet station called Houston Radio Platinum.

3. Coltivare owners' new Heights 'liquor lounge' chills out with vintage vibe and ice-cold cocktails. "It’s going to be a good time," co-owner Matt Tanner says. "There’s no other way to say it.”

4. Elegant fine-dining Houston destination lands on prestigious Best New Restaurants in America list. The magazine praises March for delivering a comprehensive experience that includes food, service, and decor.

5. Luxurious ranch retreat near Houston tees up lush new 18-hole championship golf course. Dubbed The Covey, the par 72 course will boast more than 7,400 yards with multiple tee boxes, Zeon Zoysia fairways and rough, and TifEagle greens.

hot-headlines

Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”