blooming in the med center

Luxurious new hotel with rooftop pool and spacey design opens in Medical Center

One of Houston’s most eagerly anticipated Inner Loop inns has soft-opened in the bustling Medical Center.

Blossom Hotel Houston, a posh hotel (7118 Bertner Ave.) promises “world-class amenities,” fine dining, and events space, per press materials.

Expect a grand opening in 2022, per the ownership group. As CultureMap previously reported, the 16-story hotel’s amenities include 267 luxury guestrooms and suites, plus more than 9,000 square feet of meeting and event spaces, including a Luna Ballroom and its floor-to-ceiling windows. The new spot also boasts a rooftop pool and lounge boasting views of downtown Houston.

Guests can expect lunar-inspired design (as a nod to Space City) with minimalist styling, cool color palettes, and lunar-inspired names alluding to Houston’s aerospace history.

Other amenities include dramatic lighting fixtures, Carrera marble, tray ceilings, beach wood flooring and luxe textures. Guestrooms come furnished with complimentary Wi-Fi, Samsung Smart TVs, Dyson hairdryers, Nespresso coffeemakers, and marble bathrooms with rain showerheads.

Also in early 2022, Blossom Hotel will open two distinct dining concepts in partnership with two celebrated Michelin-starred chefs, per a press release. A lobby lounge will serve culinary and beverage menus overseen by the chefs; in-room dining for guests offering both international and American fare will also be available.

Details on the culinary programming and the chefs behind the restaurants will soon be announced, the hotel noted in a statement.

As part of the opening festivities, the hotel has partnered with the Houston Astronomical Society to host a series of stargazing events with the first set to take place on Thursday, November 11 from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. The thematic, “Lunar Evening” event, open to guests and the public, will take place on the rooftop pool deck of the hotel with city views and a full view of the night’s sky.

Meanwhile, the hotel is offering promotions from now through December 31.

“Following a trying time for our city and state during the last 18 months, we at Blossom Hotel Houston are thrilled to debut the property to the public,” said Albert Ramirez, hotel general manager, in a statement. “We are proud to provide employment opportunities to the community and contribute to revitalizing the local economy all while offering our guests a luxurious yet comfortable stay with superb service and amenities.”

The Blossom is a luxe new additon to The Medical Center.

Photo courtesy of Blossom Hotel Houston

The Blossom is a luxe new additon to The Medical Center.

openings hotels

schools with high achievers

These 15 Houston K-8 schools rank among Texas' best for 2025

T.H. Rogers PTO/Facebook

Congratulations are in order for the Rams.

Several Houston elementary and middle schools are at the top of the class when it comes to educating and preparing the next generation for a successful life and career, according to U.S. News & World Report's just-released list of 2025 Elementary and Middle Schools Rankings.

One such school – T.H. Rogers School in Houston ISD – is the No. 8 best middle school in Texas for 2025.

U.S. News ranked over 79,000 public schools on the state and district level using data from the U.S. Department of Education. Schools were analyzed based on their students' proficiencies in mathematics and reading/language arts on state assessments, and tie-breakers were decided based on student-teacher ratios.

Texas' best middle schools for 2025
Three Houston middle schools achieved spots among the top 10 best Texas middle schools for 2025, according to U.S. News.

T.H. Rogers School has a total enrollment of 1,063 students, with 87 percent of the student population scoring "at or above the proficient level" in mathematics, and 90 percent proficiency in reading. The school has a student-teacher ratio of 17:1, with 62 full-time teachers.

T.H. Rogers School also topped the district-wide list as the No. 1 best middle school in HISD.

Houston Gateway Academy - Coral Campus also ranked among the statewide top 10, coming in at No. 9 with a total enrollment of 914 students. U.S. News says 82 percent of HGA students are proficient in math, and 80 percent are proficient in reading.

"Houston Gateway Academy - Coral Campus did better in math and better in reading in this metric compared with students across the state," U.S. News said in the school's profile. "In Texas, 51 percent of students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 41 percent tested at or above that level for math."

Right behind HGA to round out the top 10 best Texas middle schools is Houston ISD's Briarmeadow Charter School. This middle school has 600 students, 69 percent of which are proficient in math and 74 percent are proficient reading.

Briarmeadow's student-teacher ratio is 16:1, which is better than the district-wide student-teacher ratio, and it employs 38 full-time teachers.

U.S. News also ranked Briarmeadow as the second best middle school in Houston ISD.

Six additional Houston-area schools ranked among the top 25 best middle schools in Texas, including:

No. 18 – Cornerstone Academy, Spring Branch ISD
No. 19 – Mandarin Immersion Magnet School, Houston ISD
No. 21 – Smith Middle School, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD
No. 22 – Seven Lakes Junior High, Katy ISD
No. 23 – Houston Gateway Academy
No. 25 – Beckendorff Junior High, Katy ISD

The best elementary schools in Texas
Jesus A. Kawas Elementary school in Laredo was crowned the No. 1 elementary school in Texas for 2025, while two Houston-area schools made it into the top 10.

Tomball ISD's Creekside Forest Elementary in The Woodlands is the No. 7 best elementary school statewide, boasting 656 students, 42 full-time teachers, and one full-time counselor. Students at this school, which U.S. News designates is situated in a "fringe rural setting," scored 90 percent efficiency in math and 94 percent efficiency in reading.

Following one spot behind Creekside Forest in the statewide ranking is Sugar Land's Commonwealth Elementary School in Fort Bend ISD, coming in at No. 8. Commonwealth has a student population of 954 with 55 full-time teachers, and two full-time counselors. The school's student-teacher ratio is 17:1, and 90 percent of students are proficient in math, and 94 percent in reading.

U.S. News says student success at Commonwealth is significantly higher than the rest of Fort Bend ISD.

"In Fort Bend Independent School District, 59 percent of students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 47 percent tested at or above that level for math," U.S. News said in Commonwealth's profile. "Commonwealth Elementary [also] did better in math and better in reading in this metric compared with students across the state."

Other Houston-area schools that were ranked among the 25 best in Texas are:

No. 13 – Bess Campbell Elementary, Sugar Land, Lamar CISD
No. 20 – West University Elementary, Houston ISD
No. 23 – T.H. Rogers School, Houston ISD
No. 25 – Griffin Elementary, Katy ISD

"The 2025 Best Elementary and Middle Schools rankings offer parents a way to evaluate how schools are providing a high-quality education and preparing students for future success," said LaMont Jones, Ed.D., the managing editor for Education at U.S. News. "The data empowers families and communities to advocate for their children’s education. Research continues to indicate that how students perform academically at these early grade levels is a big factor in their success in high school and beyond."

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