Downtown happenings
The Rustic breaks ground downtown — get ready for more of Pat Green at massive live music venue
Houston gets a new place to dine and catch live performances come summer 2018. The folks behind Bowl and Barrel and The General Public at Houston's CityCentre and The Rustic in Dallas and San Antonio, along with Kyle Noonan, Josh Sepkowitz, and Texas country singer Pat Green, all of FreeRange Concepts, held a press conference and groundbreaking ceremony Thursday for the new Houston location of The Rustic.
“I grew up in the Memorial area and being back in here is really exciting. I couldn’t be more proud of the product we’re bringing to Houston,” Noonan told the crowd at a press conference at the site at 1836 Polk Street near the George R. Brown Convention Center and Hilton Americas-Houston.
The massive 25,000-square-foot space will feature a restaurant serving homestyle dishes and smoked meats — from beer-can hen with jalapeno bread to slow-cooked carnitas with orange peel, while the bar will serve up classic and creative cocktails, 40 beers on tap with a Texas leaning, and an extensive roster of wines.
Plans for The Rustic also include a retractable roof, two VIP areas, an Uber Lounge for ride-hailing users, and large outdoor patio featuring a stage for music acts who will perform seven days a week. “I have played at the Astrodome. I have played at NRG during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. This city has provided me and my family, appreciatively, with a living. I’ll be singing here a lot if y’all want to come on out," said Green, who is expected to be regular headliner.
In addition to Green, you can expect to see such artists as the Josh Abbott Band, Brothers Osborne, and Salt-N-Pepa hit the stage.
“This is huge," Mayor Sylvester Turner said about the impact of the new Houston locale. "The Rustic in Dallas and San Antonio brings in around $220-$250,000 a week in revenue and that’s amazing."
Turner believes The Rustic will also attract other businesses to the area. "And (post Harvey) it demonstrates that the city of Houston is open for business," he added.