weekend event planner

Here are the top 12 things to do in Houston this weekend

Bun B's Trill Burgers pops up this weekend in time for National Cheeseburger Day.

Photo by Emily Jaschke

Saturday is National Cheeseburger Day and many spots in the city will offer a good, hearty burger on this blessed day.

One tasty option is Bun B's Trill Burgers, which will be popping up over at 8th Wonder Brewery on Saturday afternoon, serving up some down-home smash burgers.

Meanwhile, plenty of other activities are popping off around town. Here are your best bets for the weekend.

Thursday, September 16

West Houston Assistance Ministries presents Faith, Hope, and Love Benefit Luncheon
Every year at this luncheon, West Houston Assistance Ministries presents the Penrod Volunteer Award to a deserving volunteer who has shown dedication in service of the poor through WHAM. This year, they will honor three volunteers: Loretta Haren, Alice Hastings-James and Jim Kilmoyer, volunteers who have selflessly dedicated talent and hard work in the pantry, in Care Ministry and in the resale store. This year's keynote speaker is retired, legendary Emmy-winning reporter/news anchor Bill Balleza. 11 am.

Laura Rathe Fine Art and Make-A-Wish Foundation present "Moments Through Seasons" opening reception
When 10-year-old Melinda Moreno, a pediatric cancer survivor from Bellaire, told Make-A-Wish Texas Gulf Coast and Louisiana that she wanted art lessons and the opportunity to showcase her masterpieces in a gallery, they wasted no time getting started. In researching local artists in the Houston area, they found Edgar Medina, who specializes in abstract and mixed painting on canvas. For several weeks, Edgar worked with Melinda – teaching her about technique and the use of color. On display through Saturday, September 25. 5 pm.

The Parkway at Regent Square presents Selena
The Parkway will honor The Queen of Tejano music for National Hispanic Heritage Month, with a special edition of Regent Square’s Cinematic Throwback series featuring Selena. The 1997 biographical musical drama tells the story of Selena Quintanilla’s life and rising career, starring Jennifer Lopez in the title role. A critical success and cited by many as Lopez’s breakout role, this film made Lopez the highest-paid Latina artist at the time. The first 75 guests will each receive a $50 gift card from luxury ride service Alto. 7 pm.

Friday, September 17

Penny Whistle Halfway to St. Patrick's Day Party
Friday marks the halfway point to Saint Patrick's Day, so Penny Whistle Pub is doing it big for the halfway-mark celebration. They'll be launching their new cocktail and special Irish Happy Hour menu. The Irish Happy Hour menu will be served all night. There will also be fun games to play, Irish music and lots of green Jell-O shots. (But we're quite sure they won't allow any of that creepy "Kiss Me — I'm Irish!" nonsense.) Make sure you wear your green! 5 pm.

Lawndale Art Center presents David McGee: "The Sankofa Project" opening reception
Derived from the Ghanian word “sankofa,” meaning “one must acknowledge the past in order to move forward,” this multi-year curatorial project examines the historical events leading up to our current moment of social unrest and racial reckoning. Artwork curated by Malone will be presented on Lawndale’s east-facing windows off of Main Street and accompanied by programming to inspire dialogue within our community. On display through Saturday, January 15. 6 pm.

Houston Symphony presents Andrés Conducts Beethoven’s Fifth
All this weekend, music director Andrés Orozco-Estrada returns to Houston for the first time since February 2020 in this momentous, Classical Series opener. And world-renowned pianist Yefim Bronfman, concertmaster Yoonshin Song and principal cellist Brinton Averil Smith serve up three times the virtuosity in Beethoven’s graceful and sparkling “Triple” Concerto. The Saturday performance will be available to livestream. 8 pm (2:30 pm Sunday).

Saturday, September 18

2021 Midtown Wine Fest
This is a one-day, intimate wine experience focused on showcasing international and local wines for all wine lovers alike. Come treat yourself to an afternoon of wine, music, food and fun at the beautiful Midtown Park.Over 60 amazing wines will be available to delight your pallet. There will also be delicious appetizers from local chefs, entertainment from great musicians and everyone who shows up gets a souvenir wine glass. 3 pm.

The Houston Jazz Collective presents The Houston Jazz Festival
Over at Miller Outdoor Theatre, the Houston Jazz Collective will feature Shelley Carrol and Mike Moreno as the headliners at the 2021 Houston Jazz Festival. This event will also feature the artwork of Jack Whitten. Texas tenor Carrol will be joined by Quincy Davis, Fred Sanders, and Tim Ruiz to perform John Coltrane’s magnum opus A Love Supreme in its entirety. If you feel like you're going to be in a blue-note kind of mood this weekend, you can't go wrong with this. 8 pm.

Montopolis presents The Living Coast
This gorgeous nature film/storytelling/live-music performance explores the Texas gulf coast. It features members of the Austin Symphony Orchestra and Texas’ best rock musicians touring with renowned storyteller Margaret Hoarde. The show is a love letter to the region, as well as an opportunity to discuss broader environmental challenges. Surfers and sailors, shrimpers and oilmen, poets and scientists all share their stories about this complicated region of serene beauty, vast industry, and incredible contradictions. 8 pm.

Sunday, September 19

Mid-Autumn Festival 2021
Also known in many Asian countries as the Moon Festival or Lantern Festival, this festival welcomes the autumn harvest and full moon. Celebrate the festival through live Taiwanese music and dance performances, Korean pop dances, Vietnamese storytelling and more. We/re talking arts & crafts, live storytimes, live art demonstrations, a small marketplace for vendors — the whole shebang. The festival is free, but registration is required. 11 am.

Brews & Browse Market
Bring the family out to the Ingenious Brewing Company (creators of the ever-elusive King Cake brew) and join them for beer, food, art and handmade fun. They will have a full selection of beer on tap, wine by the glass and bottled soda for sale. GastroCraft will be there serving up some delicious grub to satisfy your hunger. And, of course, there will be plenty of local vendors on hand, selling their homemade knickknacks and whatnot. Noon.

Sylvan Esso in concert
After two years spent offstage, the 2020 album Free Love opens a brand new chapter for Sylvan Esso, who have continued to spearhead a creative streak that’s surpassed milestones like half a billion streams, and brought their complex, self-confident strain of pop music to uncharted territory. And it doesn't stop there. In the past few months alone, the N.C. pair has unveiled a concert film, an experimental podcast and launched their own artist-run record label, Psychic Hotline, which will further expand their ever-growing microcosm of musical collaborators. 8 pm.

event-planner

Concert News

Jack Johnson rides into Houston on surf-themed 2026 tour

Photo by Tahnei Roy

Jack Johnson will play at Dos Equis Pavilion in Dallas on August 30, 2026.

Singer-songwriter Jack Johnson, known his for laidback surf-rock music, will embark on the SURFILMUSIC Tour in 2026, which will include a stop at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands on Friday, August 28.

The expansive 43-date North American tour, which starts on June 19 in Gilford, New Hampshire, will have three separate legs.

The three Texas dates — The Woodlands on August 28, Austin on August 29, and Dallas on August 30 — will be part of the second leg, where Johnson will be joined by Lake Street Dive.

The tour is Johnson’s first since 2022 and will celebrate a new era of music, film, and environmental connection rooted in his 20+ year career.

Johnson is touring in support of a forthcoming soundtrack, scored by Johnson and Hermanos Gutiérrez for a new documentary, SURFILMUSIC, that chronicles Johnson’s evolution from surfer to filmmaker to musician.

The film, which will be released in 2026, weaves through the making of his iconic surf films Thicker Than Water (1999) and The September Sessions (2000), which paved the way for his music career.

It celebrates the lifelong friendships and ocean-driven community that shaped Johnson’s path, and features many of the surfers who appeared in the original films, including Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, and the Malloy Brothers.

Johnson released his first album, Brushfire Fairytales, in 2001, and he has gone on to put out eight other albums, most recently Meet the Moonlight in 2022.

Fans can register for the Jack Johnson presale at jackjohnsonmusic.com, now through Sunday, November 9. The presale begins Monday, November 10, 2025 at 10 am local time and runs through general on-sale date of Friday, November 14.

Jack Johnson SURFILMUSIC 2026 Tour Dates

June 19 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
June 20 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
June 21 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
June 24 – Saratoga, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
June 26 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
June 27 – Philadelphia, PA – Highmark Mann Center
June 28 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell at Jones Beach Theater
June 30 – Toronto, ON – RBC Amphitheatre
July 1 – Canandaigua, NY – CMAC
July 3 – Burgettstown, PA – Pavilion at Star Lake
July 4 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center
July 5 – Grand Rapids, MI – Acrisure Amphitheater
July 7 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
July 8 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
July 10 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
July 11 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
July 12 – Shakopee, MN – Minnesota Quarry Amphitheater
August 18 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
August 19 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
August 21 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
August 22 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park
August 23 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
August 25 – Nashville, TN – Ascend Amphitheater
August 26 – Orange Beach, AL – The Wharf Amphitheater
August 28 – The Woodlands, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
August 29 – Austin, TX – Germania Insurance Amphitheater
August 30 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion
September 1 – Riverside, MO – MORTON Amphitheater
September 2 – Greenwood Village, CO – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
September 3 – Greenwood Village, CO – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
September 4 – West Valley City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
September 6 – Stateline, NV – Lake Tahoe Amphitheatre at Caesars Republic
September 26 – George, WA – The Gorge Amphitheatre
September 27 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater
September 28 – Troutdale, OR – McMenamins Edgefield Amphitheater
September 30–October 1 – Berkeley, CA – The Greek Theatre
October 3 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl
October 4 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl
October 6 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
October 9 – Chula Vista, CA – North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
October 10– Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
October 11– Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl

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