Celebrating Space City

Get in the H-Town spirit with more than 20 713 Day deals and specials

Every year, more and more Houston businesses embrace 713 Day.

Although this holiday that’s named for Houston’s original area code is still unofficial, that hasn’t stopped bars, restaurants, and other venues from celebrating July 13 by creating big, blowout events and/or food and drink specials.

Here is a thorough rundown of all the places locals can go to this weekend and be — as they say around these parts — Houston Proud.

Axelrad invites Houstonians to celebrate the day with local brews. The beer garden is offering $1 off on Houston draft beers, including beers by Saint Arnold, Great Heights, Gristworkz, and more. 2 pm.

Over at BB’s Tex-Orleans, all of the restaurant's famous po’boys will be only $7.13 each on 713 Day. Choose from favorites including BB’s signature Bedtime on the Bayou Po’boy and the Surf and Turf Po’boy. 11 am.

Bagel Shop Bakery and New York Deli will be offering a sweet deal for bagel lovers. Get a half-dozen bagels for $7.13 (rainbow and French toast bagels not included in the offer). 6 am and 7 am.

Bayou Heights Bier Garten will offer its signature cocktails for $7.13, including the Sittin' Sideways, Barrebaby, Lemme Upgrade Ya, Thee Stallion, Bayou Blossom, Regulator, and the Harvey Colada.

Both locations of pizza and cocktail bar Betelgeuse Betelgeuse will celebrate 713 Day with $7.13 pizzas (small cheese or pepperoni) as well as $7.13 select cocktails. In additions, the restaurants will have vendor markets, live music, and giveaways, including the chance to win free pizza for a year. Attendees are encouraged to RSVP on Eventbrite for $5, all of which will be donated to the Houston-based Southern Smoke Foundation.

Burger Bodega will celebrate 713 Day and National French Fry Day all weekend. They’ll have a limited-edition “713 Up” T-shirt for sale (you can get free fries with it), and Bas’s Cheesesteak Window will be around on Monday for a pop-up. 11 am.

Common Bond Coffee & Bakery will be offering one small hot drip coffee or cold brew and choice of pastry — including butter croissant, almond croissant, pistachio croissant, chocolate croissant, and more — for $7.13.

Craft Pita is collaborating with Pinkerton's Barbecue for a one-day-only special of a halal smoked chicken thigh pita made with smoked chicken thigh, spicy aioli, lettuce, tomato, and pickles. In addition, Pudgy's Cookies will offer a limited-edition banana tahini cookie. Both items will only be available while supplies last. 11 am.

Craft Pita Pinkerton's Barbecue Raffi Nasr Grant Pinkerton

Photo by Michael Ma

Raffi Nasr and Grant Pinkerton are teaming up for a smoked chicken pita.

Duck N Bao will offer 14 of its signature cocktails — including the Azalea Margarita, Love At First Sight, and Lychee Martini — all day for $7.13 (normally $12). 11 am.

The Four Seasons Hotel Houston will hold a 713 Day celebration at its lobby bar/restaurant Bayou & Bottle. Enjoy the popular Bayou Burger and a locally-brewed Equal Parts Loggerbier draft for $7.13 all day. 11 am.

Over at Hongdae 33, the restaurant's cocktails, including the Magic Potion, Orange Gummies, and Sour Apple Tequila will be available for $7.13 each (normally $11). 11:30 am.

For Saturday through Monday, the Houston Zoo will offer $7.13 admission tickets. Attendees can add the 713 Day Ballcap Bundle for $35, which includes a limited-edition hat, one admission to Mythical Realms, and one carousel ride. 9 am.

Local Foods will serve a $7.13 tomato sandwich at its four Houston-area locations in Upper Kirby, Rice Village, the Heights, and Uptown. The sandwich is made with everything bagel-seasoned heirloom tomatoes, house whipped ricotta, butter lettuce, basil, and vinaigrette on Slow Dough Texas toast.

Meow Wolf’s Radio Tave is celebrating 713 Day all weekend with live events, special cocktails, limited merch, and live DJ streams from Ice House Radio. Attendees will also receive 13 percent off admission by using promo code 713DAY when purchasing tickets online. 10 am.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston will present a screening of the filmed-in-Houston 1994 movie Reality Bites, introduced by writer/visual artist James “The Houstorian” Glassman. Before the movie, enjoy a Houston-themed cocktail and light bites. 6 pm.

Nothing Bundt Cakes will celebrate 713 Day with a special discount on two fan favorites. Customers can enjoy premium, s’mores and cinnamon roll-flavored bundtlets, for $7.13 (normally $7.99) on Monday. 9 am.

Off the Record Listening Bar will have a 713 Day Game Night, hosted by Houston city controller Chris Hollins. Pull up, play some games, and buy some records, all while celebrating the people, culture, and music of H-Town. 6:30 pm.

The Original Ninfa's Uptown and Navigation locations will have deals on some of their classics. On 713 Day, customers can order the chile con queso (normally $13) and the Original Ninfarita (normally $12) for $7.13 each. 11 am.

Pizaro's Pizza is offering a discounted classic for 713 Day during a specific timeframe. On Sunday, customers are invited to place orders of Napoletana Margherita Pizza for $7.13, between 7 pm and 7:13 pm only.

Saint Arnold Brewing Co. will have a full 713 Day, with a DJ playing H-Town hits and live performances. Limited edition shirts, glassware, and stickers will be available, in addition to 713 flash tattoos and a local market. 4 pm.

The Savoy will have a “We Rep 713 Weekend.” complete with a weekend brunch kickoff on Friday, a We Rep Houston Day Party on Saturday, and a “713 Slab Sunday.” On Monday, they’ll have $7.13 frozen cocktails and Houston-themed drinks all day. 11 am.

Star Pizza's 713 Day specials include $7.13 thin and crispy pizzas, a lunch special with a small salad, small New York-style pepperoni pizza, meatball duo appetizer, and spaghetti and meatballs. In addition, get $7.13 Shiner pitchers and $2 Karbach Hopadillo and Crawford Bock.

Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen will bring back the Houston enchilada for 713 Day, and the rest of July, for only $7.13. That's a barbacoa enchilada topped with chile de arbol salsa, fresh chopped onions, and cheese. Happy hour prices on all house drinks and bites will also be available all day long on Monday. 11 am.

At Treebeards, customers are invited to enjoy red beans and rice with sausage (normally $8; limited 4 per customer) for $7.13. 11 am.

Typhoon Texas Waterpark is joining the festivities with a one-day admission for just $7.13. People also can enjoy select food and beverage specials priced at $7.13, along with live music, face painting, and family-friendly activities. 11 am.

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Movie Review

Cookie Queens goes behind the scenes of Girl Scout Cookie season

Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions

Girl Scouts in Cookie Queens.

Few people are strong enough to resist the lure of Girl Scout cookie season every year, with the cookies’ limited availability and unique flavors a strong incentive to indulge. But only the girls and their families who have sold the cookies know the joys and stresses of trying to get people to buy them, a process that is detailed in the new documentary, Cookie Queens.

The film by documentarian Alysa Nahmias uses the stories of four different girls to represent the nationwide ritual for the Girl Scouts. They include 12-year-old Olive in Charlotte, North Carolina, a longtime top seller; 8-year-old Shannon Elizabeth in El Paso, Texas, who wants to earn the reward of going to camp; 5-year-old Ara in San Diego, California, whose goal is modest compared to most other girls; and 9-year-old Nikki in Chino, California, who has to compete with her older sisters in the cookie-selling bonanza.

The girls represent a cross-section of both ages and backgrounds, with some girls coming from wealthy families and some girls dealing with more limited means. And how much money your family has makes a big difference, as not only does someone richer have more freedom with their time and supplies, but all scouts are required to reimburse the organization for every box they take in, regardless of whether they’re able to sell it or not.

That caveat makes the journeys of the four featured girls feel wildly different. It’s clear from the start that Olive and Nikki’s families don’t give a second thought to the personal economics of selling cookies, with each girl taking in thousands of boxes at the beginning of the six-week selling season. With both Olive and Nikki rightfully confident that they’ll have no problem offloading their supply, their stories turn to how selling is personally affecting them, with each trying to reconcile the fun of doing it with the pressure they feel from their family members.

Shannon Elizabeth’s story is more harrowing, as her parents feel a strong desire to help her accomplish her lofty goal, but worry that the cost might literally be too high for the family as a whole. More than once, the parents are shown fretting that they won’t have the money to pay back what they owe should they fall significantly short in their sales. Their selling approach, which includes walking through an empty swap meet and standing outside a chain restaurant at night, only adds to their stress.

The most fun story to watch is that of Ara, whose innocence is matched by her confidence. Her parents teach her how much money they’ll owe with her small goal of 55 boxes, but right away she takes on more responsibility than expected. She’s shown making sales pitches and tallying the total number of boxes she’s sold with little-to-no help from either her mom or dad. With her high voice, glasses, and a monitor on her arm to manage her diabetes, she becomes the cute and sympathetic part of the film.

There are times that the film starts to feel more than a little manipulative, however. While many of the moments documented come off as organic, some of them seem like Nahmias is actively guiding the participants in order to get a better story. This is especially evident with Shannon Elizabeth and her family, whose early struggles turn into a miraculous feel-good story by the end, a turnaround that seems implausible at best. Everything with them might have been aboveboard, but Nahmias and her team edit the family’s journey in a way that pushes a bit too hard for emotion.

Cookie Queens, which was produced by a company owned by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, helps to give insight into the business of selling Girl Scout cookies for those who’ve only been on the purchasing end of the transaction. The dedication of each girl toward selling their allotted supply proves fun and interesting, even if the filmmaker tries to gild the lily on occasion.

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Cookie Queens is now playing in theaters,

movies girl scout cookie film

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