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Moody Brews: Your guide to Galveston's International Beer Festival, craft beertips included

Galveston's Moody Gardens is hosting the second annual Brewmasters InternationalBeer Festival Friday through Monday.
The festival celebrates craft beer and features more than 400 offerings,
Photo via BrewMasters International Beer Festival/Facebook

Got big Labor Day Weekend plans?

If you, like us, feel a compulsion to head toward the water, there's really no better time. Galveston's Moody Gardens is hosting the second annual Brewmasters International Beer Festival Friday through Monday.

The festival celebrates craft beer and will feature more than 400 offerings, as well as various tasting events and seminars by brewmasters and other industry experts.

Here's what not to miss:

Brewlicious in the Ballroom

The BrewLicious VIP beer and food pairing and the Friday night pub crawl might be sold out, but you can still whet your appetite for sustenance and suds at the Frances Anne Moody Ballroom on Friday night. A $55 advance ticket gets you 16 beer samples paired with food created by more than a dozen participating chefs and restaurants, a commemorative mug and a tasting card good for 24 additional samples.

Friday from 7 until 10 p.m.

Texas Brewery Tasting Tour

This Saturday event is our No. 1 must-attend. With five new breweries slated to join our existing craft breweries, $25 is a pittance for samples of the brewmasters' favorite selections from Austin Beerworks, Rahr & Sons, Ranger Creek, Real Ale and Houston's own Karbach Brewing Co., No Label Brewing Co., Saint Arnold and Southern Star. Be on special look-out for Southern Star (of Bombshell Blonde fame) brewer David Fougeron and Karbach's current brewmaster (and ex-Flying Dog CEO) Eric Warner.

Tastings are limited to 50 people, so act fast and get there early. Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. in the floral rooms.

BrewTopia Beer Garden

BrewTopia Beer Garden at the Oleander Bowl is a dependable spot to listen to live music and enjoy a rotating selection of featured beers. The beer garden is open to the public and free to enter, but guests are encouraged to donate canned goods and spare change.

Friday through Sunday till 10 p.m.; cash bar.

BrewHaHa Grand Tasting

Sure to be crowded, but worth it, this is where we get to the serious sampling. $40 at the door or $35 in advance gets you a tasting card for 24 tastings of your choice (additional tasting cards are $5 for 12 additional tastings); a souvenir sampling mug; access to more than 400 specialty, imported and craft beers; live musical entertainment and access to industry expert seminars.

Saturday and Sunday from 3 to 6:30 p.m.

South of the Border Beer Brunch

You're going to be in need of some hair of the dog. Get what you crave at the Frances Anne Moody Ballroom and enjoy a full-on breakfast cornucopia along with your two included beers. $35; for reservations call Jeannie Walsh at 409-683-4404.

Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Brewmasters in part benefits the Galveston County Food Bank. You can find a great tasting list and other info at the TexasBrews blog here.

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Farewell, ElRo

Creative Montrose pizzeria will shutter after only a year-and-a-half

Photo by Julie Soefer

ElRo Pizza & Crudo

An acclaimed Houston pizzeria will soon serve its final pies. ElRo Pizza & Crudo will close after service on December 31.

In a post on Instagram, chef-owner Terrence Gallivan thanks his staff for their dedication and his customers for their support. “We hope to see you all over the next couple weeks. Come celebrate with us,” he writes.

Open since June 2023, ElRo intrigued diners who enjoyed Gallivan’s work at pioneering Houston restaurant The Pass & Provisions. At ElRo, the chef served a modified version of the Provisions pizza recipe alongside crudos and shareable small plates such as arancini and housemade sausage. It earned four nominations in this year’s CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, including Best New Restaurant and Chef of the Year.

Sadly, Gallivan tells CultureMap that business has seen “a steady decline in business for many months.” Recently, the restaurant had tried a number of initiatives to draw in diners, such as steak night on Tuesday and fried chicken on Saturday.

The early announcement gives diners two weeks to make one more visit (or two) to the restaurant before it closes. Customers may want to time their visit for happy hour, which takes places from 3-6 pm Tuesday-Friday. It includes half-off glasses of wine, $4 draft beers, $9 select cocktails, and food specials.

Gallivan adds that he doesn’t know yet what his next move will be. Hopefully, he’s got one more comeback in him. Houston is a more fun town to dine in when Gallivan is cooking in it.

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