The Tailgate

The Tailgate 2025 wins over Houston with gameday food and fun

A relatively mild late fall evening set the stage for the fourth edition of The Tailgate, CultureMap’s all-out party devoted to everyone’s favorite way to get in the gameday spirit.

For the second year in a row, the (mostly) outdoor event took place at 8th Wonder in EaDo. More than 500 attendees enjoyed a stroll through the venue’s expansive backyard, which was loaded with vendors serving a wide array of food and drinks. Many attendees embraced the gameday atmosphere by sporting jerseys from their favorite college and pro teams.

VIP attendees enjoyed a special meet-and-greet with two Houston sports legends. Former Astro Ryan Pressly, a member of the club’s World Series-winning 2022 squad, and former Texan Owen Daniels, a fan favorite tight end who won a Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos, posed for pictures, chatted with fans, and signed autographs. For those who are curious, Daniels affirmed to this reporter that he’s optimistic about the Texans' chances to bounce back on Monday Night Football after losing their week one matchup against the Los Angeles Rams.

Of course, no tailgate is complete without delicious food. Attendees were spoiled for choice from so many participating restaurants:

Assorted sandwiches from Antone's Famous Po' Boys
A Bad Chx food truck serving chicken tenders and cheesy chicken sandwich sliders
Dry-aged beef kielbasa-stuffed pierogis with honey jalapeño sour cream from Bayou Butchers
BB's Tex-Orleans brought smoked boudin links, fresh from The Best Stop and served with Creole mustard and saltines, and Maw Maw's chicken and sausage gumbo
Pork and chicken sliders from Christian's Tailgate
Classic Chubbies and Sweethearts (buttermilk-fried chicken tossed in bacon jam and Chubbie sauce) from Chubbies Sliders
Motherland pizza from Coastline Pizza
Common Bond's shrimp & grits: blackened Gulf shrimp, cheese grits, Creole sauce, applewood-smoked bacon, cherry tomatoes, and herb salad
Wood-grilled chicken and steak tacos with grilled onions, pico de gallo, and a salsa bar from Little Rey
Gulf shrimp and Texas peach ceviche from Local Foods
Loro's pulled pork sliders with pineapple adobo
Phat Eatery's Malaysian chicken curry
Smash burgers from Pincho Burgers + Kebabs
Cheese and pepperoni pizza from Pizaro's Pizza
Russo's New York Pizzeria served Sicilian arancini and cup char pepperoni al vodka
Pickled green tomato crawfish salad on a roll from Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Savoy brought: lollipop lamb chops, mini lamb and mini seafood empanadas, chicken sliders, and both buffalo and barbecue wings
TASTE Kitchen + Bar also served lamb chops
Nashville Hot chicken sliders on Hawaiian rolls with Thunder Fries (seasoned waffle fries with spicy mayo and ancho chile honey butter) from The Waffle Bus
American Roadside sliders and peri peri "pulled" chicken sliders from Traveler's Cart

Fans had a number of choices for refreshments, including THC seltzers, beer from our sponsor FLIGHT by Yuengling, and other fun beverages, featuring spirits from our sponsors: Patrón Tequila, Teeling Whiskey, and St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur.

After four rounds of voting, modern Mexican restaurant Mayahuel emerged as the winner in our Top Taco Tournament. At the event, attendees selected the jerk lamb chops from TASTE Kitchen + Bar as their favorite of the night.

Local sports teams also kept fans entertained. The Texans had cheerleaders on hand to sign autographs, along with a game to complete a NFL-style passing drill. The Astros showed off the 2017 and 2022 World Series Trophies. And Houston soccer stars the Dynamo and Dash were on hand to tout their upcoming seasons.

One of the night’s unexpected surprises was how challenging it was to pilot the Yuengling drone. Much laughter could be heard as people ran over obstacles instead of avoiding them.

At the end of the night, there was only one complaint to be made for The Tailgate: It had to come to an end for another season.

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The Tailgate was sponsored by FLIGHT by Yuengling, Puttshack, Mizzen+Main, Sysco To Go, Antone's Famous Po' Boys, NXT LVL Events, Patrón Tequila, Teeling Whiskey, St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur.

Photo by Daniel Ortiz

Caroline Barton, Emily Cary, Samantha Holsomback, Braden Navarre, and Orbit.

Painted with Purpose

21 Houston doctors trade scrubs for canvases at Arts of Healing gala

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

Turns out, creativity isn’t just for the canvas. It pulses through the hands of healers, too.

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

That was the spirit of The Arts of Healing Eighth Annual Gala, where physicians traded lab coats for aprons and oils to showcase their artistic prowess at The Post Oak Hotel on November 8.

Guests — close to 500 — were greeted by a floral fantasia courtesy of Blooming Gallery. A grand circular bar anchored the room, while a curated silent auction, wine pull, and an ultra-chic Valobra raffle for a diamond necklace tempted attendees. The centerpiece? Art by 21 physician-artists being honored that evening lining the entire ballroom.

Among the physicians celebrated for their contributions both in hospitals and on canvas were Dr. Shetal Amin, Dr. Deepak Bedi, Dr. Mark Dannenbaum, Dr. Meshann Fitzgerald, Dr. Matthew Goldman, Dr. Brandon Goodwin, Dr. Mollie Gordon, Dr. Maysoon Hamed, Dr. Emily Jamea, Dr. Henry Kuerer,Dr. JP LeFave, Dr. Dean Moore, Dr. Marlene Morales, Dr. Sehar Najamus, Dr. Eric Powitzky, Dr. Terrence Wadley, Dr. Cindy Williams, Dr. Jose Miguel Yamal, Dr. Sarrah Zadeh, and Dr. Isaac Raijman, who, alongside his wife, Lori Raijman, founded the Arts of Healing Foundation.

Co-chaired by Rachel and Warren Ellsworth IV and Natalie and Mark Bordman, the evening marked a fundraising high, collecting more than $560,000 to support The Arts of Healing and its Sunshine Kids Summer Camp collaboration. The initiative brings children facing cancer from across Texas together for creativity, connection, and joy.

A special musical cameo brought the house down when honoree Dr. Jeff Ross took the stage, trumpet in hand, for a guest appearance with Dry Water Band. The dance floor stayed thumping well into the night, a tribute to the spirit of creativity as medicine.

Summoning their inner Picassos were Sarah Collins, Michele and Youval Meicler, Kristen Collins, Betsy and Jimmy Montgomery, Courtney and Zac Harmon, Kristen Cannon, Cathleen Fishel, Stephanie Wilcox, Alexis Rosales, Faith Majors, Bethany Buchanan, Susan and Steve Beatte, Larry Doty, Vanessa and Chuck Ames, Dana Barton and Robert Clay, Rita Shuma, Jennifer Wisler, Dr. Rukmini Rednam, Dr. Victoria Chang, Dr. Danielle Antosh, Katie Tsuru, and Dr. Kathy Nguyen.

fundraisers