Thank You Wahs
 

Good information (although I have run across the "10 best Downtown" article before).

Why should I ignore Goro & Gun? It was recommended to me by a 20-something employee at another restaurant I've booked - but I am older than that employee's mother by at least 10 years :D.

My first choice for dinner night of arrival was Cafe TH - but it apparently isn't open for dinner Tuesday night. I will check out the other options you've recommended and see which are open for dinner in the middle of the week. Robyn

Hope it is not too late to reply, Robyn.
Goro & Gun is a nice place to get cocktail, but not the food, especially not the ramen.
Good that you check Cafe TH schedule. Good planning.
Hope you enjoy your visit to Houston.

Not too late (our trip isn't until late April).

I think we will perhaps try out Cafe TH for dinner on Thursday night (it's open then - we'll be having a big lunch at Underbelly and a smaller lighter dinner will be in order).

Still looking for a dinner night of arrival - a Tuesday. We'll probably be tired - a little frazzled from travel - and perhaps could use good cocktails (and some small plates) at a place like Goro & Gun instead of a big deal meal. Robyn

A quick update. We're in Houston (arrived late yesterday). The weather is (perhaps unseasonably) delightful. The Hilton is a fine - extremely large very busy convention oriented - hotel.

There doesn't seem to be much to do near the hotel at night. So we did the only logical thing. We went to an Astros game. It was great fun :) (and only the second time we've been to a major league ball game in our lives). The stadium was a short walk from the hotel. Tickets are available in many price ranges. "List price" is as little as $7 - but there are apparently legal scalpers on the street. We opted for much better (more expensive) seats. We wanted to be able to see the ball ;). Tonight there's a basketball game downtown. It's apparently the playoffs - so I assume the tickets are pretty expensive. We have a dinner reservation - so will have to skip the basketball game.

Note that a ball game doesn't seem like a good place to get an especially good cheap meal. I was particularly sad to see that the "fresh roasted peanuts" only came in supermarket type bags. OTOH - the game was a nice way to spend the evening on a beautiful spring night.

Also - in terms of downtown transportation - there are lots of pedi-cabs around the stadium near the end of the game which can take you to nearby hotels if you're too tired to walk home (I was). Robyn

P.S. We wound up using an outfit called Execucar to get us from the airport to downtown. Lincoln Town Car. Cost $70 plus tips. We were told that cabs cost about $55 - so this is a decent option IMO. The driver met us when we left security (even though our flight was late) - helped us with our bags - etc. Very convenient.

Yes, with a fairly strong cold front, much of Texas is experiencing unseasonably cool and dry weather. It won't last long :(

Welcome to Houston, robyng！You brought cool weather to Houston.:)
Thx for update. Hope you enjoy your stay here.

A Few Updates
 

Won't tell you about the stuff we didn't like or thought was so-so (not a lot) - just the stuff that's ^^^ IMO. The Magritte exhibit at the Menil. Fabulous. Shame on anyone in Houston who misses it. Especially because it's free. Lunch at the very nearby Brick & Spoon is highly recommended (loved the shrimp & grits).

http://brickandspoonrestaurant.com/locations/houston/

I bought some chocolates and macaroons at araya in the River Oaks shopping center:

http://www.arayachocolate.com/

Local - artisan - and yummy. Remember - Mother's Day is coming up.

Finally - we were tired tonight and did take out from Phoenicia. Really world class ethnic market:

http://www.phoeniciafoods.com/

Having a good time. Robyn