Intown Magazine Is Published Bi-Monthly by SNS Media at 1113 Vine St., Suite 220, Hous- Ton, TX 77002
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intownmarch/april 2010 The Last Great American Cantina top ten breakfast joints arts & entertainment art car fanatics streets of trove gerald d. hines intown 1 2 intown intown 3 intownintownmag.com Publisher M. A. Haines LETTER I was thinking about what I should put in this column as I got ready to go out Editor with friends on Friday and as I pulled on my “new” Ralph Lauren sweater—a hand-me-down from my friend Susan, I marveled at how far downhill, in this Tess Regan recession, modern luxury has slipped. This thought stayed with me all throughout the weekend until I went to the Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup and Best Bites Com- petition at Reliant. I’ve heard the crowd was around 3,500, but I swear there must Web Design have been even more people than that mingling in the center. At a hundred dollars Jay Ford a head, it’s clear the Rodeo, and Houston, will not be thwarted by the economy. In keeping with this, we’ve included a story on the history and the characters Layout & Design behind the Rodeo, one of Houston’s best moneymakers. And speaking of mon- Irene Yang eymakers, there is also a feature on visionary architect Gerald Hines, the master- mind behind another of Houston’s most prized assets, the Galleria. Contributors On the lighter side, we also rate the best places to catch breakfast in town, from healthy to cheap to classic to five-star, it’s all here. Meredith Wierick has a Buddy Bailey piece on a neighborhood that is decidedly one of Houston’s hidden gems, and April Canik for those looking to invest, Buddy Bailey has some info that will put you on the Marene Gustin olympic level. We also take a look at the life CCA founder Walter Fondren, III, who passed away recently, and Marene Gustin wraps things up with a story on Roseann Rogers Blanco’s bar of River Oaks fame—a true Texas treasure or, as Intown publisher Meredith Wierick Mike Haines refers to it, “the last great American cantina.” Photographers Colt Cubillos Tammy Price Cover photo taken by Colt Cubillos Advertising See page 14 for more details. 713-525-8607 [email protected] Intown Magazine is published bi-monthly by SNS Media at 1113 Vine St., Suite 220, Hous- ton, TX 77002. Articles are welcomed and will be given careful consideration for pos- sible publication. Intown Magazine does not assume any responsibility for unsolicited ma- terials. Material submitted will be returned if accompanied by a stamped, self addressed en- 2010 Houston Livestock Show velope. You can also email intownmagazine@ and Rodeo International Wine gmail.com. Copyright 2010 by Intown Maga- Competition Champions - Top zine. All rights reserved. Content may not be Value Wine - Napa Landing, reprinted or otherwise reproduced without Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa written permission from Intown Magazine. Space reservation deadline for all issues is Valley, 2006 the 15 days prior to the publication date. Final closing deadline for ads that are not camera- ready is the 5th of the preceding month. 4 intown intown 5 The Last Great American Cantina Mobilizing a Masterpiece intown Reliving the Rodeo Ride intownmag.com Arts & Entertainment [email protected] Walter Fondren III Gerald D. Hines Streets of Trove The Buzz Investing 6 intown intown 7 The Buzz 5 By Roseann Rogers 1 4 6 7 2 3 8 9 Hila Grahm at Muse - Muse and local jewelry designer, Hila Graham played host to a help raise money for Texas Children’s Hospital. The bubbly bubbled and jewels sparkled as guests shopped for a good cause and previewed the acclaimed designer’s new collection. #1 Andrea Osborne and Jake and Hollie Landrith #2 Lexie Boudreaux and Nicole Fertitta #3 Tama Lundquist and Tena Lundquist-Faust #4 Christina Hoffer and Celina Stabell #5 Susan Sanders, Cindy Garza and Mary Hart The Assistance League of Houston held it’s annual “Celebrates Texas Art” show on recently at Williams Tower in Houston. The art will hang on display until February 26 for viewing by the public. Admission is free. #6 Chairperson, Martha Skow; Juror John Zarobell; ALH President, Mary Roediger #7 1st place winner, Sergio Garcia and Juror, John Zarobell with the winning sculpture, It #8 2nd place winner, Jane Honovich with her winning acrylic, Yesterdays #9 3rd place winning piece, Fear of Elevators, Strong Winds, and the Number 999 by Gail Gibbs 8 intown 1 2 3 8 4 7 6 5 The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo held its 7th annual International Wine Competition followed up by the Rodeo Uncorked! Round- up and Best Bites Competition at Reliant Center. Over 3,500 food and wine enthusiasts roamed Reliant to the sounds of the Wild River Band, sampling nibbles from more than 50 Houston restaurants and culinary institutes and libations from more vineyards than you can count. #1 Kelly & Bubba Beasley #2 Ursula Van Dam and Suzanne Hiller #3 Messina Hof’s Paul and Merril Bonnarigo #4 Bubba Beasley, Butch Robinson, Paula Robinson, Steve Roe #5 KTRHs Gardenline Randy and Yvonne Lemmon #6 Kim Padgett, Michael Briggs, Susan Dietz. Texas Legend, Tony’s Gala - More than 400 fans and friends packed the Omni Hotel for the eighth annual Galleria Chamber of Commerce Texas Legends Gala in honor of Tony Vallone. The celebrated restaurant turns 45 this April. #7 Tony Vallone’s Table #8 Donna and Tony Vallone. intown 9 Reliving the Rodeo Ride Where and how it all began in a downtown Houston hotel By Tess Regan About 80 years ago there was no Houston Livestock Show and structure built to house the 1928 Democratic National Convention, Rodeo, there was the Fat Stock Show, and if you didn’t happen also a milestone, as it was the first convention held by either party to be breeding cattle, you didn’t care. Now the near month-long in the South since the Civil War. Sam Houston Hall was located at spectacle is the world’s largest livestock exhibition, drawing an 801 Bagby. It was torn down and built up repeatedly into the cur- average of 2 million attendees a year, and generating an estimated rent Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. $344 million in business revenue for the city, mostly through res- The first star entertainer appeared in 1942, in the form of taurants and hotels. Aside from the internationally famed perform- Gene Autry, the most popular country and western musician of the ers and the livestock, there is the convergence of trail riders at time and still the only celebrity to have five stars on the Hollywood Memorial Park, the Downtown Rodeo Parade, the ConocoPhillips Walk of Fame. The calf scramble was added that same year. The Rodeo Run, the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest and tradition of the trail ride began 10 years later with the Salt Grass the Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition. Needless to Trail Ride out of Brenham. The Salt Grass Trail goes back to the say, it is a Houston institution. But what few recognize is the his- late 19th century, to the early days of cattle driving. Those in the tory behind it all and the prominent names and colorful characters beef industry found that the cattle that passed through that area that went into the making. of Texas and fed on the salt grass grew fatter and healthier than It all began as the Houston Fat Stock Show and Livestock Ex- other cattle. The inception of Salt Grass Trail Ride, just as the ro- position, formed in 1931 over lunch at the Texas State Hotel at deo itself, began over lunch. Arthur Laro (then managing editor of 720 Fannin, now the Club Quarters, by seven men who intended the Houston Post, later the president of the Chicago Tribune-New to use the event as a way to establish the city of Houston as the York Daily News Syndicate), Clark Nelson, Charles Gizendanner, cattle marketplace. It was also meant to benefit the youth of Texas Jr., Reese Lockett (clothing store owner, former mayor of Bren- by providing prize money for those associated with FFA and 4-H. ham and boss of the Salt Grass Trail), Ralph Johnson (wealthy The first show was held in 1932 at Sam Houston Hall, a wooden oil magnate, insurance executive, banker, rancher and president of 10 intown what became the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo from 1951 – 1954, to name only a few) and Archer Romero (chairman of the first Go Texan Committee) were sitting down at lunch. They were discussing Reese and Clark’s trip to the Orange Bowl in Florida. The airplane had been grounded several days due to bad weather. Reese commented that he would never make another trip where he couldn’t ride back home on his own horse. From there the talk turned to the old Salt Grass Trail, and they decided that bringing it back would be great publicity for the Fat Stock Show. So, with the company of Pat Flaherty (KPRC newsman who filmed the ride), E.H. Marks (longhorn rancher and owner of the LH7 Ranch) and LH7 Ranch foreman John Warnasch, off they went. Just 13 more people joined the ride along the way. Today the Trail Ride encom- passes 30 wagons and over 1500 riders. The Salt Grass Trail goes back to the late 19th century - Those in the beef indus- try found that the cattle that passed through that area of Texas and fed on the salt grass grew fatter and healthier than other cattle. One of the original motives behind the rodeo found broad- er fruition in 1957, with the award of the first major educational scholarship, $2,000.