A recent phone conversation with Houstonist's doctor went like this: Doctor: Houstonist, your tests came back and everything looks great except for your cholesterol. Houstonist: Cholesterol? Really? Doctor: I'm not sure how much you know about cholesterol levels, but what we're shooting for is under 200. Yours is 250. As you can imagine, this has major ramifications, especially for someone like you. Heart disease is the number one killer of women. . . . .......

Houstonist has told you about one of our favorite lunch bargains - Vietnamese Sandwiches, and at $1.50 - $3.00 a pop, they're a definite bargain. Now, we'll give you a recipe, in case you feel all picnic-like over the weekend and want to make your own. As with most of our recipes, we encourage a little "gastronomic experimentation" as your taste allows. Like the "jalapeno/cayenne/serrano/garlic" additions - we love more - that is just us.......

Westheimer Road is a long, thriving, paved snake of potholed infrastructure. It guides you into town from the Grand Parkway through Beltway 8 and Loop 610 until it brings you all the way into a cozy, little enclave of town we lovingly refer to as The Montrose. Not really the heart of Houston, because that would probably be the Medical Center, but more like the liver or one of the kidneys of Houston as......

Those who know it love it. And those who don’t know it don’t know they love it. Kraftsmen Baking not only serves preservative-free bread, pastries, sandwiches, salads and soups, they also provide many Houston restaurants with carbo-loaded delights as well. The owners of Kraftsmen have a wonderful collaboration that unites the Houston culinary community and places priority on quality, organic and local ingredients. Located in an adorable nook on Montrose where the buildings are covered......

We at the Gothamist network would like to express our heartfelt wishes to the people of Minnesota in the days after their tragic bridge collapse. We're not trying to discount the severity of the accident by making note of it in opposition to our usual -Ist lightheartedness – we just wanted to take a moment and recognize those affected last week. After the Minneapolis bridge collapse, Bostonist did a little research and found that Massachusetts......

Tossed is a New York based fast casual rabbit food salad eatery on the west side of town. Having only been open in Houston for a couple of weeks, and despite the awkward name, there was quite a big crowd at Tossed when we tried it out for lunch recently. Located in an odd shaped shopping center at Briar Forest and Eldridge Parkway, we couldn’t help but wonder if this location would have any resemblance,......

While running along Montrose Ave this morning, discovering the sidewalks (and subsequent ankle-twisting cracks) of a neighborhood we have often admired, but of recent become a resident, we got an upclose look at many of the establishment we have visited many a time, yet on foot were allowed to explore a bit more. In the effort of being visionaries, we've decided to name this strip of road SoMo (or South Montrose, for you slow pokes.)......

Hot Town, Cool City Premieres on PBS Remember when we went on and on about the Hot Town, Cool City movie premiere? Well, in case you missed the sold out showing at the MFA, you are in luck. Set those TIVOs, HTCC will be playing tonight on PBS @ 10:00 pm. We haven't been this excited about PBS since Mr. Rogers went off the air. The movie, directed and written by Houstonian Maureen McNamara, offers......

Looking for something to do with all that spare time? We know, we don't exactly have much spare time, either. However, there are some great volunteer opportunities available for those of you who are so inclined. First, we'd like to tell you about a long term, or ongoing commitment where there is a need to fill that serves the community by assisting those less privileged. The Christian Community Service Center's Emergency Services Program needs some......

We heard. We went. We saw. We loved. Inversion Coffee House (1953 Montrose Blvd ), a relatively new installment to the Montrose art scene, is an independent, locally owned coffee joint. And we heart independent coffee joints. Located on the former site of the mind-boggling Inversion House created by artists Dan Havel and Dean Ruck, this java dwelling resides in the new home of the Art League of Houston. Art lovers and independent thinkers are......

Brown Bag Deli This is a great little show put on by the same people who do Barnaby's, and is just the place to get lunch on a Sunday when you're ready for the day but too lazy to make your own sandwich. The key to the Brown Bag experience is simplicity – walk up to the counter, pick up a signature menu-on-a-brown-paper-bag, and fill it out, checking the items you want on your......

Big news in Houston this weekend: the Blessed Virgin Mary, that holy trickster known for showing up in all sorts of unexpected places, chose to make an appearance on a pizza pan in a local elementary school kitchen. It happened on Ash Wednesday when Guadalupe Rodriguez, a cafeteria worker at Pugh Elementary, was washing the pizza pan in question and noticed a stubborn stain. "On the third rinse I started watching it, trying to discover......

There's nothing that screams romance and love like a delicious, tantalizing, six-inch, two-dollar Vietnamese sandwich. For this Valentine's day, take that special someone to your neighborhood 'Banh Mi' shop and splurge! Go ahead. Skip the toll road to save up for this special occasion. Go all out and order some spring rolls and (gasp!) a beverage with your sandwich for a whopping five bucks. For those of you new to the wonderful world of Banh......

Valentine's Day is only a few days away, and we here across the Gothamist network wanted to express would like to tell you, in the spirit of the holiday, just how much we love you, our readers. Don't let it get to your heads, though. There are plenty of things we love, you included. Just be glad you're not amongst the things we hate. SFist saw their beloved mayor enter rehab, and they loved the......

When choosing a lunch option, Houstonist usually listens to our food cravings. However, the weather has been in fine form recently so we headed to the great outdoors….err, at least as al fresco as we could get in Houston. So off to Onion Creek Coffee House we went. Located on White Oak Drive between Heights Boulevard and Studewood, this neighborhood café offers some laid-back personality to fit in with the personable Heights neighborhood. If you’re......

There's a new kid on the sub sandwich block, folks: Houstonians who worship at the altar of Jimmy John's will rejoice over the grand opening of a franchise on Houston soil today. The first Jimmy John's in Houston is located on 59 N between Weslayan and Buffalo Speedway. The chain of sandwich shops is popular with college students, likely because of their late hours, and their nearly 500 locations are mostly in college towns.......

Sound the horns ... tea is making a comeback! Just as brown is the new black and 40 is the new 30, it seems as if tea is finally becoming the hip hot beverage of choice in America. Two new tea houses have popped up in Houston this past year: The Path of Tea (2340 West Alabama) and Te House of Tea (1927 Fairview Street). Though both tea houses are distinctly different, they clearly pay......

Houstonist had to get our "burger on" after our first birthday party - had to. So, we phoned in some bacon cheeseburgers and rings for ourself and a co-worker from Pete's Fine Meats on Richmond Avenue. Normally, a "go burger" is kinda listless by the time you get to where you're going with it - this one was not super hot, but still warm enough and juicy. The onion rings were not homemade, however, they......

There's no velvet rope to hurdle or doorman to bribe to gain entry, but you may need to wait three-deep at the bar because this Houston institution appeals to folks from all walks of life who have booze on the brain. Corporate cube pilots stop in to take off the edge after work. Actors and stage folk from nearby theatres are known to unwind here after a performance. Houstonist even saw two country-strong gentlemen......

If you haven't heard yet, the Pig Stand, the venerable Washington Avenue greasy spoon, has closed after 83 years of serving up burgers, onion rings, greasy breakfasts and sloppy Pig Sandwiches (pulled pork and barbecue sauce, if you didn't know). According to the San Antonio Express-News, the problem is rooted in back taxes: The Pig Stand chain has been in financial trouble since filing for bankruptcy reorganization last year, and now the state has......

Houstonist is never in the right place at the right time. If, for example, we had been hanging out on Highway 290 early this morning (and no, we can't think of a good reason why we would have been), we could have taken advantage of a po'boy free-for-all! Sleeping is so overrated. It happened when a delivery truck from Antone's ran into another vehicle on the highway, sending sandwiches flying. According to KHOU, three men......

Finally, cooler, drier weather! Luckily, there are several areas of town that we can enjoy some good drinks and food — all in walking distance. One is near the intersection of Studewood and White Oak in the Heights. Heights Sports & Social Lounge Just east of Studewood on the north side of White Oak Street, this bar has quietly catered to sports and cigar enthusiasts for years. With its humidor and array of TV’s, we......

A recent venture to our closest Cafe Express resulted in our sampling the Bleu Cheese Bacon Burger, to which we added avocado (nice addition and enough to share with our lunch companion). Albeit we are not fond of chains, Cafe Express has never let us down for quality and quantity - it is pricey-ish, however. Falling into our "gucci burger" category, along with Pappa's Burgers, but also worth the price, is this particular specimen.......

As fall settles in and another calendar page gets turned, thoughts turn from bbq's and vacations to holidays and the realization that '06 is coming to an end. With all that going on, with change in the air, we wonder what is it that made that makes the -ists ponder? Phillyist is concerned that the war on Trans fats could affect it's beloved cheese steak sandwiches, something for which we should all be concerned.......

There are a couple reasons Original New Orleans Po-boys owner Pete Hope gives for why he is suddenly closing up shop on Main St. after decades of serving everything from sandwiches to pancakes; the $5,000 a month rent is a burden, and even more so because of the dwindling number of customers - according to Pete, the rail line put him out of business. Pam McClosky, a customer-turned-worker, said: Once the rail came, people couldn't......

Have we been remiss, or what? …Promising burger information – working diligently toward that end – only to be distracted by the holiday. We do apologize for the burger review delay. Houstonist was unpleasantly surprised by a recent trip to Jax Grill in Bellaire – shocked, actually. We got our bacon cheeseburger and rings – the ole usual. The burger was juicy but over-grilled upon arrival and cooled to downright dry meat with a......

Houstonist reminds you that we're diligently working to bring you the best information available should you love burgers — the sacrifices we make! To that end, we made our way to Pappas Burger for our usual bacon cheeseburger and onion rings (shown in the photo). Like many of our favorite joints, Pappas is a walk-up — and a crowded one. The waitstaff was extremely friendly, and management visited our table once we were seated......

If you listen to the radio, like technology and enjoy a good bubble tea once in a while, we have an easy way for you to achieve nirvana: Head over to Tropioca tomorrow night for the August Geek Gathering. Expect a good bit of tech talk, salivating over new gadgets, WiFi and food (Tropioca offers sandwiches, pizza and desserts in addition to bubble tea — which is a good thing, because Houstonist is not a......

Have you been sad to see your hopes of winning a free Hummer courtesy of EV1.net at every Astros home game dissipate? Well, not to worry, because Chick-fil-A has stepped in to save the day. The Atlanta-based chicken chain has announced their "Fowl Poles" debuting tonight at the Astros' home game versus the Cincinatti Reds. The "Fowl Poles" are decorated with the Chick-Fil-A signature cows sporting Astros hats and reminding you to "Eat Mor Fowl."......

The Oak Forest neighborhood (just north of the loop near Ella) has a lot of history. The 60 year old subdivision was once the largest subdivision in Houston. It's now known for its affordable small frame homes and retro feel, with many Mom & Pop stores that have been in business since the early days. What it lacks, compared to other old areas like the Heights, is hip, artsy places to hang out. Well,......