El Tiempo Cantina's new location

 

El Tiempo Cantina's  New Location


When El Tiempo 1308 Cantina announced in late October it would be closing shop at 1308 Montrose to make way for a multi-story apartment, the Laurenzo family vowed to find a spot in Montrose to move the beloved Tex-Mex restaurant known simply as “1308.”

They’ve found it.

Roland Laurenzo, patriarch of the family that operates six El Tiempo Cantina restaurants throughout Houston, confirmed to The Chronicle Sunday night that El Tiempo will move into the current home of La Casa Del Caballo at 322 Westheimer.

La Casa Del Caballo, the fine dining Mexican steakhouse that opened in February 2013 (in the space that formerly was Don Julio’s, Café Bello, and La Strada), will close on Dec. 31 and El Tiempo will take possession of the property on Jan. 1, Laurenzo said.

“We will remodel it during January, February and March, more or less,” he said. “We expect to move there on April 1 at the latest at which time 1308 will close.”

This is good news for fans of 1308 who now have both a closing date for the restaurant (get those fajitas while you can) and the promise that the operation will have a new home.

It’s bad news, however, for the ambitious steakhouse from proprietor Carlos Abedrop who created an upscale version of same-name restaurant he opened in 2002 in his hometown of Saltillo, Meixco. Casa Del Caballo was known for its Prime-grade steaks, chops and seafood grilled over mesquite, including a four-pound behemoth steak called the Tapa de Lomo.

It’s not known if Abedrop will move his steakhouse concept elsewhere.

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Chipotle rolls up new Texas locations

Chipotle rolls up new Texas locations


Getting your burrito fix is getting a little bit easier.

Chipotle signed leases for five new locations in Texas, including three in Houston.

Jason Baker of Baker Katz represented Chipotle in the leases, which range from about 2,000 square feet to 3,000 square feet.

“Chipotle has been a long-time client of Baker Katz, and we are thrilled to help drive their growth in the Houston market,” Baker said in an announcement. “Chipotle was at the forefront of the health-focused fast casual trend, and the quality food and convenience they offer will ensure they remain a leading restaurant concept both in Houston and around the country for many years to come.”

The new locations consist of: Memorial City Mall at the Katy Freeway and Gessner; U.S. 290 at Spring Cypress in Cypress;  Interstate 45 North at Louetta in Spring; South Padre Island Drive at Staples in Corpus Christi; and Interstate 45 North at Ravenwood in Huntsville.

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Landry's Christmas Feast To Go

Landry's Christmas Feast To Go

December 04, 2014 - December 22, 2014 Landry's is extending their holiday feast to go to include a grand Christmas Dinner! Spend more time with your family this year & order our Christmas Feast To Go! Each order provides enough for 4-6 guests and includes the following: Roasted Turkey & Ham Giblet Gravy Cornbread Stuffing Whipped Mashed Potatoes Sweet Potatoes Fresh Baked Rolls Cranberry Sauce Roasted Garden Vegetable Medley Pecan Pie Pumkpin Pie Feasts are $150.00, plus tax and must be picked up between 9:00-11:00am, December 24th, Christmas Eve. All orders must be placed not later than 10:00am, December 22nd. Reservations are required. 281-363-9750 or woodbanquet@ldry.com

Contact Details

Email Us For More Info

Phone: 2813639750

Visit Our Business Directory Listing: Landry's Seafood Restaurant

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Christmas Day Getaways

We all know how stressful Christmas day can be (family, friends etc) well here are a few places that you can escape to for a few drinks.

La Carafe
Address: 813 Congress St.
Phone: (713) 229-9399
Christmas Day hours: 4 p.m.-2 a.m.

 

Little Woodrow's
Address: 2306 Brazos St.
Phone: (713) 522-1041
Christmas Day hours: 7 p.m.-2 a.m.

 

West Alabama Ice House
Address: 1919 W Alabama St.
Phone: (713) 528-6874Christmas Day hours: TBD-midnight

 

Rudyard's
Address: 2010 Waugh Dr.
Phone: (713) 521-0521
Christmas Day hours: 5 p.m.-2 a.m., kitchen closes at 11 p.m.

Warren's Inn
Address: 307 Travis St.
Phone: (713) 247-9207
Christmas Day hours: 2 p.m.-2 a.m.

Continental Club
Address: 3700 Main St.
Phone: (713) 529-9899
Christmas Day hours: 7 p.m.-2 a.m.
Bonus: Beetle is playing from 7-10 p.m., followed by Grand Old Grizzly from 10 p.m.-2 a.m.

Firehouse Saloon
Address: 5930 Southwest Freeway
Phone: (713) 977-1962
Christmas Day hours: Rich O'Toole takes the stage at 9 p.m.

The Maple Leaf Pub
Address: 514 Elgin
Phone: (713) 520-6464
Christmas Day hours: 6 p.m.-2 a.m.

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Advice for Cyber Monday

Advice for Cyber Monday (Better late then never)

I despise Black Friday. I absolutely detest the weird retail culture it perpetuates and every time I see a day-after-Thanksgiving news story explaining how a pregnant mother or small child was trampled during a store opening I hate it a little bit more. I do, however, love to save cash, which makes Cyber Monday much more agreeable to me.

I’ve spent the Monday following Black Friday scrounging for sales since 2008 or so, and in that time I’ve learned a lot, so have a seat and I’ll explain everything you need to know about scoring great deals without tackling the retail mob.

It’s not all about Amazon
Listen, Amazon is amazing for Cyber Monday deals, but if you’re spending your entire day waiting for the next Lightning Deal to hit you’re going to miss out on a lot. These days a store refusing to participate in Cyber Monday is the exception rather than the rule, so any retailer you trust is fair game. That includes brick-and-mortar stores that you wouldn’t normally order from online, like Walmart, Target and Best Buy. Here are some places to be sure to check depending on what you’re looking for:

Clothing: Younkers, REI, Gander Mountain, H&M, Tommy Hilfiger
Electronics: Newegg, Crutchfield, B&H
Toys: Toys R Us, eToys, BigBadToyStore
Tools: Home Depot, Menards, Lowes
Everything else: Amazon, Overstock, Walmart, Target, Shopko, Kmart

Start early
Everyone associates Black Friday with early mornings, but then slack off when they’re trying to score some Cyber Monday deals -- don’t be that person! All-day sale prices and short-lived flash deals start going live on many sites before the sun rises, so set your alarm early and get a pot of coffee going because it’s going to be a long day.
If you roll out of bed whenever you feel like it, there’s a great chance you not only missed some temporary sale prices earlier in the day, but some of the all-day sales will probably already be completely sold out.

Know what you want ahead of time
Going into Cyber Monday with a blank slate is bad news. If you don’t have an idea of what you want before you start your digital shopping trip, you’re bound to jump for something that looks good in pictures but will thoroughly underwhelm you -- and the person you’re buying it for -- when it arrives. That $7 chrome-plated toaster isn’t a good gift, even if it’s super shiny and you’re saving a bunch of cash on it.

Your first step should be to make a list of things you’re specifically looking for: A bargain-priced Blu-ray player, a quality pair of boots, a set of power tools, or whatever else you have in mind. Hit up Amazon, search for whatever items are on your list, and learn which brands are associated with five-star reviews and which ones have consistently disappointed buyers in the past. You don’t need to pick out a specific model of TV or style of coat -- chances are that exact item won’t end up going on sale anyway -- but knowing which manufacturers to steer clear of will help you make quick decisions when it matters.

Don’t panic
I know how disappointing it is to realize you just missed a temporary sale price or flash deal, trust me. What these sites don’t often tell you is that when that short-lived bargain price comes to an end, that might not be the last time you see it.

Sales are often recycled throughout the day -- or several days, as some stores hold online sales over several days surrounding Cyber Monday -- and you’re likely to see an item go on sale multiple times. Amazon is particularly notorious for pulling this little trick, along with putting products up during an all-day sale at a moderate discount and then holding a flash sale for the same items the next day for a massive discount. In short, don’t let a missed sale get you down, because it’ll probably pop up again.

Don’t get burned by shipping
Almost all of the places I’ve listed above have either free or very low-cost shipping, but not all retailers are created equal. Don’t assume shipping costs will be reasonable without seeing the final figure. Speed is everything on Cyber Monday, but this is one instance where you need to slow down and be sure to read everything on the checkout screen before tapping that “Buy” button.

Snag your receipts
Every order you place online will come with some type of confirmation, be it an e-mail or a number that appears on your screen after you complete the purchase. I know it’s tempting to just skip right over them, but you need to keep these handy in case your purchase doesn’t arrive as intended. Getting a speedy resolution to any problems you might have with your order depends on you keeping all of the documentation in order, so jot down those confirmation numbers and print the e-mails so you don’t accidentally purge them from your safekeeping.

Price check, and check again
If you follow a basic Cyber Monday plan of attack, you should have no problem finding the lowest prices possible, but if you want to double-check there are a couple of ways to go about it.

PriceBlink: This browser add-on is a great Cyber Monday ally, and it will bring up the current prices around the web for whatever products you happen to highlight. It’s a nice reality check tool, and you can delete it after your holiday shopping spree with just a couple of clicks.

Amazon: If you’re not already shopping on Amazon, you can use either the website or the Amazon app to price check against a number of different third party sellers. If you found a price lower than Amazon is offering, you have officially won the shopping war.
Push notifications are your friend
Usually, they aren't, but in the prep for Cyber Monday, they absolutely are. There are a helping of IFTTT recipes that will make sure you stay up to date on all the upcoming Monday savings. These alerts can come from virtually any corner of the Internet you want, and you can have them sent to your e-mail, tweeted at you, or sent via SMS. If you want IFTTT recipes for online shopping in general, well that also exists.

There's always next year
Cyber Monday becomes a bigger and bigger event every year, so if you don't feel like you were on top of your game this time around, you'll definitely get another shot. If you want to feel like a deal-snagging master of the universe, compare the prices you paid during your Cyber Monday spree with the price for the same products in January, and you'll likely realize that you did better than you imagined. Chin up, Cyber Monday warrior. It's only the beginning of the holiday shopping season.

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Awesome video

a truly inspiring video

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