Let me be honest: Houston was not my favorite place.

I went to Houston for a music festival, Day for Night, which took place in an abandoned USPS warehouse (I know, I’m so cool).

I ate some good food and appreciated being in a new and foreign city, but can’t say that I’m itching to move there anytime soon. Here’s my rundown of hot spots I definitely would revisit, though.

Pappa Charlie's BBQ:

Source: Houston Press

OK, so this comes at no surprise, but Houston has amazing BBQ. This place was awesome, from the brisket to the collard greens. I’ve come to judge a BBQ joint from their collard greens. It’s easy to half-ass the sides, and only a real BBQ place goes “whole-hog” (pun intended) on the entire meal. Plus, you know it's going to be good when it comes on a plastic plate. There’s also a good coffee-spot right next door that was playing Back to the Future and had a great variety of board games, so this was a win-win situation.

Waffle Bus:

Source: Houston Press 

In the music festival itself, I had the pleasure of trying this food truck. Waffle fries might be my favorite application of potatoes, so this was right up my alley. Waffle fries plus fried chicken? Even better. Sure, maybe I felt really ill after eating all of this, but I regret nothing.

The Honeymoon Cafe and Bar:

Source: thehoneymoonhtx.com

Confession: I didn’t actually make it here. But it looked really cute and they had a drink that included earl grey tea, which sounds like something I’d love. Plus, judging by the two-hour wait, it must be good, right?

That's my shortlist of places I enjoyed. Next time I'm in town, I will definitely focus more on the BBQ and work on venturing out of Downtown Houston, since I hear there's way more to see and do outside of the city center. There's just something about the blaring heat and humidity of the day mixed with the near-freezing rain at night that is keeping me from coming back. . . at least for now. 

I think next time, I'll try out Austin.