Dish-Houston

Football fans and foodies will be flocking to Houston Texans Grille at CityCentre on Saturday, July 27, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 p.m., for the Second Annual Tailgate Throwdown.  Chefs from some of Houston’s most acclaimed restaurants will battle it out for tailgate bragging rights just in time for football season and Houston Restaurant Weeks. 

Restaurants participating in the Tailgate Throwdown include the Houston Texans Grille, Underbelly, Churrascos, Tasting Room City Centre, Cinq at La Colombe d’Or, Fusion Taco, Luby’s Catering, Elven XI, Soma Sushi, Liberty Kitchen & Oyster Bar and Hollister.  Chefs will showcase their favorite tailgate fare to compete in the categories of Most Original, Best Tailgate Classic and Top Dish with a Kick in addition to Fan Favorite. 

All proceeds from tickets will benefit the Houston Food Bank.  Guests will pay $25 / person to make their way through the restaurant and sample offerings from some of Houston’s top chefs, with the opportunity to vote for their favorite tailgate fare.  Non-alcoholic drinks are free, and the Grille will offer special beer prices as part of their ongoing Beer of the Month program. Tickets may be purchased in advance at www.tailgatethrowdownhtg.eventbrite.com.

The judging panel includes Syd Kearney (Houston Chronicle), Marcy de Luna (Houstonia/CultureMap), Greg Morago (Houston Chronicle), Eric Sandler (Eater Houston), Cleverley Stone (Fox 26/CBS Radio 650), Katherine Whaley (KHOU), and Former Texans Offensive Lineman and confirmed foodie Chester Pitts as the wildcard celebrity judge.  

Chefs are free to interpret this great American tradition by creating whatever meat, vegetable, chip, dip, wing, chili or other game-day grub that suits their fancy.  Several Houston Texans Cheerleaders will be on hand to help the crowd root for the Fan Favorite, and one lucky attendee will win a pair of Houston Texans preseason tickets.  

Houston Texans Grille is on the second level of CityCentre across from Eddie V’s at 12848 Queensbury Lane, 77024. The restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to Midnight and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Garage, valet and street parking are all available. Menu prices range from $8-30 along with a daily lunch menu from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., with everything under $10. All major credit cards are accepted at the Grille, including Visa, American Express, MasterCard and Discover. For more information, please visit www.houstontexansgrille.com.

That's a whole lot of turkey! And it's a HUGE, wonderful gift for the Houston Food Bank thanks to Randalls! In the spirit of Thanksgiving, Randalls Food Markets donated 1,500 turkeys to the Houston Food Bank for distribution via 15 of their local hunger relief member agencies to families at risk for hunger in our community.  These turkeys are the equivalent to approximately 15,000 pounds of turkey, which is more than 28,000 protein-rich servings!!

Pictured:  Randalls Food Markets President Paul McTavish (left) and Houston Food Bank President/CEO Brian Greene. 

Volunteers from Open Door Mission and McTavish and Greene helped load the donated turkeys into agency vehicles.

DISHIES, Here's why we need to support organisations like Houston Food Bank and Star of Hope Mission...

Hunger Statistics: 

                • 865,000 unique individuals require assistance from HFB annually

• Nearly 900,000 people live in poverty in our 18-county area (15% of the population)

• One in four children in Harris County lives at or below poverty level

• 137,000 different people are fed each week with the help of Houston Food Bank.

• 47% of the hungry in Southeast Texas are children

• 94% of individuals needing food assistance are not homeless

• Nearly half of households in need have at least one working adult

CLICK HERE to help Houston Food Bank  Star of Hope Mission

On Saturday, May 14, 2011, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) will conduct its 19^th annual “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive across the country.  Here in Houston, close to 3,800 letter carriers of the NALC local chapter will collect donations throughout the area to be donated to the Houston Food Bank and its partner food pantries. 

            Patricia Claiborne, spokesperson for the Houston chapter of the NALC says, “Houston-area letter carriers want to do what we can to help out our neighbors in need.  This is a successful drive because of its simplicity.  All that Houstonians need to do is place a box or bag of nonperishable food next to their mailboxes before their letter carrier delivers mail on Saturday, May 14.  Your mail carrier will pick up the food and take it to their postal station.  It will then be transported to the Houston Food Bank, where it is distributed to area hunger relief charities.”

 Locally, letter carriers collected a record 477,000 pounds of nonperishable foods in 2010. This year’s goal is 500,000 pounds – and the public’s help is needed! All food collected locally benefits the Houston Food Bank.

Area letter carriers are requesting that Houstonians donate nonperishable foods such as canned meat, tuna, peanut butter, soup, canned fruits and vegetables, pasta, rice and beans and other essential items.  All donated items should be in non-breakable containers, please. 

The U.S. Postal Service and Campbell Soup Company are underwriting the printing and distribution of postcards and direct mail pieces for delivery to postal customers throughout the country, asking them to participate in this important food drive. 

Brown paper grocery bags donated by Kroger are being inserted into the Houston Chronicle.  Subscribers can easily fill the bag with nonperishable items and place it outside their door on collection day.  Included on the bag will be information about how to participate.

 

            Says Brian Greene, president and chief executive officer of the Houston Food Bank, “With the current economic conditions, many of our food pantry partners are seeing people coming for help who have never needed food assistance before.  And with summer just around the corner, many schoolchildren who rely on school lunches will not have access to much needed nourishment.  The timing of this food drive makes it one of our most important efforts, especially given economic conditions.”  

The NALC food drive is the largest one-day food drive in the nation, including over 10,000 cities and towns throughout all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam.

For more information on the letter carriers’ food drive, please contact the Houston chapter of the NALC at 713-641-2366.

About the Houston Food Bank

The Houston Food Bank is the largest source of food for hunger relief charities in 18 southeast Texas counties. A network of nearly 500 food pantries, soup kitchens, senior centers and other agencies, feeding a total of 137,000 people each week, provides more than 65 million pounds of food and prepared meals annually. Fresh produce, meat and nonperishables are distributed from Herzstein Center, a 73,000 square-foot warehouse, and hot meals are prepared and distributed from Keegan Center, a 15,000 square-foot industrial kitchen. In 2011, the Food Bank’s warehouse operations will be moved to a much larger facility near the East Freeway and East Loop.  Additional community services range from nutrition education to assistance with food stamp applications and hands-on job training. Red Barrels offer a convenient way for grocery shoppers to donate nonperishables for their neighbors in need. The Houston Food Bank, founded in 1982, is a certified member of Feeding America, the nation’s food bank network. The organization plans to grow to an annual distribution of 120 million pounds of food by 2018. Visit HoustonFoodBank.org for more information

Monday night saw some of Houston's culinary stars come out for a celebration if giving back thanks to CNN 650's resident foodie, Cleverley Stone. Hosted by Pappas Bros. Steak House, Houston Restaurant Week founder and chair, Cleverley Stone, announced that a record $240,000 was raised for the Houston Food Bank during the 2009 event. Eighty-four restaurants participated in the city-wide culinary event, held Aug. 10–23; 64 restaurants extended their special menus through Aug. 31 following the success of the first two weeks of the event. Participating restaurants offered three-course gourmet dinners for $35 per person and pledged five dollars from each special meal sold to the Houston Food Bank.

“My most heartfelt thank you goes out to participating restaurants, Houston Restaurant Week sponsors, the event committee, the Houston Food Bank and the 48,000 Houstonians who joined in the effort to fight hunger in our city. Without the support of our generous community, we would not have been able to raise a record-breaking $240,000 to make the 2009 event the most successful to date,” said Cleverley Stone, founder and chair of Houston Restaurant Week.

“This event provided a great opportunity for everyone in the community to support the Houston Food Bank and at the same time have a fine dining experience. We sincerely appreciate the time, effort and expertise of Cleverley Stone, and we can’t thank her enough for her leadership and generosity in organizing the event. We’re so pleased with the results and are already looking forward to another successful Houston Restaurant Week next year,” said Brian Greene, president and CEO of the Houston Food Bank.

Established in 2003, this year’s Houston Restaurant Week raised more than three times last year’s total of nearly $80,000. Approximately 48,000 Houstonians dined at 84 participating restaurants throughout the greater Houston area; last year’s event attracted 53 participating restaurants. To date, the event has raised more than $356,000 to support hunger relief in Houston.

Seen in the crowd: Cleverley Stone, Kim Padgett, Kimberley Park, Edward Sanchez, Dr. Roland Maldanado, Ashley Allen with The Health Museum, David Cordua with Cordua Restaurants, Arthur Mooradian with Del Friscos

Oh DISHIES! This is such a great deal and it's for a good cause which you know is always a good thing! Houston Restaurant Week has quickly become an annual tradition that Houstonians have embraced almost instantly!

You can enjoy specially created 3 course dinners at Houston’s favorite restaurants for just $35 and $5 from each meal will go directly to the Houston Food Bank! That's a great deal! You are participating in LOCALLY owned businesses while ALSO giving back to the community!?!?!? It's doesn't get any better than that!

For participating restaurants, menus and more information about how you can help feed the hungry in Houston Click HERE...the restaurant list is below, btw! We felt the need to promote these awesome businesses!

Therefore, we emplore you to...Eat. Drink. And be helpful at one of the locally owned restaurants listed below =)

Benjy's, Jasper's, Michelangelo's, La Trattoria,*17 Restaurant, Americas - Post Oak, Amerigo's Grille, Arcodoro, Arturo's Uptown Italiano,
Bailey's American Grille, benjy's in The Village, Bistro at The Lancaster, Brasserie MAX & Julie,
Brenner's Steakhouse, Brenner's on the Bayou, Cadillac Bar Houston, The Capital Grille,
Capriccio, Carmelo's Ristorante, Cavatore Italian Restaurant, Crapitto's Cucina Italiana,
Crave Sushi, Cullen's Upscale American Grille, Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steak House,
Denis' Seafood House, Downtown Aquarium, Feast, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar - Town & Country, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar - West Alabama, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar - Woodlands, Frank's Chop House, Gigi's Asian Bistro & Dumpling Bar, The Glass Wall, Gravitas Restaurant,
Grotto Westheimer, Grotto Woodlands, The Grove Restaurant, Indika, Jasper's, Jimmy Wilson's Seafood & Chop House, Kiran's, La Colombe d'Or Mansion, La Griglia, La Trattoria, Le Mistral Restaurant, The Lodge at Shirley Acres, Masraff's, McCormick & Schmick's "Fresh" Seafood Restaurant - Downtown, McCormick & Schmick's - Uptown, The Melting Pot Fondue Restaurant - Galleria Area Houston, The Melting Pot of Shenandoah, Mezzanotte Ristorante, Michelangelo's Ristorante Italiano, Monarch at Hotel Zaza,
Mo's ... A Place for Steaks, Mortons the Steakhouse - Downtown, NOE Restaurant (at The Omni Houston Hotel), The Oceanaire Seafood Room, Olivette at The Houstonian, Ouisie's Table, Pappas Bros. Steak House, Perry's Italian Grille, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Champions, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Clear Lake, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Katy, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Memorial City, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Sugar Land, Perry's Steakhouse & Grille - Woodlands, Pesce, Polo's Signature, Post Oak Grill - Uptown, Quattro at Four Seasons Hotel Houston, RA Sushi, RA Sushi - City Centre, Rainbow Lodge, RDG + Bar Annie, The Remington Restaurant, The Restaurant at InterContinental Hotel, Ruth's Chris Steak House, Shula's Steak House, Smith & Wollensky, SoVino Bistro & Wine Bar, Strip House, Sullivan's Steakhouse, Truluck's, Vic & Anthony's, VOICE Restaurant & Lounge at Hotel ICON, Willie G's Seafood & Steaks.