Destination Guides - Southpoint.com Blog

Galveston Restaurant Focus: Sonny's Place

Known by Galveston locals for ages, Sonny's Place has reopened on the island, offering signature burgers, sandwiches, and seafood favorites. "Pappa" Puccetti opened Sonny's for business in 1944 and "Junior" Puccetti has held the reins now for almost 60 years.

Yes, it's a bar and grill and the surroundings are nothing you would call fancy by any stretch, but Sonny's Place is family friendly and pleases the pallete with popular dishes like Grandma Theresa's spaghetti, muffuletta, fried shrimp, or cheeseburgers. The walls are lined with memorabilia of Galveston's history and is the place for delicious food and to mingle with local islanders to find out what's going on.

Sonny's Place is open Tuesday thru Thursday from 11am-2pm & 5pm-9:30pm and Friday & Saturday from 11am-2pm & 5pm-11pm.
Cash or check only.

Sonny's Place, 1206 19th St., Galveston, TX 77550

Top 10 places to eat in Houston

The Houston area has a vibrant selection of restaurants to choose from. Given the large selection, it's a real test to come up with a short list of overall favorite Houston places to eat, ranging from fancy to very casual:

1. Pappas Bros. Steakhouse, 5839 Westheimer, Houston - menu - Juicy Texas steaks and seafood.

2 . Cullen's, 11500 Space Center Blvd., Houston - menu - An upscale American grille. Read our recent blog post on Cullen's.

3. Potatoe Patch, 2020 FM 1960 East, Houston - menu - Home of the throw'd roll. Keep your head up or you may miss a hot roll coming your way.

4. Ristorante Cavour, 1080 Uptown Park Blvd., Houston,- menu - Housed in the Hotel Granduca featured here at Southpoint, with a rich Italian cuisine.

5. Droubi's, 7333 Hillcroft Street, Houston - menu - Great Meditterranean deli and bakery, with interesting grocery items. Enjoyed the chicken shawarma.

6. The Bistro, Housed in the Lancaster Hotel featured here at Southpoint, dining selections with a Gulf Coast flair.

7. Goode Co. Barbeque, four locations - menu - Great Texas BQ, with famous pecan pie.

8. Quattro, 1300 Lamar Street, Houston - menu - Housed in the Four Seasons Hotel, with contemporary Italian dishes.

9. Pesce, 3029 Kirby Drive, Houston - menu - Great seafood selections from the creators of Carrabba's (now part of Outback).

10. Central Texas Style BBQ, 4110 West Broadway, Pearland - menu - 10 mouthwatering BBQ meat selections.

Of Note:
The BANK is now Voice Restaurant and Lounge housed in the Hotel ICON featured here at Southpoint.

Brennan's, 3300 Smith Street, Houston - closed and undergoing reconstruction after fire damage from Hurricane Ike. The manager and his daughter were injured in the fire. Here's how to help.
A rich flavor of New Orleans with live jazz, glad to hear it will reopen fall 2009.

Have a Houston best restaurant recommendation? Add a comment here to let others know about.

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Houston Restaurant Focus: Cullen's Upscale American Grille

To say that the new Cullen's restaurant is massive is an understatement. At just under 40,000 square feet, Cullen's near Clear Lake offers an upscale American dining experience indoors or outdoors, with bar, billiards room, and live entertainment all under one roof. The cozy decor is tastefully appointed with dark wood and casino style surroundings.

Since opening in 2008, Cullen's has continued to expand their menu selections, ranging from steaks, chicken, seafood, subs or pizza. The menu includes a large wine list that includes over 100 Texas wines. For special events, there is a circular ballroom that can accomodate up to 200 guests.

Cullen's, 11500 Space Center Blvd., Houston, TX 77059
Cullen's is open 7 days a week.
cullenshouston.com

Visiting Bertram, Texas and meeting a WWII veteran

Bertram is like many sleepy little towns in central Texas just northwest of Austin. I took a visit there recently with my Little Brother. Old buildings still line the downtown area as a reminder of the town's more prosperous past when cotton and other commodities made it the top town in the county. The movie theater has long since closed, but invites you to look inside the window anyway to see if you can catch a glimpse of the past. The railroad depot across the road on Highway 29 has been rebuilt to look as it did from days gone by.

We ate at the Hungry Moose Pizzeria, known for great pizzas and Blue Bell ice cream. Joe Ware Sr., the owner's father, came in and sat with us as he shared a few of his experiences on the USS Colorado while stationed in the Philippine Islands. I am always honored to meet a veteran, especially those that served in WWII. He told of his life on the ship, visiting the many islands, and battles against the Japanese. He slept in the mess hall, as men had to sleep wherever they could. On at least two occasions, Japanese kamikazes barely missed ramming into the ship. On another occasion, he had just gotten off duty, and the sailor who took his place where he was the moment before was hit and killed by enemy fire. Young men like him, Joe Ware and others aboard the USS Colorado are our Greatest Generation, and the reason why we can enjoy the freedoms we have today. I have plans to one day put together a book on WWII veterans' accounts, and why it's so important for us to always remember.


Take your time visiting Bertram, and meander around the antique stores, the old groceries, and also pay a visit to the Hungry Moose Pizzeria, and you may just get a chance to meet one of America's heroes.