Culture / Entertainment

Houston Rodeo Mania Overtakes the City — Your Guide to the Barbecue Cook-Off, Parade and More

9 Best Things to Do in H-Town This Weekend

BY // 02.27.20

Houston weekends are packed full of events, but how many of them are truly worthy of your time? PaperCity’s new events calendar offers a curated look at all the best things to do in the area. But everyone can still use a guru — or two.

PaperCity Weekend Gurus Matthew Ramirez and Virginia Reynolds cull our calendar for your weekend must dos in this weekly series. This week,  it’s all highlighted by the return of the Rodeo.

Unforgettable: Celebrating the Nat King Cole Centennial

The sophisticated, smooth-as-honey voice of Nat King Cole is not just recognizable, it’s. . . unforgettable (a not-so-subtle pun, I know). His sound is legendary, and the love for the late singer spans generations. This weekend, the Houston Symphony will honor the legacy of Nat King Cole (whose 100th birthday was last March) with a performance of Unforgettable: Celebrating the Nat King Cole Centennial.

The three day concert premieres this Friday, February 28 and will feature all of the singer’s most beloved songs – so start brushing up on all your favorites (if you need brushing up, that is). Tickets start at $25.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Rodeo Bar-B-Que Contest

This. Is. It. The weekend of all weekends, the season of all seasons. Rodeo is finally here, and that can only mean one thing – the barbecue cook-off is back. The annual event (or party, depending on how you see it) is one giant excuse to eat your year’s worth of barbecue in the span of three days, so start prepping.

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Whether you dine in the public tent or are lucky enough to score tickets into a competing barbecuer’s tent, this weekend is allll about the ‘cue. And beer. And music. What better way to kick off the arrival of Rodeo season? Wander through the maze of barbecue tents, head to any one of the public venues, and enjoy live music from true Texas country artists.

The barbecue feast will begin on Thursday, February 27 and will last through Saturday, February 29. Get there early on Saturday to watch little tikes participate in the inaugural Jr. Cook-off Contest, a barbecue contest for kids between the ages of eight and 14.

Tickets to the cook-off are $20 for adults, $5 for kids, and free for children under 2.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

bbq cookoff rodeo
Get your annual intake of ‘cue this weekend at the barbecue cookoff.

Rodeo Run

OK, so you went to the cook-off on Thursday, again on Friday. and have plans to hit it up on Saturday. Your heart is happy, but your body is screaming, “Help.” If that’s you, then lace up your running shoes and head Downtown on Saturday morning to participate in the Rodeo Run, the event to right all your barbecue wrongs.

The morning race will begin at the corner of Walker and Bagby, and will wind though Downtown/Buffalo Bayou, eventually wrapping up at Eleanor Tinselly Park. Celebrate your successes at the park, where there will be food, entertainment and more. Registration is $35. Proceeds benefit the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Downtown Rodeo Parade

If you’re going to do it all, then make your way Downtown on Saturday morning (if you’re not doing the Rodeo Run) to experience the 2020 Downtown Rodeo Parade, the perfect celebration to usher in the long-awaited Rodeo.

For one day, Houston will transform into a Western town, complete with men and women on horseback, marching bands, dazzling parade floats, and more. This year, a handful of former and present Rodeo scholars will serve as grand marshals, a testament to the overarching mission of the Rodeo to serve youth and promote education.

The parade is free to attend.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Houston BrunchFest

Sunday’s are for brunch, it’s plain and simple. By the time you roll out of bed, slowly sip on your morning coffee, and ponder for an unnecessarily long period of time whether you should eat some breakfast now or wait for lunch later, it’s late, your stomach is rumbling, and you need food, stat. Thus, brunch.

This Sunday, March 1 will be a day dedicated to the all-important mashup meal, as BrunchFest comes to Houston and takes over Midtown Park. The afternoon foodie festival will be brunch at its finest, with bottomless mimosas and Bloody Mary’s, and a lineup of incredible food options from some of Houston’s hottest brunch spots, including Snooze, Weights and Measure, The Breakfast Klub, and more.

Tickets to fill up on all the goods start at $64.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Da Camera presents Vijay Iyer Sextet

MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Vijay Iyer brings his unique and complex sextet to town courtesy Da Camera this Saturday to Wortham Theater. The jazz composer has won grants and Grammys, collaborated with hip-hop groups like Dead Prez and Das Racist as well as intellectuals like the late Amiri Baraka, and graced the Tiny Desk Stage at NPR. His is the rare jazz talent to cross over into other musical worlds these days, not because of ill-advised attempts at watering down the form but because his remarkable talent speaks to listeners across genres.

Catch this still-young and thriving composer this Saturday, February 29, at Wortham Theater. -Matthew Ramirez

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Houston Outlaws Homestand at Revention Music Center

As has been breathlessly trumpeted for a few years now, e-sports is the next big thing. Millions use Twitch, a social gaming app, to stream other people playing video games. E-sports events tournaments based around League of Legends and Overwatch sell out stadiums — and are broadcast on national TV. Even universities now offer e-sports scholarships.

Houston boasts an e-sports team of its own: The Outlaws, who play in the Overwatch League. For the first time ever, the Outlaws host a homestand this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, February 29 and March 1, at Revention Music Center. The Outlaws will host other teams such as New York Excelsior, Atlanta Reign, Toronto Defiant and London Spitfire.

Any fan of e-sports, Overwatch, or cool new sports things should not miss this unique two-day event. -Matthew Ramirez

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Lucki at Warehouse Live

Lucki is a Chicago rapper who doesn’t sound like most Chicago rappers. That’s neither an endorsement or an indictment, just that the 22-year-old operates in his entirely individual lane. If you had to compare him to any other Chicago rapper, it’d be the elusive Polo G, who’s similarly confessional, soulful and talented enough to write melodies and hooks catchy enough to go off in the club.

His Days B4 III album from 2019 was a breakthrough, bridging the gap from his youthful, less memorable rap of his early years to the new soberly introspective music he’s producing currently. He’ll be at Warehouse Live this Sunday, March 1.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Tennis at White Oak Music Hall

Tennis is one of the last great mp3 blog bands going, and I commend them for their lengthy career. When they debuted at the very beginning of the preceding decade, they were of a time and place. That post-chillwave indie rock boom where everyone had stopped sounding like the Nintendo ’80s and had moved onto ’80s-indebted synth pop. A decade later Tennis have fully shed that skin and become a glossy indie-pop band in the vein of Cults or Vampire Weekend, but there’s still enough DIY spirit and tender songwriting to prevent them from falling into the Spotify-core morass.

See them Monday, March 2 at White Oak Music Hall.

Go to the full PaperCity events calendar listing.

Indie-pop concern Tennis bring their nostalgic sounds to White Oak Music Hall Monday, March 2.
Indie-pop concern Tennis bring their nostalgic sounds to White Oak Music Hall Monday, March 2.

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