Houston Lifestyles and Homes magazine May 2009: Houston Events, Homes, Info, News, Health and Well-Being, Decorating, Home Improvement

Midway Companies Announces Addition of Bistro Alex And Café Rosé

Midway Companies, a Houston-based privately owned international real estate development and investment firm, announced that Bistro Alex and Caf é Rosé, two exciting new restaurant concepts from noted restaurateur Alex Brennan-Martin, will join the company ’s CityCentre project in Houston.

Bistro Alex, a contemporary yet traditional restaurant, will feature creative dishes with wine pairings, an array of roasted selections, classic dishes and inspired salads. The design of the 4,221-square-foot restaurant is inspired by nature and is centered on an open kitchen.

Café Rosé, a 35-seat, 2,000-square-foot café, will feature coffee and a light breakfast menu, as well as lunch options including innovative salads and sandwiches, premium domestic cheeses and a large selection of French and American wines.

Bistro Alex and Café Rosé will be located in Hotel Sorella, an inspired hospitality concept from Houston-based Valencia Group, and will open in July 2009.

CityCentre is a $500 million development and covers 1.8 million square feet. The new center reflects the next generation of mixed-use development and will be a distinct blend of elegant retail shops, fine dining, state-of-the art offices, distinct metropolitan homes and world-class hospitality, all in one 37-acre pedestrian-oriented environment. CityCentre is located between I-10W and the Sam Houston Tollway/Beltway 8.

Studio Movie Grill Now Open

at CityCentre

Studio Movie Grill, a first-run, dine-in movie theater, is now open in CityCentre with its first 100 percent digital location that serves a diverse menu from its in-house restaurant that will entertain guests in the 40,000-square-foot venue. The eight-screen theater features in-theater dining, a state-of-the-art, Dolby Digital sound system and an award-winning menu with a full-service bar.

“Studio Movie Grill brings an exciting and original entertainment aspect to CityCentre, ” said Brad Freels, chairman and CEO of Midway Companies. “We are pleased to add this extremely successful concept to the project and look forward to the unique entertainment experience it offers the community. ”

Dr. Denton Cooley Joins The Health Museum Board as Vice Chair

The board of directors of The John P. McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science, also known as The Health Museum, named Dr. Denton Cooley as vice chair of the board and the executive committee for the museum.

As vice chair, Dr. Cooley will play an integral role in leadership of the museum during an important period of planning and growth of its exhibits and programming.

The role of the board of directors is to guide, support and advocate for the mission and vision of The Health Museum. The board is currently made up of a total of 26 members and includes Houston area leaders in business, research, technology, medicine and community service.

Margaret Guerriero, chairman of the board, said, “The appointment of Dr. Cooley to our board adds a new and promising dimension to the future of the museum. ”

Houston Artist Transforms I-45 North into Public Art

During the month of April, Houston artist C. Ellen Hart converted an I-45 North billboard into a dramatic display of one of her series of Downtown Reflection paintings. The billboard was located on the southbound side of I-45North at Calvalcade, between 610 Loop and I-10.

Downtown Reflections (Evening Light) is an oil painting featuring a portion of Hart’s ongoing collection of more than 600 digital images of small everyday reflections in glass and water found in the downtown Houston area.

A native Houstonian, Hart celebrates Houston’s spectacular glass skyline and long history in the Bayou City by making oil paintings in which these small reflections are made large. By magnifying the scale of such small reflected moments to billboard size, Hart hoped to inspire Houstonians and visitors to notice the everyday beauty of downtown Houston.

Hart is a recipient of an Individual Artist Grant Award, which is funded by the city of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance. For more information, call 713-861-2405.

Houston Livestock Show And Rodeo

Breaks All-time Attendance Record

Despite nationwide economic woes, the 77th annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo broke an attendance record with more than 1.8 million people; paid out more than $1.4 million in Rodeo prize money to 258 contestants; and rang the closing bell for the New York Stock Exchange with a live bull ride, ending the market ’s best week since November of last year.

The RodeoHouston performance on March 15, celebrating Go Tejano Day and featuring rodeo action and a concert by Ramon Ayala and Alacranes Musical, broke the show ’s all-time rodeo attendance record with a paid attendance of 74,147. This broke the previous record of 73,459, set in 2008 at RodeoHouston with a performance by Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus.

The 2009 Go Tejano Day paid Rodeo attendance record also broke the Go Tejano Day paid attendance record set March 16, 2008, in Reliant Stadium. A record 217,640 people visited the World ’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest to help kick off the show, topping last year’s attendance record of 209,313.

This year’s livestock competitions and horse shows boasted 26,285 entries. Each of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo junior auctions brought in $1.1 million or more. Three of the junior auction Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion records were broken.

And finally, more than 21,000 show volunteers donated their time and talent to help produce the world ’s largest livestock show, richest regular-season PRCA rodeo and the Southwest's premier family entertainment event.

Former President Bush Visits New

Gallery Furniture

Former President George H.W. Bush paid a surprise visit to the new Gallery Furniture, which opened recently on Post Oak at Westheimer in Houston.

The visit was an impromptu stop, as President Bush wanted to see the latest entrepreneurial venture of his valued friend, owner Jim McIngvale.

McIngvale toured President Bush around the 15,000-square-foot store that features collections from famous manufacturers such as Kreiss, Drexel Heritage and Tempur-Pedic.

The two men have had a long history of partnering together in many philanthropic ventures from Tsunami Relief for those halfway around the word to Hurricane aid for those devastated by the Gulf Coast hurricanes.