Hubby and I went to the Texas Bowl at NRG Stadium in Houston on New Year’s Eve to see my Baylor Bears play. It was a quick trip. We were literally gone and back in just 24 hours. We’re big supporters of the football teams of our respective alma maters and bowl games are always a fun event to cap off the holidays.
We were in Arlington on New Year’s Day 2015 to see Baylor lose by one point to Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl. We watched Baylor defeat Vanderbilt in the Texas Bowl in Houston a couple days after Christmas in 2018. We spent two New Year’s Days in New Orleans at the Sugar Bowl – in 2020 when we lost to Georgia and again in 2022 when the Bears defeated Ole Miss.
We felt good going into this game, riding high on a six-game winning streak, but LSU bested us 44-31. We played hard, outgaining the Tigers in yardage but a botched kickoff return, a questionable call by the refs and several instances of good old-fashioned foot-shooting kept us from victory.
We’ve been to NRG Stadium hundreds of times but this was our first time to sit on the club level and we enjoyed it. We started off with a heaping pile of birria nachos and bottles of water, followed up shortly with cold beers.
Being that it was an afternoon game, when it was over we returned to the hotel to change into sweatshirts because the temps had dropped substantially and then we Ubered over to Tom’s Watch Bar downtown, to eat supper and watch the Boise State/Penn State game. Hubby ordered Buffalo wings and French fries. I selected the “crispy chicken & cornbread pancake,” which was a sweet cornbread pancake topped with Nashville hot chicken and served with honey butter and maple syrup. It was delicious! We enjoyed the chill vibe at Tom’s and agreed we’ll definitely go back.
The following morning we wanted to enjoy a nice brunch before heading home and we ended up at Black Walnut Kitchen and Bar in Rice Village. We both ordered migas – we’re suckers for them – and they were wonderful. While he had a cup of standard Arabica coffee, I enjoyed a mimosa and a cup of Texas pecan coffee that was incredible. It was truly the best cup of coffee I’ve had in a while. And this was another place that we agreed we’ll return to in the future.
We made it back home in time to watch the Texas/Arizona State game and then later that evening I prepared the obligatory black eyed peas and bacon-fried cabbage which I served with tamales. Here’s wishing us all a Happy New Year!
Tom’s Watch Bar is located at 1201 Caroline St. in Houston.
Black Walnut Kitchen and Bar in Rice Village is located at 5510 Morningside Dr. in Houston.