Texas is blessed with a world of restaurant choices any time of the year, but during August, we have an opportunity to try something new while also helping local food banks.

It’s Called Restaurant Weeks

Local Texas food banks have partnered with hundreds of Texas restaurants to fund thousands upon thousands of meals for those who need them.

Publicity for D/FW Restaurant Weeks 2019

Every August, these participating restaurants publish a three (or four) course menu at typically a $35 – $50 price point, giving patrons an opportunity to try some of their best selections at a cost that’s less than you’d pay if ordering from the regular menu.

Participating Cities

Currently, most Texas cities that offer these elaborate menus are only the big ones: D/FW, Houston, Austin and San Antonio.

Hopefully, more Texas cities will follow suit in the future, because it’s such a fantastic event for a worthwhile cause.

Key Lime Pie – on the $35 Morton’s San Antonio Restaurant Weeks Menu

5 Tips to Enjoy Restaurant Weeks in Texas

*The following is a guest post written by my daughter, Aly. She and her husband are enjoying newlywed life in Houston, and they’re the ones who first acquainted us with Restaurant Weeks, so I thought you might like to read her tips on experiencing this fun part of August in Texas.*

Wine doesn’t come with the price of the dinner, but your server will be happy to help you choose something that pairs well.

Hello, Everyone!

I’m Aly, and I live in Houston. My mom asked me if I had any tips on how to enjoy Restaurant Weeks, and the next thing I knew, I had volunteered to write a guest post!

I love talking about this kind of thing, and I hope you find my tips to be helpful.

Restaurant Weeks is a big deal where I live. Houstonians are great at eating out, but we’re also a very generous city. We love helping each other, and so do our restaurant owners.

Restaurant Weeks is a creative way to provide much needed food to people who fall on hard times and need help from a Texas food bank.

It’s also the perfect time to support local restaurants and try some of the very best offerings from their expert chefs.

Here are 5 helpful tips to make your Texas Restaurant Weeks experience amazing.

1.     Plan ahead-

Living in Houston, I’ve learned that we certainly do not have to plan to eat. We are going to eat – and a lot of times we are going to eat out. We have plenty of restaurants to choose from any day of the week. However, if you are going to eat at a restaurant participating in Restaurant Weeks – you need to plan ahead.  Many participating restaurants are higher- end and accept reservations, so it helps to set a date and make a reservation if possible.

2.     Read the Menu-

There are 250 restaurants in the greater Houston area that are participating in restaurant week this year – so deciding where to go takes some research. On the website houstonrestaurantweeks.com (or the websites for other cities listed at the end of this post), you can browse through all the menus. Some restaurants even offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus. The menus are posted on July 15 – about 2 weeks before the start of Restaurant Weeks. So start browsing early to narrow down your options.

3. Make a List-

After browsing the menus, make a list of the top 5 restaurants that you want to try. This will help when deciding where to go and will allow you to have a plan when it comes time to make reservations. You can also decide what you are going to order before arriving. This is a great time to try something new. Even if you have been to the restaurant before- order a new entrée or dessert to make your experience more adventurous.

4.     Gather a Group-

Dining out is perfect for date night, but it is also fun with a group. This is a great time to invite friends you’d like to get to know better, treat family to a nice dinner, or have your parents treat you! This is also a great time to celebrate special occasions. Everyone already gets dessert- so if you are celebrating a birthday you don’t need to buy a cake!

5.     Share if possible-

Some of the restaurants allow you to share the Restaurant Weeks preset menu. The menus usually include an appetizer, entrée, and dessert, which can be a lot of food for one person. So ask if you can share if you want to- or one person can order from the menu and one can just get an appetizer. These meals are still around 35-45 dollars per person for dinner so keep that in mind, too!

 

Overall, restaurant week is a great experience and makes trying new restaurants more exciting (and affordable). All over Texas we are fortunate to have great places to eat.

Houston, DFW, and Austin are all in the Zagat’s list of the 30 Most Exciting Food Cities in America. So get out there and have fun trying something new- we just might see you there.

I love to get dressed up a little for dinner out with my handsome husband, Nick.

What are your experiences with trying new restaurants? Let us know in the comments, okay?

Thank you for reading my guest post!

Aly O’Neal

Bon Appetit, Everyone!

Many thanks to Aly for guest-posting.

I hope she’ll be back, don’t you?

I also hope you’ve been inspired to follow Aly’s 5 helpful tips and that you’re making plans to try one of Texas’ participating Restaurant Weeks eateries.

Links to the Deets

Here’s the list of links to Texas Restaurant Weeks, where you’ll find all the tantalizing menus and lots more details.

If there’s one I’ve left out, please email me and I’ll add it! Here’s the address: brenda@texasoverfifty.com.

DFW Restaurant Weeks

Houston Restaurant Weeks

Austin Restaurant Weeks

San Antonio Restaurant Weeks

Permian Basin Restaurant Week Facebook Page

Which one will you try?

Encouraging everyday intentional adventure, and a wonderful dinner that actually helps someone else,

PS: Here’s a photo of the coconut cream pie I enjoyed at a recent Restaurant Weeks birthday experience. It was so good, y’all.

More posts on the subject of Texas eats:

Three Best Restaurant Chains Worth the Money

Culinary Firsts – Top Ten Experiences

A Sweet Stop at Collin Street Bakery in Waco